Elections
Do you support implementing a Vision Zero for Hamilton, with a goal of eliminating all pedestrian and cyclist deaths on our streets? If so, what specific actions would you take to implement this policy, and if not, why?
Responses to the question: "Do you support implementing a Vision Zero for Hamilton, with a goal of eliminating all pedestrian and cyclist deaths on our streets? If so, what specific actions would you take to implement this policy, and if not, why?"
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48 Candidate Responses (top)
| Mayor | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Baldasaro, Michael | Yes | Yes. I would stringently enforce jay walking by-laws, especially on the corner of King and James.
All cyclists and bicycles must be licensed if on main streets and all riders must adhere to the rules all motorists abide by and/or face the loss of their ride, depending on the infraction and history of the rider and condition of the bicycle. All electric bicycles as well as sidewalk scooters must be insured. |
| Butt, Ejaz | Yes | More visible policing |
| Eisenberger, Fred | Yes | |
| Lavigne, Crystal | Yes | Of course I would love to be able to eliminate all pedestrian and cyclist death on our streets. I would also love to eliminate death due to motor vehicle accidents on our streets as well.
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| McHattie, Brian | Yes | I support this idea strongly. We need to increase the safety all of our residents as they walk within and beyond their own neighbourhoods. Specifically, I think the North End Neighbours have taken a very active role in making their neighbourhood safer for all. I support the work they have done and hope other neighbourhoods adopt these methods. |
| Pattison, Michael A. | Yes | I do support Vision Zero as safe streets are a priority when establishing family friendly neighbourhoods. As far as implementation of this policy we would have to data collect the primary reasons for all deaths and injury. We would also have to look at known trouble locations and what makes them more dangerous than the rest of our city. If visibility is the issue, is it buildings too close to corners? Is it parked cars in the vicinity that create the ensuing chaos? Once we mitigate the most common factors that lead to pedestrian deaths in our city, then we can make the best decision in order to fix these ongoing problems. |
| Ward 01 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Allen, Jason | Yes | Yes. but it's a lofty goal, and will take likely many terms of office to achieve. The reason Vancouver's pedestrian fatality rate is so low is that they have decades of good planning decisions that slowed down motor vehicles, and made it easier and safer to use active transportation. The political climate in Vancouver is also markedly different than that here, and many in Hamilton still hold on to the goal of being able to drive from one end of the city to the other in 20 minutes along Main. That is incompatible with the goal of safety for pedestrians and cyclists, so while I fully support the goal of Vision Zero, I have no illusions as to how long it will take to get there. |
| Greco, Tony | Yes | Yes. While I think that this goal is admirable, I know that attaining a zero rate will take some long, hard work. The separation of cars from bikes and pedestrians is important and I will see to it that the design of our roads, with traffic calming features, and favourable road infrastructure, will make this happen. I do believe, though, that we are heading in the right way.
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| Johnson, Aidan | Yes | I absolutely support the intention behind Vision Zero and the need to ensure that no cyclists are harmed or killed on our streets. I will vote in favour of actions to calm traffic and identify high frequency accident zones. I will also work with city staff to identify areas within my ward where poor visibility or untended infrastructure could increase risk. Lastly, I will hold a roundtable to hear from concerned citizens including cyclists to determine which initiatives are the top priority.
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| Rosen, Ira | Yes | I feel that Vision Zero Hamilton can be is an achievable goal, however to get there we need to make some major changes to the city's infrastructure which would include the redesign of our crosswalks, new ways to look at high accident areas. There needs to be better separation between cyclists and vehicular traffic. Many people in Ward 1 that I have talked to would like to see more speed barriers and perhaps more stop signs. The addition of the dedicated Bus Lane has become a catalyst for many traffic related issues with in the Strathcona community perhaps that plan needs to have some adjustments.
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| Shaw, Sandy | Yes | Vision Zero is a laudable and fully achievable goal. It needs to be achieved by the redesign of our crosswalks, barriers erected in high accident areas that encourage separation of traffic from cyclists and walkers. Calming of streets by use of speed barriers and even more stop signs. Also the next round of council will include the conclusion of the 5 year traffic calming pilot in the North End, which included a blanket 30 km/h speed limit, which could be a pointer to other neighbourhoods adopting this approach.
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| Ward 02 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Farr, Jason | Yes | I think it is safe to say that our community has embraced the two way Cannon Track. What is most appealing is that it has a physical barrier to the traffic. The conversation of making our other existing and future lanes as accommodating has not gone unnoticed as I read the RTH posts and other communications.
I strongly supported the pedestrian mobility plan. I started the Queen Cannon Study group with C. McHattie and will follow through. Generally, while we may never get to zero, we should continue as a Council to be supportive of any measures we can take to make our streets complete and strive for that zero. Provide opportunities for autos to slow up a little and share the road and continue to make crossing safe for seniors and kids. Remember, our traffic department is utilizing funds from our ever growing re-light camera reserve (now at 17 million I believe). We can keep our eye on that and add to the good work, utilizing these funds for public safety on our roads. |
| Heaton, Kristina | Yes | Removal of obstructions, like the calming curves, which make cycling perilous is a start. Adding more angle parking is key to accessibility for businesses to flourish. Buses, cars and cyclists navigating these, is extremely dangerous. This concept has not improved Barton Street whatsoever.
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| Wallis, Terri | Yes | While I do not think it is possible to eliminate all deaths I think it is a good goal to aim for. I think we need better designed and safer sidewalks, more bike lanes, more cross walks and slower speed limits in some areas of the city. |
| Ward 03 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Agostino, Ralph | Yes | Yes; At anytime we can help avoid more deaths on our streets, it’s always a good idea. To accomplish this goal we need to move forward by implementing the vision zero project |
| DiMillo, Mark | Maybe | No one wants to see deaths to pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists on our roadways. Having reviewed the recent reports from police services it appears we are on the right track and there have been fewer deaths on our roadways overall. I believe we need to implement some traffic calming measures first and foremost to help reduce then eliminate the deaths referenced in the Vision Zero proposal. I would need to undertake to review all the recommendations, and together with community engagement find a balanced approach that may include aspects of the vision zero policy. |
| Green, Matthew | Yes | Every City Council has both a moral and fiduciary duty to ensure the health and safety of its residents. I fully support Vision Zero's mandate to eliminate all pedestrian and cyclists deaths on our city's streets. In Ward 3, I would like to introduce a safe routes to school program that offers elementary school children supervised walking and biking routes and middle school/high school students pre planned routes complete with highly visible signage alerting drivers of the program. I would also introduce motions that would reduce speeds around all public parks to 30km and also extend school zones speed reductions to larger geographic areas around schools with higher rates of traffic speed enforcement. |
| Mejia, Victor | Yes | yes perhaps speed bumps around schools. zones and small streets |
| Omazic, Drina | Yes | Improved road safety is a priority in every neighbourhood. With pedestrians and cyclists in Hamilton at greater risk of being hit by a car than the provincial average, a Vision Zero strategy to end traffic deaths and injuries on our streets is a goal I fully support.
Action I would favour include: * Using best engineering practices in street design and configuration * Include all Hamiltonians in a public conversation on street safety. * Ultimately, it will take individual actions to make our streets safer. Hamilton needs an education campaign on the consequences of careless and dangerous behaviour. * Expanded enforcement against dangerous moving violations like speeding and failing to yield |
| Simmons, Tim | Yes | No one wants pedestrian and cyclist deaths. The police and schools are a good place to start to teach people bicycle safety. Statistically, if cars are moving slower the number of deaths are reduced, so traffic calming would also be helpful. |
| Ward 04 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Merulla, Sam | Yes | Yes, all new road construction must take into account a cycling, pedestrian, truck, public transit and car perspective into account to ensure equality and safety.
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| Moreau, Lorna | Yes | Yes. Residents need to be heard. |
| Ward 05 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Brown, David | Maybe | I believe that City Council and the City of Hamilton always makes decisions with the goal of protecting its residents. As the Chairman of the City of Mississauga Traffic Safety Council for over ten years, I worked with the City staff and stakeholders to implement various safety programs to address the conflicts between pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles. There are always opportunities to improve traffic safety so long as we are aware and prepared to act. I will bring this experience to City Council. |
| Storm, Larry | Yes | Ensure that cyclists follow all traffic laws is number one. Most cyclists obey the laws, but the ones that don't normally get hurt. Lane splitting, running ambers/red lights are a highway traffic act offense and should be dealt with the same way an automobile violation is. We can look at changing the time count between light changes, from the 4 we are used to, to a 6 count giving pedestrians and cyclists an extra second or two to complete their cross. |
| Ward 06 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Rodrigues, Dan | Yes | Ideally, we should be seeing no vehicular, pedestrian, nor cycling deaths. Our City currently has a Complete Streets policy, and we need to ensure that we are not politicizing this policy. We must ensure that any new roadway (re)developments follow the Complete Streets policy. To ensure that the Policy is followed and through civic engagement, we can and should offer a broad spectrum of options to attain the mandate of the Policy. An example could include variable formats of walkways versus the tried-and-true basic concrete slabs. |
| Ward 07 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Beck, Keith | Yes | I can support a Vision Zero policy with the target of zero pedestrian an cyclists deaths, as I've heard has been pursued by other communities in Canada. I have no specific plan to implement because I have focused my time on researching other parts of policy. I'm willing to ask for help from the community to educate me on what should be pursued to realize this goal. |
| Burghall, Greg | Yes | Yes, I believe in a Vision Zero. We need to start with flashing lights in all school zones during school beginning and end times, as well as better enforcement in these zones. The RIDE program also needs to be stepped up to put out a stronger message to those deciding to drink and drive. I also support affordable bicycle licensing and registration for riders over 18 years old to encourage more cyclists to respect the rules of the road which will in turn gain them more respect and care from drivers. |
| Ward 08 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Czerniga, Joshua Peter | Yes | |
| Ward 09 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Conley, Doug | Yes | Yes re eliminating deaths; however, no comment re solutions at this time.
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| Galindo, Cam | Yes | Yes. With a goal of eliminating all pedestrian and cyclist deaths, the city should have moved forward with this initiative a long time ago. By following the example set by Sweden, we can ensure that our transport systems take the burden of ensuring safety. The first step would be to update our infrastructure by making mobility safe from the start. Step two is adapting vehicle technology. Step three involves services and educating the public. Lastly, step four ensures control and surveillance.
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| Marrone, Tone | Yes | any time someone dies riding or walking its a trgedy.i almost died 5 years ago riding my bike.theres always hope for mankind when you see him on a bike...
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| McMullen, Geraldine | Yes | Yes, the timely installation of the complete streets policy which is looking for the same results as Vision Zero is paramount in making our streets safe for everyone. This couldn’t more apparent in Stoney Creek where the pedestrian infrastructure needs are not keeping up with the increased population growth. The protection of human life and health are responsibilities of both the system designer and the user.
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| Robbins, Marie | Maybe | I believe that having a Vision Zero target is commendable. Specifically, I have written on the need to better address community speed limits as way to reduce street fatalities and I favour bike lanes as a way of improving safety and traffic flow. However, from a practical standpoint we don’t want to set standards that are going to be impossible to meet. |
| Rosser, Christopher | Yes | I believe eliminating all pedestrian and cyclist deaths would be great. I think to accomplish this goal there needs to be a change of mindset by everyone. Cyclists, drivers and pedestrians all need to use a common sense approach. Most cyclists and pedestrians feel that the signals and signage on the road are guidelines as they are virtually unenforceable. In Calgary, pedestrians are given the right of way with push button cross walks in multiple places along the roads. Drivers out west, are conditioned to be aware of pedestrians.
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| Rukavina, Frank | No | Though Vision Zero for Hamilton is a great idea, it is impossible to 100% implement plus I believe it would have negative impacts on small business. |
| Ward 10 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| DiFalco, Teresa | Yes | Yes, I am the President of a Neighbourhood Association for Safe and Healthy neighbourhoods. Safety is a very important component of the work that we do.
I think we need to seriously look at traffic calming, alternative means of getting around that are less likely to cause death or serious injury, we need to study the root causes of injuries and fatalities and match solutions to that intelligence. It is also important that we work in partnership with the police. Each candidate received an invitation by the Acting Chief of Police to attend an information session on Crime and Public Safety. I was the only Ward 10 Candidate that attended. I take public safety very seriously. |
| Pearson, Maria | Yes | Of course! who would not support the elimination of pedestrian and cyclist deaths. We should also include deaths of motor vehicle drivers and passengers, especially innocent people.
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| Ward 12 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Bryson, K. Grace | Maybe | We all are responsible for making sure pedestrians are able to cross streets in a safe manner. |
| Ferguson, Lloyd | Maybe | |
| Iachelli, John F.F. | Yes | My platform is to make roads safer in Ancaster. There are trafficked areas which have no sidewalks. And gravel shoulders which could potentially cause cars to skid and people to fall into gullies trying to get to a bus stop. This is not limited to Ancaster I am sure. |
| Nicholl, Anthony | Yes | Yes. I do agree we should examine various ways of eliminating pedestrian and cyclist fatalities on our streets. |
| Ward 13 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Norton, Kevin | Yes | This is an especially important goal to me. I myself am an avid biker and have been injured by vehicles. The greatest barrier to realizing this project is the maintenance and existence of safe routes for pedestrians and bikers alike. I very much support bike routes where it is feasible and alternative routes where it is not. I am very adamant about my support of trails and their maintenance as well. On street by street bases I am always happy and willing to investigate any who approach me about the need for signage on their own road of the need for a sidewalk as the case may be. Making Hamilton pedestrian and bike friendly is a goal I will undertake with the utmost dedication.
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| Risdale, Marc Rhéal | Yes | Yes. I am proud to be the first municipal candidate in Hamilton to have taken the Active Communities pledge and I will hold myself to fulfilling their initiatives. These simple changes are key to reducing not only the number of deaths on our streets but preventing hundreds of costly injuries as well. |
| Scime, Danya | Yes | YES, I have an expanded 'cycle ped path' idea to allow our sidewalks and streets to be more in harmony with all traffic while ensuring safer access for pedestrians, cyclists, scooters and walkers. |
| Vanderbeek, Arlene | Yes | Yes. I would support a Vision Zero plan for Hamilton through public education, workable design and planning of services and infrastructure that focus on safety for vehicles, pedestrians, and cyclists, alike.
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| Yull, Toby | Yes | Yes, I support investing in engineering, enforcement, and education, and focusing on dangerous intersections, as a way of reducing/eliminating cyclist and pedestrian deaths and injuries on Hamilton's streets.
Specific actions in Dundas would include major improvements to sidewalks, ramps, and separation from traffic, especially in the Governors Rd/Ogilvie Street area, where these basic city services are in terrible condition and actually encourage elderly walkers to use the travelled portion of the road to get where they are going. I am also recommending a slower vehicle speed for several streets in Dundas, and longer walk signals at some locations. The 5-second delay on walk signals is in place in a couple of spots in town. Scramble intersections where it's all-red to allow walkers to cross all directions at once, are also worth considering. I look forward to gaining an understanding of traffic issues city-wide. There is so much new thinking on 8-80 streets for pedestrian safety and generally health-promoting environments. I am a great consumer of lectures, slide shows and articles on what some of the 'rock stars' of urban design are doing worldwide. Let's raise the bar in Hamilton. |
| Ward 14 | ||
| Candidate | Brief Response | Full Response |
| Knowles, Steven | Yes | Yes i support this. I would accomplish this by ensuring that our development of safe streets is done with a balance in mind for all pedestrian, cyclist, and vehiclular traffic. |
| Stewart, Scott | Yes | I certainly want to see zero deaths on City roads; whether pedestrian, cyclist or driver. Using HPS data to continue doing as they are, increased patrol/monitoring of key intersections and roads. Continue and likely increase enforcement relating to pedestrians and cyclists to ensure they are less likely to contribute to incidents. Bike lanes, laid out appropriately as part of a Transportation Plan will likely assist to reduce the number of cycling deaths. |
Response Summary (top)
| Brief Response | Count | % of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 42 | 87.5% |
| No | 1 | 2.1% |
| Maybe | 5 | 10.4% |
39 Candidates Have Not Responded (top)
| Mayor | ||
|---|---|---|
| Clancy, Mike | ||
| Clark, Brad | ||
| Francis, Warrand | ||
| Iamonico, Nick | ||
| Ryerson, Phil | ||
| Tavares, Ricky | ||
| Ward 01 | ||
| Lewis, Brian | ||
| Ward 02 | ||
| Dallas, Ed | ||
| Henry, Ryan | ||
| Vail, John | ||
| Ward 03 | ||
| Anastasiou, Maria | ||
| Assadourian, Bob | ||
| Gibson, Sean | ||
| Hess, Jol | ||
| John, Eva | ||
| Kelly, Brian | ||
| Millette, Byron Wayne | ||
| Pinho, Carlos | ||
| Szajkowski, Bernie | ||
| Ward 04 | ||
| Laurie, John | ||
| Whalen, Tina | ||
| Ward 05 | ||
| Collins, Chad | ||
| Rusich, George | ||
| Ward 06 | ||
| Jackson, Tom | ||
| Olynchuk, Brad | ||
| Ward 07 | ||
| Duvall, Scott | ||
| Ward 08 | ||
| Whitehead, Terry | ||
| Ward 09 | ||
| Austin, Lee | ||
| Fiorentino, Nancy | ||
| Ward 10 | ||
| Yachetti, Luana | ||
| Ward 11 | ||
| Johnson, Brenda | ||
| Rigitano, Vincenzo | ||
| Ward 13 | ||
| Coull, Mark | ||
| Court, Rick | ||
| Mitchell, Pamela | ||
| Urquhart, Christeen | ||
| Ward 14 | ||
| Pasuta, Robert | ||
| Ward 15 | ||
| Bos, Neil | ||
| Partridge, Judi | ||
