When a beloved neighbourhood landmark has to move to make way for a new development, it’s not unusual for community residents to express concern or opposition. What is rare, though, is when the . . .
Victoria’s protected bike lanes let us ride safely and comfortably on busy roads such as Pandora Avenue and Fort Street. Vancouver Street’s new bikeway provides a very pleasant environment for active travellers walkers, cyclists and puppies. Richardson Street, the next bikeway link, will soon offer another fine route for non-motorized travel. These positive experiences contrast with the fear-mongering of people who argue that Victoria’s bikeway network is wasteful and unfair. My report Evaluating Bikeway Criticism (https://bit.ly/3ult1sZ) examines their claims. Here are key findings: Victoria already has high rates of walking and bicycling, and we have targets to double their use in order to help achieve our affordability, health and environmental goals. Everybody benefits if we succeed.
The province reported almost 2.3 million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in B.C., of which 115,295 were second doses. “It will soon be the case that everyone in B.C. will have access to book their appointments,” said Dix. “So what’s really important right now is that everybody, especially younger people, register.” Seventy per cent of people age 50 and older, and 62 per cent of people 40 and over, have had their first dose. “We’re making progress we’re 50 per cent plus but 50 per cent leaves 50 per cent, so we’ve got a lot of work to do,” Dix said.
VICTORIA The preliminary inquiry into the 2019 murder of Metchosin resident Martin Payne began at the Western Communities Courthouse on Monday. James Lee Busch and Zachary Armitage are charged with first degree murder in Payne’s death. Payne’s body was found in his home on July 12, 2019, just days after Busch and Armitage had escaped from nearby William Head Prison. Busch and Armitage were reported to have escaped from the federal minimum security facility in the early morning hours of July 8, 2019. A massive manhunt for the fugitives was conducted by Westshore RCMP and other Vancouver Island police agencies. The two escapees were arrested by Victoria Police without incident after being spotted on the Esquimalt waterfront by an off-duty RCMP member on the evening of July 9, 2019.
Hugh Thompson died on May 7 while mountain biking on a trail at Shawnigan Lake. Via Go Fund Me Friends are rallying around the family of a 49-year-old father of two from Oak Bay who died Friday while mountain biking on a Shawnigan Lake trail. “Our community is devastated by the sudden loss of our dear friend Hugh,” says an online fundraising page created for the family of Hugh Thompson. “While Hugh died doing what he loved, he was far too young to be taken from his family or our community.” article continues below