Charlottetown applies for funding to make Ken's Corner safer

The City of Charlottetown hopes tomake a notorious intersection safer with funding from the province.

The intersection betweenEustonSt., Weymouth St., and Longworth Ave. known locally as Ken's Corner has been a concern for residents, businessesand the city for years.

"It's an odd corner, it has existed for a long time, a lot of people complain about it," saidPaul Johnston, manager of infrastructure and asset management for the city.

Charlottetown applied for municipal gas tax fundingto pay for a design engineering consultant to look at the intersectionand come up with ways to make improve it.

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'All day you hear the horns'

Paul Thomson works at A-1 Vacuum, located at the corner of EustonSt. and LongworthSt. He saidhe constantly sees confusion at the intersection.

There's just cars coming from so many different directions.- Louise Corota

"Continually all day you hear the horns, you hear brakes, tires squealing. People honking at people who are trying to get them to go through red lights when they're not sure, they're looking at the wrong one," Thomson said.

He's seen a number of fender-benders over the years, and believes it's "only a matter of time" before there's a more serious accident.

Meanwhile Louise Corota, who works at the Charlottetown Curling Club on EustonSt. just west of LongworthSt., saidshe feels she's "taking my life in my hands" whenever she tries to cross the street.

"There is no easy safe route to go across literally 30 feet," Corotasaid. "There's just cars coming from so many different directions."

Waiting for funding

In its application for gas tax funding, the city notes there have been "a number of minor accidents, and numerous near-misses" at the intersection.

The city is asking for $275,000to cover half the projected cost of both the design engineering, as well as eventual construction. The city would pay the other half.

Johnston said the idea is very much in the early stages. The funding request would first need to be approvedand then the city would have to see what ideas the consultant comes up with.

Thomson at A-1 Vacuum said he's happy the city is looking to do something about the intersection.

"I think it's an intersection that definitely could use something," he said."And whether it's a roundabout, or some delayed turning signals or something, I'm not sure."

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