Action 2

Disclaimer: The Actions listed here are ideas to jumpstart a conversation on improving the Hubbards streetscape. A formal Site Plan will be developed soon.

Element 1: Redesignate Highway 3 as a Main Street Between Shatford Elementary and the Saint Margarets Bay Trail

Hubbards’ central street is designated as a provincial trunk road. This is a major barrier to designing safe streets for Hubbards — and other rural communities — because trunk roads must follow standards aimed enabling a high through-put of traffic. In recent years, efforts to improve traffic safety around Shatford Memorial Elementary School have been impeded by these standards. 

The Federation of Nova Scotia Municipalities recommends that the provincial government designate sections of road that pass through villages like Hubbards as “Community Main Street Districts.” These districts would follow different design standards that would prioritize the safety of residents and local economic development. They write that for these districts: 

Design should recognize that, at the centre of communities, fast-moving traffic can work in opposition to Main Street vitality, prove unsafe for pedestrians, and counter accessibility objectives. Efforts should be focused in Community Main Street Districts to reduce vehicle speeds. 

We look forward to working with the Federation of Nova Scotia Municipalities and the Province of Nova Scotia to redesignate Highway 3 as a Main Street District between Shatford Memorial Elementary School to the Aspotogan Heritage Trust. 

Element 2: Fill in the Policy Gap so Nova Scotia and Halifax can Fund Safe Infrastructure for Communities like Hubbards

Nova Scotia’s department of Transportation Infrastructure Renewal considers sidewalks to be a municipal responsibility. However, municipalities are reluctant to build sidewalks on roads they do not own. Moreover, Halifax’s current active transportation policies focus on building sidewalks in urban areas. They currently lack policy to plan and fund sidewalks and other safe infrastructure for rural growth centres like Hubbards. 

We believe that both the province of Nova Scotia and the Halifax Municipality recognize the importance of creating safe streets in historic rural communities, to promote health, tourism, and economic development. We seek to work with them to identify policy solutions to fund cost-effective, right-sized projects — supported by local tax levies if necessary — in areas that have the greatest need and the greatest potential.