'Sir, move along': Peace Bridge vandals prompt plan for loudspeaker and more cameras

After repeated vandalism of the Peace Bridge, Calgary plans to install more security cameras and a loudspeaker system that can shout commands at people who loiter too long in the area, according to the city councillor who represents the area.

Coun. Druh Farrell said there are already cameras monitoring the bridge deck, but the latest damage to windows along the side hand rails came from people hurling rocks from the riverbank below.

"People are getting under the bridge and throwing rocks onto the glass," she said. "It's very disappointing."

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This most recent damage came after the city spent about $150,000 to repair damaged overhead panels on the bridge, some of which was also blamed on vandalism.

Vandalism-related repairs have cost about $200,000 in total, since the Peace Bridge opened in 2012, according to the city.

After the latest damage, the city is planning to expand its security cameras and install a loudspeaker system similar to one already in place on the Langevin Bridge, located downstream along the Bow River, about two kilometres to the east of the Peace Bridge.

"If you loiter too long on Langevin Bridge, a loudspeaker with a person on the other end will say, 'Sir, move along,'" Farrell said.

"So, that's what we're looking at for the Peace Bridge."

Waste of taxpayer money

Mac Logan, the city's general manager of transportation, said it's "really frustrating" to see the bridge deliberately damaged.

"It's hard enough to fix the things in the city that wear out," he said. "It's really annoying in these economic times when we have to spend taxpayers' money on replacing unnecessary damage."

The Peace Bridge is a pedestrian and bicycle bridge over the Bow River connecting Eau Claire Park to the community of Sunnyside.

With lengthy delays and a construction cost of more than $24 million, the span — designed by world-renowned Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava — was a controversial project when it was being built and still has its critics.

Since opening, the unusual-looking bridge has become an iconic image for Calgary, representing the city in numerous national and international broadcasts and publications, as well as a regular draw for photo-seeking locals and tourists.

So far in 2016, the bridge has seen average traffic of 4,993 pedestrians and cyclists per weekday, according to automated counters that publish daily data online.

The city says that measure undercounts the actual number of bridge users by as much as 20 per cent, due to people walking or cycling side by side being counted only once by the automated devices.

The city began adding traffic signals this summer to Memorial Drive at Ninth Street, just west of the Peace Bridge, to provide better access for pedestrians and cyclists trying to cross the busy roadway, where jaywalking had become common.