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EPC Wednesday
by Anders Swanson 06 Jul '15

06 Jul '15

The latest post on winnipegtrails.ca http://www.winnipegtrails.ca/another-opportunity-to-have-a-say-epc-wednesda… ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE A SAY: EPC WEDNESDAY JULY 8TH PEDESTRIAN AND CYCLING STRATEGIES There is one more opportunity to speak about the cycling and walking strategies at committee before they are sent to council for adoption. The strategies are appearing in front of the Executive Policy Committee on Wednesday, July 8th: West Committee Room Council Building, City Hall, 510 Main Street 9:00am Here is the agenda <http://clkapps.winnipeg.ca/dmis/ViewDoc.asp?DocId=14504&SectionId=&InitUrl=>. (look for bullet 4 in the public works committee report section). *If you wish to register to speak (We urge you to come out and express your views: Whether you speak for or against, please consider attending. It is always valuable to exercise your democratic right to speak. You can register to speak by emailing the committee clerk, Carlos Gameiro, at CGameiro[a]winnipeg.ca <http://winnipeg.ca>. Note: If you are working that day or otherwise too busy to attend, note that you can also send a letter to the above email and have it included in the register and officially submitted to the committee. * To recap: We have been following this closely and are very much looking forward to Winnipeg having vision for cycling and walking. While this is far from the last time to give input (all recommendations and projects in the strategies are subject to extensive consultation and further research and approval), we look forward to – for the first time – operating in a city with an official mandate that takes walking and cycling (and scooters, wheelchairs, skateboards and strollers) seriously. [image: NortheastPioneersGreeway1] You can read all about the pedestrian and cycling strategies here. <http://www.winnipeg.ca/publicworks/MajorProjects/ActiveTransportation/WalkB…> Since 2003, Winnipeg Trails has been working with you to create a connected network of trails and protected bicycle facilities throughout Winnipeg, for everyone. All of our partners, including the City of Winnipeg, the Province of Mantioba, NGOs, stewardship groups, firms, private businesses and clubs have begun to envision walking and cycling for what it is: extremely important to the fabric of our city. Until now, we have often helped target connectivity based on when/if funding was available, sought expertise and network planning where we could find it and built trails where space could be found. In general, without an official plan, you do the best you can with what you have. Our vast network of skilled and knowledgeable individuals and groups have done tremendous things, but we all recognized we were ready for the next step. At our most recent strategic planning session, there was unanimous consent on two things: the need for more connectivity and the importance of these cycling and walking strategies. We are not alone. Cities across Canada have been developing walking and biking plans in haste. We need one too. And we need ours to be on the leading edge. There are incredible advantages to walking and cycling seriously – not the least of which is that it offers mode choice and improves the efficiency all other modes of transportation – including bussing and driving. Cities are also in competition with each other – for investment, for tourists, for innovation, for taxpayers. It is very important to recognize that liveability is an extremely important metric for businesses looking to locate and stay. Keeping ones skilled workforce, and youth, is critical. Investing in walking and cycling means investing in a city that is modern, vibrant and forward-thinking. When it comes to transportation, it can be quite simple: give people a choice, make it equitable, make it inexpensive, make it easy, make it good for the environment, make it cool, make it healthy and make it fun. Win, win, win, win, win, win, win. [image: OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA] The best cycling and walking environments are created when they are treated as an essential service like any other part of the transportation system. In 2010, Winnipeg finally began to live up to its potential and spent more per capita on cycling and walking than almost anywhere else in the world. Cycling numbers jumped in the years thereafter and sparked a bike boom that we are still seeing growing today. So many people are out walking on key trails that they are nearly shoulder to shoulder in busy times. Much can be accomplished with stakeholder input and councillor guidance, but it was recognized that Winnipeg needed a long term vision based on community, councillor *and* professional input (for the same underlying reasons that automobiles and transit networks require a long term plan).. Soon after 2010, as part of the Our Winnipeg, Winnipeg released a master transportation plan for automobiles and buses. One of its key recommendations was the development of separate walking and cycling strategies (presumably there wasn’t enough time/budget to do the extensive consultations and work required to address these modes properly at the time). This process (the development of the cycling and walking strategies) began a couple years after the larger transportation master plan was finished and adopted. Consultants were hired, it was briefly cancelled, then reinstated due to popular demand and, ploddingly, the process began to move forward. The report received input in numerous ways. Strategically located open houses were advertised broadly. Thousands of Winnipeggers took the time to fill out exhaustive surveys. Comprehensive and impartial telephone polls reached hundreds of random people who might not have taken the time to respond to surveys or attend open houses. The results of the random polling confirmed what we suspected all along – trails and protected bike lanes are popular, walking is important, and people want safe and connected trails in order to feel comfortable exploring the city they love. It also determined that there is a vast pool of “interested but concerned” people who are simply awaiting investment in safe infrastructure. They may not read the paper, or show up at trails meetings, but if you build it, they said they’d come. As the Winnipeg Trails Association, we have seen it in action. Representatives from Winnipeg trails joined a large and diverse group of stakeholders from numerous different communities and causes including environmental, cycling, seniors, real estate and development, business, Universal Design and Accessibility, who were honoured to sit on the Stakeholder Advisory committee for two years as these strategies were developed. As the consultants did their work, Winnipeg Trails representatives were asked to give approximately 16 hours of their time each to sit on various review committees, attend large stakeholder workshops and raise awareness of the open houses. They offered their non-binding input and feedback, giving the consultants valuable insight. In a rare development, even young children were consulted in the preparation of this plan. A special workshop was developed locally just for them, where internationally-respected planners joined WTA, local NGOs and school children themselves to do their own version of the walking and cycling consultations – in a language they could understand. For once, even those under 16 we’re included in discussions on changes that affect them. They were, understandably, all for more trails. [image: YRibbon1] Most recently, a review of the consultation work <http://www.cbc.ca/m/touch/canada/manitoba/story/1.3081263> determined that the consultation met international best practices for community consultation – and confirmed what senior officials were saying – that all cycling and walking projects done as part of the plan would have built-in and extensive consultation as part of the design process. The upside of recent media stories is that they too have drummed up a high level of interest. We are now at the point where almost no one in Winnipeg remains unaware of this exciting issue! Nonetheless, the fact remains that roads in Winnipeg are still missing sidewalks, our trails are too-often sparse in key areas and disconnected, and many of our bike paths simply end. Demand is far outpacing supply and we need to catch up. It is time to move forward. a message from Anders Swanson Coordinator, Winnipeg Trails Association

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Protected bike lanes across Canada
by Anders Swanson 29 Jun '15

29 Jun '15

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/special/editors-picks/out-of-harms-way-310…

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WFP: Sno job for citizens? City to consider requiring residents to keep sidewalks shovelled (Jun24'15)
by Beth McKechnie 24 Jun '15

24 Jun '15

Snow job for citizens?City to consider requiring residents to keep sidewalks shovelled http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/snow-job-for-citizens-3094641… The burden of clearing snow from city sidewalks may soon fall onto the shovels of Winnipeg homeowners. Residential walks are currently cleared of snow by the city, but support is growing at city hall to follow the practice of most other Canadian cities, which force homeowners to shovel the city's walks and fine those who refuse. "We typically look at it annually during the budgeting process," said Brad Sacher, director of public works, adding the city spends hundreds of thousands of dollars every winter clearing sidewalks. "We're asked to look at what kind of efficiencies we can find, and this one sticks out like a sore thumb because so many other cities do it this way." Coun. Janice Lukes, chairwoman of the public works committee, said if Sacher doesn't raise the issue in a pending cost-benefit analysis of snow clearing, she will make sure it becomes part of the public debate. "We should put the facts on the table about what it costs," Lukes (St. Norbert) said. "We're one of the very few cities that do it." The issue surfaced after it was discovered it was included as part of a 20-year pedestrian and cycling strategy. Buried in the 344-page report was a recommendation the city end its practice of clearing residential sidewalks and instead require homeowners to do it and fine those who don't. Residential sidewalks "should become the responsibility of every owner or occupant of any building abutting the public sidewalk," the recommendation in the pedestrian and cycling strategy report states. "These sidewalks should be cleared within 24 hours of end of snowfall and should be shovelled to bare pavement... "Penalties should be imposed on residents who fail to clear their sidewalk." Public works acknowledges some people -- particularly seniors and those with mobility issues -- may not be able to clear their own sidewalks in winter, and recommends initiatives to assist those individuals, including a "snow angels" program -- neighbours and volunteers who shovel works for those physically unable. Transcona Coun. Russ Wyatt told the committee the recommendations on sidewalk snow clearing should be removed from the strategy document, but the committee accepted the report in its entirety and it now heads to council for consideration. In addition to sidewalk snow clearing, city streets are cleared down to the bare pavement, from curb to curb. There was a public uproar when a consulting firm reviewed the public works department operations and said city hall could save money if it didn't clear the streets from curb to curb. The suggestion was never adopted. Sacher said the sidewalk snow-clearing issue found its way into the strategy document after it was raised by residents during the public consultation process. Sacher said some residents said they'd prefer to shovel the walk in front of their homes instead of waiting for city crews to do the work a week after a snowstorm. aldo.santin(a)freepress.mb.ca *Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition June 24, 2015 B1* JUST TO BE CLEAR... WINNIPEG isn't the first Canadian city to consider DIY snow clearing for public sidewalks. The Ontario cities of Hamilton, Kitchener, Waterloo and Windsor have all left residents responsible for sidewalk snow clearing. Here are six other cities that have also gone that way: - *Vancouver:* Residents and business owners are expected to clear sidewalks by 10 a.m. the day after every snowfall, seven days a week. The city encourages residents to adopt the sidewalks of neighbouring seniors or people with mobility issues and keep them clear all winter long. Failure to keep walks adjacent to residential homes can lead to fines of $250 per offence, while apartment blocks and business can incur fines ranging from $750 to $2,000. - *Calgary: *Since 1974, property owners in Calgary have been responsible for clearing the sidewalks adjacent to their properties within 24 hours of snow or ice accumulating. The city has also been promoting a Snow Angels campaign for more than 10 years, encouraging able-bodied residents to help seniors and others in need by adopting sidewalks to clear. Residents nominate their Snow Angels annually for special recognition letters from the mayor, and Snow Angels are given free parking passes from the Calgary Parking Authority. If property owners don't clear their sidewalks within 24 hours, the city gives them notices to shovel and scrape their walks within an allotted period of time. Fines vary based on the length of sidewalks and the amount of snow and ice accumulated. - *Edmonton: *A community standards bylaw requires property owners shovel their adjacent walkways -- sidewalks and driveways -- within 48 hours of a snowfall. Those who violate the bylaw are given one warning notice per season before being issued a ticket. Tickets are $100, and if a contractor has to be sent to remove snow, the property owner will be invoiced again separately. The city recommends residents sprinkle salt or gravel on the ground to give pedestrians traction and provides free boxes of sand at community drop points for citizens to use. - *Regina: *The City of Regina also provides sand to help residents keep their walks safe. Regina requires downtown businesses to clear their walks within 24 hours of a snowfall, while businesses, apartments and vacant lots outside downtown are given 48 hours to clear the snow. - *Saskatoon:* Residents are required to clear their private walks within 48 hours of a snowfall, while some commercial properties are only given 24 hours. When reports of uncleared sidewalks are filed to the City of Saskatoon, a bylaw inspector investigates and doles out 48-hour warnings to residents. Those who don't clear adequately can expect fines ranging from $100 to $2,000, depending on the severity and number of infractions. - *Toronto: *City crews clean the snow and ice from much of Toronto but aren't able to do so in core areas. Residents and business owners in the city's core are asked to clear adjacent walkways within 12 hours of every snowfall. Violating the bylaw can result in a $100 fine, with $25 surcharges. People needing snow-clearing help in Toronto's core can submit special requests to the city. *-- Jessica Botelho-Urbanski*

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WFP: Lukes eyes 30 km/h speed limit for residential streets & Crossing guard fed up with reckless drivers (Jun24'15)
by Beth McKechnie 24 Jun '15

24 Jun '15

Lukes eyes 30 km/h speed limit for residential streets http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/lukes-eyes-30-kmh-speed-limit-for--r… DO you like driving 30 km/h in school zones? How about on all residential streets? Coun. Janice Lukes, the public works chairwoman, wants Winnipeg to consider reducing all residential street speed limits to 30 km/h. The lower limit would not apply to regional streets, which are major routes such as Main Street or Portage Avenue. Lukes wants a pilot project in Fort Richmond, which is in her St. Norbert ward, but approval would have to come from the province first. "That solves all of our problems with cycling, walking, to have a limited speeding amount for vehicles," she said. One idea she has is to piggyback off the work of former Daniel McIntyre councillor Harvey Smith, who attempted to lower residential street speed limits to 40 km/h from 50 km/h in 2012. The motion was defeated by the public works committee in 2013 after an administrative report recommended against it. Earlier this week, a community committee in Toronto voted in favour of reducing the speed limits in some residential areas to 30 km/h. A report by Toronto's city staff said it could increase safety for residents and increase the number of residents using active transportation, but would be costly and might not work with every local road. Lukes said she would be open to investigating reducing the speed limit on weekends or at certain times of the day. "It is absolutely something in my tenure I will be looking at," she said. "I know (Fort Richmond) has five or six schools in an area, parks, so there is nothing wrong with piloting a project to see what happens." *-- Kristin Annable* Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition June 24, 2015 0 * * * * * Crossing guard fed up with reckless driversPosting licence plate numbers on Facebook http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/crossing-guard-fed-up-with-reckless-… A Winnipeg crossing guard hopes to shame bad drivers into better behaviour by posting their licence plate numbers on social media. Cecile Desjarlais has worked at a busy intersection in the West End since last fall, helping adults and children from a nearby school cross the street. Desjarlais says she's blown away by the number of close calls she's encountered with drivers, seeing kids almost hit by cars. On Monday, she said she had three narrow misses with vehicles. "I was in my intersection in the middle of the road with my vest on and my flag out, trying to get some kids across," Desjarlais said Tuesday. "Out come two vehicles, one after the other, and they passed on the inside of me, thankfully, so I was able to protect the kids." Thirty seconds later, another car nearly hit her and pedestrians again, she said. "There was even a closer call two weeks before where a child was just stepping off the curb... and somebody cut in the outside lane and hit the flag right out of my hand," Desjarlais said. "(Drivers) are being inattentive, they're late possibly for an appointment or work, or they just don't care." Fed up, Desjarlais decided to create a Facebook group where she plans to list the licence plate numbers of reckless drivers she sees. She will also be reporting the numbers to Winnipeg police, she said. Desjarlais talked to police about the issue and they said it's all right for her to post the plate numbers online. Police told her they will also be following up on all the numbers she reports. The Facebook group, Crossing Guards Wall of Shame, had 118 members subscribed after one day. Desjarlais said she will be the only person in the group posting licence plate numbers, so she can ensure they are authentic. One group member who hopes to help is Maurice Grégoire, the president of Teknisult Enterprises Ltd., which manufactures video cameras for school buses. Grégoire said he wants to help Desjarlais by giving her a wearable hat-camera that will shoot video and audio. That way, she won't have to take her eyes off the children to write down licence plate numbers in a notebook, he said. "It's all about advocacy for student safety," he said. "Whatever resources I have that she can use, go for it." Desjarlais hopes the Facebook group will raise awareness among drivers and, consequentially, make for safer commutes to school. "The drivers need to be aware that the crossing guards are out there. We're not out there just to cause havoc with traffic or anything. We're just trying to get people across the street safely," Desjarlais said. "How would they feel if they were running late or on the way to work and they were to hit me or a child? They're not going to get to their destination any quicker if that was to happen." jessica.botelho-urbanski(a)freepress.mb.ca *Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition June 24, 2015 0*

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WFP: Council to vote on bike route barricades & Progress on cycling routes (Jun24'15)
by Beth McKechnie 24 Jun '15

24 Jun '15

Council to vote on bike route barricades http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/council-to-vote-on-bike-route-barric… A civic committee has given the green light to reinstate barricades along the city's Sunday/holiday bike routes. At Tuesday's public works committee meeting, councillors voted unanimously in favour of bringing back the barricades, which helped warn motorists the roadways were for local traffic only. The motion to reinstate the barricades must still be approved by council. The barricades were removed this year and replaced with signs at the intersections that read, "Motor vehicle travel limited to one block, 8:00-20:00, Sundays and holidays." However, the removal of the barricades was met with displeasure from councillors whose wards are within these routes. River Heights-Fort Garry Coun. John Orlikow and Daniel McIntyre Coun. Cindy Gilroy voiced their approval of the motion from the city centre community committee, which called for the barricades to return along the four designated streets. Lyndale Drive, Scotia Street, Wellington Crescent and Wolseley Avenue are considered cycling paths from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sundays and statutory holidays from mid-May to mid-October. Orlikow said since the barricades were removed, his Sundays have been filled with emails and phone calls from his constituents, who say motorists are not reading the signs. Gilroy, who is also on the public works committee, echoed these concerns stating at the meeting, "it is just not working," now that the barricades are gone. The barricades were removed this year after a recommendation from the public works department, which saw it as a way to save money. Public works director Brad Sacher told a civic committee last July that it cost the department $35,000 a year to have staff put up and take down the barricades on the four routes every Sunday during the cycling season. Progress on cycling routes A 20-year strategy for constructing a network of pedestrian and cycling paths across Winnipeg is heading back to city council for approval. The pedestrian and cycling strategy was endorsed Tuesday -- for the second time -- by the public works committee. Couns. Russ Wyatt (Transcona) and Jeff Browaty (North Kildonan) told the committee they were concerned that area residents weren't notified about the impacts the strategy will have when specific streets are identified as routes. They also said the maps in the report contained errors. But the report was unanimously adopted without changes after a senior administrator said the strategy is a long-term guide that will be subject to council and public approval before any component is implemented. Brad Sacher, director of public works, said annual action plans will contain detailed routes and costs and they will be subject to public consultation and council approval. Sacher said the strategy included maps to demonstrate where gaps exist in existing pedestrian and cycling routes and where new routes should go but they're not set in stone. Coun. Janice Lukes said councillors and residents will determine the details of routes on an annual basis. Questions about the public consultation process of the study were resolved when the new office of public engagement reviewed what the strategy authors had done and said the methods were adequate and complied with industry best practices. *-- Aldo Santin, Kristin Annable* Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition June 24, 2015 B3

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road cycling the new golf for business networking
by Terry Zdan 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/road-cycling-the-new-golf-for-busines… -- Terry Zdan 126 Duncan Norrie Drive Wpg MB R3P 2J9 CANADA tjzdan50(a)gmail.com <tjzdan(a)gmasil.com>

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VeloCity report back: Love to Ride software
by Anders Swanson 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

[I met with Thomas, the creator of this program in Nantes. He heard I was behind Winter Bike to Work Day and wanted to chat. I found this system to be very interesting, sophisticated and graphically beautiful. Its essentially a platform for companies and individuals to get started, challenge each other and share their experiences cycling. It doesn't appear to really be aimed at a "normalized cycling culture" but it may have its uses, particularly in places like Canda or the UK or Australia with dismal numbers that already do stuff like Bike to Work Week or Commuter Challenge to get people talking. It certainly seems to be catching on all over the place. It takes the basic concept of the above, injects some digital steroids, and tosses in strong social media muscle to make it spread widely. It costs $ to implement, but the costs seem fair for what you get. The sponsorship component is handled deftly. It may be worth considering brining this to Winnipeg, or replacing certain IT aspects of what we already do with their system. . . esp. considering the number of cities/countries that are signing on. At the very least, I am going to look into how perhaps we might be able to do this nationally for Bike Day in Canada Next Year. If any of this interests you, talk to me. - Anders] >From Thomas: Hey Anders, It was great to meet you at Velo-City. Here is some more information for you and your colleagues to look at re Love to Ride. Our Partner facing site - www.lovetoride.org A short 2 min Animation on Love to Ride - https://challengeforchange.wistia.com/medias/7jckx9l8kz <https://challengeforchange.wistia.com/medias/7jckx9l8kz> A short 5 min TEDx Talk I gave - http://getmorepeoplecycling.com/2014/07/09/thomas-speaks-at-tedx-atlanta/ <http://getmorepeoplecycling.com/2014/07/09/thomas-speaks-at-tedx-atlanta/> A couple of example sites: UK – www.lovetoride.net/uk Sydney, Australia - www.lovetoride.net/sydney <http://www.lovetoride.net/sydney> Please feel free to pass this email on to any partners you work with who might also be interested in learning about Love to Ride. A skype call in the next few weeks could be a good option. Cheers, Thomas -- Thomas Stokell Executive Director Love to Ride US: +1 (310) 9067897 Skype: thomasstokell thomas(a)lovetoride.org www.linkedin.com/in/thomasstokell www.lovetoride.org

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CBC: Your smartphone might help you build a better city
by Beth McKechnie 22 Jun '15

22 Jun '15

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Terry Zdan <tjzdan50(a)gmail.com> Cc: "at-network(a)lists.umanitoba.ca" <at-network(a)lists.umanitoba.ca> Date: Mon, 22 Jun 2015 09:13:43 -0500 http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/your-smartphone-might-help-you-build-a-be… -- Terry Zdan 126 Duncan Norrie Drive Wpg MB R3P 2J9 CANADA tjzdan50(a)gmail.com <tjzdan(a)gmasil.com>

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Report from Office of Public Engagement
by Anders Swanson 19 Jun '15

19 Jun '15

Onward. "...consultation completed was adequate & utilized industry best practices.." http://t.co/9xV0dzZj9g http://t.co/bLiTo0ujzg https://twitter.com/swansonanders/status/611994774120235008

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Trail Audit posiiton with Trails Manitoba
by Beth McKechnie 19 Jun '15

19 Jun '15

*Trail Auditor* Does getting paid to cycle 1500 km this summer across our fair province sound like an amazing experience to you? Trails Manitoba is looking for a Trail Auditor to assess the condition of the Trans Canada Trail in Manitoba from its western point from the Saskatchewan border to High Lake, near Falcon Lake to the east. Applicants must be physically fit, own a well-maintained mountain bike, have vehicle support, attention to detail and strong written and verbal skills (as an audit report must be submitted). Experience with gps is an asset, but training will be provided. This is an honorarium position of $3000, plus all reasonable out-of-pocket expenses and per diem to cover hotel/accom. GPS and trail orientation knowledge is an asset, but training will be provided. Please view a detailed job description at trailsmanitoba.ca. Interested applicants forward their resumes in confidence (with 2 references) to executive_director(a)trailsmanitoba.ca *by June 30, 2015*. http://trailsmanitoba.ca/2015/06/trail-auditor-position/

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