A pedestrian crossing 15th St. E, outruns oncoming traffic. (Nigel Maxwell/ paNOW Staff)

By Nigel Maxwell

Crossing the line

Stepping out of line? Prince Albert’s jaywalking debate

Apr 12, 2024 | 12:00 PM

With temperatures warming up, foot traffic in Prince Albert has significantly increased, and that’s a cause for drivers to be extra vigilant.

The City of Prince Albert does not have a jaywalking bylaw per say, but the topic does come up every so often, following either a near miss at a busy intersection or someone actually getting hit.

On Wednesday, a poll question posted to paNOW asked respondents if they would like to see stricter enforcement in Prince Albert to deter jaywalking. As of Friday morning, 74 per cent said yes, concerned someone was going to get badly hurt. The other 26 percent replied there were far more pressing issues to be concerned with.

According to stats provided by Parkland Ambulance, from Jan 1 to Mar 31, 2024, there were three pedestrian versus vehicle incidents attended by paramedics.

And while SGI does not have stats that specifically say “jaywalking”, a review of their pedestrian collision information for Prince Albert from 2020-2022, found there were 15 related incidents.

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Thirteen resulted in an injury, and two of them were fatal. SGI spokesperson Tyler McMurchy noted there were several situations at play including someone being at an intersection without the right of way; crossing between intersections; coming from behind vehicle; running into a roadway; or walking on traveled portion of the roadway

An elderly man misses the light at the intersection of 15th St. E and Central Ave. (Nigel Maxwell/ paNOW Staff)

While acknowledging the city has not passed a specific bylaw at this point, Prince Albert Police Chief Patrick Nogier explained there are sections of the Traffic Safety Act that could potentially be used to enforce problems associated to pedestrians wandering into traffic.

“I can confirm that officers routinely deal with people who are wandering onto the streets, but it doesn’t necessarily result in a charge for jaywalking. For example, individuals might be arrested for being intoxicated in a public place if they’re found wandering through traffic,” he said.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @nigelmaxwell