Jess McDiarmid
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, January 23, 2008

YELLOWKNIFE - More bike racks and signs, better routes, wider shoulders, multi-use trails and more promotion of cycling were some of the suggestions put forward by cyclists at a Jan. 16 public meeting hosted by Ecology North's transportation issues subcommittee.

Roughly a dozen cyclists showed up at the Multiplex to share their ideas of how to spend $100,000 the city has available for cycling infrastructure.

"One of the most important things to do is talk to people who do cycling," said Doug Ritchie, the program director for Ecology North who sits on the subcommittee.

Ritchie will compile a list of all the cyclists' recommendations to give to the city. The money comes from a territorial government grant through the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs.

The public meeting followed an Ecology North report released in March 2007 that made 10 recommendations to improve cycling in Yellowknife.

Among those were the creation of alternate routes to avoid busy roads, an education and awareness campaign and consultation with bike experts when planning for transportation.

One of the overwhelming recommendations in the report was for the city to adopt a principle that biking is legitimate transportation, not just a recreational activity.

That falls in line with Yellowknife's Community Energy Plan, which seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in a city that produces almost twice the national average for carbon dioxide emissions.

"The single best way to promote cycling is by improving infrastructure," said Ritchie.

Cyclists pointed out that many buildings in the city lack simple bike racks and some have racks that aren't secure or are in unsuitable locations. Others are buried under snow all winter.

Ritchie suggested that space for bikes could be addressed in a bylaw, which garnered support from the room.

"It's got to be a requirement," said Rob Thom.

Cyclists also suggested retrofitting existing parking meters and street light posts, so they could be used as bike racks.

Other suggestions included mandatory snow removal citywide, fixing curbs that bikes can't get over such as the Staples corner, a multi-use sidewalk or bike path from Franklin Avenue along Old Airport Road to Highway 3 and more street sweeping in the summer.

Lore Krysko said the Frame Lake trail is excellent for cyclists but wondered if it could be swept more regularly in summer.

"There's a lot of glass on that trail," she said.

She also suggested alterations to the intersection where Old Airport Road meets the highway to make it safer.

"It's the way to the beach so it's kids (riding)," said Krysko.