Saint John to fix up 'accessibility nightmare' at intersection

A two-decade push to make a major Saint John intersection more accessible to people with disabilities will be seeing results in the coming months, city hall says.

Work this summer at McAllister Drive and Westmorland Road will include upgrades such as audible pedestrian traffic signals and ramps onto sidewalks and island.

The four-way intersection — near McAllister Place mall and other large and small commercial businesses — has crosswalks that require getting across pedestrian islands. 

But the islands from three of the intersection's four corners are small and none have ramps, meaning pedestrians and people in wheelchairs, are confronted by a curb as they cross. The islands are also not fully aligned with crosswalk lines.

"Some of the crossings actually bypass the islands, which is not to standard," Jill DeMerchant, the city's traffic and municipal engineer said at a recent information session about the intersection.

"So we're going to be making that improvement as part of this project."

The construction will bring the area larger pedestrian islands that have ramps. The sidewalks will also have tactile walking surfaces, which are textured patches of sidewalk near the street that serve as cues for pedestrians who are blind and using canes.

"Currently, there are no audible pedestrian signals for the pedestrian crossings, so we'll be adding those as part of this project as well, which are the countdown timers for the crosswalks," DeMerchant said.

Marisa Hersey-Misner, the chair of the city's ability advisory committee, said the changes will make an important difference to people's access to banks, shops, theatre and transit.

"People need to get to their doctor's appointments, their shopping, to just have social interaction, all these things," she says. 

"If you can't have access, then you end up having other issues such as mental health issues. You don't have that ability to get out and walk and get exercise and all those things. So it is very important for us to improve accessibility."

Statistics Canada's most recent numbers on disabilities — released in 2022 — show 35 per cent of New Brunswick's population with at least one disability, the second-highest proportion in the country. Over a five-year period, the province also had the largest increase in the country — 8.6 percentage points — in people with disabilities.

The project is a part of the summer's slew of construction activity in the city and is set to start in July and continue until September, according to a staff report.

In a statement, Kevin O'Brien, Saint John's senior technical municipal engineer, said the estimate for the overall cost of the project is $1,026,189. This, he said, includes construction costs for the intersection, storm sewer, traffic equipment and engineering consulting fees.

Construction is expected to have a considerable impact on traffic.

The east end project will also include work on the storm-sewer infrastructure.

Intersection an 'accessibility nightmare,' advocate says

Hersey-Misner said the intersection is one of the most dangerous in the city, calling it an "accessibility nightmare" for those with mobility disabilities. 

"The ability advisory committee has had this particular intersection on our priority list since 2005," Hersey-Misner said.

The city has been resistant, she said, because of the traffic volume, the size of the intersection and the steep cost of upgrading it.

Being legally blind since birth, Hersey-Misner said that after a few bad experiences, she tries to avoid the area.

"One of the last times I used this intersection, I didn't have a guide dog. I wasn't using my white cane and the sun was glaring right in my eyes, and I couldn't see anything, and I was really afraid to even cross the street," she said.

"I was trying to get to McAllister Place to catch a bus. So I basically had to stand at the intersection, listen to all the traffic and how the traffic flow was going. I did probably three or four rotations of the light before even trying to venture out." 

Hersey-Misner also said the time the signals allow pedestrians to cross is often too short, even for pedestrians without disabilities. 

"So you take somebody with the mobility disability or a senior that walks slower — they're really struggling to get across the intersection."

Hersey-Misner said the changes coming to the area are positive, but she wants the city to go further and be a leader in accessibility. Other intersections have similar problems, she said. Her committee is also trying to make parking more accessible in the uptown.

DeMerchant said other infrastructure projects in progress, such as one on Main Street into the city's north end, will include accessibility improvements where needed.