I'd take a few hundred metre detour north to use a dedicated bridge. I've nearly been nearly hit at least a dozen times on that overpass this summer - both in riding and pedestrian mode. The crosswalks across the on/off ramps to the Deerfoot are unreasonably bad for pedestrians, people just aren't paying attention.

I know a lot of people use the overpass in cyclist mode. What would it take to convince them for the need for a dedicated crossing this far north? I'm not too familiar with how receptive the city is to such things.

I'll join in, as this is my least favourite part of my commute...

I come from the south, so during the summer I drop on to 64th Ave from the end of the short section of pathway at the Canadian Tire T-intersection (Hunterhorn Rd I believe). Riding downhill and timing the lights, the traffic isn't too bad.

However, during the winter the fantastic grey zone that is the Deerfoot Maintenance Area makes this section sketchy. Either it is the accumulation of snow & ice on the bridge decks or the impassable accumulation of snow on the accompanying sidewalk, the result is not a bike-friendly route. Despite several calls to Carmacks and the City this section of road & sidewalk were real horror shows last winter. I especially felt for all the foot traffic (some with strollers!) making their way through the drifts.

The "best" route I found - I can't believe I'm saying this - was going through the hole in the chain link fence off the Nose Creek pathway, hopping over the railway tracks and up the rutted single track to face 50% less of the 64th Ave bridge gaunlet. I'm still not happy with this route... How do you find the roadway conditions in winter? Is it not as bad as I've remembered it to be?

A better bike / ped bridge indeed! The implication of the current design is the pathway meets the 64th Ave sidewalk and the sidewalk becomes the de facto "pathway" across Deerfoot. It is too narrow & too busy for this purpose.

I like your idea of a commuting survey! Defining the major non-downtown commuting destinations might be elucidating for new construction & maintenance priorities.

What am I going on about winter though?! It is a beautiful summery day outside! :)

The $20+M bridge is a poor allocation of funds. I don't know how much it costs to build the average ped/bike bridge but I bet you could have 3 or more built for the price of that one. I don't think basic concrete or steel bridges look all that bad either. If you take a look at some of the recent overpass bridges there is some decorative formwork happening and the actual shapes can vary quite a bit. There are some older bridges such as the Edworthy Park bridge that are simple and not too ugly either. I think some motivated engineers and a good design team could come up with some eye pleasing and useful bridges rather than spending so much money on an art piece at this point.

As for good locations, I have no doubt the city is aware of many good suggestions for new ped bridges. They have received lots of input on this over the last few years and many surveys took place as part of the Plan-it initiative. Why they ignore this input in favour of a single expensive structure I don't know.

In addition I think the city could do a much better job when retrofitting existing bridges. Many technical implications of course but they have torn several bridges down to the rebar over the past few years and rebuilt the whole top surface, there has to be room during this process to widen it somewhat in order to provide even some extra room for a cyclist lane. Maybe just rethink the size and material of the car/ped buffer rather than bulky concrete barriers. Possibly a slightly narrower sidewalk too?