Re: Qualicum Beach intersection design is all wet (The NEWS, Nov. 23).
Letter-writer Brian Jenkins complains about the price and effectiveness of the recent improvement to the Memorial/West Crescent interchange. He claims that a four-way stop there would have been cheaper, but would it have been cost-effective? Has he considered the energy inefficiency when every vehicle comes to a full halt, and the increased danger of major accidents if strangers miss the stop signs?
The new alignment of the road also makes it easier to see and assess the speed of vehicles descending Memorial. A roundabout could have been more aesthetic and energy-efficient, but it might have been more costly (while cutting the seriousness of accidents by 75 per cent, though).
However, to have done nothing about the pre-existing vision and drainage problems could not possibly have been better. Certainly the new arrangement is suited to the demographic of Qualicum residents, and is safer for visitors. What more could we ask for?
T.A. (Tony) Marsland
Qualicum Beach