CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — Kim Anderson will tell you there is an accident on the corner of Riverside Drive and Kensington Road every couple of weeks.
Anderson lives in Parkwood Estates, a collection of mobile homes, south of Northridge Parkway. Leaving her neighbourhood for work means she has to make a left onto the Trans-Canada Highway. Anderson says the intersection is confusing in multiple directions, and difficult to cross. No traffic light in any direction has a left turn signal.
Anderson had a close call recently. A car, travelling south from the St. Peters Road intersection blew through a red light, nearly colliding with her car.
“By the time I got to work, I was still shaking," she said.
Like many who live in the provincial district of Charlottetown-Hillsborough Park, she hopes the MLA elected Monday will address concerns about traffic and road infrastructure, even though these would normally be considered the municipal issues.
“Every politician, I tell them ‘you’ve got to do something about that.’ But it never gets done,” Anderson said, with a resigned laugh.
Anderson’s neigbourhood, District 9 Charlottetown-Hillsborough Park, was the only district not to send an MLA to the legislature after April’s provincial election. The election here was delayed due to the tragic death of Green party candidate Josh Underhay.
Three months later, the deferred election is unlikely to upend the minority situation at play in the legislature, but it could play a significant role in the balance of power. A win for the Progressive Conservatives would put them just shy of majority territory, with 13 seats. The opposition Liberals are hoping a win for their candidate could signal a rebound in the party’s fortunes, while the Greens see the deferred election as a chance to add to the party’s historic breakthrough. An NDP win would add a historic fourth party to the legislature.
Vote happens July 15
- The 2019 deferred provincial election for District 9 Charlottetown-Hillsborough Park takes place Monday.
- Elections P.E.I. has mailed out new voter information cards to every elector registered in District 9 on the provincial voters list, so voters are reminded to check their mail for the bright yellow envelopes.
- Those who are not on the voters list on advance poll day or election day can still vote, but will
- have to produce appropriate identification – something that shows the elector’s name and current address - and complete an oath at the polls.
- For further information contact Elections P.E.I. toll-free at 1-888-234-8683 or visit www.electionspei.ca
But for residents like Anderson, tilting the political scoresheet is hardly top of mind. Traffic pressures are the immediate concern. Some believe the district has absorbed a disproportionate share of Charlottetown’s growing pains, without listening to concerns of residents.
New developments are almost everywhere you look in the district. A 44-unit affordable seniors complex is planned on Norwood Road, behind the airport. Another apartment complex is visibly in the midst of construction, just off St. Peter’s Road. In nearby East Royalty, new homes are sprouting up.
And with more development, will come more traffic.
In East Royalty, electrician Lee Nicolle said the pace of development has been positive for his profession. But he has also seen the downsides every day.
His street, Robertson Road, branches off the St. Peters Road, a key traffic corridor leading in and out of Charlottetown. For Nicolle, this often means that a trip to Charlottetown can be a huge headache.
“Sometimes it'll take 10 minutes to take a left, because you can't just get out,” Nicolle said.
Many residents have taken to turning right, and then using the nearby Mel’s Petro-Canada as a turning point to edge back into traffic in the other direction. Nicole admits to sometimes doing this, even though he leaves for work far earlier than most commuters.
“I go to work at six. I can't imagine nine o'clock traffic,” Nicolle said.
The city has announced some measures to deal with traffic. Preliminary site work for a roundabout, aimed at smoothing out the flow of traffic, has begun on the corner of St. Peters and Norwood road, near the KFC.
But Nicolle doubts this will ease the traffic pressure in the area. He believes a stoplight at the corner of Robertson may help matters.
“I'm pretty much trapped where I'm at because there’s nowhere available for rent and what is available is three times what I'm paying."
-Amanda Fisher
Up at the bustling Mel’s station, East Royalty resident Joe Broderick says he’s concerned about the pace of development in the area. He concedes Charlottetown is in need of affordable housing. But most what he is seeing is not affordable.
“There's a housing shortage. But you're getting duplexes going in for a couple hundred grand,” Broderick said, gesturing across St. Peters Rd.
“There's not a lot of low-income going on over there.”
Near Kensington Court, Amanda Fisher said she is concerned about the lack of affordable housing. The mother of three says her family is outgrowing her current apartment.
“I'm pretty much trapped where I'm at because there’s nowhere available for rent and what is available is three times what I'm paying,” Fisher said.
When asked what she would ask a candidate seeking her vote, Fisher posed a simple question.
“How are you going to be different?” she asked.
Charlottetown-Hillsborough residents will go to the polls on July 15.
