By Jessica Lepp

Concern over Todd Road project proposal

Feb 11, 2016 | 11:52 AM

KAMLOOPS — While last nights city organized meeting for the Todd Road upgrade was a sign of progress, many Barnhartvale residents are left wondering why it’ll be another three years before shovels hit the pavement.

After reviewing the city’s preliminary plan last night, some are left to wonder why the project only includes a portion of the road.

Residents fear the risk to pedestrians will remain constant until real change is made.

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Longtime resident Daryl Stepaniuk says, “there are two issues. One is public safety and the other would be failing infrastructure.”

The city says it wont be before 2019 that any improvements would be made to Todd Road.

“By delaying any upgrades you’re off loading the legal liabilities down the road associated with failing infrastructure underground,” says Stepaniuk.

But the City of Kamloops says it’s not as simple as just adding a sidewalk and says the project will be much more complex than initially thought.

Deven Matkowski is the Engineering Manager and says, “we’re going to get a walkway there. The main challenge is that it’s a steep site, there’s not a lot of room in the right of way. We don’t want to take property from people to be able to make the project to work.”

The city is also looking at an overhaul of the pavement between Lamar Drive and Ronde Lane .

Residents say upgrading only 1.3 kilometres of Todd Road doesn’t go far enough.

Christine Watson who lives along Todd Road says, “the whole point, we were told by the city, is sidewalks have to go somewhere. We don’t understand why they stopped it there. You can’t make it to the park from where they put it to.”

Watson, who is also a member of the Barnhartvale Community Association says, residents along this stretch of road are no strangers to crashes and close calls with pedestrians.

Moving forward, the city says it will get into the detailed design process in late 2017.

“We’ll be contacting the residents right along the route making sure we sort out the designs and what the impact will be to their driveways and properties,” says Matkowski.

But in the meantime, residents say anything is better than nothing, and the sooner the better.

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