Study pinpoints dangerous spots for pedestrians in Halifax and Dartmouth

A recently released study has pinpointed the Top 10 most dangerous spots to be a pedestrian in Dartmouth and Halifax.

Geography professor Nadine Schuurman and her team at Simon Fraser University used 14 years worth of information from the Nova Scotia Trauma Registry — a database of serious injuries requiring a hospital visit — to determine the areas.

She told NEWS 95.7's The Sheldon MacLeod Show, many of them have common characteristics.

“There would be a long block, some reason to cross the road, whether it's a bus stop or something other, and then a hill,” Schuurman explained. 

“We found this again and again in several places in Halifax … and also multiple lanes of traffic, so it makes it very difficult for any pedestrians to cross with safety.”

Lack of a median, crosswalk, and traffic calming measures were also cited as factors in the dangerous zones.

The researchers determined younger people in HRM are at a higher risk, as 46 per cent of those injured were between the ages of 11 and 30. 

“Often they want to cross quickly to a community centre or to a recreation centre, and if there's more than two lanes of traffic, one in each direction, that is a big risk for young people,” Schuurman said.

Males were slightly more likely to be struck at 54 per cent, and higher rates of injury happened in areas with lower and higher socio-economic statuses, compared with middle-class neighbourhoods.

Before studying pedestrian safety in Halifax, Schuurman conducted similar research in Vancouver. In the West Coast city, most of the hotspots were clustered in the downtown core near bars.

Here in HRM, our risky spots are close to sports and recreation facilities, along with shopping areas, however the study acknowledges those areas could have changed over the 14 years of data the researchers tracked. 

Schuurman believes lowering speed limits and adding infrastructure, like more roundabouts, crosswalks with lights and medians could increase safety for Haligonians.

According to the study, the Top 10 most dangerous areas for pedestrians in Halifax and Dartmouth are:

Halifax:

• Intersection at Sackville St. and Barrington St.
• Intersection at Barrington St. and Cornwallis St.
• Around the Halifax Shopping Centre
• Around the Halifax Common
• Herring Cove Rd., stretch between McIntosh St. and Williams Lake Rd. in Halifax
• Lacewood Dr., stretch between Braemount Dr. and Radcliffe Dr. in Halifax

Dartmouth:

• Intersection at Portland St. and Pleasant St.
• Area around Nantucket Avenue and Wyse Rd. by the Zatzman Sportsplex
• Pleasant St., stretch between Atlantic St. and Everette St.
• Victoria Rd., stretch between Highfield Park Dr. and Albro Lake Rd.