Topsail Road dangerous, student at newly opened school says

Some parents and students at the new Waterford Valley High want to see a pedwayerectedover Topsail Road, one of the busiest streets in St. John's.

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"When I'm walking home, with the traffic I get really nervous," saidGrade 12 student AllyThornhill, who attended a meeting Tuesday to discuss road safety near the school, which opened just this month.

"I've already heard people talk to me about things that could happen and incidents that almost did happen," said Thornhill, who said she isnever comfortable crossing the street in front of the school.

Like many others at the meeting,Thornhill said it shouldn't take an accident before something is built.

"Everybody knows that for something like this to happen last time, somebody had to get hurt somebody had to die," she said.

"I don't want that to be me, I don't want that to be my friends. I don't want that to be someone I go to school with, I don't want that to be any of us."

The idea of building a pedway over the street has been put forward by members of St. John's City Council and others who are concerned for student safety, especially since a student was struck and killed on the street last February.

• Pedestrian, 17, dead after being hit by car in St. John's

While most supported the idea of a pedestrian walkway over the street, St. John's resident Tom Baird thinks there are other options than building a costlypedway over Topsail Road.

He agrees the street needs to be made safer for students, but he doesn't think millions of dollars need to be spent on a pedway.

"One idea would be to use an elevated crosswalk, curb extensions, pedestrian crossing lights," he said.

"There are a lot of other options that I think would be more effective and probably a lot cheaper."