We’ve been saying it so many times over the years that we’re starting to sound like a broken record.
Changes must be made on the Malahat. As the only highway connecting Greater Victoria with other parts of the Island, there needs to be an alternative route should be there a crash on that dangerous stretch of road.
There have been a number of incidents ranging from minor stalled vehicles to major crashes that have caused significant delays on the Malahat in recent months.
The most recent collision took place last Wednesday just after 8 a.m. between a sewage truck and a blue SUV near. The crash occurred in the south bound lane of the highway near the Goldstream Boat House. The driver of the sewage truck, who has been identified by family as 36-year-old Nanaimo resident and father Jonathan Seidel, died.
The crash closed the highway for several hours as investigators were examining the scene, leaving thousands of motorists to detour via the Pacific Marine Circle Route. Others tried to catch the ferry between Brentwood Bay and Mill Bay and shortly after lunch, the sailings were sold out for the remainder of the day.
Residents need to demand change – either in the form of improvements to the highway or an alternative route.
A Duncan resident hopes to spark change with a petition calling for city and provincial officials to build the latter. Paul Russell said with the growth in the West Shore in general, the number of people travelling up and down the Malahat is only going to increase.
“Business and economy are driven by Victoria, what does this look like in five to 10 years when the community expands…when there’s 50,000 people commuting on it every day,” he said.
As of Monday, the petition has garnered more than 4,100 signatures.
Now’s the time to demand change from those in power, or least take baby steps towards it. It’s easy to ignore a problem that people don’t speak up about, but they can’t ignore the growing chorus of people who want to see action.
editor@goldstreamgazette.com