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WFP: City considers test of reduced-speed neighbourhoods (Sep10'21)
by Beth McKechnie 11 Sep '21

11 Sep '21

City considers test of reduced-speed neighbourhoods https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/city-considers-test-of-reduced-spee… WINNIPEG has 30 km/h zones and streets, but that reduced speed could soon apply to entire neighbourhoods. City bureaucrats have recommended some communities switch to the lower speed limit in a new pilot project. Council had directed city staff to look into making 15 roads — one in each ward — 30 km/h zones. A new report from the public service suggests implementing the change in entire neighbourhoods instead. “With 30-kilometre zones surrounded by 50-kilometre zones or even higher speeds... (drivers) will avoid those streets and go to other streets that might not have been designed for that level of traffic,” said Coun. Matt Allard, council’s public works chairman. That’s one of the reasons the change has been suggested, he said. “With a neighbourhood-based approach, you wouldn’t get that problem because everyone in the neighbourhood would be going (30 km/h).” Allard believed four neighbourhoods would be affected, but city staff hadn’t named specific communities. A downside to the proposed change is the amount of signage, Allard said. “If you wanted to reduce the speed from the default 50, you’d have to put up a sign at every block,” he said. “That’s quite costly.” Council has asked the province to approve boundary signage, where speed limit signs would be erected at community entry points instead of on each street, but there has been no response, Allard said. The city turned four neighbourhood greenways into 30 km/h zones as part of its pilot project in July. Machray Avenue, Powers Street, Eugenie Street and Warsaw Avenue are affected. The city’s public works committee will debate the issue on Wednesday. Coun. Shawn Nason (Transcona) wants to see a city-wide approach or nothing at all. “I think we’re making streets less safe, because people are going to be trying to figure out, ‘Am I in a 30 zone? Forty zone?’” he said. Fifty-kilometre zones are unsafe on roads with no sidewalk, he noted. “We need to work with the province and determine if this is going to be a citywide mandate,” he said. “These block pilots that (have) been proposed are just a slippery way to try to mandate it in... without proper education and training.” Todd Dube, leader of traffic advocacy group Wise Up Winnipeg, said the slower speed areas aren’t “necessary or effective.” “The rhetoric of ‘slow down and save the kids’ really is simply the front line of what becomes an abusive enforcement revenue program, as we’ve seen in the City of Winnipeg for decades,” Dube said. City staff has also suggested erecting speed-reader boards at the 10 photo-enforced locations that have the highest number of infractions. The boards show motorists’ speeds on an LED screen. The city is borrowing four boards from Manitoba Public Insurance for three years and will install them this fall. Grant Avenue, west of Thurso Street, topped the list for number of infractions in 2020, with 11,654 tickets. Eastbound Talbot Avenue, near Watt Street, was second with 4,816 tickets issued. “Speed boards are extremely effective,” Dube said. Each one costs about $5,000, plus $1,000 in annual maintenance and operating fees, the city report says. Installation adds another $1,300 to $10,000, depending on the post used and placement. gabrielle.piche(a)freepress.mb.ca

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WFP Editorial: Reduced speeds create more time to think (Sep6'21)
by Beth McKechnie 11 Sep '21

11 Sep '21

Reduced speeds create more time to think https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/editorials/reduced-speeds-create-… WHETHER 30 km/h is fast or slow depends on an individual’s mode of transportation. Most of us who are not named Andre De Grasse can’t run that fast for a sustained period. Cyclists can maintain a speed of 30 km/h if the rider is in good physical condition. Motorized vehicles can easily go 30 km/h: in fact, the problem in Winnipeg is getting vehicles to go so slow. Like it or not — many vehicle drivers emphatically do not — a speed limit of 30 km/h is becoming more common on the streets of Winnipeg. A one-year pilot project began July 26 on four city streets, dropping the limit from 50 km/h to 30 km/h and adding speed humps to give forgetful drivers a jarring reminder of the slow-down zones. Also, the 30 km/h limit at school zones throughout the city resumed on Wednesday in preparation for the upcoming home-school-home migration of children who sometimes forget to look both ways before they cross. Drivers can fume that 30 km/h is frustratingly sluggish, in light of the considerable horsepower they are able to employ with a tap of their accelerator foot. Some also allege the low limits are less about safety and more about a cash grab accessed through speeding tickets issued by the city. Such laments are largely in vain, however, and certainly can’t be heard by the technological photo-radar devices that monitor school zones and issue tickets under the Highway Traffic Act, typically $250 for the owner of a vehicle caught doing 50 km/h. If receiving the fine notices in the mail irritates drivers to a degree sufficient to prompt them to express their disdain for 30-km/h zones to their city councillors or the Winnipeg Police Service, they certainly have every right to complain. But again, they’re likely wasting their breath. Winnipeg’s elected representatives and city planners are all-in committed to a traffic program called Towards Zero, which has been adopted by other cities including Edmonton with considerable success at making roads safer. The goal, sometimes stated as “no loss of life is acceptable,” is to eliminate all injuries and fatalities on Winnipeg roads, a philosophy that will help guide the new Transportation Master Plan the city is developing over the next three years. Another embodiment of the safe-roads philosophy that now dominates city-hall traffic planning is the temporary Open Streets project that closed portions of 14 streets to vehicle traffic, giving the open pavement to cyclists. While drivers can grumble when their route is diverted several blocks by a section of Open Streets, or sigh with frustration when they get a ticket for driving more than 30 km/h in reduced speed areas, no one can argue with the motivation of the city to make streets safer for pedestrians and cyclists. Manitoba Public Insurance statistics show that between 2012 and 2019, an average of 260 pedestrians and cyclists were injured or killed annually in vehicle accidents in Manitoba. Perhaps those statistics will be helpful to consider for drivers who, when their progress is slowed to 30 km/h, will find themselves with more time to ponder such matters. If the annual traffic toll of 260 pedestrians and cyclists were allowed to continue unabated, the victims could someday include a family member or friend of any of us. Such an outlook makes it easier to drive as if the child crossing at the upcoming school zone is one of our own.

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WFP - Mixed response to city road slowdown
by Patman, David 31 Aug '21

31 Aug '21

Mixed response to city road slowdown By: Joyanne Pursaga Posted: 4:00 AM CDT Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021 AMID a persistent lobby to slow down traffic on residential streets, some Winnipeggers are now living on routes with reduced speed limits. And about one month into a one-year pilot project that will test 30-kilometre-per-hour speed zones on four routes which previously had 50 km/h limits, they're sharing a mixed response to the changes. One resident would prefer the pilot project end now, arguing tax dollars would be better spent on fixing potholes. "We've got roads we can't drive on and we're spending money on (this)... It's just a gross waste of taxpayers' money, period," said Rick Farley, a Machray Avenue resident. While supporters of reduced speed limits have long argued the change would make streets safer for vehicles, cyclists and pedestrians, Farley said he's seen very few cyclists and pedestrians on his slowed-down block. The city says the 30 km/h speed limits were implemented July 26 on Machray (from Fife to Main streets), Powers Street (from Dufferin to Partridge avenues), Eugenie Street (from St. Mary's Road to Youville Street), and Warsaw Avenue (from Thurso Street to Pembina Highway.) At all four sites, the city has installed new speed signs and speed humps that aim to slow down vehicles. Multiple residents of those streets told the Free Press they welcome the lower speed limit itself. "I love it... Since the 30 (km/h maximum speed) has been posted, (drivers) don't fly down the street anymore," said Warsaw resident Burton Perry. Prior to the speed reduction, Perry said Warsaw attracted many commuters seeking to avoid busier routes, a shortcut he thinks the slower speed limit now deters. However, both Perry and Eugenie Street resident Geoff Ford fear the large speed humps on their streets could create new safety risks. Ford said he fears the raised surface could make speeding cars more likely to lose control and crash into parked vehicles. "I don't have a problem with a slower speed in residential areas... It's just that speed hump. When some yahoo in the wintertime who's not (using) winter tires is going too fast because they're late (that could prove dangerous)," said Ford. Warsaw resident Phil Koch is concerned the humps could hinder cyclist travel. "I'm in favour (of the limit) but I think... they should have made the speed humps so that bikes can navigate without hitting (them)," said Koch. Warsaw resident Dan Rogers, who relies on cycling as his exclusive mode of transportation, shared only positive views of the reduced speed. "It just makes (cyclists) feel safe. I think just, in general, the calming of the streets in the neighbourhoods is just very welcome," said Rogers. Coun. Ross Eadie, whose ward includes the Machray and Powers trial routes, said he has received a few complaints about the speed humps. While Eadie expects the current routes may require some tweaks, he supports the trial as a way to add safe cycling options in his area. "I thought, let's try to provide a decent space, a safe route for the community," the Mynarski councillor said. Matt Allard, whose St. Boniface ward contains Eugenie Street, said the pilot is triggering a mixed response from residents so far, though feedback is just beginning to come in. "Generally, commuters are more opposed to reductions in speeds (than residents of the street)," said Allard. He and other councillors noted the speed reduction pilot project followed repeated demands from cyclists, safety advocates and other groups to permanently set lower speed limits on residential streets. "I've never seen such an outcry (before), (such) a demand for slower vehicle speeds on residential streets," said Coun. Janice Lukes, who also supports the project. Lukes said city council should acknowledge a growing demand to use residential roads for recreation. She believes slower speed limits would make them easier to play on. "Slowing traffic down on residential streets improves the quality of life in neighbourhoods," said Lukes. The city's corporate communications department said resident feedback and traffic data gathered from the sites won't be shared until after the one-year pilot project ends. A public report on the trial is expected sometime in Fall 2022. joyanne.pursaga(a)freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga

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Paris introduces city-wide 30 km/h speed limit
by Beth McKechnie 31 Aug '21

31 Aug '21

Paris introduces city-wide 30 km/h speed limit The French capital has lowered the speed limit for drivers on most streets in a bid to curb the number of cars in the city, reducing noise and fighting climate change. The speed limit is one of the campaign promises made by the city's socialist mayor, Anne Hidalgo <https://www.dw.com/en/france-paris-mayor-wins-reelection-macron-dealt-blow-…>, before last year's local elections. Hidalgo has also expanded cycling lanes in the city, and is pushing ahead with plans to remove 60,000 of the city's roughly 140,000 street-level parking spaces. *Full story*: https://www.dw.com/en/paris-introduces-citywide-30-kmh-speed-limit/a-590253…

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WFP The Herald: Cycling series highlights climate emergency, lack of infrastructure (Aug25'21)
by Beth McKechnie 25 Aug '21

25 Aug '21

Winnipeggers bike for the future Cycling series highlights climate emergency, lack of infrastructure BY SYDNEY HILDEBRANDT STAFF REPORTER ELMWOOD In light of the climate emergency and the need for improvements to local active transportation infrastructure, a group of Winnipeggers are cycling across the city this summer and fall. The first Bike for the Future event, organized by Bike Winnipeg, took place Aug. 15 and began at Norquay Community Centre in North Point Douglas. A squad of cyclists spent the afternoon traversing North End streets. “We’ve organized this ride to encourage the (City of Winnipeg) to invest more money in active transportation infrastructure, and to work on lowering speed limits to make riding in our residential neighbourhoods more comfortable for people of all ages and abilities,” organizer Ian Walker said. “I’ve been an advocate with Bike Winnipeg for about a decade, and the city’s done some really good work over the years investing in separated infrastructure and creating these open streets and lowering speed limits.” However, there’s still room for improvement, Walker said. In some areas the lack of infrastructure forces cyclists onto sidewalks — which could result in a fine — or into dangerous situations on the roads. Winnipeg police issued 87 tickets to cyclists riding on the sidewalk in 2020 — more than double the 43 tickets issued in 2019, as reported last month by the Winnipeg Free Press. This year, police have handed out around 38 tickets, each $113. Walker, a St. Boniface resident, said he himself has never been ticketed or hit by a car while cycling. “I’ve noticed that a lot of the tickets that are being given out are in the north end of the city,” he said. “It’s really unfair, because there aren’t any good alternatives for folks that are using the sidewalk. People naturally want to go to the sidewalk because being on a road with fast moving cars is uncomfortable. I’ve been riding a bike for decades and I still don’t like riding in traffic, especially with my kids. It’s bananas.” Ashley Challinor and Will Prosper recently moved from Toronto to the Broadway-Assiniboine neighbourhood. Challinor is an “avid cyclist” while Prosper just adopted the mode of transportation after moving to Winnipeg. “I felt a little bit more safe here than I did back home,” Prosper admitted. “Winnipeg actually has a fair amount of pretty good cycling infrastructure,” Challinor said. “Its problem is connection. So there’s little bits here and there, but there isn’t one big connected network. And that really makes it hard to commute on a bicycle, or to go run errands on a bicycle … Toronto’s a bit better about those direct connections, but it also has a lot of room for improvement, too.” Winnipeg is currently working on a number of active transportation connectivity projects, including the North Winnipeg Parkway. The new corridor will connect The Forks to Chief Peguis Trail with a path along the Red River, through Point Douglas and segments of St. John’s and Seven Oaks. Phase 1 began last month. The final phase is scheduled for mid-2022. Elmwood resident Emma Durand-Wood said active transportation infrastructure is an important component to climate justice, which is why she decided to participate in Bike for the Future. “I think this summer has really kind of hit home that climate change is actually upon us. And I already am someone who bikes a lot for transportation, so it’s really made me think a lot about (how) we need to be acting right now … to make biking more safe and appealing and an attractive option, a real option.” Follow Bike Winnipeg on social media for updates on the Bike for the Future ride series.

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WFP: Boulevard, greenway could be renamed by end of year (Aug22'21)
by Beth McKechnie 22 Aug '21

22 Aug '21

Boulevard, greenway could be renamed by end of year https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/boulevard-greenway-could-be-renamed… BISHOP Grandin Boulevard and the greenway that runs parallel to it — both of which are named after an architect of the residential school system — could have new titles before the end of the year. The volunteer board that oversees the greenway’s operations issued a notice this week to inform community members of its ongoing support for the City of Winnipeg’s efforts to explore cutting ties with Bishop Vital-Justin Grandin (1829-1902) as a namesake for local landmarks. The board indicated renaming consultations are underway and it anticipates a report with a recommendation on the subject will be brought forward to city council this fall. “I don’t want people to think we’re sitting on our hands and letting this fall by the wayside,” said Derick Young, president of Bishop Grandin Greenway Inc. “There is a great deal of concern among some people in the community about the name and I think most people, not just in St. Vital, recognize that we need to deal with, as a country, our history of the residential schools and the legacy of people who were involved.” The Truth and Reconciliation Commission concluded that Grandin, a Roman Catholic priest, “led the campaign for residential schooling.” The commission’s final report outlines in detail Grandin’s idea to create boarding schools that would convert Indigenous children into Christians and his success in securing federal funding to make his pitch a reality. The bishop once wrote, “To become civilized they should be taken with the consent of their parents and made to lead a life different from their parents and cause them to forget the customs, habits and language of their ancestors.” Not long after the remains of 215 children were found in unmarked graves near a residential school site in Kamloops, outrage about the senseless death, abuse and intergenerational trauma caused by Grandin’s beliefs prompted demands to rename local landmarks. First Nations leaders and concerned citizens have spoken out in favour of removing his name from the boulevard and greenway in south Winnipeg. Others, however, want to leave the existing signage up and add markers that acknowledge his role in setting up the assimilative school system. A Probe Research poll conducted in the spring found 55 per cent of Winnipeggers are in favour of renaming the boulevard because of Grandin’s role in the residential school system. The survey, which took place June 2-11 with a random and representative sampling size of 600 adults, found 28 per cent of respondents were in favour of keeping the road’s name and educating the public on Grandin. A total of 17 per cent of those surveyed indicated they wanted to keep the name as is. Young said it’s likely new names will be chosen in the coming weeks — an announcement he expects will be met with enthusiasm by road and path users; the greenway, which includes community gardens and trails, is accessed by hundreds of people daily in the summer. Once names are approved, there will be discussions about costs related to the logistics of renaming, including updating the title of the greenway board and installing new trailhead signs. maggie.macintosh(a)freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @macintoshmaggie

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E-bikes & Scooters Bird, Ford-owned Spin latest micromobility platforms to integrate with Google Maps - Green Car Congress
by Terry Zdan 18 Aug '21

18 Aug '21

https://www.greencarcongress.com/2021/08/20210818-gmm.html

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Globe editorial on "open streets" in Toronto
by Charles Feaver 10 Aug '21

10 Aug '21

An urbanist view of Toronto's initiatives to designate streets for pedestrians and cyclists instead of cars. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/editorials/article-toronto-should-be -expanding-activeto-not-cutting-it-back/ When Rob Ford was mayor of Toronto, he mastered the low art of the catchphrase. Stopping "the gravy train" played to the idea that city government was all bloat, all the time. "Subways, subways, subways" was a promise of more expensive underground transit, rather than less-costly, on-road light rail, in low-density Scarborough. None of this was rooted in reality or good public policy, but that wasn't the point - stirring up resentment among suburban voters was the point. By that measure, Mr. Ford's most resonant slogan was his claim that the city had declared a "war on the car." Streetcars and (a very few) bike lanes were making the city impassable for humble drivers, he claimed. (The mayor got around in a black Cadillac Escalade.) This mantra was no truer than his other mantras, but it stuck in the urban hive mind. The chaotic Ford years can seem like a distant memory for Canada's largest city - now run by the conservatively progressive John Tory - but their spirit has never really gone away. Rob's brother Doug is, of course, Premier. His nephew, Michael, occupies the family seat on city council, representing Etobicoke North. And road rage still fuels Toronto politics. Consider Michael Ford's latest campaign to end one of the best things to happen in the city during the pandemic. Last summer, a program called ActiveTO removed cars from a few major roads on weekends, including parts of the pseudo-highway Lake Shore Boulevard, to allow people more space to bike, walk and get outside. The city resumed the program this summer - grudgingly, with fewer, shorter and less frequent closings. The concept, even in its truncated form, attracts tens of thousands of cyclists and pedestrians to its most popular routes. Yes, it can slow drive times on some adjacent streets - as do the scores of restaurant patios that have taken over chunks of road across the city - but that's a small price for briefly making Toronto feel like something more than a grid of commuter arteries. Enter Councillor Ford. He wants to end ActiveTO's road closings, which he says are creating a "mass amount of congestion" for drivers. The young dynast hasn't revived his late uncle's "war on the car" trope and sounds pleasant and reasonable in interviews. But he is every bit as wrong when he places the convenience of motorists above the interests of other city residents, and the needs of people passing through a neighbourhood over those actually living there. Let's review the arguments. Mr. Ford is right that some ActiveTO road closures have increased congestion. City figures point to longer travel times on the Gardiner Expressway during some weekends when Lake Shore West was closed. Even if drivers themselves have some responsibility here - ActiveTO has been a fact for two summers running; pick another route! - of course being stuck in traffic is annoying. Far less persuasive is the notion that cyclists have other options. Mr. Ford suggests they try the waterfront Martin Goodman Trail, as though it wasn't already so crowded as to be the site of narrowly averted Tour de France-style pile-ups every weekend from May to October. The pandemic has revealed the pent-up desire for places to stroll and pedal, in a city centre with few green spaces, and little room for modes of transport that aren't motorized. The city says that 34,000 cyclists and 5,000 pedestrians used Lake Shore West on one day in May when it was closed to car traffic. That's more than the number of cars and trucks using it on the average weekend day. The difference is, when cyclists feel congested or unsafe by a lack of road space, they stay home - or they drive. Cycling congestion is thousands of people invisibly at home or behind the wheel, not cycling. By taking a small amount of road space from cars, a few days a month, ActiveTO has shown that Toronto has been in the throes of a silent, years-long cycling traffic jam. Where the campaign against ActiveTO really founders, though, is on philosophical ground. Mr. Ford believes saving a few minutes of drive-time for a few thousand drivers is worth depriving the city of new, much-needed space for safe recreation. But the places where we live are more than just spaces to drive through. If you wanted to boil the issue down to a Fordian slogan, urbanists have one ready-made: "Cities are for people."

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WFP Editorial: City should focus on cycling infrastructure (Jul30'21)
by Beth McKechnie 30 Jul '21

30 Jul '21

City should focus on cycling infrastructure https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/editorials/city-should-focus-on-c… DURING the pandemic, many Winnipeggers decided — to borrow a line from the legendary rock group Queen — to get on their bikes and ride. Cycling was a way to get some exercise at a time when gyms were closed, a head-clearing activity to alleviate stress, and an opportunity to commune with nature after months of being cooped up at home. Winnipeg’s Open Streets pilot project, which was unrolled in 2020 and saw the expansion of the city’s annual Sunday and holiday bike routes, got even more people out on two wheels, in large part because they felt safe to do so. Alas, with this bicycling boom has come an increase in tickets being handed out to cyclists riding on the sidewalk. Winnipeg police issued 87 tickets in 2020, compared with 43 in 2019. So far, police have handed out 38 tickets in 2021. The fine for riding on the sidewalk is $113. Instead of focusing on ticketing cyclists using sidewalks, Winnipeg might be better served by prioritizing safe and accessible biking infrastructure — especially in areas of the city where there is none, and areas in which sidewalk riders are disproportionately ticketed. We don’t really know where to put people on bicycles in this city. Cyclists are not motorists, nor are they pedestrians. And yet, in many areas of the city, if they aren’t sharing the road with one, they are sharing the sidewalk with the other. Winnipeg’s biking infrastructure has slowly improved over the past decade with the arrival of dedicated off-street bike paths as well as protected, buffered and painted on-street bike lanes. But that mix of infrastructure is mostly linked together in a city-wide network by so-called “informal on-street routes,” which are just streets deemed to be low or medium stress for cyclists. On Winnipeg’s Cycling Map, areas of caution are circled in red. As you might expect, many of these are intersections. In many neighbourhoods, especially those in the northern parts of the city, informal on-street routes are largely the only biking infrastructure that exists. That means riding one’s bike in many places in the city — especially if one is a commuter cyclist — inevitably means riding with traffic, often moving at high speed. On busy stretches where bikes are frequently crowded out by cars or near-constant construction, the safer choice is clear. According to Statistics Canada and data from the Canadian Vital Statistics: Death Database, 890 cyclists died in Canada between 2006 and 2017, for an average of 74 deaths per year. Seventy-three per cent of these deaths were the result of a collision with a motor vehicle. Pedestrians are also killed by motor vehicles in Canada; 332 in 2018. Pedestrians have been killed by cyclists travelling at high speed in other places, too, though those incidents are decidedly more rare. The bottom line is that everyone needs to slow down; everyone needs to follow the rules of the road. Mixed-use pathways are frequently shared by pedestrians and cyclists, who should practice proper etiquette by announcing their presence with a bell or a simple “on your left.” Cyclists need to follow the rules of traffic, and motorists need to realize bikes have the right to be on the road. The increased interest in cycling shows there’s an appetite for safe, equitable and accessible biking infrastructure in this city. Until everyone can stay in their dedicated lane, we need to find a way to share without being punished.

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Sympathy Doesn’t Do a Damn Thing
by Beth McKechnie 29 Jul '21

29 Jul '21

In part 1 of a special 2-episode series focused on the lived experiences of people with disabilities, Zack Hurtz, Micah Lusignan, Krystal Monteros, and Tanisha Sepulveda share their everyday mobility challenges and what they believe is needed for equitable access to mobility for all. https://transloc.com/the-movement-podcast/sympathy-doesnt-do-a-damn-thing/ -- Beth McKechnie (she/her) *| *Green Action Centre <http://www.greenactioncentre.ca/> 3rd floor, 303 Portage Ave | (204) 925-3777 x102 | Find us here <http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/> *Green Action Centre is located on the ancestral lands of the Anishinaabeg, Ininew, Anishininiwag, Dakota, and Dene Peoples, and the homeland of* *the Métis Nation. We acknowledge that our water is sourced from Shoal Lake 40 First Nation and that our hydro is sourced from numerous First Nations here in Manitoba**. * Green Action Centre is your green living hub Support our work by becoming a member <http://greenactioncentre.ca/support/become-a-member/>. Donate at CanadaHelps.org <http://canadahelps.org/> <http://www.gomanitoba.ca>

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