With the Toronto van attack still fresh in people’s memories, the city has already been acting to help prevent further attacks. To help reduce threats, Toronto officials approved the deployment of “Jersey barriers” to high-traffic and high-profile locations throughout the city, including around Union Station and the Rogers Centre. While preventing vehicular attacks isn’t the traditional purpose of these long, low concrete walls, it has been noted by city staff that these methods are a stop-gap before more permanent security measures can be put in place. “While work on the permanent design is being carried out, there were already plans in place to install interim mitigation measures later this spring. The discussion that is being had now is if whether the jersey barriers will come down or remain in place until the interim mitigation measures, which are designed to fit in with the streetscape, are installed within the next month or so,” said Jennifer Wing, a senior communications advisor for the City of Toronto, to CBC.
Former Toronto chief planner Jennifer Keesmat offers a different approach to these barriers, noting “Throwing up barricades around the city is not in our DNA. It’s not who we are and, quite frankly, I don’t think that’s going to make us much safer.” Instead, she suggests more integrated designs, such as street furniture, seating areas and concrete flowerbeds already in place along St. George Street by the University of Toronto’s downtown campus, which could provide security while being less intrusive.
Sean Lee, an attendee at the vigil held at Mel Lastman Square offered the concerning question about the effectiveness of barricades, asking CBC,”If someone were to do that again, if there were concrete barriers, wouldn’t he just kill people in another way?”
Nevertheless, Toronto’s efforts follow a global pattern following vehicular attacks. Similar barriers have been erected after the attacks in cities such as New York, Nice, Berlin, Stockholm and London.
Source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/vehicular-barriers-solution-to-vehicular-attacks-1.4640417
