Usually I try to keep my witty retorts to these sort of items to Twitter, but this recent quote from Edmonton Sun columnist Kerry Diotte called for more than a 140 character response:
The socialist-style re-education campaign told us motorists and cyclists can get along — and if they simply watch for one another and stick to the rules of the road, our streets will be a safe place for both.
Baloney.
Diotte was referring to the City of Edmonton’s Share the Road education campaign which is aimed at improving traffic safety and reducing injuries between motorists and cyclists. While I completely agree with Diotte’s arguments that Edmonton’s Police need to crack down on cyclists who break traffic laws and that we need more proper bike lanes on our major roads, I think he may be the only person in Edmonton who believes that our bike racks are breeding Bolsheviks.
The challenge for many North American cities is to create an environment on our roads that will make the average commuter feel comfortable cycling to work if they are able. Campaigns like Share the Road shouldn’t be geared towards the already hyper-active bike enthusiasts who are already cycling in rain or shine, but to the average Edmontonians who would ride their bikes to work a little more often if they felt they weren’t going to get plowed over by a motorist or sideswiped by a crazy cyclist.
As a long-term growth strategy for Edmonton it’s smart, it’s healthy, and it could even possibly cut down the ridiculous amount of traffic congestion that is increasingly jamming our roads.
