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WFP Analysis: A chance to redefine transportation (Nov29'21)
by Beth McKechnie 29 Nov '21

29 Nov '21

A chance to redefine transportation https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/analysis/a-chance-to-redefine-tra… OVER the next two weeks, the City of Winnipeg is looking for public feedback on Transportation Master Plan: 2050, a 30-year blueprint to guide development of Winnipeg’s transportation network. In the past, transportation planning has focused primarily on strategies to move cars, but today it’s seen as a central tool for building healthy, sustainable and prosperous communities. Urban mobility is fundamental to economic viability, environmental sustainability and social equity, making Transportation Master Plan: 2050 a key document for the city. The first step in developing a new transportation strategy will be to learn from the past and accept that current economic challenges, including Winnipeg’s $3 billion infrastructure deficit for roads and bridges, are largely the result of previous planning decisions. We have spent decades building a city almost singularly focused on automobile transportation, resulting in a sprawling, low-density urban form that has become economically unsustainable. Despite record-breaking road maintenance spending, our current pace of renewal means new roads built today won’t be replaced for more than 100 years. Nearly 10,000 more cars are added to Winnipeg’s streets every year, and in response we build more roads to accommodate them. This begins the endless cycle of induced demand. The convenience of expanded road capacity encourages more people to drive, increasing the number of cars on the road until the new capacity is met. This results in traffic congestion and pressure to build yet more roads. After decades of designing North American cities around cars, it has become clear you get what you build for. If you build for more cars, you get more cars. Thankfully, induced demand works for all modes of transportation. If you build a more efficient public transit system, you get more people riding the bus. If you build a safe and connected network of sidewalks and bike lanes, you get more people walking and biking. A car-centric city is not only economically unsustainable, but also environmentally unsustainable. Vehicles account for almost half of Winnipeg’s greenhouse-gas emissions, by far the largest contributor. Transitioning to electric vehicles is important, but the climate crisis is far too immediate to rely on that approach exclusively. Strategies that allow people to drive less are much more effective at reducing environmental impact. Winnipeg’s Climate Action Plan has set a target of doubling the number of trips taken by walking or biking by 2030. To achieve this aggressive goal, Transportation Master Plan: 2050 will likely have to reconsider the Winnipeg Pedestrian and Cycling Strategy. Winnipeg’s cycling network has increased by 75 per cent since 2015, but the vast majority of this is suburban, off-street shared-use pathways, directed mainly at biking for recreation. If we want people to use bikes for transportation, we must build protected lanes on higher traffic, main streets. Winnipeg’s plan calls for few larger streets to have cycling infrastructure, focusing instead on easier, low traffic, out-of-the-way residential streets. This summer, Salter Street was rebuilt without bike lanes because the plan is to have a “greenway” on nearby Powers Street. If you have never heard of Powers Street, it’s because unless you live there, or know someone who does, you would never find yourself driving on that small residential street. Salter Street has the destinations that people want to go to — shops, restaurants, schools, libraries — so the cycling infrastructure should be located there. This scenario is playing out across the city on such streets as Sargent Avenue, Corydon Avenue and Provencher Boulevard. If we want to encourage people to use bikes as transportation, we must plan for it in the same way we plan for driving, with direct routes on major streets connected to the places people need to go, particularly in lower-income neighbourhoods where only nine per cent of the city’s cycling current infrastructure exists. A renewed strategy for cycling infrastructure on main streets, dovetailed with Winnipeg Transit’s plan to implement a high-frequency transit model that will transform main streets into transit conduits, presents an important opportunity to redefine many of Winnipeg’s major arteries into complete streets. A complete street is designed to safely support a broad range of mobility options, including walking, biking, transit and driving. A successful complete street supports transportation equity by providing a range of accessible mobility options that improve access to education, employment, and recreation for people of all ages, abilities, and income levels. As mobility hubs, complete streets attract a diversity of people, that can stimulate investment, new development and improve neighbourhood economies. They can create more livable communities, provide local employment opportunities and be catalysts for small business entrepreneurship. Mobility has become a fundamental component of good city-building, and Transportation Master Plan: 2050 is an important opportunity to move Winnipeg in a new direction that makes our city more economically and environmentally sustainable, builds great communities and improves quality of life for everyone. *Brent Bellamy is senior design architect for Number Ten Architectural Group.*

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WFP: Speed limit changes for safety recommendations (Nov28'21)
by Beth McKechnie 28 Nov '21

28 Nov '21

Speed limit changes for safety recommendations https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/curb-protected-bike-lanes-proposed-… A new city report recommends modifying speeds on seven roads, including Bison Drive and Bishop Grandin Boulevard, to improve safety. Winnipeg’s infrastructure committee will review the proposed changes at its Wednesday meeting: ● Changing Bison Drive, between a point 100 m west of Barnes Street and a point 300 m west of Pembina Highway, from 80 km/h to 60 km/h; ● Reducing Marion Street from 60 km/h to 50 km/h between Youville Street and a point 100 m east of Archibald Street; ● Adjusting Youville Street between Marion and Goulet streets to 50 km/h from 60 km/h; ● Lowering Plessis Road’s 80 km/h limit to 70 km/h from 100 m south of Camiel Sys Street and the city’s boundary; ● Setting Ethan Boyer Way’s limit to 70 km/h from Brady Road to Waverley Street; ● Changing the Winnipeg stretch of Hallama Drive to 60 km/h; ● Adjusting Bishop Grandin Boulevard between Lagimodiere Boulevard and Boulevard des Hivemants to 80 km/h.

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WFP: Curb-protected bike lanes proposed (Nov28'21)
by Beth McKechnie 28 Nov '21

28 Nov '21

Parked vehicles a problem for cyclists Curb-protected bike lanes proposed https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/curb-protected-bike-lanes-proposed-… ICY ruts, potholes and poor visibility aren’t cyclists’ only problems in bike lanes — parked vehicles are an ever present nuisance. Curb-protected bike lanes, which separate active transportation from rows of parked cars and vehicle traffic, will be safer than the current standard of painted lines and parking signs, a new City of Winnipeg report says. City bureaucrats recommend the city erect curb barriers on six parking protected bike lanes. However, only one lane route has money set aside for the enhancements. “We need to be spending more to make our city walkable, bikeable and transit friendly,” said Mark Cohoe, Bike Winnipeg’s executive director. “If we don’t radically change what we’re doing, we’re going to see that our climate goals are impossible to meet.” Cohoe said he often encounters parked cars in Arthur Street’s bike lane. It may be hard for motorists to recognize they’re not in a parking spot, he said. “Often times (as a biker), it’s not like you can just shift left and go past that vehicle,” Cohoe said. Instead, cyclists must merge into traffic, hop onto the sidewalk or try and squeeze past in their lane. “It’s an unpredictable manoeuvre,” Cohoe said. “Someone coming up behind you might not expect it, so it’s dangerous.” A big reason why people don’t bike across Winnipeg is a fear of traffic, Cohoe said. “Getting these (barriers) in place really provides people that space where they’re going to feel safe, comfortable and secure,” he said. The city report, to be reviewed by Winnipeg’s infrastructure committee Wednesday, proposes upgrading Sherbrook Street, Arthur Street, Princess Street, Bannatyne Avenue, Notre Dame Avenue and Eastway bike lanes “over time”. The barriers cost about $10,000 per 100 metre of bike lane, based on previous pricing and excluding other concrete work, the report says. Winnipeg has budgeted $177,000 to upgrade the 595-metre strip of Sherbrook Street between Wolseley Avenue and Broadway. Bannatyne Avenue has been left unprotected to accommodate truck loading and turning manoeuvres. The other four roads have “no current plan or funding to upgrade” and must be prioritized against other projects in the city’s pedestrian and cycling program, the report reads. Coun. Matt Allard, who chairs the infrastructure committee, said he’s in favour of constructing more barricades. “(They’re an) effective way of substantially improving the quality, safety, and desirability of existing painted bike lanes and other locations where the (physical) space exists on the current road width,” he wrote in an email. The city considered poly-posts to separate bike lanes from parked vehicles, but the plastic bollards must be removed in the winter. Allard said he’ll ask questions about snow clearing for active transportation at the upcoming meeting. City cycling paths can be treacherous this time of year, depending on the route, according to Currie Gillespie, who’s on the Manitoba Cycling Association’s board of directors. He’d love additional barriers between lanes and parking spots — but in the meantime, he’d appreciate more maintenance. “The sanding on the bike paths has not been appropriate,” Gillespie said, adding it’s gotten better over the years. “We get more butts on bikes by making a safe, efficient, well-maintained route for those people to get where they want to go,” he said. “There’s not enough attention to that principle yet.” The city would need to increase its equipment designed for treating snow and ice in bike lanes, should more become barrier protected, Gillespie said. Vehicles parked in bike lanes could be ticketed. — With files from Kevin Rollason gabrielle.piche(a)winnipegfreepress.com

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WFP: ‘No cheap answer’ to fixing icy sidewalks (Nov23'21)
by Beth McKechnie 23 Nov '21

23 Nov '21

*‘No cheap answer’ to fixing icy sidewalks * https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/no-cheap-answer-to-fixing-icy-sidew… AT least once per winter, Allen Mankewich’s wheelchair loses traction and spills over onto an icy Winnipeg sidewalk. Less than two weeks after winter conditions set in for the season, it’s happened again. “There’s ice buildup on a lot of the sidewalks, it gets really rutted. I actually flipped my chair (Sunday) trying to get through a spot on the sidewalk at Portage Avenue, which is a major route. If they can’t even clear those major routes properly, the side street (sidewalks) are going to be terrible,” said Mankewich. While speeding up to avoid getting stuck, the front wheels of his chair caught on ice ruts, forcing him to be flung out, he said. “It’s a safety risk for people who use any sort of mobility device. It’s even challenging for people who can walk. You see people walking very carefully over sections of the sidewalk that appear really slippery,” said Mankewich. He’s among several residents now urging the city to find ways to better clear the walking paths of ice and snow. “We are a winter city, so we need to properly allocate our resources to making sure that people can actually get out during the winter,” said Mankewich. The city considers its latest snow clearing operation complete but is still monitoring conditions, said Michael Cantor, Winnipeg’s manager of streets maintenance. Fluctuating temperatures have unfortunately led to some ice accumulation, noted Cantor. “When you have temperatures around zero... you have some thawing and frosting again and icy sidewalks. Mother Nature (gave) us some challenges,” he said. While city policy does not include a set timeline to sand sidewalks to add traction, Cantor said crews begin inspecting how slippery sidewalks are right after plowing ends. The length of the sanding process depends on how much equipment is available to get the work done. “We make sure that we use every piece of equipment, we man the equipment we have and we hire every piece of equipment that the industry can provide us. We really do it on an as-soon-as-possible basis… We monitor streets and sidewalks in the same manner,” said Cantor. He said work on streets begins promptly, in part to clear paths for emergency vehicles. Street snow clearing vehicles also tend to move faster than those used on sidewalks, making the former process quicker, Cantor added. City staff are now studying ways to make sidewalks and active transportation routes less slippery and more passable during winter weather, with a report expected to offer suggestions by next spring or summer. Cantor said there are no obvious solutions at this point. While adding more staff and equipment could be considered, it would come with a cost, he cautioned. “There’s no cheap answer,” he said. Cantor urged Winnipeggers to report specific sidewalk concerns to 311. Omar Kinnarath said sidewalks in the West End now resemble skating rinks with icy peaks, conditions that have triggered many complaints among his fellow bus riders in recent days. Kinnarath, who has already fallen twice since the snow set in for the season, said the city should explore several options to improve winter sidewalk maintenance, including the purchase of more equipment, hiring more staff and possibly even reimbursing citizens for clearing snow. He believes the city has consistently cleared snow off roads to a higher standard than sidewalks, which won’t help convince citizens to walk and bike, something the city hopes they will do to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. “We’re pushing active transportation and we’re pushing cycling… (so) the mechanism and the infrastructure needs to be put in place for this to happen. If it doesn’t happen, then we’re back to driving cars,” said Kinnarath. Marilyn Bird argues an “icy, slippery, hazardous mess” of pedestrian paths in the North End would have been greatly improved by quicker snow removal. “The first snowfall of the year is also the most important. They’ve got to get on that way quicker,” said Bird. For sidewalks along major routes, bus routes and collector streets, city policy aims to maintain a compacted snow surface, with clearing to follow five centimetres of snow accumulation or drifting. Plowing should be completed within 36 hours after the end of an average storm. The city also aims to clear residential sidewalks near elementary schools and active living centres within 36 hours of a storm. The target timeline to clear all other residential sidewalks is within five working days after the operation starts, which occurs after eight centimetres of snow accumulates. joyanne.pursaga(a)freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga

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WFP Editorial: ‘Winter city’ should be pedestrian-friendly (Nov22'21)
by Beth McKechnie 22 Nov '21

22 Nov '21

‘Winter city’ should be pedestrian-friendly https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/editorials/winter-city-should-be-… WHEN the weather outside is frightful, Winnipeg’s sidewalks are often the scariest part. The city received its first real blast of winter in mid-November, a two-day system that dropped 26 centimetres of snow and rendered most of Winnipeg’s sidewalks and active transportation paths anywhere from tricky to functionally unusable. Crews were not expected to begin clearing sidewalks in residential neighbourhoods until nearly a week after the first snowflakes fell, which left pedestrians contending with sloppy, Slurpee-like conditions during mild daytime highs, and then treacherous sheets of rutted ice after temperatures descended at night. For a wide swath of the population — including pedestrians, wheelchair users, disabled people, elderly people, parents with strollers — this is a significant, frustrating and baffling problem that Winnipeggers seem to encounter every winter, despite the fact ours is a winter city that can see snow accumulation as early as October and as late as May. Poorly cleared or uncleared sidewalks and active transportation routes are a legitimate concern. Ice-covered surfaces can lead to injury- causing slips and falls, which eat up healthcare resources — a particularly pressing concern during a pandemic. Impassable routes can also confine wheelchair users and those with mobility issues inside their homes, which is isolating, or it can send frustrated sidewalk users onto the roadways, which is dangerous. Meanwhile, it’s well known that being able to get outside for fresh air, exercise, and a shot of that all-important vitamin D is important for people’s mental and physical health. And if we want the city’s population to become less reliant on cars — as Winnipeg’s climate action plan identifies it does, calling for a 50 per cent reduction in single-occupancy vehicle use by 2030 — then people need to be able to get around safely during the six months of the year snow is on the ground. Still, despite the dozens of reasons cited every year about the need to prioritize improving winter conditions on the more than 3,000 kilometres of sidewalks and 400 kilometres of active transportation paths in this city — not to mention the thousands of complaints the city receives every year from fed-up residents — roads tailored to motor vehicles continue to be the focus of snow-clearing efforts. Last January, St. Boniface Coun. Matt Allard, frustrated by the number of spills he has personally taken, called for a study on the health costs linked to slips and falls on sidewalks and how changes to snow clearing and ice treatments could make the surfaces safer. The resulting report, which was released in July, called for the city to track how long it takes to sand sidewalks, as well as better tracking of complaints. In other words: more studies. Other winter cities have figured this out. Oslo, Norway, and Helsinki, Finland, have heated sidewalks in high-traffic areas, for example, that keep them clear of snow and ice. But Winnipeg isn’t just a winter city. It’s also a notoriously pedestrian-unfriendly one, and it shows in its policies and planning. Many streets don’t even have sidewalks to clear. Perhaps it’s time for this so-called winter city to start living up to the description. Until then, however, it seems it will remain up to Winnipeggers — for the sake of their own safety, and the safety of others — to pick up their shovels and take the timely clearing of sidewalk snow into their own hands.

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Transit passes in exchange for old cars (TransLink)
by Beth McKechnie 17 Nov '21

17 Nov '21

Transit Passes in Exchange for Old Cars <https://pedbikeinfo.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7ae385fc8506278c2e45…> (Cities Today) Reports that the Vancouver, Canada transit authority TransLink is partnering with nonprofit SCRAP-IT to offer customers public transit passes worth CAD$802 (US$638) when they scrap their old vehicles.

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WFP: Delay in snow clearing leaves active residents frosted (Nov16'21)
by Beth McKechnie 16 Nov '21

16 Nov '21

Delay in snow clearing leaves active residents frosted https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/snowed-under-575751142.html MOVING as quickly as possible with his blue walker, Joseph Owen stayed close to the curb on Notre Dame Avenue while noon-hour traffic sped by on wet pavement outside the Health Sciences Centre. After struggling with his walker in the rutted, wet snow on the sidewalk, the 61-year-old dialysis patient chose to walk in the street to get to his bus stop. “I hope that all the drivers will notice me when I’m using the street and I hope they understand why I’m doing that,” the senior from Pauingassi First Nation said after making it safely to his stop following an appointment at the hospital. “I can’t make it that far because in these conditions it’s very hard to push my walker,” Owen said. “I had to use the street where it’s a little better.” As of Monday afternoon, the City of Winnipeg said all Priority 1 streets and just under half of Priority 2 streets had been cleared of snow after about 26 centimetres fell between Thursday and Saturday. However, cyclists and pedestrians had to contend with variable conditions on the more than 3,000 kilometres of sidewalks and 400 km of active transportation paths as less than 40 per cent were plowed. Mark Cohoe, executive director of Bike Winnipeg, decided to commute by bus this week knowing his route would be inaccessible either because plows had not yet cleared the path, or had dumped snow from the street into the dedicated bike lane. “If you’re someone that doesn’t have a car, if you are someone that’s relying on walking, biking or taking transit, what we’ve seen in the last few days is where the city prioritizes you, and it’s last,” Cohoe said. “We do a good job at plowing streets for cars, but if we’re looking to get more people walking, more people biking, more people taking transit, we’re nowhere near anywhere we need to be.” Cohoe said the City of Winnipeg’s policy to clean sidewalks and active transportation paths at the same time as prioritized streets, or very shortly after, within 36 hours of a storm concluding isn’t always carried out in practice. Meanwhile, crews are expected to begin clearing sidewalks in residential neighbourhoods today, which can take up to five days to complete with the 30 available plows. Cohoe said at that rate getting people to give up their cars in the winter for public transit, biking and other transportation modes will be a tough sell, adding the City of Winnipeg’s climate action plan calls for a 50 per cent reduction in single-occupancy vehicle use by 2030. “To get to that it’s a substantial switch in how we travel, but where’s the motivation, where’s the encouragement?” Cohoe said. For Allen Mankewich, a downtown resident and wheelchair user, every winter brings the same challenge as sidewalks become nearly impossible to traverse, especially when mild conditions mean wet, mushy snow is left covering the pavement. “Nothing seems to change in terms of city hall policy or process or funding into sidewalk clearing. So it’s just really frustrating,” Mankewich said. Mankewich said he is thinking about submitting a complaint to the Manitoba Human Rights Commission over the city’s current snow clearing policy and the funding allocated to ensure sidewalks are accessible through the winter. “It’s one of the ways that things can change. Just encouraging them to make changes and asking them to make changes doesn’t always work,” Mankewich said. “People who don’t drive, they have rights too. They have the right to mobility, they have the right to get around, and if we have to spend more to make the sidewalks clear, we should look at doing that.” Infrastructure renewal and public works chairman Coun. Matt Allard said he hasn’t received many complaints regarding the latest snow clearing effort, but acknowledged there is room for improvement. “Public works keeps saying that we do a very good job relative to other cities,” Allard said. “But regardless of how good a job we’re doing, we want to get people out and about walking and biking in the winter, so we need to keep looking at options to make it easier and better for people.” Allard said the public works committee has asked city administration to provide recommendations on improving winter sidewalk conditions and a report is expected in the coming months, but not before the end of this snow season. In the meantime, Owen hopes he won’t be forced into traffic when he goes to his next dialysis appointment Wednesday. “It’s really poor,” Owen said. “It’s not being cleared the way that they should be doing it.” danielle.dasilva(a)freepress.mb.ca

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CBC: Bikes took a back seat at COP26. Advocates urge Canada to make them a priority in its climate plan
by Beth McKechnie 11 Nov '21

11 Nov '21

Cycling groups say focus on electric cars short-sighted in fighting climate change https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/cop26-climate-change-emissions-bikes-1.6235…

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FW: [EXTERNAL] Free webinar on the Global Plan for the new Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-30
by Wendy Chapman 10 Nov '21

10 Nov '21

________________________________ From: Parachute Vision Zero Network [info(a)parachute.ca] Sent: Wednesday, November 10, 2021 9:00 AM To: Wendy Chapman Subject: [EXTERNAL] Free webinar on the Global Plan for the new Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-30 [https://r20.rs6.net/on.jsp?ca=e1d19fc5-951a-4a7f-9442-283e91121cae&a=110361…] [https://files.constantcontact.com/81471b4f001/9a8d2976-3aa8-45a2-a823-d9aad…] [https://files.constantcontact.com/81471b4f001/a061da47-cd90-413c-86bb-5623f…] Parachute Vision Zero and Canadian Association of Road Safety Professionals (CARSP) present: The Global Plan for the New Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030: What You Need to Know [https://files.constantcontact.com/81471b4f001/22ab9e86-8475-4a2c-a8bf-84ca9…] Moderator Brenda Suggett Executive Director, CARSP Panel Raheem Dilgir President, CARSP Valerie Smith Director, Programs, Parachute Wednesday November 24, 2021 Noon to 1:00 p.m. ET The Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030 has been proclaimed by a UN General Assembly Resolution with a target to reduce road traffic deaths and injuries by 50 per cent by 2030, recognizing the gravity of this global issue. The Decade of Action is underpinned by the Global Plan, launched Oct. 28, 2021, which aims to inspire and guide national and local government, as well other stakeholders who can influence road safety. Those include civil society, academia, the private sector, donors, community and youth leaders, and other stakeholders as they develop supporting national and local action plans and targets. Through advocating for the Safe Systems Approach and providing recommendations based on best practices and research, the plan is an important resource both within Canada and abroad. The webinar will provide an overview of the Global Plan, including three parts of road safety action: what to do, how to do it and who does it. Panelists will also discuss how road safety needs to be integrated into other policy agendas such as climate action and equity, to increase its reach and influence. The webinar will also refer to Canada’s Road Safety Strategy 2025. Register<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001dYX8MOuhRl_dcUbT-A_qPKLZfcKYlspBSfaPriX_6m8…> More info at parachute.ca/webinar<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001dYX8MOuhRl_dcUbT-A_qPKLZfcKYlspBSfaPriX_6m8…> Supported by Desjardins [null] <https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001dYX8MOuhRl_dcUbT-A_qPKLZfcKYlspBSfaPriX_6m8…> Parachute | 150 Eglinton Ave. East, Suite 300, Toronto, Ontario M4P 1E8 Canada Unsubscribe wchapman(a)wrha.mb.ca<https://visitor.constantcontact.com/do?p=un&m=001ZH8cm0mwpXVSIl5hbMkk5w%3D&…> Update Profile<https://visitor.constantcontact.com/do?p=oo&m=001ZH8cm0mwpXVSIl5hbMkk5w%3D&…> | Constant Contact Data Notice<https://www.constantcontact.com/legal/customer-contact-data-notice> Sent by info(a)parachute.ca<mailto:info@parachute.ca> powered by [Trusted Email from Constant Contact - Try it FREE today.] <http://www.constantcontact.com/index.jsp?cc=nge&rmc=VF21_3GE&nav=e1d19fc5-9…> Try email marketing for free today!<http://www.constantcontact.com/index.jsp?cc=nge&rmc=VF21_3GE&nav=e1d19fc5-9…> Disclaimer : This email (including any attachments or enclosed documents) is intended for the addressee(s) only and may contain privileged, proprietary or confidential information. Any unauthorized use, disclosure, distribution, copying or dissemination is strictly prohibited. If you receive this email in error, please notify the sender immediately, return the original (if applicable) and delete the email. Avis : Le présent courriel (y compris toute pièce jointe) est destiné à la personne ou aux personnes à qui il est adressé, et peut contenir des renseignements confidentiels, privés ou protégés par un privilège juridique. Toute utilisation, divulgation, distribution, copie ou diffusion non autorisée est strictement défendue. Si vous avez reçu le présent courriel par erreur, veuillez en informer immédiatement l’expéditeur, retourner l’original (le cas échéant) et supprimer ce courriel.

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WFP: MPI, police target intersection collisions (Nov9'21)
by Beth McKechnie 09 Nov '21

09 Nov '21

MPI, police target intersection collisions THE Winnipeg Police Service is cracking down on speeders at high-collision intersections as part of a new Manitoba Public Insurance initiative. The intersection enforcement program will focus on speed, adherence to traffic signals and ensuring cars clear intersections before a traffic light changes. MPI said the program recently launched and will continue until late fall, with a goal to reduce road injuries and fatalities. “Many of these intersection collisions could have been prevented if the drivers adjusted their speed and adhered to the on-site traffic signals,” Satvir Jatana, MPI chief customer officer, said in a news release Monday. “While entering an intersection, the combination of speed and not adhering to a traffic signal, like a traffic light, is potentially fatal.” The release notes the 10 intersections that recorded the most collisions in Winnipeg between 2016 and 2020. These include Kenaston and McGillivray boulevards (1,217 collisions), Leila Avenue and McPhillips Street (1,179) and Lagimodiere Boulevard and Regent Avenue West (978). MPI is providing funding for the enforcement, which will also be carried out by Brandon police and the RCMP, in an attempt to reduce the roughly 30,000 intersection collisions that take place in the province every year.

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WFP: Designing pedestrian promenade on Graham Ave (Nov8'21)
by Beth McKechnie 08 Nov '21

08 Nov '21

*Designing pedestrian promenade* https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/analysis/designing-pedestrian-pro… AS we emerge from a global pandemic and move into the headwinds of a global climate crisis, change has become the only certainty for the world’s cities. Civic leadership that embraces bold ideas to overcome these evolving challenges, specifically in highly impacted downtown areas, will find the most success in the future. Unveiled last year, but somewhat lost in the headlines of the pandemic, the new Winnipeg Transit Master Plan presents the city with an opportunity to lead this urban evolution. By marrying transit planning with creative urban design, we can leverage transit investment to create generational change in downtown Winnipeg. There are three important downtown placemaking opportunities identified in the new plan. Major rapid transit stations will be built at Portage and Main and in old Union Station, establishing two significant nodes of activity. These can be leveraged through creative planning to create a gravity that attracts retail, housing and cultural amenities to support new and existing downtown residential neighbourhoods. A third impactful move, the closing of the Graham Avenue Transit Mall, will create a kilometre-long opportunity to dream. With buses gone, and cars having been removed 30 years ago, Graham Avenue will become a blank slate upon which we can draw our vision for the future. Graham Avenue has the scale and diversity to become a special public space in downtown. Some blocks have green space and little old buildings that support sidewalk retail like bookstores, coffee shops and convenience stores. Others have large developments like the Millennium Library, Manitoba Hydro Place, Canada Life Centre, True North Square and the city’s tallest building at 300 Main. The Hudson’s Bay Co. building and the large parking lots at the eastern end represent key opportunities for impactful new development. When current construction is complete there will be almost 1,000 new homes adjacent to Graham Avenue, with 280 new hotel rooms, two new office towers, a food hall, restaurants and commercial space. With bold investment and a strong vision, we can build on this momentum and create a unified, pedestrian-focused public space that redefines the image of downtown. There are inspiring examples of streets that have been transformed into linear parks, shared streets, and pedestrian promenades in cities across the world. If we look closer to home, Stephen Avenue Mall in Calgary is a pedestrian street that might be an informative precedent. Once the city’s main street, Stephen Avenue was closed to vehicles in 1973, and after many difficult years it is now downtown’s most active public space, lined with shops and restaurants in a concentration that creates an important critical mass of activity, even in today’s struggling downtown. The City of Calgary recently hired Gehl, a world-renowned urban design firm from Denmark, to create a vision for the future of Stephen Avenue. Gehl approaches urban design through the lens of public life, creating public spaces that support social interaction between people. The plan recommends the following six strategic moves to guide Stephen Avenue to a successful future, principles that could provide an important insight for any transformation of Winnipeg’s Graham Avenue. *Branding the Avenue*: Invest in a permanent redesign of the physical street with a cohesive palette and unified visual identity, including pavers, trees, colourful and flexible seating, wayfinding and lighting. *Connecting the Avenue*: Build pedestrian priority intersections with raised crosswalks. Make strong connections to public transit and bike lanes that expand access throughout downtown. Connect skywalks (like the one that runs the length of Graham) directly to the sidewalk at several convenient and highly visible locations, pulling skywalk activity to street level. Calm vehicle traffic in other areas of downtown, including returning one-way streets back to two-way. Investigate other mobility options like bike-sharing, scooters or even a streetcar. *Activating the Avenue*: Use public art, festivals and concert programming to attract people to the space in all seasons and at all times of the day. Design for comfortable microclimates including winter heaters for patios, windbreaks and canopies for rain protection. *Opening on to the Avenue*: Open the ground floor of buildings with long blank walls facing the sidewalk (like Cityplace and Canada Life Centre) and construct new active storefronts. Create incentives to attract artists and entrepreneurs to vacant spaces and use pop-up retail such as food trucks, farmer’s markets and shipping container shops to temporarily activate surface parking lots. *Repositioning the Avenue*: Create incentives for affordable housing, infill development and the repurposing of vacant office space (like the old Post Office tower) into new uses. Focus on attracting local shops that support an urban neighbourhood and provide amenities for downtown living. *Governing the Avenue*: Empower a central entity like the Downtown BIZ to be stewards of the place, including the use of street ambassadors to improve safety. Redefining Graham Avenue inspired by these principles is an opportunity to dream, a chance to boldly create a new sense of place in downtown. A linear park, a pedestrian promenade, a shared street — it is easy to imagine Graham Avenue as an attractive place for people. We can learn from other cities, including our neighbours in Calgary who are proactively planning to ensure they are prepared for the new urban reality. The measure of a city’s success in the future will not be in the number of office towers found in its skyline, it will instead be in the number of vibrant public spaces found between its buildings. *Brent Bellamy is senior design architect for Number Ten Architectural Group.*

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Global: Selkirk aims to link entire city through active transportation pathways (Nov7'21)
by Beth McKechnie 07 Nov '21

07 Nov '21

https://globalnews.ca/news/8356815/selkirk-active-transportation-pathways/ The City of Selkirk, Man., is unveiling an ambitious plan to link the entire city via active transportation pathways. Mayor Larry Johannson says the ultimate goal is to eventually have every resident within two sidewalk blocks of one of the pathways. “What this does in our community is it takes a lot of the stress off the streets, so the streets last longer, it’s better for the environment, absolutely, and a key one is it’s better for people for their health,” says Johannson. The project will take until at least 2025, but the Active Transportation (AT) Strategy, which city council just approved, will help design and manage the infrastructure well into the future. n addition to the health and cost benefits, Johannson says the city wants to do its part to become more environmentally friendly. “We don’t want to talk the talk, we want to walk the walk. So we’re a small community, but you know what? We’re going to do our share, and active transportation pathways are a huge part of it,” Johannson says. Selkirk already has 2.5 kilometers of active transportation pathways that take the form of bike lanes, multi-use pathways and recreational pathways, along with 56 km of sidewalk. The city plans to add about 3.6 km of new AT pathways beginning next year. In a press release, CAO Duane Nicol says the pathways will end up paying for themselves and then some. “Study after study shows that active transportation saves significant dollars primarily in health care and transportation. It also allows people to save on household expenses related to vehicle ownership,” Nicol said. “Moreover, it increases the physical and socio-economic accessibility of our community.” In addition to linking each area of the city with the other, Johannson says the project will feature an AT pathway parallel to Main Street, so people can walk, jog or bike the entire width of the city.

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Data-Driven Analytics Are at the Heart of Vision Zero Goals
by Beth McKechnie 05 Nov '21

05 Nov '21

Preliminary data compiled by the National Safety Council show that 42,000 people died in motor vehicle crashes in the U.S. in 2020, an increase of 24% over the previous year. Pedestrian fatality rates, meanwhile, jumped 21% — the highest increase since 1975 – despite the fact that vehicle miles traveled dropped 13% due to the pandemic. To counter this untenable state of affairs, an increasing number of communities nationwide are turning to a Vision Zero strategy, one that aims to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries while increasing safe, healthy, equitable mobility for all. While many of the tactics that comprise Vision Zero are well known – from decreasing the legal speed limit to installing traffic calming measures (speed bumps, roundabouts, etc.) to improving roadway lighting and pedestrian crossings – the technological advances and data-driven analytics at the heart of those tactics’ effectiveness are often overlooked. Full story here: https://nextcity.org/urbanist-news/entry/data-driven-analytics-are-at-the-h…

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Top 100 Cycling Cities: New Data Points the Way on Bike Infrastructure Investment
by Beth McKechnie 04 Nov '21

04 Nov '21

[NOTE: Looks like an interesting webinar but be aware that it is a sponsored event.] Register for this live panel with StreetLight as we go deep on the latest U.S. bike trends and provide easy-to-use location-data tools. <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> Top 100 Cycling Cities: New Data Points the Way on Bike Infrastructure Investment <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> Thursday, November 18, 2021 1 p.m. Eastern (10 a.m. Pacific) <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> Sponsored Register Today <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> Beth, With reports of bicycles selling out in many cities early in the COVID-19 pandemic, the transportation community rejoiced about gains in bike ridership in 2020, and we crossed our collective fingers that a new bicycling habit was forming. Now 18 months into the pandemic, analysts used StreetLight InSight® to measure these trends and compile the first report of its kind that analyzes America’s top 100 cycling cities. *So how has the COVID bicycling boom fared in 2021?* <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> Join this live panel, "Top 100 Cycling Cities: New Data Points the Way on Bike Infrastructure Investment," <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> to hear from Kristin Musulin, report co-author and former editor of Smart Cities Dive, together with Martin Morzynski, co-author and SVP of Marketing at StreetLight, and Thomas Grogan, lead analyst behind the data, as they go deep on latest U.S. bike trends, zero in on “the why” behind key cities gaining and losing ridership, and provide easy-to-use location-data tools to help you analyze your own locality for bike activity on all streets, not just the few with physical counters. This event will help you <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> discover how new data is helping cities move quickly to identify highest-risk intersections for crashes, pinpoint major origins and destinations for cyclists, and prioritize new bike infrastructure where it’s needed most – based on data, as opposed to pre-pandemic hypotheses. *Meet the Panelists* <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…>*Kristin Musulin* is an independent media consultant, leveraging nearly a decade of journalism and media management experience to guide mobility and tech companies in press and government relations. Prior to media consulting, Musulin gained recognition in the govtech space as the founding editor of Smart Cities Dive, a business publication covering the innovations and policies that drive smarter, safer and more resilient cities. Her work included in-depth reporting on micromobility, public transit, climate policy, labor and policing. <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…>*Martin Morzynski* is the SVP of Marketing at StreetLight Data. Morzynski is a frequent guest on public radio, news programs and podcasts and regular contributor to analyses by the New York Times, Bloomberg and other media seeking to measure and understand the changing world of transportation. He can be found on Twitter as @MartinOnTraffic, sharing data-based perspectives on mobility and climate. Previous to joining StreetLight to lead the company’s product and marketing organizations, Morzynski was the CMO at HouseCanary, the pioneer of Big Data analytics for real estate. <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> *Thomas Grogan* brings a wealth of transportation analysis and research experience to the StreetLight team. He is a Solution Engineer focused on marketing, partnerships and other strategic initiatives, helping customers get the most out of StreetLight’s analytics. He has presented at national conferences on transportation and geospatial data, and his work has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Bloomberg, and many other publications. Grogan has a MA in Applied Economics, and a BA in International Studies from Johns Hopkins University. <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> This is a sponsored webinar. By registering, you are agreeing to share your contact information with StreetLight Data. Register Today <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> Follow Next City <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> <https://nextcity.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3643e76…> To update your newsletter preferences, or sign up for our topical newsletters, go here <https://nextcity.mailchimpsites.com/manage/preferences?u=fc79ee972b82dc5fc3…> . *Copyright © 2021 Next City, All rights reserved.* You are receiving this email because you opted in. *Our mailing address is:* Next City P.O. 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Improving Active Transportation Infrastructure in Four North American Cities during COVID: Lessons for Equitable Engagement and Implementation
by Beth McKechnie 04 Nov '21

04 Nov '21

*Full story*: https://urbanland.uli.org/planning-design/improving-active-transportation-i… ** * * * ** *Takeaways for More Equitable Engagement and Implementation of Interventions* Planners from these four cities were interviewed about the approaches taken to quickly create infrastructure that better supported the needs of pedestrians, cyclists, and local businesses during the height of the pandemic. In most cases, traditional community engagement methods were bypassed in an effort to act quickly on project implementation; this created issues with equity of the interventions for communities that are traditionally underserved. Overall, the interviewees acknowledged the importance of community engagement but felt they did their best in the time-constrained situation they were in with pressure to act fast; takeaways and reflections from these initial projects and programs illuminate how critical it is to center social equity into decision-making for projects that prioritize active transportation. - *Bypassing traditional community engagement drew criticism and prompted more equitable strategies. *None of the four cities did a standard community engagement process due to the desire to act quickly. However, some used existing plans; others relied on elected officials’ views as proxies for community engagement. This led to criticisms about how this affected historically underserved populations, particularly Black and indigenous communities and those populated by and people of color (BIPOC). In Chapel Hill, no specific community engagement was conducted for the Franklin Street space reallocation since town staff felt as though a previous, similar engagement process for a permanent restriping of the road, the community petition, town council’s approval, and continuously checking in with business owners was sufficient. There were criticisms of the transformation in a local paper about a lack of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility due to some businesses using the sidewalk; however, town staff felt that they had considered these limitations and had to balance accessibility and local restaurant survival. In D.C., the restaurants that were part of a BID or Main Street program, generally located in more affluent areas of the city, were at an advantage in this program. In addition, there was also a need for these restaurants’ surrounding physical environment to fit certain constraints, such as wider sidewalks. Anacostia, a historically Black neighborhood, has streets that were not redeveloped like the rest of the city’s streets due to a long history of disinvestment by the D.C. government <https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2019/07/09/how-a-washington-d-c-p…>, which made streateries more challenging to implement there. The city is now focused on strategies <https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/streateries-alcohol-expans…> to expand the opportunities for streateries in neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River. The city of Halifax did not conduct additional community engagement for the Slow Streets program, feeling that the prior engagement efforts were sufficient, and the temporary nature of the program would allow the city to adapt based on public reactions. However, members of the staff did know that they needed to speak with marginalized communities before implementing Slow Streets in their neighborhood. This conversation led to the implementation in one African-Nova Scotian neighborhood, where there was an existing relationship with the city and virtual engagement was successful. Conversely, this did not work in a different African-Nova Scotian neighborhood that lacked this existing relationship and efforts to build trust virtually failed. Later, the city collected feedback from the public and local organizations for a second rollout and adapted the program to better meet the needs of residents. An interim report from the program recommended making equitable distribution a main focus of future interventions, particularly areas that rely on nonvehicular modes of travel most. Now, the city is focusing on establishing relationships with Nova Scotian communities of color and is planning a Slow Streets program focused specifically on communities that rely on transit, biking, and walking. In Oakland, the initial Slow Streets program faced intense pushback. After hearing the swift, negative reaction from residents, particularly from Black residents of East Oakland, the city engaged with community leaders and organizations to discuss their views. One interviewee reflected on how the residents were emotional and clearly felt hurt and betrayed over a lack of inclusion in the process, even though staff felt as though the engagement that they had conducted on the Bike Plan was sufficient. The interviewees felt as though the start of these talks was venting but eventually moved into a problem-solving space. They determined that the East Oakland community was made up of many essential workers, and that the idea of Slow Streets for exercise and recreation did not resonate. The community was more interested in traffic calming than recreation. This led to the creation of Slow Streets: Essential Places to particularly serve the largely BIPOC East Oakland community. Most cities tried to course-correct during implementation in response to concerns, including Oakland engaging with East Oakland to create Essential Places and bringing in a community artist. In addition, Chapel Hill staff realized the “quick win” town-owned streets that were eligible for temporary multiuse paths were in affluent, majority-white neighborhoods, which did not allow the state-owned roads with higher Black populations to benefit from the program. This prompted town staff to look for more creative, community-driven solutions in lower-resourced neighborhoods. - *Setting a precedent for quick action.* The interviewees thought that this experience showed the speed at which active transportation and infrastructure programs can be implemented, with some reductions in regulatory barriers. These interventions will provide a precedent for change. This is particularly true for more risk-averse stakeholders, such as traffic engineers and municipal attorneys. Faster implementation after more authentic community engagement, in which the public is able to react to something tangible on the street, could revolutionize the relationship between communities and local government and push active transportation forward to build healthier communities. Pilot testing, where people can experience the changes and suggest adjustments, may garner more authentic feedback and build trust with communities if the interventions are actually implemented in a reasonable time period. However, multiple cities found that temporary materials still need to be robust. Lightweight materials that are easily moved or damaged by the public often cause more negative reactions from the public, since they can quickly turn from infrastructure to trash, and thus reinforce perceptions of neglect and disinvestment by the city. - *Strategic communication is key.* The projects in these four cities show that the methods by which planners receive feedback and communicate the goals of transportation projects must be well thought out. Community engagement is one way to inform and prepare the community for projects, but that was missed in most of these cases. This led to confusion among residents about the goals of programs. For example, East Oakland residents found the stay-at-home order in conflict with the message of Slow Streets. Most cities mentioned that to get the word out for these programs, they posted information on their websites, the mayors publicly announced the programs, and press releases were published. This is not enough to reach the general public. Interrogating and questioning who is providing feedback and how to measure success of the projects is also important. Solely relying on voluntary online surveys and community meetings is not reaching the people necessary to make decisions. Oakland found creative ways, such as short text surveys advertising where infrastructure is located and social media content, to evaluate programs. To understand who is giving feedback and how representative the feedback is, it is also important to track demographic data such as race, income level, ability, and neighborhood. Washington, D.C., realized that its main method of communicating to restaurants about the Streateries program, through BIDs and Main Street organizations, was leaving out restaurants that were not in the wealthier neighborhoods with these organizations. Moving forward, program staff is committed to reaching out to businesses more equitably. The lessons learned from the pandemic will undoubtedly change how active transportation planning is conducted in the future. It is clear that many municipalities are interested in faster, cheaper ways to adapt their streets to encourage active transportation and are reflecting on the COVID-19 pandemic for lessons to do that. Transportation planning firms are developing expertise in the subject, so municipalities should think about partnering with experts on these adaptations to find a good fit for their own streets. In addition, local governments—particularly transportation planning departments—should collaborate with economic development professionals and local business owners to see how streets can be adapted to fit multiple goals. The question that lingers over this experience is how to implement an active transportation program quickly and equitably, avoiding a traditional, stale community-engagement process while at the same time not using a top-down approach. These case studies suggest that acting quickly in a way that facilitates *in situ* community engagement and adaptation could be one solution. This may be a “wicked problem,” but learning from cities’ responses to COVID-19 gives us a good place to start interrogating that problem.

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WFP: Impact of ‘slow down’ campaign debated (Nov3'21)
by Beth McKechnie 03 Nov '21

03 Nov '21

Impact of ‘slow down’ campaign debated https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/impact-of-slow-down-campaign-debate… THEY’VE added a pop of sunshine yellow, blue outlines of small children and a clear safety message to hundreds of Winnipeg yards over the past few years. It’s clear there has been some demand for the signs warning drivers to “Please slow down” in blue capital letters. On social media, some folks described the signage as a non-offensive, “friendly reminder” to drive safely. Yet others appear divided on how effective the Winnipeg Committee for Safety campaign is. An advocate pushing for the City of Winnipeg to lower its residential speed limit to 30 km/h from 50 km/h said she’s not convinced the signs produce their desired effect. “I think they give people the sense of control... but if the city knows speeding is a problem, how is this actually addressing the problem? This could give the illusion of improving safety,” Emma Durand-Wood, a volunteer with Safe Speeds Winnipeg, said Tuesday. Instead of sharing a reminder to slow down, she said the city should reduce the speed limit to change driver behaviour. “I think people who are really brazenly speeding aren’t looking at signs on the side of the road.” The Winnipeg Committee for Safety launched the sign campaign in 2018 to encourage drivers to reduce speeds, in hopes it would prevent traffic collisions and injuries. Coun. Cindy Gilroy, who helped lead the initial campaign, said the signs quickly became popular, so up to 100 more were provided for each city councillor to give out in 2020. Gilroy said the display may not alter the habits of persistent scofflaws but do remind folks who became distracted while driving to check their speed. “It is a (visual) reminder... there’s kids around here, slow down,” she said. The Daniel McIntyre councillor said she hopes the city will permanently reduce the residential speed limit to 30 km/h, something a pilot project is now testing on four local street sections. “In an urban environment, we want to have safe communities where people feel that they can… walk around their community, cycle within their community without having a fear of being hit by a car,” she said. A public service report says the city can’t evaluate the actual impact of the signs on vehicle speed, since the signs were handed out to any resident who asked, with no parameters or rules set to study them in a set area. The city did seek feedback from those who signed up to get the signs in 2020, for which 535 different households provided an address. About 138 responded to questions about the program, with 94 per cent saying they supported it and 94 per cent also agreeing the signs should continue to be available to Winnipeggers. However, just 45 per cent believed drivers slowed down after viewing the signs, while 39 per cent felt they didn’t. The rest answered the response was “neutral” or they weren’t sure about it. Winnipegger Ray Hignell said he opposes both the sign campaign and calls to lower the speed limit. “I find (the signs) offensive. What I get is the law is the law and the law is 50 (km/h). It’s not up to somebody else to appoint themselves… to tell me or anyone else that they should be driving slower,” said Hignell. He fears a reduced speed limit could create congestion without resulting in notable safety improvements. “It will slow some (drivers) down and they’ll spend more time wasting their time in traffic and it won’t solve anything,” said Hignell. joyanne.pursaga(a)freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @joyannne_pursaga

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FW: [EXTERNAL] Global Plan for Road Safety | Plan mondial pour la sécurité routière
by Wendy Chapman 28 Oct '21

28 Oct '21

________________________________ From: Parachute Vision Zero Network [info(a)parachute.ca] Sent: Thursday, October 28, 2021 9:01 AM To: Wendy Chapman Subject: [EXTERNAL] Global Plan for Road Safety | Plan mondial pour la sécurité routière [https://r20.rs6.net/on.jsp?ca=ca301b90-7958-46ea-ad53-425d85f56664&a=110361…] La version française du bulletin suit la version anglaise [https://files.constantcontact.com/81471b4f001/e5df60b4-3f8b-4c09-a6fd-fb555…] <https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> Global Plan for Road Safety [https://files.constantcontact.com/81471b4f001/0f427c69-56f5-495f-b599-54acd…] The Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety, an initiative of the World Health Organization, launches today! Together, Parachute and the Canadian Association of Road Safety Professionals (CARSP) strongly support this Global Plan for Road Safety and we are committed to working with key stakeholders across Canada to use this global plan to guide and measure our ongoing work to make Canadian roads safer. Join this important initiative by spreading awareness of the new global plan and showing your commitment to use this plan to guide road safety action. Below are materials and sample social media posts to promote the launch of the Global Plan for Road Safety that you are free to customize. To help track the support in Canada in globally, please tag @parachutecanada, @CARSPInfo, and @RoadSafetyNGOs and use the hashtags #CommitToAct and #StreetsForLife as well as our #ParachuteVZ hashtag. The following materials are available to support your posts * Global Plan<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> for the Decade of Action for Road Safety, 2021-2030. The plan is available in English, French, and Spanish, Arabic and Russian. * Infographic<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…>: A one-page summary of the plan available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic and Russian. * Social media tiles<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> (scroll down the webpage): Infographics of key focus areas of the global plan have been created to show your support for different components of the plan. * Social media buttons<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> and frames<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…>: Social media buttons and frames have been created for you to use to show your support. Sample social media posts The Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety is launching October 28, 2021, with the target to reduce road traffic deaths and injuries by 50% by 2030. Check out the plan today! <Link> _______ strongly supports the new Global Plan for Road Safety and we are committed to use this plan to guide and measure our ongoing work to make Canadian roads safer. Learn more at <Link> The Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety calls for action on: multimodal transport & land-use planning; safe road infrastructure; safe road use; safe vehicles and post-crash response. Learn more at <Link> The Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety describes what’s needed to reduce road traffic deaths and injuries by 50% by 2030. We call on governments & partners to implement an integrated Safe System Approach - <Link> The Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety reflects the 2020 Stockholm Declaration’s promotion of policies to promote walking, cycling & public transit as healthy & environmentally sound modes of transport. <Link> Achieving safe roads and preventing injury takes a multi-sector approach. _________ is committed to supporting theGlobal Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety. Learn more at <Link> We hope these resources help you as you continue to work on Vision Zero and make your communities and roads safer. Watch for information on an upcoming webinar Parachute and CARSP will be hosting on the new Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety! We would like to thank our partner and sponsor Desjardins Insurance for supporting Parachute Vision Zero. Visit the website<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> STAY CONNECTED [Facebook] ‌ <https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> [Twitter] ‌ <https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> [null] <https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> [https://files.constantcontact.com/81471b4f001/c42be7fc-9787-4b3f-b8a1-7949e…] <https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> Plan mondial pour la sécurité routière [https://files.constantcontact.com/81471b4f001/37915265-0d4f-4244-8468-42c2e…] Le Plan mondial pour la Décennie d’action pour la sécurité routière, une initiative de l’Organisation mondiale de la santé, est lancé aujourd’hui ! Ensemble, Parachute et l’Association canadienne des professionnels de la sécurité routière (ACPSER) appuient fortement ce Plan mondial pour la sécurité routière et nous nous engageons à travailler avec les principaux intervenants de partout au Canada afin d’utiliser ce plan mondial pour orienter et mesurer notre travail continu visant à rendre les routes canadiennes plus sûres. Joignez-vous à cette importante initiative en faisant connaître le nouveau plan mondial et en montrant votre engagement à utiliser ce plan pour orienter les mesures de sécurité routière. Vous trouverez ci-dessous des documents et des exemples de messages dans les médias sociaux pour promouvoir le lancement du Plan mondial pour la sécurité routière, que vous pouvez personnaliser. Pour faciliter le suivi du soutien au Canada et dans le monde, veuillez utiliser @parachutecanada, @CARSPInfo et @RoadSafetyNGOs et utiliser les mots-clics #CommitToAct et #StreetsForLife ainsi que notre mot-clic #ParachuteVZ. Les documents suivants sont disponibles pour soutenir vos publications * Plan mondial<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> pour la Décennie d’action pour la sécurité routière, 2021-2030. Le plan est disponible en anglais, français et espagnol, arabe et russe. * Infographie.<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> Un résumé d’une page du plan disponible en anglais, français, espagnol, arabe et russe. * Blocs pour les médias sociaux<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> (faites défiler la page web vers le bas). Des infographies des principaux domaines d’intervention du plan mondial ont été créées pour montrer votre soutien aux différentes composantes du plan. * Boutons et cadres pour les médias sociaux.<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> Des boutons et des cadres pour les médias sociaux ont été créés pour vous permettre de montrer votre soutien. Exemples de publications sur les médias sociaux Le Plan mondial pour la Décennie d’action pour la sécurité routière commence le 28 octobre 2021, avec pour objectif de réduire de 50 % le nombre de personnes tuées et blessées sur les routes d’ici 2030. Consultez le plan dès aujourd’hui! <Lien> _______ soutient fermement le nouveau Plan mondial pour la sécurité routière et nous nous engageons à utiliser ce plan pour orienter et mesurer notre travail continu visant à rendre les routes canadiennes plus sûres. Pour en savoir plus, consultez le site <Lien>. Le Plan mondial pour la Décennie d’action pour la sécurité routière prône des mesures concernant : le transport multimodal et l’aménagement du territoire; les infrastructures routières sûres; l’utilisation sûre des routes; les véhicules sûrs et les interventions faisant suite aux collisions. Pour en savoir plus, consultez le site <Lien>. Le Plan mondial pour la Décennie d’action pour la sécurité routière décrit ce qui doit être fait pour réduire de 50 % le nombre de personnes tuées et blessées sur les routes d’ici 2030. Nous exhortons les gouvernements et les partenaires à mettre en œuvre une approche intégrée pour un système sûr. - <Lien> Le Plan mondial pour la Décennie d’action pour la sécurité routière reflète la promotion, par la Déclaration de Stockholm de 2020, de politiques visant à promouvoir la marche, le vélo et l’utilisation des transports publics en tant que modes de transport intrinsèquement sains et respectueux de l’environnement. <Lien> La mise en œuvre de routes sûres et la prévention des blessures nécessitent une approche multisectorielle. _________ s’engage à soutenir le Plan mondial pour la Décennie d’action pour la sécurité routière. Pour en savoir plus, consultez le site <Lien>. Nous espérons que ces ressources vous aideront à poursuivre votre travail sur Vision Zéro et à améliorer la sécurité de vos communautés et de vos routes. Ne manquez pas les renseignements sur un prochain webinaire que Parachute organisera sur le nouveau Plan mondial pour la Décennie d’action pour la sécurité routière! Nous tenons à remercier notre partenaire et commanditaire Desjardins Assurance de son soutien à Vision Zéro de Parachute. Visitez notre site Web<https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> RESTEZ EN CONTACT [Facebook] ‌ <https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> [Twitter] ‌ <https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> [https://files.constantcontact.com/81471b4f001/aba0bebd-b64e-4569-b903-2d716…] <https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001w5-_hl_1QmXrHJxKloeBhA7CGLKx9FmsT99eRRRCPJx…> Parachute | 150 Eglinton Ave. East, Suite 300, Toronto, Ontario M4P 1E8 Canada Unsubscribe wchapman(a)wrha.mb.ca<https://visitor.constantcontact.com/do?p=un&m=001ZH8cm0mwpXVSIl5hbMkk5w%3D&…> Update Profile<https://visitor.constantcontact.com/do?p=oo&m=001ZH8cm0mwpXVSIl5hbMkk5w%3D&…> | Constant Contact Data Notice<https://www.constantcontact.com/legal/customer-contact-data-notice> Sent by info(a)parachute.ca<mailto:info@parachute.ca> powered by [Trusted Email from Constant Contact - Try it FREE today.] <http://www.constantcontact.com/index.jsp?cc=nge&rmc=VF21_3GE&nav=ca301b90-7…> Try email marketing for free today!<http://www.constantcontact.com/index.jsp?cc=nge&rmc=VF21_3GE&nav=ca301b90-7…> Disclaimer : This email (including any attachments or enclosed documents) is intended for the addressee(s) only and may contain privileged, proprietary or confidential information. Any unauthorized use, disclosure, distribution, copying or dissemination is strictly prohibited. If you receive this email in error, please notify the sender immediately, return the original (if applicable) and delete the email. Avis : Le présent courriel (y compris toute pièce jointe) est destiné à la personne ou aux personnes à qui il est adressé, et peut contenir des renseignements confidentiels, privés ou protégés par un privilège juridique. Toute utilisation, divulgation, distribution, copie ou diffusion non autorisée est strictement défendue. Si vous avez reçu le présent courriel par erreur, veuillez en informer immédiatement l’expéditeur, retourner l’original (le cas échéant) et supprimer ce courriel.

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World Health Organization - Decade for road Safety
by Kristine Hayward 28 Oct '21

28 Oct '21

Hi folks. The WHO launch the Global Plan for the decade of Action for Road Safety today. https://www.who.int/teams/social-determinants-of-health/safety-and-mobility… Kristine Hayward (she/her) Physical Activity Promotion Coordinator Population Public Health Winnipeg Regional Health Authority 2nd floor - 490 Hargrave Street (currently working from home) Winnipeg, MB R3A 0X7 Telephone 204 232-7546 Fax 204 940-2690 Email khayward(a)wrha.mb.ca Bike racks are available in front of the building at the corner of Hargrave and McDermot. Plan your Winnipeg Transit trip: http://winnipegtransit.com/en/navigo Metered street parking and pay lots in the area – please note designated loading zones and spots requiring a disability permit. Follow Winnipeg in motion on Twitter - @wpginmotion<https://twitter.com/search?q=wpginmotion&src=typd> Check out our videos on Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/user/Winnipeginmotion Scent Free Facility - visitors are asked to refrain from wearing perfumes/colognes/heavy-scented lotions/oils We are located on Treaty 1 Territory and the homeland of the Métis Nation. The water we drink comes from Shoal Lake First Nation. Disclaimer : This email (including any attachments or enclosed documents) is intended for the addressee(s) only and may contain privileged, proprietary or confidential information. Any unauthorized use, disclosure, distribution, copying or dissemination is strictly prohibited. If you receive this email in error, please notify the sender immediately, return the original (if applicable) and delete the email. Avis : Le présent courriel (y compris toute pièce jointe) est destiné à la personne ou aux personnes à qui il est adressé, et peut contenir des renseignements confidentiels, privés ou protégés par un privilège juridique. Toute utilisation, divulgation, distribution, copie ou diffusion non autorisée est strictement défendue. Si vous avez reçu le présent courriel par erreur, veuillez en informer immédiatement l’expéditeur, retourner l’original (le cas échéant) et supprimer ce courriel.

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WFP The Herald: New Louise Bridge (Oct27'21)
by Beth McKechnie 27 Oct '21

27 Oct '21

New Louise Bridge – so far, so good https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/our-communities/herald/correspondent/New-… The new Louise Bridge replacement timeline has become clearer — and it’s good news for northeast Winnipeg residents. Last month, city planners made public their recommendation to build the new Louise Bridge beside the current bridge, which is exactly what Elmwood residents were hoping for. Although the new bridge will be placed just west of the old bridge and not east, as originally planned, it’s a relief to know traffic disruption will be avoided because the old bridge can stay open during construction. Northeast Winnipeg residents should be confident the planning stages are proceeding in an orderly way. City council will have final recommendations in the spring of 2022 — just a few months away. Notices were mailed out to affected property owners in mid-October, signalling the start of the final piece of the community consultation and the expropriation process. The six-lane design, including dedicated bus lanes in each direction, will require some expropriation of property. The time has come for the incoming new Premier to commit her government’s share of the funding for the replacement bridge. It’s good to know Elmwood residents will be able to use the old bridge for the two years the new bridge is under construction. Avoiding closure has always been a crucial aspect of the whole project. At the end of the day, we have to get the job done before the 110-year-old bridge is shut down for safety reasons. Northeast Winnipeggers have been patient but are keenly aware the clock is ticking. We need to keep the pressure on all three levels of government. You can help by visiting www.yourelmwood.com and participating in the survey on the new Louise Bridge replacement. *If you have any questions about other provincial programs, feel free to contact me at 204-415-1122 or email me at jim.maloway(a)yourmanitoba.ca <jim.maloway(a)yourmanitoba.ca>*

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Why Canadians Can't Bike in the Winter (but Finnish people can)
by Beth McKechnie 27 Oct '21

27 Oct '21

Can't recall if this video was circulated previously but it's timely as we head into winter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uhx-26GfCBU cheers, Beth

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CBC: Supreme Court says people can sue cities over snow removal activities that cause injury
by Beth McKechnie 22 Oct '21

22 Oct '21

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/top-court-snow-removal-liability-1.6219354

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Pittsburgh introduces Mobility as a Service (MaaS) with Move PGH
by Beth McKechnie 21 Oct '21

21 Oct '21

Exciting case study on the first MaaS initiative in North America. Here are the basics: 1. *Pittsburgh launched Move PGH, a program where customers can access a variety of mobility services through the Transit app and at Mobility Hubs across the city.* 2. *Move PGH offers e-scooters, bikeshare, carshare, public transit, carpooling services, and mopeds.* 3. *Alongside Move PGH, Pittsburgh is piloting a Guaranteed Basic Mobility program, where 50 low-income Pittsburghers can access all participating modes of transportation in Move PGH at no cost.* 4. *Move PGH is the first mobility as a service (MaaS) project of its kind in the United States. This initiative seeks to make different forms of shared mobility more appealing than individual car ownership.* Read more: https://learn.sharedusemobilitycenter.org/casestudy/shifting-the-mobility-p…

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WFP: Plenty to like about storing people’s bikes (Oct18'21)
by Beth McKechnie 18 Oct '21

18 Oct '21

Velotecha to employ youths being helped by Macdonald Youth Services Plenty to like about storing people’s bikes https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/plenty-to-like-about-storing-people… AS colder weather looms, a new bike storage facility is opening — one that doubles as an employment program for youth in care. Through Velotecha, up to 150 bikes will be stored, repaired and maintained during the winter. Winnipeggers can choose from packages offering varying levels of maintenance, to be performed by teenagers and young adults through Macdonald Youth Services. “We really put... (the) pedal to the metal this summer,” Nicole Barry, the non-profit’s chief financial officer, said of starting the project. The WRENCH, a charity that builds and repairs bikes, has been training eight people on bike mechanics since August for the venture. A new cohort will join soon. Cyclists can choose a basic package, which includes storage and tire inflation, for $55.99. Prices increase for those who want more in-depth fixes, like part replacements, realignments and brake adjustments. Organizers will collect bikes curbside beginning Monday. Pick up will continue into November, if space is still available, Barry said. “We want people to use their bikes if the weather’s nice, but we also have a limited capacity,” she said. Velotecha staff will deliver owners their rides in April. The bikes’ seasonal home remains private for safety reasons, Barry said. “The beauty of a bike storage program is that it solves a lot of problems,” said Kate Sjoberg, executive director of The WRENCH. More people have turned to cycling as a pandemic-era hobby, to combat climate change and for health reasons, Sjoberg said. But, many Winnipeggers end their two-wheel adventures when the temperature drops. Velotecha will assist people who don’t have room to store their bikes, Sjoberg said. And, it will allay the tune-up backlogs cyclists face in the spring. “It’s really hard to find a shop that will fix your bike in the springtime,” Sjoberg said. “(Also), training kids to be bike mechanics in the spring, when there’s a rush happening, is not a great way to learn.” The youths who Velotecha will employ have participated in Macdonald Youth Services’s life skills programs and were chosen by staff. “They’ve been really consistent and really awesome to be around,” Sjoberg said. “We have a lot of confidence in their ability to do great work.” Many kids using Macdonald Youth Services don’t get the same access to jobs others do, according to Barry. “Most of us have gotten help or were even handed our first job,” she said. “That’s what we’re trying to provide them... We’re kind of giving them a shot at real, meaningful work.” Macdonald Youth Services plans to expand Velotecha next year: it wants a bike lab where Winnipeggers can buy refurbished bikes or get their own repaired. The hub will likely be at 175 Mayfair Ave., the non-profit’s location, and will potentially employ this winter’s mechanics- in-training. Then, Macdonald Youth Services can invite a new group to work at the storage site next fall. Velotecha’s current staff could also work for The WRENCH post-storage season. “There is a need for bike mechanics in the city,” Sjoberg said. “We’re interested in this particular cohort, if anyone is interested in working with The WRENCH following it, and they’re the right candidate.” Canada is “not hitting the mark” to support youth transitioning from care, in terms of ensuring they have liveable incomes and communities where they’re safe, Sjoberg said. “We know that many other organizations and people in the city are interested in creating that safety and those communities of support for kids,” Sjoberg said. “This is a small contribution to that.” More information about the program can be found at velotecha.com. gabrielle.piche(a)winnipegfreepress.com

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WFP: Velo Renovations - pedal to the home-reno mettle (Oct16'21)
by Beth McKechnie 16 Oct '21

16 Oct '21

PEDAL TO THE HOME-RENO METTLE Environmentally committed Winnipeg company’s owner, associates aren’t reinventing the wheel, but they’re using fewer of them to get to job sites https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-life/life/greenpage/pedal-to-the… SEEING is believing. Velo Renovations is a home reno company with a twist: instead of loading tools and supplies into a van or half ton, employees rely on pedal power to get from one job site to another, 12 months of the year. The business’s website doesn’t disguise that fact, openly charting how many kilometres workers have collectively covered to date — a tick under 15,000 — along with the estimated amount of carbon emissions saved by doing so (2.73 tonnes and counting). Still, clients who enlist them to paint a living room or patch a wall continue to be surprised when they arrive on two wheels, especially during a torrential downpour or January cold snap. “To be honest, the fact we get around by bike is a big reason why many of our customers choose to go with us in the first place,” says Nathaniel De Avila, who founded Velo, French for bicycle, in October, 2020. “But there have certainly been days when it was 30 below or whatever, when we pulled up and the person answering the door went, ‘I know you guys bike to work, but I didn’t think you’d actually do it today.” De Avila, 33, laughingly describes Velo Renovations as a “mid-COVID pivot.” Around this time last year De Avila, a professional music producer who moved to Winnipeg from his native Iowa in 2016, found himself unable to work in his chosen field because of pandemic-related restrictions. He’d long been comfortable with a hammer in his hand; he toiled part-time for a reno company during high school and again while he was attaining a master of arts in music from the University of Iowa. To stay busy, he figured that might be an avenue worth pursuing. Why bikes? That’s easy, says the veteran winter cyclist, tracing his environmental consciousness to a book he read when he was in junior high titled More-With-Less by Doris Janzen Longacre and, more recently, to a documentary called Freightened, which details nightmarish statistics in regards to pollution attributable to the shipping industry. “Most of the world is doing things on bike, it’s just North America where it’s a bit of a novelty,” he says. “Are we going to save the planet by having the eight of us pedal to work? Of course not. But that doesn’t make it unimportant, either.” ON the day we met, De Avila and one of his associates, Maraleigh Short, were doing exterior repairs to a home in Fort Richmond, an hour-long trek from Velo’s home base in West Broadway. De Avila arrived on his personal 10-speed while Short took one of two official company “vehicles.” “Colin Bock from Freedom Concepts (a Winnipeg firm that designs and builds special needs bicycles and mobility devices) helped come up with this, based on an Xtracycle (an elongated, load-carrying bike developed in the U.S.),” De Avila explains, running his hand along the frame of a two-metre-long contraption that joins a full-size chromoly mountain bike to a chopped-up, 20-inch BMX model. “It has a rechargeable battery unit that slides out, but is designed to be pedal-assist. There’s a running board on the back for tools and such but lots of times we’ll attach an extension ladder on wheels, upon which we can load even more stuff.” (Not present is a custom-built tricycle-and-trailer unit, canary yellow in colour, that always draws stares — and occasionally requests for a business card — when motorists pull up alongside it at a red light.) Short, sporting sweats and sneakers speckled with white primer, says one of the factors that attracted her most to Velo, more a co-op than a company, is its people-first approach. Not only do workers set their own hours and pick and choose job assignments, they also determine their individual rate of pay and are afforded the opportunity to view the business’s finances as a whole. It’s a model De Avila came up with long before Velo was even a “thing,” based on conversations he had with a university professor well-versed in businesses that place people and planet ahead of profits. “It could be a gendered thing, or it could be my personality, but I probably wouldn’t have sought out working in construction or reno if I hadn’t found (Velo),” Short says, seated on an empty, overturned paint bucket. “Initially, I didn’t bring a lot of skills to the table, nor did I have a ton of confidence, but because there’s a strong teaching structure in place here, I’ve been able to learn so much from Nate and the other people I work with. Now I really feel part of a team.” Velo Renovations tackles the same projects as most so-called, conventional reno operations, namely, painting, drywalling, restructuring and tiling. At the same time, it’s not like you’ll spot them hauling a kitchen counter or panels of sheetrock behind them any time soon. Knowing their limitations, they obligingly work with in-place delivery systems when it comes to larger items, De Avila says. He adds it’s certainly not a condition of employment that employees must pedal to work, and a few of their subcontractors do not. That said, if any certified plumbers and/or electricians reading this aren’t averse to hopping on a bike, feel free give him a call, he says with a grin. Another manner in which Velo differs significantly from many of its counterparts is that it’s not uncommon for on-staff designers to talk potential customers out of jobs that would probably net the company a bigger payday if they feel there are better options available from an environmental standpoint. “‘Are you sure you want to do this?’ or ‘Is there a way to consume less?’ are questions we ask all the time,” De Avila says. “For example, somebody might want to make their home’s footprint larger by putting in an addition. To which we might suggest changing a couple existing walls, thus avoiding having this bigger space you’re now going to have to heat for the next 50 years, draining valuable resources. “When we’re doing consults with clients, we try to provide them with all kinds of alternatives, whether it be using reclaimed building materials from ReStore or plant-based or sustainable products. Lots of renovators will say after they fix your home it will be worth whatever amount of money more. But as soon as you spend that money, you’re indebting yourself to a structure more so than you already have with a mortgage, which forces you to work X number of hours to make X amount of money, all of which goes against our general philosophy.” Finally, with the bikes, in the last 12 months De Avila, who also owns a car, says he’s noticed a discernible difference in his demeanour on days when he’s biked to work versus those when, for whatever reason, he was forced to get behind the wheel. Whenever he’s snarled in traffic due to lane closures or a mishap, he finds himself getting short or angry more quickly than when he’s pedalling here and there. “That makes me wonder if the actual mode of transportation fundamentally changes the way I interact with others,” he says, adding another benefit of biking to work with co-workers is that it affords everybody the opportunity to discuss the day ahead, where they left off yesterday... the same type of things they probably would have spent the first 30 minutes deliberating had they gotten there separately by car. “So if I compare the two, I’d much rather get on a bike at the start of the day. Plus it’s pretty hard not to be awake and alert when you arrive for work, especially when it’s on the chilly side.” david.sanderson(a)freepress.mb.ca

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New bike repair social enterprise launching
by Beth McKechnie 15 Oct '21

15 Oct '21

*** please share with your networks *** Check out the new bike repair social enterprise in Winnipeg called Velotecha. It’s run in partnership between Macdonald Youth Services and the Wrench. They are launching a Winter Storage and Tune Up service – picking up bikes, fixing them and returning them in early spring. The repair and maintenance work will create paid first jobs for some youth under supervision of qualified bike mechanics. Plus it will get more cyclists on the road earlier in the season. Have a look at the website here: www.velotecha.com Here is a FB post that can be shared quickly: https://www.facebook.com/272671616114244/posts/4455579211156776/?d=n

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