UPDATE – Check out Bike Calgary’s letter to the City of Calgary in support of the Green Line!
The City’s Green Line Committee will be meeting again on June 1 and will have a public feedback component. More information of this expansion project can be seen here: https://engage.calgary.ca/greenline or through this website https://www.projectcalgary.org/ On June 15th and pending approval at the Green Line Committee meeting on June 1, the updated Stage 1 alignment will proceed to City Council for final approval.
This infrastructure expansion provides a number of possible benefits for Calgary’s cyclists and to enable us to maximise this, we need to make ourselves heard!
So why would Bike Calgary be interested in this?
Statistically on average, people are willing to walk 750 m, and to cycle or scoot between 2-5 km when there are convenient connecting on-street and designated pathway networks to stations and activity hubs. The population accessibility to the Green Line’s stations for commuting purposes is such that people will have the option to change their mode of transport to cycling.
An increase in the connectivity and likely upgrades to cycling pathways in connecting the stations to the existing network of cycling pathways and routes.
A reduction of vehicle traffic during commute times, thus improving our environment.
So how do we make ourselves heard? Well we need to put out constructive points forward and there are a number of ways we can do that.
- Write to the City and Council by using this link https://www.greenlineinfo.ca/ before June 1st.
- Make yourselves heard on social media in support of the Green Line Extension, adding your cycling points. Please add the hashtag references such as #bikecalgary; #greenlineyyc; #yyc4transit and #projectcalgary
- Email directly or speak to your Community groups and of course your own Councillor.
Apart from the added Infrastructure benefits, we need to increase our canvassing for secure and available bike parking both at the new and existing LRT stations and within the City itself.
Would Calgary’s cyclists be willing to pay a small fee for the use of secure bike parking to make these viable if it gave more assurance in having your bike actually there in one piece when you returned? Should the trains be designed for carrying bikes in multi functional designated spaces within each carriage? Make yourselves heard and lets put our cycling points across. You can also post your cycling opinion on our forum page at https://bikecalgary.org/forums/ and of course make yourselves heard using the suggested methods above.
Lets get active on this Calgary Cyclists!