Winnipeg mayoral candidate resurrects pledge to open Portage and Main
A Winnipeg mayoral candidate is pledging to bring down the barriers at Portage and Main, despite the results of a plebiscite held on the issue four years ago.
Rana Bokhari said it's about improving accessibility across the city.
If she's elected mayor, Bokhari vowed the concrete barriers at the iconic intersection will be removed permanently.
"Once they're gone, they're not coming back up,” Bokhari said in an interview Monday. “It is a human rights issue. It is an accessibility issue."
The barriers have to be removed anyway to complete repairs to key infrastructure under the intersection, Bokhari said. She added she’s in favour of opening the intersection to pedestrians but only after a bigger discussion takes places to make decisions on crossings, bike lanes and where they should be located.
It has long been considered a historic and iconic intersection, one with concrete barriers at its corners, blocking people using sidewalks from crossing the busy roadway.
Vehicles can travel at surface level but pedestrians are forced to walk underground or detour to nearby crossings to get to the other side of the street.
John Sillers uses a walker and often takes the bus from his Winnipeg home to run errands downtown.
While he'd like the intersection opened to pedestrians, Sillers expressed concern about crossing the street due to heavy traffic flows.
"The street is too long,” he said. “You can't walk across it and you're not going to make it on time."
Bokhari’s promise is similar to one made by outgoing Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman before 65 per cent of people voted in the last election to keep the intersection closed to pedestrians in a non-binding plebiscite.
CTV News Winnipeg reached out via email to seven of the 11 other mayoral candidates who polled at or above the three per cent support Bokhari received in the latest Probe Research poll to see where they stand on the issue.
Rick Shone said he was a proponent of opening the intersection in 2018 and still supports the idea.
Kevin Klein said the intersection will have to be ripped up to fix a waterproof membrane under Portage and Main and that it may be less expensive not to replace the barriers. He's open to examining a pedestrian crossing at the intersection.
Candidate Scott Gillingham said in a statement he doesn't support reopening Portage and Main at this time, adding the result of the plebiscite was very clear during the last election and that it would be disrespectful to ignore that and go in a different direction.
Jenny Motkaluk, who ran against Bowman in 2018, said the issue was resolved by the city-wide referendum when she said Winnipeggers voted overwhelmingly to keep the intersection as is.
Shaun Loney is in favour of opening the intersection to pedestrians.
Glen Murray said the people spoke on the issue once already and we shouldn't be second-guessing that.
Sillers thinks it's worth another look.
"If you're walking down the street here, you can't get across,” he said. “You're going way around."
Robert-Falcon Ouellette did not respond by deadline.
Don Woodstock, Idris Adelakun and Chris Clacio are also running for mayor.
The municipal election is Oct. 26.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
A 'tragedy that can't be measured': North Bay's forever chemical problem is also the rest of Canada's
For decades, North Bay, Ontario's water supply has harboured chemicals associated with liver and developmental issues, cancer and complications with pregnancy. It's far from the only city with that problem.
opinion How to use your credit card as a powerful wealth-building tool
Irresponsibly using a credit card can land you in financial trouble, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew says when used properly, it can be a powerful wealth-building tool that can help grow your credit profile and create new opportunities.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Here's what 'the hinge' move is, how to do it correctly
When you're picking something up from the floor or bending over to tie your shoe laces, you're performing "the hinge move," according to movement trainers.
Dashcam video shows terrifying near-miss on two-lane northern Ontario highway
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
Average hourly wage in Canada now $34.95: StatCan
Average hourly wages among Canadian employees rose to $34.95 on a year-over-year basis in April, a 4.7 per cent increase, according to a Statistics Canada report released Friday morning.
Trump heading to Jersey Shore to rally 'mega crowd' in weekend break from hush money trial
After a long week in court, Donald Trump is heading to the Jersey Shore. And his campaign says he'll be joined by "tens of thousands" of his friends.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.