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Letter: City staff giving us the bump

Dear Editor, Re: “Speed humps on way for River Road,” News and Letters, September and October. I feel like I have been violated. My life is going to get a whole lot bumpier now.
Misery mile
This City of Richmond illustration shows where the 20 new speed humps will go along a stretch of River Road that has become notorious for speeding and serious accidents. Photo submitted

Dear Editor,

Re: “Speed humps on way for River Road,” News and Letters, September and October.

I feel like I have been violated. My life is going to get a whole lot bumpier now.

Every time I leave my driveway I will have to go over five speed humps if I am going east and if I choose to go west, it will be at least 21 — that is just one way and then I will have to go over them all again when I return home.

There is no alternate way to get off River Road.

The City of Richmond sent out a survey to area residents regarding speed humps.

Sixty per cent were against them while 40 per cent wanted them.

I thought the majority rules. The city decided to ignore the majority, so why did they even send the survey out?

I question if city staff would want to go over at least 42 speed humps every day of their life just to get off their street.

I have lived on River Road for 40 years. I have seen a lot of accidents and they are almost always caused by the driver.

They are either drunk, speeding or fall asleep at the wheel. I have driven for 48 years without any accidents and now I will be paying the price for someone else’s recklessness.

Our tax money is being spent on this.

I realize a cyclist was killed on River Road last year and it was just down the road from my house.

I do not believe speed humps would have made a difference as the driver had just rounded the corner from Westminster Highway and would not have been able to get up to speed before he hit the cyclist.

Furthermore, living here all these years I have seen many cyclists riding three or four across rather than single file.

They know they should ride single file but choose not to do this, so I question whether they will obey single file signage that the city plans to put up.

I also question how the speed humps will affect the snow-clearing in the winter on River Road?

Trudy Haywood

Richmond