Not topical enough

I guess my letter to the newspaper wasn't "topical" enough. I didn't see it in any of the issues I read. I didn't read them all, but it's been 18 days since I sent it in and although I received an auto-response email I haven't heard anything else. This is what my letter said:

Do I Crosswalk or Jaywalk?

Baker Drive in the Russell Lake area is a busy street. It connects Portland Street to Mount Hope Drive and the Woodside Ferry. There are seniors homes on Baker Drive. It has a bank, a Sobeys, a drugstore and walk in clinic, a bus route, a Subway, even a Tim Horton's. In fact, the only thing it doesn't have is a crosswalk. Oh, there is a crosswalk at the bottom of the hill - did I mention there was a hill? There is a hill and it's quite a long climb from the bottom to the top. The top of the hill is where the other crosswalk is located. Basswood is that street's name. 

When you come out of the first senior's complex (there's more than one) and look across the street, you see a bus stop. That stop will connect you to buses heading to downtown Dartmouth, Dartmouth Crossing, Cole Harbor, all the main arteries. But, there's no way to get to the bus stop, unless you walk to the bottom of the hill, decide to be energetic and hike to the top of the hill, or take your life into your hands and cross the street without using a crosswalk. That's called jaywalking isn't it.

I walked up Baker Drive. I'm getting up there in years, but I'm not quite a senior yet. I had a difficult time crossing the street at my age in my physical condition. I presume the task would be considerably more difficult if I was in a walker or a wheelchair.

We tried to bring this to the mayor's attention. One of his assistants sent us a nice email advising us that a study will be conducted in the fall to determine if there is a need for a crosswalk on that street. I'm not clear on why a study needs to be conducted. Seniors. Bus stop. No access to the bus stop. Crosswalk needed. It's not rocket science.

Council has approved half a million dollars to repair the pedestrian bridge in North Dartmouth, what we northenders call the catwalk. That's great to hear. It could certainly use some sprucing up. But what about approving crosswalks on Baker Drive and other streets where they are needed?

I wonder how much a can of crosswalk paint costs. And an overhead crosswalk light too, of course. I'm sure the amount wouldn't be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

While Council is figuring it out, the seniors, who might be your mother, your uncle, or your grandmother, will just have to take their chances in the traffic.