Please join Green Action Centre and Bike Winnipeg for a group viewing of
the monthly APBP webinar in the EcoCentre
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/uncategorized/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-o…>
boardroom.
This will be followed by discussion for those who wish to stay.
cheers,
Beth
*AT Webinar: Wed, Oct 17th, 2-3pm*
Ten Years of Safe Routes to School - Where do we go from here?
It’s been over a decade since the Safe Routes to School movement launched
in the US and times have changed, but Safe Routes to School initiatives are
continuing to improve safety and get more kids walking and rolling to
school. Join this webinar to hear about continued successes from state and
local level programs. You will also hear thoughts on the exciting future of
the movement from the Safe Routes to School National Partnership.
*Presenters:*
- Sara Zimmerman, National SRTS, Program and Policy Director
- Katie Alexander, Michigan Fitness Foundation, Director of SRTS
- Bryan Armstrong, Michigan DOT, SRTS Program Manager
- Katherine Swidarski, Columbus, OH SRTS Program Manager
--
*Beth McKechnie* | Workplace Commuter Options
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/>Green Action Centre
<http://www.greenactioncentre.ca/>
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/>
3rd floor, 303 Portage Ave | (204) 925-3777 x102 | Find us here
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/>
Green Action Centre is your green living hub
Support our work by becoming a member
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/support/become-a-member/>. Donate at
CanadaHelps.org <http://canadahelps.org/>
<http://www.gomanitoba.ca>
*‘No’ vote goes against global trend towards walkable downtowns*
* NY Times takes notice of P&M referendum *
ttps://
www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/citys-quixotic-decision-on-portage-and-main…
IT’S not surprising the New York Times took notice of Winnipeg’s Portage
and Main plebiscite because it’s a debate fomenting across North America,
said a campaigner to reopen the famous intersection.
“At a time when many Canadian cities are moving to make themselves more
amenable to pedestrians, it seems a perhaps quixotic decision,” the New York
Times said of the vote against opening the intersection.
The article lamented that Winnipeggers voted two to one against its opening.
International interest shouldn’t come as a surprise, said local Yes
campaigner Hazel Borys, “because (the No vote) was such an anomaly. North
American cities are making massive strides to become more walkable and
accessible to cyclists.”
Some cities such as London and Paris are even banning cars from some parts
of the city. Winnipeg’s plebiscite was not about anything nearly so
drastic. It was not a war against cars but rather an effort to reinvigorate
the heart of the city, she said.
“Cities are making big moves to make their cities and downtowns more
pedestrian and cyclist friendly, and car friendly as well,” said Borys.
The New York Times article, titled On Foot and Underground at Canada’s
Crossroads, said Winnipeg’s debate may have reflected “tensions between
drivers, pedestrians and cyclists that are bubbling up throughout Canada.”
The original decision to close the intersection 40 years ago was part of a
development deal to get an office tower built on one corner, the article
said, thereby funneling people through an underground shopping mall.
Aswell, it came at a time when the fashion in urban centres was to
keep cars and pedestrians as separate as possible.
However, the idea that vehicle traffic and pedestrians should be kept
separate is being rethought, said Borys, an engineer who helped build many
roads and bridges.
“We thought if we removed things like street trees and parked cars and
anything that a car might run into that we would create safer places,” she
said.
“Instead, what we did is create racetracks out of our urban streets and
made very deadly environments.”
Borys said some people may have viewed the debate as one of cars versus
pedestrians but opening Portage and Main would have benefited both sides.
“The more of us who walk or cycle to our daily needs, the easier it is on
cars because we’re taking cars off the road and reducing traffic,” she
said. Walking and cycling also promote a healthier lifestyle at a time when
obesity has become a major issue in the Western world, she said.
It’s really about making streets more user-friendly to all modes of
transportation, Borys said. Proponents of reopening the intersection didn’t
provide residents “with enough information to make a meaningful choice.”
Asking property owners in the vicinity of the closed intersection to
redevelop their lots “is like asking them to build on a limited
intersection of a limited access roadway. We’ve created a limited access
roadway at the heart of our city.”
Borys said all property owners in the four blocks surrounding the
intersection were in favour of opening Portage and Main to pedestrians.
bill.redekop(a)freepress.mb.ca
*‘No’ vote goes against global trend towards walkable downtowns*
* NY Times takes notice of P&M referendum *
https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/citys-quixotic-decision-on-portage-…
IT’S not surprising the New York Times took notice of Winnipeg’s Portage
and Main plebiscite because it’s a debate fomenting across North America,
said a campaigner to reopen the famous intersection.
“At a time when many Canadian cities are moving to make themselves more
amenable to pedestrians, it seems a perhaps quixotic decision,” the New York
Times said of the vote against opening the intersection.
The article lamented that Winnipeggers voted two to one against its opening.
International interest shouldn’t come as a surprise, said local Yes
campaigner Hazel Borys, “because (the No vote) was such an anomaly. North
American cities are making massive strides to become more walkable and
accessible to cyclists.”
Some cities such as London and Paris are even banning cars from some parts
of the city. Winnipeg’s plebiscite was not about anything nearly so
drastic. It was not a war against cars but rather an effort to reinvigorate
the heart of the city, she said.
“Cities are making big moves to make their cities and downtowns more
pedestrian and cyclist friendly, and car friendly as well,” said Borys.
The New York Times article, titled On Foot and Underground at Canada’s
Crossroads, said Winnipeg’s debate may have reflected “tensions between
drivers, pedestrians and cyclists that are bubbling up throughout Canada.”
The original decision to close the intersection 40 years ago was part of a
development deal to get an office tower built on one corner, the article
said, thereby funneling people through an underground shopping mall.
As well, it came at a time when the fashion in urban centres was to
keep cars and pedestrians as separate as possible.
However, the idea that vehicle traffic and pedestrians should be kept
separate is being rethought, said Borys, an engineer who helped build many
roads and bridges.
“We thought if we removed things like street trees and parked cars and
anything that a car might run into that we would create safer places,” she
said.
“Instead, what we did is create racetracks out of our urban streets and
made very deadly environments.”
Borys said some people may have viewed the debate as one of cars versus
pedestrians but opening Portage and Main would have benefited both sides.
“The more of us who walk or cycle to our daily needs, the easier it is on
cars because we’re taking cars off the road and reducing traffic,” she
said. Walking and cycling also promote a healthier lifestyle at a time when
obesity has become a major issue in the Western world, she said.
It’s really about making streets more user-friendly to all modes of
transportation, Borys said. Proponents of reopening the intersection didn’t
provide residents “with enough information to make a meaningful choice.”
Asking property owners in the vicinity of the closed intersection to
redevelop their lots “is like asking them to build on a limited
intersection of a limited access roadway. We’ve created a limited access
roadway at the heart of our city.”
Borys said all property owners in the four blocks surrounding the
intersection were in favour of opening Portage and Main to pedestrians.
bill.redekop(a)freepress.mb.ca
*Facts show roads are less dangerous, despite residents’ belief otherwise*
* On our streets, there’s safety in numbers *
https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/on-our-streets-theres-safety-in-num…
IN the face of obvious signs of progress, why would people be so skeptical?
A recent Free Press- Probe Research poll, which is part of a series of
polls on civic election issues, showed that 40 per cent of Winnipeggers
believe they are less safe on or around city roads than they were 10 years
ago. In contrast, only 14 per cent of respondents said they feel safer.
It’s a remarkable result, considering that by all reasonable measurements,
we’ve never been safer.
On average, five Winnipeg pedestrians die each year in traffic collisions
and another 14 die behind the wheel of their cars. Losing nearly 20 lives
every year is still worrisome, although both are down considerably from
previous decades.
It’s part of a national trend. In 1997, Transport Canada figures show that
2,660 people died in traffic collisions; by 2016, that number had fallen to
1,717. Again, a horrible loss of life, but a glimmer of hope in terms of
the trend line.
It all adds up to progress. Why, you might ask yourself, would people feel
less safe? That’s really hard to tell.
In the final analysis, it’s an age-old triumph of intuition over hard
numbers.
Psychologically, we somehow can’t connect the dots between advances in
automobile safety technology (airbags, lane departure and collision warning
systems) and improvements in infrastructure and planning (breakaway light
poles, improved safety curbs, active transportation and dedicated bike
lanes, school-zone speed limits) and overall traffic safety.
It doesn’t mean our roads are safe, per se. But we’re moving in the right
direction. That having been said, more could be done.
Traffic-safety advocates have pointed out that the city needs to be more
aggressive in pursuing improvements through the Vision Zero initiative.
This Swedish-made, now-international advocacy campaign is aimed at
convincing elected officials at all levels to adopt leading-edge
road-safety innovations.
Local advocates for Vision Zero (referred to as Toward Zero in Winnipeg)
believe there has been progress, but would like to see the city move more
quickly to implement changes.
Resources for those changes, however, remain a challenge.
The former NDP government did toy with the idea of using money from MPI for
road-safety infrastructure.
The theory was that fixing dangerous stretches of roadway or intersections
would prevent collisions and reduce insurance rates. It’s a strategy that
private insurers have used for decades. In the end, however, the NDP caved
to political pressure and shelved the idea. They found out what city
councillors already knew: voters would prefer to see their tax money spent
paving roads than fixing dangerous intersections.
And therein lies the problem for the elected officials who are supposed to
make progress on an issue such as road safety.
Citizens feel less safe on our roads, despite evidence to the contrary. But
when you introduce an initiative that could save lives, those same citizens
rail against it and force you to back down.
Politicians rarely get any sympathy from voters. But fora moment, couldn’t
we all feel sorry for them for this damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t
dilemma?
You can be sure that the dozens of people vying to fill a seat on Winnipeg
city council have already figured out that on many issues such as road
safety, you just can’t win.
Road safety has not been a high profile issue in the civic election
campaign, and perhaps it should have been. However, there is almost no
benefit for an incumbent to raise the issue.
Anyone running for re-election knows that confronting road safety would
force them to spout meaningless statistics about the slow decline in
fatalities or highlight unconvincing improvements to infrastructure and
traffic design, exactly the kind of things that do not give voters any
comfort in the face of their intuitive, but unfounded, fears.
Mayor Brian Bowman said as much last weekend in a story on road safety.
In his bid for re-election, Bowman admitted he hasn’t been motivated to
raise road safety because he supports Toward Zero and nothing has changed
his commitment.
Why wouldn’t Bowman trumpet his support for Toward Zero and pledge to do
more? Although he did not have the Free Press poll results in hand, it
seems he had already figured out that voters feel the roads are less safe
and no amount of fact is going to change that.
The poll results do, however, show that challengers may have missed a
glorious opportunity to attack Bowman and incumbent councillors. They
certainly use that strategy on just about every other issue.
Challengers in civic elections are constantly telling voters to forget the
numbers and what they show us about the city’s finances (which have
steadily improved) or the infrastructure deficit (down $3 billion in the
last term), or the state of the city’s population and economy (both growing
above national averages). Challengers want you to give in to your
deepest-held preconceptions about civic government, which is that it is bad
at everything.
There are lots of things that need improving at city hall. But there are
also a good number of things that have improved. It’s the same story for
every level of government.
In case you were wondering, this is not the kind of scenario that ensures
we are getting the best people elected.
Our own refusal to take comfort in facts leaves us open to being
manipulated by negative hyperbole. It’s also what discourages so many
citizens from voting.
This is a situation that will never improve until voters leave their guts
out of the equation, and begin to base their decisions about who to vote
for, and whether to vote at all, on hard facts.
dan.lett(a)freepress.mb.ca
*Madrid City Council is set to approve a new Sustainable Mobility Ordinance
that will change the way residents move around public spaces.*
The new measures, which will take effect between five and 15 days after the
council approves them on Friday, introduce a speed limit of 30km/h on all
one-way streets and on single-lane two-way streets.
Under the new rules, motorcycles will not be allowed to park on sidewalks
less than three meters wide or near pedestrian crossings. Bicycles will be
able to make right turns at red lights where indicated. And new traffic
restrictions will go into effect in the downtown area on November 23.
The ordinance may still be partially amended before passage on Friday, but
here are some of its key components.
New speed limits
Besides the 30km/h limit on one-way streets and single-lane two-way
streets, the city will slow traffic down to 20km/h on streets where the
sidewalk is not elevated above road level, such as in the neighborhoods of
Lavapiés and Chueca. The 30km/h rule will affect 80% of Madrid’s streets –
not just in the downtown area. These measures aim to increase road safety
and reduce the chance of accidents involving pedestrians.
Pedestrians
The spirit of the new ordinance is to favor sustainable mobility. New signs
will indicate the presence of “Zonas 30,” where pedestrians may cross the
street at any spot after checking that they are not running a risk or
slowing down traffic. And in “Calles 20,” pedestrians will have priority
over vehicles. The city is also planning to roll out more traffic lights
with incorporated cameras, and to designate “pedestrian special protection
spaces” where neither motorcycles nor bicycles will be allowed to park.
Bicycles
Bicycles will be able to turn right on a red light where so indicated. They
may also move against the traffic on residential streets with speed limits
of 20km/h or under, and on shared-use lanes. The 30km/h speed limit on many
streets also seeks to favor shared road space between motorists and
cyclists. The latter will also be allowed to lock their bikes to street
furniture as long as they don’t block the way for pedestrians.
Motorcycles and mopeds
Until now, motorcycles could be freely parked on sidewalks. The new rules
will prohibit this on sidewalks under three meters wide, and less than five
meters from a pedestrian crossing. Motorcycles will also have to be more
than two meters away from bus stops. On the other hand, there is now twice
as much dedicated parking space for motorcycles in the Centro district
Skates and scooters
People on skates, kick scooters or other devices without a motor may use
the sidewalks and other pedestrian areas as long as they travel at an
appropriate speed. They may also use cycling lanes and other areas adapted
for bicycles. On lanes used by pedestrians, the maximum allowed speed is
5km/h. Motorized scooters and other personal mobility vehicles will no
longer be allowed on sidewalks and other pedestrian spaces, and will
instead have to use bicycle lanes.
Traffic restrictions
The newest element in the new regulations is Madrid Central, a restricted
traffic area that will apply to most of the city’s Centro district starting
on November 23. Residents may enter the area in their vehicles but only
park in their own neighborhood. Occasional visitors may be allowed in by
residents. Non-residents whose vehicles hold CERO and ECO energy labels may
also enter the area. And those with B or C energy labels may only enter to
park in a private or public parking lot, not in the street. Exceptions will
also be made for people with reduced mobility, ambulances, taxis,
private-hire cars and delivery vans. Electric vehicles will also be allowed
into Madrid Centro.
Public transportation
City officials note that there are 60 bus lines going through Madrid’s
downtown area, as well as six subway lines and eight underground train
lines. There are also 57 BiciMad public bicycle rental docking stations.
https://elpais.com/elpais/2018/10/05/inenglish/1538733317_890210.html
--
*Beth McKechnie* | Workplace Commuter Options
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/>Green Action Centre
<http://www.greenactioncentre.ca/>
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/>
3rd floor, 303 Portage Ave | (204) 925-3777 x102 | Find us here
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/>
Green Action Centre is your green living hub
Support our work by becoming a member
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/support/become-a-member/>. Donate at
CanadaHelps.org <http://canadahelps.org/>
<http://www.gomanitoba.ca>
Looks like some good webinars planned for the new year:
- Jan 16: Bus Stops with Bikeways: Designing Transit Stops with
On-street Bicycle Facilities
- Feb 20: Viewing Low-Stress Networks Through an Equity Lens
- Mar 30: Navigating Without Curbs: Accessibility on Shared Streets
- Apr 17: Designing Streets for the Speeds You Want
- May 15: Maintaining Green Infrastructure: Hints for Success
- Jun 19: Finding Common Ground with First Responders: Enhancing Safety
and Maintaining Access in Street Design
- Jul 17: Return on investment for Active Transportation
- Aug 21: Getting the Green Light: Improving Actuation and Detection for
Cyclists & Pedestrians
- Sep 18: Can We Talk About the Street? Building Support for
Controversial Projects
- Oct 16: If We Build it Will They Come? Estimating Demand for Biking
and Walking
- Nov 20: Aging in Place: Designing Communities to Support Mobility
- Dec 18: Education and Encouragement: Bringing the Right People Together
--
*Beth McKechnie* | Workplace Commuter Options
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/>Green Action Centre
<http://www.greenactioncentre.ca/>
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/>
3rd floor, 303 Portage Ave | (204) 925-3777 x102 | Find us here
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/>
Green Action Centre is your green living hub
Support our work by becoming a member
<http://greenactioncentre.ca/support/become-a-member/>. Donate at
CanadaHelps.org <http://canadahelps.org/>
<http://www.gomanitoba.ca>
Honoured to invite you all to come to an event this weekend full of
positivity and hopefulness.
Artists and poets and local businesses coming together to share a shared
love of Winnipeg and to speak up for the right to cross the street.
Incredible line-up donating their time incl. Royal Canoe, Mahogany Frog, JP
Hoe, Sweet Alibi, Red Moon Road, The O.B. and more.
Speeches by Di Brandt (Winnipeg's poet laureate), Michael Champagne, Brent
Bellamy, Allen Mankewich, Dancing Gabe, and more.
Craft beer thanks to local breweries donating staff time: Nonsuch Brewery,
Little Brown Jug, Lake of the Woods Brewery; Coffee by Grey Owl
DJ CO-OP spinning records and Open Mic (by The Purple Room) from 5-9 on
stage #2
More coming.
*Saturday. 2pm-11pm. Portage and Main. (various locations)*
FREE
Webpage: https://voteopenwpg.ca/openfest
Facebook event <https://www.facebook.com/pg/voteopenwpg/events/> #ShowSomeLove
#OpenFest
Proceeds from any drink sales go to the Children's Rehab Foundation
(donations welcome).
All welcome. Invite your friends. Whatever way you/they plan to vote. Come
party. Come dance.
Yours kindly,
Anders
[image: OpenFestHeartbeatPromo.gif]
Coalition announces free concert
THE Coalition for Portage and Main has announced it will host a free
concert at the intersection Saturday, featuring local bands, beer and food.
The volunteer-run event, called Open Fest, is being thrown the last weekend
before Winnipeggers head to the polls to elect a new municipal government
and cast a ballot on the intersection’s future.
Local bands Royal Canoe, Mahogany Frog and JP Hoe, among others, are
scheduled to headline the event.
The festival starts at 2 p.m. and all proceeds will be donated to the
Children’s Rehabilitation Foundation.
https://voteopenwpg.ca/openfest/
Advocates for people with disabilities and active transportation who favour
opening Portage and Main to pedestrians invited members of the public to
try their hands at getting across the intersection in a wheelchair.
The event was organized by Winnipeg Trails Association.
"We're asking people to time it to see how long it takes," said Trails
executive director Anders Swanson.
Winnipeggers will vote on whether to open the intersection, which has been
closed to pedestrians since 1979, in a plebiscite in this year's civic
election.
CBC's Ismaila Alfa took the challenge to see how fast he could make it
across the intersection both above ground and through the underground
concourse.
See video on how long it took to get through Portage and Main:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/portage-main-wheelchair-time-1.4858…