You try and tell proponents of projects like this that there's got to be a better way, and suddenly you are an unsympathetic ignoramus who doesn't care about mental illness. Of course, the last thing anyone with a shred of decency wants to see is a fellow human being take their own life, but isn't this approach a little unfair to the 99.991% of residents who will never seriously contemplate jumping from the High Level Bridge?
Now you can't even take a picture from the middle of it without crap obstructing your lens. Worse yet, the surface areas of the pedestrian/multi-use lane ways have been reduced by about five percent on either side. The potential for collisions with cyclists is thereby increased by this squeeze.
I've crossed this bridge by foot, bicycle, and automobile countless times in my life. I think I once even skateboarded across. Whatever mode of transport you favour, it has occurred to me while walking alone late at night that I might be vulnerable to predatory individuals. Could not jumping into the river from high above be a reasonable last resort if the alternative is being badly beaten-up, stabbed, or shot trying to get home? I tell you, I'd sooner take my chances with a splash into the North Saskatchewan than a gang of toughies!
I've crossed this bridge by foot, bicycle, and automobile countless times in my life. I think I once even skateboarded across. Whatever mode of transport you favour, it has occurred to me while walking alone late at night that I might be vulnerable to predatory individuals. Could not jumping into the river from high above be a reasonable last resort if the alternative is being badly beaten-up, stabbed, or shot trying to get home? I tell you, I'd sooner take my chances with a splash into the North Saskatchewan than a gang of toughies!
If you ask me, this project was not only a tremendous waste of money, it's a waste of money that represents a value-subtractive net effect on Edmonton and the lives of Edmontonians.
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