Letters, Jan. 11

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/01/2024 (681 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Consider the overpass

Re: Options, opinions vary for future of Carberry crash site

Another option might be to build an overpass similar to what we see on the U.S. Interstate system. On and off ramps possibly with crossing traffic lights, if the volume is there. Seems it would be a less expensive option and certainly not gobble up the volume of land required for the proverbial cloverleaf overpasses we build in Canada. Certainly should at least be in the discussion.

Not sure the “J” Turn option on such a high-speed roadway is a good move.

Bob Haegeman

St-Pierre-Jolys

U-turn option interesting

According to the engineering report, a restricted-crossing U-Turn (RCUT) design could reduce fatal collisions by 50 per cent, whereas a roundabout design could further reduce fatalities to less than 20 per cent of current levels. This makes a roundabout the clear choice if safety is the overriding concern.

Modern roundabout design can accommodate high approach speeds and heavy transport trucks by use of a properly designed splitter island to deflect and slow traffic. They are also well-suited to the Highway 1 and 5 intersection, where the existing median is rather narrow.

The RCUT option is an interesting one, but probably not well-suited to this intersection due to the substantial through traffic on Highway 5, including a high volume of transport trucks. Consider such a truck on Highway 5, which would have to turn right into a collector lane on Highway 1, accelerate up to highway speed, traverse two lanes of traffic into a U-turn lane, make a U-turn across two lanes of opposing traffic into another collector lane, accelerate back up to highway speed, and finally turn right onto Highway 5. That seems very cumbersome, and not an obvious improvement over the current design, as it still requires trucks to cut across two lanes of traffic.

Canada, and Manitoba in particular, is well behind the rest of the world in building roundabouts. Although public attitudes are typically negative initially, studies show this becomes overwhelmingly positive post-construction.

Peter Blunden

Winnipeg

Bad driving at root of problem

I can’t believe all the rhetoric about the horrific collision at Highway 5 and 1 by Carberry this past year. All the politics and changes to the intersection will not rectify the root problem and cause of this horrible collision… driver error.

The intersection is not to blame for the fatalities at this junction. The blame is solely on the drivers of these vehicles when they pull out in front of oncoming traffic when it’s unsafe to do so.

The government can spend millions researching and reconfiguring this intersection to satisfy its political righteousness but will do nothing when the next knucklehead pulls out into oncoming traffic… which they will, no matter how the intersection is reconfigured. It’s about common sense which has nothing to do with politics.

Bill Potter

Morden

Re: This intersection was catastrophically unsafe; how many others are there? (Jan. 8)

Dan Lett has good reason to question intersections’ design-related and maintenance-related shortcomings. However, those deficiencies insufficiently explain Manitoba’s highway traffic collisions and/or fatalities. Unfortunately, there’s also a problem with human error.

From August 1987 until July 1997, I became very familiar with southeast Manitoba’s provincial roads (as they were then) and provincial trunk highways. Most vexatious among them, by my observations, at least, was the intersection of PR200 and PTH23, west of Dufrost. Nominally, at least, traffic on PR200 had to obey a stop sign and yield right-of-way to traffic on PTH23. Unfortunately, all too many of PR200’s users seem to treat the stop signs as suggestions, rather than as requirements. As for me, I never worried when I used PR200, because I was always in the latter category. However, I did worry about the former category when using PTH23; hence, I used it as infrequently as I could.

Others among my colleagues, friends, and acquaintances were not so fortunate. I can recall at least two fatalities at that intersection. Both, if I can rely on reports in the Free Press and in other local print media, seemed to denote errors in judgment by PR200’s users. However, the consequences, through no fault of their own, must also have severely impacted PTH23’s users. (Injuries, fatalities, and property damage tend not to differentiate right from wrong.)

So yes, by all means, let’s improve all intersections’ designs and maintenance. But, while we’re at it, let’s also spare some thought for the motorists’ culture that continues to treat issues such as stop signs and right-of-way as mere options.

Edward Keith Bricknell

Toronto

Shame, shame

Re: RCMP ‘looking into’ arrest of Rebel News personality by Freeland’s security detail (Jan. 9)

In regards to the arrest of David Menzies, there is a lot of shame to go around.

Shame on Ms. Freeland’s security detail for arresting Mr. Menzies. Yes, Ms. Freeland has every right to feel safe and secure whether in private or in public. Her security could have fulfilled that protection without resorting to, what appears to be, an unsubstantiated assault charge.

Now, believe me when I say I’m no fan of Mr. Menzies, nor do I consider The Rebel to be a legitimate news organization. Shame on Mr. Menzies and The Rebel for helping to create and foster an environment where politicians they don’t agree with have to worry about their safety to an unreasonable degree. Shame on the leader of the opposition for once again twisting and warping this incident to somehow being the prime minister’s fault. Shame on those, who like Mr. Poilievre, Mr. Menzies, and Mr. Levant pander to those who they know are full of anger, knowing full well it creates more vitriol and division.

Most of all, shame on those who attack civil discourse. It is the breakdown of this once-prevalent quality in both politics and everyday life that leaves us ripe for these kinds of scenes. It’s embarrassing. Using common sense, critical thinking, and good judgment, give credit where it’s due even if you don’t support them, and assign blame where it’s due, even if you support them. That’s a good recipe for integrity, which all politicians of any stripe can use. Not striving for that is… shameful!

Joe Stover

Churchill

Adviser’s role not partisan

Re: Outspoken MD risks losing independence in legislature office (Jan. 4)

I don’t think that Dr. Eric Jacobsohn’s effectiveness as a medical adviser will be determined by where he sits — physically or politically.

What will matter is being open-minded, listening to others, and thinking critically and systemically. His effectiveness will also depend on the scope of his role, the questions to be answered, the variety of other participants, the expected timelines and processes, and the resources provided for his tasks.

As stated by the premier, it will take time to shorten waits for care, to optimize human resources, and to better distribute health services. Improving health requires short and long-term strategies to transform the system, including public health and primary health care. To close the gaps and reduce inequities in health requires addressing their social and root causes.

An evidence-based strategy, including goals and measurable objectives, requires analyses of data from all settings as well as inputs from all health workers and others. The premier has committed to modernizing electronic health record systems. He has committed to listening to front-line workers and others.

Dr. Jacobsohn’s task is to analyze these inputs and to advise the government on achieving its goals. He should be judged on the cogency of his advice. The government should be judged on the rationale and outcomes of its decisions and policies. Neither should be judged on perceptions or speculations of partisanship or bias.

Joel Kettner, MD

Former chief medical officer of Health

Winnipeg