The Phantom of Blackfriars Bridge
Who is the mysterious creature who walks over top of the historical Blackfriars Bridge in London Ontario?
While completing our Session #2 of videotaping at the Blackfriars Bridge a mysterious climber emerged, walking the trusses of the bridge like he was taking a stroll along a country lane. He was willing to speak but had nothing to say. Wearing nothing but black clothing and a full face black mask. At this latest encounter he appeared to stop and pose in the middle of the bridge, as if he dared someone to take his photo.
As if posing for a photo, this mysterious climber has been spotted on top of the Blackfriars Bridge on our second videotaping session. No information can be obtained of who he is or what his purpose.
Blackfriars Bridge Traffic Study – Preliminary Results From Session #1
Preliminary results are now available from the traffic study conducted by Gorski Consulting at the Blackfriars Bridge on May 29, 2022 in London, Ontario. A two-hour videotaping session was completed between 1300 and 1500 hours. This was a Sunday afternoon. The following are some high-lights of the analysis.
The focus of the study was in the area where the Thames Valley Parkway (TVP) intersected with the east end of Blackfriars Bridge. This is also where northbound Ridout Street terminates for motorized traffic. Four Google Maps views of the area as shown below.
This Google Maps view shows the location of the historic Blackfriars Bridge located at the north-west of downtown London, Ontario.
This Google Maps view of the site shows how Ridout Street and the Thames Valley Parkway intersect at the east end of Blackfriars Bridge. It is at this point of intersection that cyclists and pedestrians were documented interacting with eastbound vehicles crossing the bridge.
This is a view looking west toward Blackfriars Bridge with the intersection of the Thames Valley Parkway (TVP) in the foreground.
This is a view looking east from the east end of Blackfriars Bridge showing the intersection with the Thames Valley Parkway (TVP).
In total, 78 eastbound motor vehicles were documented travelling over Blackfriars Bridge. 294 cyclists were observed passing through the study area. 362 pedestrians were observed passing through the study area.
Approaches to the area were from four directions:
- Eastbound on Blackfriars Bridge.
- Northbound on Ridout Street.
- Southbound on the Thames Valley Parkway (TVP).
- Northbound on the Thames Valley Parkway (TVP).
Motor vehicles were constrained to travel just eastbound through the area. However, pedestrians and cyclists using the four directions of approach had three alternatives as to where they would go. This results in a matrix of 12 cells of different travel actions for pedestrians and cyclists. The two tables below show the frequencies of pedestrian and cyclist actions.
As an example, using the table of pedestrian actions, the first row shows the pedestrians who entered the area travelllng southbound along the Thames Valley Parkway. 143 pedestrians were observed entering the study area from this direction of travel. The table shows that 78 of those pedestrians continued southbound on the Thames Valley Parkway, 15 of those turned to travel southbound on Ridout Street and 50 of them turned to walk westbound onto Blackfriars Bridge. This should explain the meaning of the rest of the cells in the two tables.
Many issues reveal themselves once a detailed study is performed. Some of them unexpected, as demonstrated in the photo below.
For those believing that documentation of travels over the Blackfriars Bridge is a simple operation, how would you explain this method of bridge crossing by a unique pedestrian?
No further comment will be made about the results at this time. Using our methods it will be possible to calculate motor vehicle, pedestrian and cyclist speeds and thus examine any safety issues but these matters will be addressed at a future time. It is expected that at least one or two additional sessions will be performed.
If anyone is interested in participating in this study please contact me at my e-mail address: [email protected]
Blackfriars Bridge – 2 Video Projects Assembled And Ready for Future Analysis
Two video projects have now been created from our video documentation at the Blackfriars Bridge of May 29, 2022. Each project contains a selection of five video camera views focusing on two areas of interest.
In the first project, “Users of the TVP” camera views were selected that would show how users of the Thames Valley Parkway (TVP) travelled near the crossing at the east end of the Blackfriars Bridge. A frame from that project is shown below.
This is a frame taken from the “Users of TVP” project showing the status of the site at timecode 00;26;28;30.
In the second project, “EB Vehicles”, the focus was on tracking the approach of eastbound motor vehicles as they crossed Blackfriars Bridge and approached the TVP crossing. A frame from that project is shown below.
This frame was taken from the “EB Vehicles” project at timecode 00;24;39;40.
Although additional segments of video need to be added to extend the projects to their full, 2 hours sessions, the analysis is essentially ready to begin. A great amount of detail can be pulled from these projects but the analysis is also time-consuming. As a preliminary task we will probably conduct a single analysis of counting how many eastbound vehicles have been observed crossing the bridge without conducting any analysis of their speeds. Our general observations while at the site suggested that there were a small number of such vehicles.
Conducting a count of the “Users of the TVP” is likely to be more difficult as there were far more users than eastbound vehicles. Our video cameras will allow for calculations of speed of all these users but then again this will be time-consuming so it will not be attempted in the near future.
It is expected that (at least) a second videotaping session will take place, possibly as early as Thursday, June 2, 2022. This session will need to take place near the afternoon peak hours, perhaps between 1530 and 1730 hours. The first session was conducted on a Sunday afternoon so it will be important to also obtain data from a workday.
Blackfriars Bridge – First Official Videotaping Session Completed
The first official videotaping session was completed by Gorski Consulting at the Blackfriars Bridge in London Ontario on Sunday, May 29, 2022 between 1300 and 1500 hours. This photo shows a view of the various persons in the area during the videotaping session.
Weather conditions were perfect in the afternoon of May 29, 2022 such that the first videotaping session at the Blackfriars Bridge was completed between 1300 and 1500 hours. As expected a large number of users were observed on the Thames Valley Parkway (TVP) where it crosses at the east end of the Blackfriars Bridge. Ten video cameras were set up along the bridge as well as at the TVP crossing point. Once again it was our preliminary observation that there were few motor vehicles crossing the bridge.
We are now in the process of copying the videos and then shrinking the resolution so that they can be incorporated into a video project on the Adobe Premiere software. This shrinking is a time-consuming process and will likely take several days to complete. Once this is done the video segments will be synchronized in the project and we can begin to consider how analysis will evolve. If anyone is interested in being involved in the analysis please let us know.
Marlene, Truscott and Milgaard – Commitment to Justice System Reform Needs Your Involvement
David Milgaard was wrongly convicted by the Canadian justice system and spent 23 years in jail before finally being exonerated by DNA evidence. Regrettably he passed away a few weeks ago.
Before he died Milgaard was also the inspiration for a 2008 recommendation in a report of the public inquiry into his conviction, which suggested that the federal government establish an independent review commission to examine claims of wrongful conviction. Since that time Milgaard and his lawyer, James Lockyer, met with Canada’s Justice Minister, David Lametti to pursue the forming of the independent commission. Nothing has been resolved.
In the meantime a new movie, “Marlene”, has been shown in selected markets following the exploits of the wife of wrongfully-convicted Steven Truscott. Much like Milgaard’s mother, Marlene Truscott worked tirelessly to get her husband’s release. Events like these demonstrate how no official agency seems the least bit interested in making sure that wrongful convictions are over-turned. Instead, it is up to individual family members to make such changes happen. And if you do not have a dedicated family member to fight for you, you’re out of luck.
Indifference to the plight of others and an egotistical motivation toward self-interest can be the negative effects of our society’s focus on individualism and demands for the freedom to do as we please. When we choose to turn a blind eye towards societal ills those ills will eventually reach us, although often in an indirect way. Nowhere is that more important than in the functioning of our justice system.
Many understand that we cannot escape our responsibilities. It was Bob Dylan who reminded us in one of his songs that everyone has to serve somebody. One of our responsibilities is to ensure that our justice system is based on justice.
When we look to the idol of the blindfolded lady holding the scales of justice it is there to remind us that the facts of each case must be weighed independent of any bias. Thus Lady Justice must be blind to the race, wealth, gender, etc, of those being judged. Lady Justice must also be blind to her own ambitions, what benefits she may incur, or what penalties may flow from her righteous path. However we should not allow her to be blind to the facts and truths presented while submitting a preordained verdict. Lady Justice cannot be a robot that follows the programming instructions of a computer chip.
In our indifference to the essential need for transparency we are complicate in her wrongful deeds. When we know that we are not being provided with the necessary transparency that is the cornerstone of assurance that the players in the our justice system are playing by ethical standards, we have a responsibility to correct that wrong.
Recently we have seen the life of a black man being slowly snuffed out by the knee of an officer in a police uniform. While this occurred in the U.S. we have a responsibility to take action to ensure that it does not happen in Canada. It is our duty to be active and aware of what is happening around us.
We see the potential of being manipulated by many entities, whether it is the government, police, news media, the internet, society media, or even our friends and relatives, through the bombardment of repetitive messages causing us to lose the centre of our moral and logical compass. We must recognize our responsibility to detect the influence of persuasion and propaganda. It is also our duty to correctly evaluate whether we are being manipulated to believe in illogical conspiracy theories through the cultism that is growing in isolated internet chat groups. Seeing clearly in a sandstorm is not easy but a reasoned individual will pause to let the storm pass before selecting the proper direction of travel.
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