Traffic fatalities will be probed as election nears

GREG YOUNGER-LEWIS

Every ballot cast in the mayoral election comes with a guarantee: your vote will go to someone who wants answers about how three people have been killed by city vehicles in less than three years.

But this week, after council adjourned for the last time, many mayoral candidates lost one of their campaign planks — to start an investigation of how shortfalls in the city’s department of public works might have contributed to the deaths.

At the end of a four-hour city council meeting on Tuesday, council ordered a review of the department, which oversees the use of city vehicles. For the past month, councillors could not agree whether a review was already happening.

The review announced by council at the Oct. 14 meeting will be done by an independent, external body, which has yet to be selected. This would be separate from an internal review of public safety procedures that the city began weeks ago, according to Ian Freemantle, the chief administrative officer.

The external review strips Keith Irving, a current councillor and mayoral candidate, of one of his many election promises. By far the most detailed of candidates in his plan for public safety, Irving still has other related commitments that he’ll be taking door to door in the dying days of the campaign.

After a series of fatal accidents involving city employees driving heavy machinery, Irving says the residents of Iqaluit have lost confidence in the safety of their streets, and the city’s ability to provide it.

“Right now there’s a cloud hanging over our city,” Irving said in an interview. “I think we must work very diligently to remove this cloud.

“I want to show leadership and put this one to rest.”

Anticipating victory at the polls, Irving says he’s already started researching what form the external review could take — whether it would be done, for instance, by residents of the city or an appointed judge.

Beyond the external review, Irving wants to see public safety concerns placed under the jurisdiction of one single municipal department, which would take up any public education campaigns on road safety.

Other candidates are also taking public safety to heart in their campaigns.

Jimmy Kilabuk, a veteran municipal leader, promises to push for refresher courses for city staff driving heavy equipment vehicles, like frontloaders, snowplows and sewage trucks.

Kilabuk also suggests the city needs to follow through with planned sidewalk projects and snowmobile trails.

“If I am elected mayor, I am prepared to tackle the issue of public safety,” said Kilabuk, a former councillor and one-time mayor of the city.

However, he cautioned voters not to expect visible change right away.

“As an elected mayor, I know that we’d start seeing the results next summer, but not this winter,” he said through translator Sara Arnatsiaq.

More than a review of city drivers, Kilabuk believes the new mayor has to start a safe-driving and pedestrian safety campaign, through television advertisements and other media.

Like other candidates for mayor, incumbent John Matthews agrees a public education campaign is needed to improve public safety.

The news of an external review of public safety lifted some pressure from Matthews, who was head of the city during all three of the fatal accidents involving city workers.

“I don’t think people are personally blaming me for these accidents,” Matthews said. “I think there are a whole host of factors responsible for those deaths.”

For Matthews, the city’s rapid growth could be as much to blame as any other factor.

Rather than promise changes related to public safety, such as sidewalks, more crosswalks, or more street lights, Matthews says it’s best to wait for recommendations from the external review of public works.

“I think instead of doing a piecemeal campaign, we should step back and let things unfold,” he said.

Elisapee Sheutiapik says her public safety campaign promises arise in part from customers she meets in her coffee shops in Iqaluit.

Based on their input, she says the city needs to move ahead on plans to install sidewalks.

“Lots of people are telling me if there were sidewalks, the accidents may not have happened,” said Sheutiapik, owner of the popular Grind and Brew cafés, and deputy mayor.

Sheutiapik says consultation with the community is key to fixing problems with public safety.

“When there are issues and people put their heads together, then they can do things that seem impossible,” she said.