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By John McDonald
Josie Evans will be laid to rest today. The 15-year-old Lake Country girl died last week, the victim of a tragic confluence of circumstances; bad weather, dark clothing, poor visibility and a violent encounter with a truck.
A roadside memorial has sprung up at the spot on the largely rural road where she died, a cross surrounded with flowers, stuffed animals, candles and hand-written poems and cards. Over a thousand people have signed on to her Facebook memorial page, friends and strangers alike, posting messages of loss and pain. Most are outpourings of grief. Some are sputtering angry calls for sidewalks to be installed along the oddly-named Bottom Wood Lake Road where she died Jan. 13.
John McDonald
In Josie’s Facebook gallery, her face looks out from numerous photos of typical teenage stuff, most showing her with a knowing half-smile that seems much older than her years.
At her memorial today there will be dozens of red-eyed teen-aged girls, faces crushed in grief, perhaps feeling tragedy for the first time in their young lives, and stoic stone-faced boys with thoughts only they can know, all centred around a young girl who died before she ever really had the chance to live.
I don’t know Josie Evans nor any of her fellow students at George Elliot Secondary School, but I know many will echo the demand for the sidewalk they believe would have saved her life. Lake Country Mayor James Baker and district councillors have heard that call too, as made evident by the press release they issued yesterday. Council expressed its condolences and vowed action, promising to consult with citizens and Josie’s fellow students about ways to improve traffic safety on Bottom Wood Lake Road and other parts of the district.
And that’s where the story moves from the blistering emotion of a young girl’s untimely demise to the cold realm of risk assessment and cost benefit analysis.
Mark my words: Despite council’s attempt at comforting everyone, there is no way a sidewalk will be built along the rural road where Josie Evans died, at least not anytime soon.
There isn’t the money in the Lake Country budget, nor would Lake Country residents, their thoughts about Josie aside, stand for the tax increase that would be necessary to fund such an upgrade.
I talked to Lance Kayfish, risk manager for the City of Kelowna, one municipality away from the emotional heat of Lake Country.
He puts it in perspective this way, citing the city’s plans for sidewalks. “If we were to install sidewalks on all our arterial roads, never mind the collectors or residential roads, it would take 50 years and $100 million,” said Kayfish, who wants it made clear he speaks only about Kelowna. “If we were to put all the money on the table at once, it could be done faster, but $100 million is two and a half H20 pools and it had a significant taxation impact. Extrapolate from that.”
He doesn’t know the exact cost of a metre of sidewalk, but points out that you can’t just lay down sidewalk in isolation. They require curb and gutter, catch basins and storm sewers alongside them.
“You can’t do one without the other, or the concrete won’t last very long,” he said.
While most communities have an annual discretionary budget for sidewalks – Kelowna sets aside about $700,000 a year – even a tragedy like the death of Josie Evans doesn’t mean a sidewalk will be built.
“There are many factors that come into play when we look at a sidewalk or road deficiency,” said Kayfish, including analysis of accident data from ICBC, speed limits and volume, both pedestrian and from cars. “Any serious accident would bring attention to that area. Do we always make changes as a result of that accident? No we don’t.”
He points out that the lack of a sidewalk may not be, in itself, the cause of an accident or the solution to avoid future accidents.
“Sidewalks do increase safety in general, but perhaps the problem is better solved by traffic calming or a change in speed limit,” he said. “Lighting is a big factor. Perhaps a sidewalk is not what’s needed, or maybe it’s not the only thing that’s needed.”
As risk manager, Kayfish frequently sees litigation directed at the city, but says lawsuits based on the lack of infrastructure, like a sidewalk, are difficult to prove.
“I’m not a lawyer and I wouldn’t want it suggested that municipalities don’t take these things seriously, but not having a sidewalk doesn’t mean they were negligent,” he said.
While the driver of the truck that struck and killed Josie Evans has not been charged – at least not yet – Kayfish pushes these types of incidents back into the realm of the automobile.
“We can’t touch on this without saying how important safe driving is. One of our most sensitive areas is roadways because they are inherently dangerous,” he said. “We all get into our cars and drive every day and we often forget how important it is to be a safe driver. It’s my belief that every automobile accident is avoidable regardless of circumstances, if drivers conduct themselves appropriately on the roadways. That’s where enforcement and education come into play.”
Kayfish brings it back to the emotional, insisting it’s not always just about the dollars, and offering his condolences to Josie’s family.
“We do things because it’s the right thing to do,” he said. “It’s not just about avoiding liability.”
john@kelowna.com
250-575-0521
13 Responses to “A new sidewalk won’t memorialize the tragic death of Josie Evans”
Tags: josie evans, lake country, memorial, sidewalks
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i think that is so harsh how many other people need to be killed in lake country because of the lack of street lights and side walks. and plus i think this story was a little harshly put. great sympathy guys!!!!
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Lets get a few things clear, the police don’t appear to be
in a hurray to charge the driver, because conditions were
such that he couldn’t see her due to weather conditions.
She was walking on the wrong side of the road and as sad as
it is, its a terrible price to pay for a serious mistake.
I noticed in Kelowna a few days after the accident that a
number of people walking together or walking their dogs were in fact walking on the wrong side of the road. As kids we were told face the traffic so they can see you.
The city while maybe not responsible is starting down a road to determine how many lives are worth a few street lights. Is it one death, two or maybe 22? At some point
street lights will be required and installed. Taxpayers will understand its an investment in safety, its not an
expense. But the writer is correct the price in human life
is not high enough yet
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What a tragic accident. I dont know that stretch of road and maybe something should be done but this is an issue that also needs to be looked at in schools. Every day, I see students (and sometimes adults) just walk/ride into the road without looking, some even chatting on their cells or listening to ipods. Im not suggesting in the slightest that this is what happened here. I was driving back from Silverstar that day and visibility was horrific, that combined with the surface water it made a scary drive home. This was clearly a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. However there is a small chance that more road awareness may have prevented it… facing the traffic/wearing light clothing/reflective strip on bag… I suppose all Im saying, in a very longwinded fashion, is that its not just the city’s fault for not installing sidewalks/lighting etc. Make sure your kids know. I know half the time they dont listen but it might just make them think twice when walking home in the same conditions as Josie. RIP Josie, thoughts are with your family and friends.
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I do live in Lake Country, and have walked along that stretch of road many times.Perhaps what the writer has not realized is that the road in question happens to be the road the high school is on. Many, many children walk that road everyday, this is not some rural road in the middle of nowhere. The entire population that lives in the CopperHill, or Sunburn Hill as some call it, walk this road to get to the town center, the beach ,the parks, and the high school. I certainly don’t think anyone expects the entire municipality to have sidewalks built, but surely our kids should be able to get to and from school safely.
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I live on this road and my child has to walk home from school on this road as well. I do not agree with the comment that the tax payers would not be willing to have taxes go up if it meant that money would be specifically used for sidewalks and street lights on the main streets of our community. I would gladly pay higher taxes to make our roads safer to walk down. Something needs to be done before another life is lost. I am sure there are many other tax payers out there that would feel the same
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I understand that it would be costly to place sidewalks along rural roads, but remember; The road where my friend, Josie, was hit, is walked daily by many students returning from school, and sometimes from after school activities in the blinding darkness of night. Lake Country is rapidly growing, and is in desperate need of more sidewalks.
“Even a tragedy like the death of Josie Evans doesn’t mean a sidewalk will be built.” This comment seems odd to me. Are you suggesting we should wait for it to happen again and again before action is taken? Ridiculous! That is like noticing and leak in the hull of a ship, and not fixing it until the ship is flooded.
I cannot begin to describe how hopeful I am that action will be taken to ensure the safety of my fellow students, and to show that my friend did not die in vain.
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Something has to be done, whether it be a sidewalk or streetlights, a change has to be made. We realize that it won’t happen instantly but at somepoint it has to happen. In the meantime other safety measures could be put in place. I already lost my best friend because of the conditions of that road and i refuse to let anyone else get hurt.
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YOU MARK MY WORDS! there WILL be a sidewalk there! Our petition has OVER 3000 signatures and we will NOT REST until we have our sidewalks! This is a battle that will NOT BE LOST!
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this was my friend, and we will not rest until something is done.
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I personally feel disturbed by the tone that this article was written in. It sounds very condescending and black and white. Firstly the statement “Some are sputtering angry calls for sidewalks to be installed along the oddly-named Bottom Wood Lake Road where she died Jan. 13″ seems quite simply uncalled for. What purpose does it serve to insult the name of a road? And furthermore if so many CITIZENS of Lake Country have showed concern for this issue, then what makes you think they haven’t considered the tax? what makes you think that they aren’t willing to pay it? Maybe further research would be a good idea because if you haven’t noticed it, it’s not just the kids in this town who are on board with installing some form of safety along that road, even if its a couple street lights. Something else I find personally annoying is how even though the source of the tax feels one way, the money does not always get spent in favour of the source – the H20 park that resides 45 minutes away and yet we still apparently payed for. I realize that this is obviously my perspective and I simply wanted to throw it out there.
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the people quoted in this article are inconsiderate fools. no one is asking for all the roads in winfield to have sidewalks, that would be absolutely ridiculous. however, for a road as commonly used as bottom wood lake road, by both pedestrians and drivers, being so close to a school and so many other important places, it is critical that a sidewalk be built in this place. a sidewalk for one road, regardless of the length of the road, would in no way require a tax increase. perhaps if those involved in the decision had known josie as closely as those who are pushing for a sidewalk they would have a much less pessimistic view on the situation. for the safety of the majority of students in george elliot and so many more, the city MUST put a sidewalk in WITH streetlights.
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In my opinion, something should be done to make Bottom Wood Lake Road safer. If they can’t afford to put in sidewalks, perhaps street lamps by themselves would help, or maybe there’s need for a speed limit change. This accident was nothing short of tragic, and it can’t be ignored.
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Do not attempt to sympathize or write about Josie and her firends. We cannaot be described as ‘dozens of red-eyed teen-aged girls, faces crushed in grief, perhaps feeling tragedy for the first time in their young lives, and stoic stone-faced boys with thoughts only they can know’ and you cannot say what can and cannot be done. A sidewalk is unlikely, but safetly measures is what we are after, sidewalk or no.
As for the driver, no one, not one of her close friends, or family has said he should be charged. He did not want to kill our friend, and he is suffering harshly for a mistake that he did not even commit.
You’re lack of knowledge and sensitivity leads to prove that you should not be writing such reports.
Please continue discussion on the forum: link