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Letter: New West doesn't need to block this Sixth Avenue lane

Editor: I have been residing in New Westminster since the fall of 2017. My wife is a dialysis patient and we have really come to appreciate the service that’s provided for her at the Royal City Centre dialysis clinic.
Sixth Avenue
Sixth Avenue, between Eighth and Sixth streets, is one of the roads where the city has reallocated road space to pedestrians and cyclists as part of the city's response to COVID-19 physical distancing requirements.

Editor:

I have been residing in New Westminster since the fall of 2017.

My wife is a dialysis patient and we have really come to appreciate the service that’s provided for her at the Royal City Centre dialysis clinic.

We are former residents of Surrey, but have come to love living in the Royal City.

We also appreciate the efforts of the city in terms of protecting its citizens from (COVID-19).

However, I was surprised recently to see a number of cones on Sixth Avenue right beside Royal City Centre resulting in the removal of one traffic lane to facilitate social distancing

I measured the sidewalk and it is 10-feet, eight-inches wide.

It is therefore not surprising that many people are not walking on the cordoned-off section of the Sixth Avenue roadway.

For about two months when the virus was much more active in our community, we did not cordon off the road.

Now that our infection rate is way down, someone decides they need to throw their weight around and cordon off a section of the road.

This action undermines the respect the average citizen has for authority because common sense tells them that a sidewalk of 10-feet, eight-inches is more than sufficient for social distancing.

There are trees on the sidewalk, but even if you measure from the base of the trees, there is still eight feet left.

I would therefore urge that the cones are removed, allowing for more efficient flow of traffic. Let common sense prevail.

Allan Visser, New Westminster