Ramsay / Inglewood 11 St & 12 St Survey

Ramsay / Inglewood 11 St & 12 St Survey

#sharedstreets, Advocacy, Infrastructure
The redesigned streetscape for 11 Street SE / 12 Street SE through the communities of Ramsay and Inglewood has been released, and the City of Calgary is requesting feedback on the preferred design concept. Check out the plans and survey at the link below: https://engage.calgary.ca/ramsay-inglewoodTOD Adaptive roadway on the west side of 12 Street SE in Inglewood. Photo: Bike Calgary The design drawings call for a two-way wheeling path on the west side of 12 Street SE in Inglewood and under the CP rail tracks, similar to the current adaptive roadway on this street. Proposed design on 12 Street SE through Inglewood with west side multi-use pathway. Graphic: City of Calgary Engage South of the underpass, however, the pathway switches to the east side of the roadway. No rationale is…
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Reducing Residential Speed Limits to 40km/h

Reducing Residential Speed Limits to 40km/h

#sharedstreets, Advocacy
UPDATE - On Feb. 1, City Council voted in favour of 40 km/h speed limits on residential roads! Congratulations and thanks to all who helped make this happen!!! Sunset on a residential street in Calgary - Councillors vote Monday, Feb 1st on reducing the unposted residential speed limit from 50km/h to 40km/h. The 10km/h difference will be a step towards making our streets safer City wide, and not just on a case-by-case basis. In an open letter sent to the Mayor and City of Calgary Councillors, Bike Calgary emphasized the importance of the Monday 1st February vote to say "YES" to a residential speed limit of 40km/h. A reduction of 10km/h changes the physics and health outcomes for both drivers and pedestrians in the case of a collision. Fatalities, injuries,…
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E-Scooters to stay in Calgary

E-Scooters to stay in Calgary

#sharedstreets, Infrastructure
Following an unanimous vote at the City council meeting last week, we will again see the ride sharing scheme back on our pathways this year, but with a few new rules attached. https://globalnews.ca/news/7585209/calgary-e-scooters-approved-2021/ Each scooter will have a highly visible identification numberA cap of 1,500 e-scootersOperate on low speed / low volume roads that don't have traffic linesPay a per-scooter permit fee (that will cover parking)A 15 cent fee per trip will be applied There were three operators in the City in 2020, Lime, Bird and Roll. Calgary was the first Canadian city to reach 1 million shared e-scooter rides and according to one operator, Calgary uses their scooters more than anywhere else in the world. Hopefully, with this new permanent user addition to the city's pathway systems, it will…
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Renaming our cycle tracks!

Renaming our cycle tracks!

#sharedstreets, Advocacy
On December 16th the City Council voted to direct the Administration to "explore formally changing the name of our cycle tracks to mobility tracks or another name to better reflect their current and future use, and return to Transportation and Transit Committee with recommendations and next steps no later that Q1 2021." So let's have a poll and help our Administration with some free input to help that decision. We are asking the communities of Calgary to see what you would call them and as part of that process, what else needs to be changed with it? Should they be categorized better perhaps? http://petespearing.survey.fm/calgary-renaming-our-cycle-tracks We will share the results here and also with the City of Calgary.
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The pathway factor: active transport of growing importance for homebuyers

The pathway factor: active transport of growing importance for homebuyers

#sharedstreets, Advocacy
According to the article in the link below from the Calgary Herald, and based upon the study by Zolo, communities with plenty of opportunity for active transport are viewed as being increasingly desirable. https://calgaryherald.com/life/homes/new-homes/the-bike-path-factor-active-transport-of-growing-importance-for-homebuyers Despite its significant amount of kilometers of pathway, albeit over a large area, Calgary scores only 79th in the survey. The score is compiled using metrics such as the quality of bicycle and walking paths, mass transit, precipitation and elevation change. Edmonton was ranked 36th. The factoring of our elevation change seems to perhaps penalise the outcome a little, but are our orphaned pathways more the real factor? The Greenway just ends East of Livingston in the North ........waiting for development of a road, although now split by the widening of Center Street with no direct…
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City sidewalk and pathway budget to be cut by 56%!

City sidewalk and pathway budget to be cut by 56%!

#sharedstreets, Advocacy
We all realize that the current economic situation is difficult, but these are also times for progressive change. Calgary's very own Council approved transportation plan states that pedestrians and those on two wheels should be prioritized in all future transport / infrastructure spending, yet the 56% cut to sidewalks and pathways for 2021 is the 4th deepest cut across the 36 categories. So how does this compare? Under the budget allocations for "A City That Moves", the following is proposed: Parking, No Reduction (2021 Budget $13.9m) Public Transit, a reduction of -13% (2021 Budget $368m)Sidewalks and Pathways a reduction of - 56% (2021 Budget $25m)Specialist Transit, No Reduction (2021 Budget $90k)Streets, a reduction of only 15% (2021 Budget $194m)Taxi, Limousine & Vehicles-for-hire, No Reduction (2021 budget ($330k) Lets remind ourselves…
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Its budget time…….so how are we funding our mobility learning from 2020?

Its budget time…….so how are we funding our mobility learning from 2020?

#sharedstreets, Uncategorized
Its without doubt been a hard year and we all need to adjust and contribute to any budget reductions. But will the reductions be equitable in relation to mobility, and will they apply to our changing mobility modes that we've seen in 2020? We know from the city's own statistics that mobility pathway use is up over 469%. So will the budget reflect this? You would think so! From what we know, about 21% is the average budget reduction requirement, (including essential services which cannot operate below their current allocation (e.g. 311). News is.......it doesn't! In fact the pathway budget is planned to be hit by over 50% in 2021 AND even lower in 2022! Around the world we see cities adapting. Here is an article that not only shows…
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This is why a 5A Network Phase 1 plan works

This is why a 5A Network Phase 1 plan works

#sharedstreets
There's a plan, but how will it be implemented and over what time? Well there's a way............ #sharedstreets was born through the allocated lanes provided by the city to enable pathway users in certain areas to socially distance during the initial pandemic. They were placed, in some locations, in exactly the right place to bridge missing infrastructure and to cater for the increase in mobility traffic. While we advocated for these to remain while there was a collaborative review, the City publicized the MDP and CTP plans, the #sharedstreets underlying elements were clearly aligned with this plan and it was adopted as the right way forward. The issue is when and how this plan is achieved? In other words a plan for the plan (otherwise how would we ever do…
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Bike Calgary pushes city to keep pedestrian, cyclist lanes open through winter

Bike Calgary pushes city to keep pedestrian, cyclist lanes open through winter

#sharedstreets, Advocacy
The City has decided to remove the mobility lanes installed in March to enable Calgarians to socially distance. Our option to this is within the Calgary Herald today. https://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/bike-calgary-pushes-city-to-extend-pedestrian-cyclist-lanes-through-winter The stats show the numbers, so reviewing them in the Spring will change what? Our presentation to the city on Wednesday also provided an opportunity to obtain federal funding and create a Phase 1 of the city's long term plans. This would enable us to connect pathways and provide communities with viable mobility options, including schools, which could include some of these lanes. Speak to your Councilor and lets get some traction #yyc!
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Mobility connections can be achieved through a 5A Network “Phase 1”

Mobility connections can be achieved through a 5A Network “Phase 1”

#sharedstreets, Advocacy, Infrastructure
What if we had an alternate affordable option for transportation that meant we could leave our cars at home? What if people of all abilities could access our pathway systems and it was interconnected to and within communities and allowed our children to use them to get to school safely? Suburban, New and Downtown Communities linked up to each other and to our transportation network? #sharedstreets is seeking support to enable Calgary to access federal funding to help us achieve some of this. The City has already been thinking ahead with the 5A network plan, but as we know, this detailed long term plan doesn't cater for the short term demands and needs. Councilor Jyoti Gondek explained today on CBC news how this issue impacts parts of the Ward 3…
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