Photo: PHOTO VIA FAMILY

Kaydence Bourque, 16, died after he was struck by a vehicle in a Saanich crosswalk on Dec. 6, 2021. 

The driver who struck and killed 16-year-old Kaydence Bourque in a crosswalk on Cedar Hill Cross Road in Saanich almost two years ago has been fined $2,000 and is prohibited from driving for six months.

Margarita Citron pleaded guilty Tuesday in Victoria provincial court to careless driving under the Motor Vehicle Act.

Citron, 72, was driving home on Dec. 6, 2021 when she hit the Grade 11 Reynolds Secondary School student in the crosswalk at Cedar Hill Cross Road and Merriman Drive.

In the days following Kaydence’s death, there was a public outcry about the death. Protests were held calling on Saanich to improve safety along the corridor leading to the crosswalk.

Saanich public works crews installed a new street light above the crosswalk and replaced round flashing beacons with rectangular rapid-flashing ones.

Crews also installed new delineators, or plastic bollards, along Cedar Hill Cross Road, providing separation from the road and asphalt sidewalk. A “crosswalk ahead” advisory sign and “single-file” advisory signs for cyclists were installed at both approaches.

In February 2022, Saanich council adopted the international Vision Zero goal of eliminating all traffic injuries and fatalities. The district is in the process of creating a road safety action plan, spokesperson Kelsie McLeod said last month.

A traffic study of a 2.1-kilometre stretch of Cedar Hill Cross Road, from McKenzie Avenue to Ophir Street, is underway to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists.

Earlier this year, the district received 841 responses to its survey about that stretch of road.

The speed limit has also been reduced to 40 km/h from 50 km/h.