North Edmonton residents take fight over bike lanes to province

Some residents in a north Edmonton neighbourhood want bike lanes to be an election issue. They have been calling for months for the city to reconsider nearby plans, saying it cuts off access for elderly Edmontonians in the neighborhood.

“There was no previous consultation. In fact in 2019, they wanted to put a bike lane here, and we petitioned against it — and then they backed down — and now they’re going to put one in anyway,” said Jeremiah Rawling, who started a petition against the bike lane.

Rawling is petitioning the provincial government in order to stop a planned bike lane in front of his home, feeling the planning of the bike lane wasn’t communicated properly to residents.

“Yeah, people are ready for a change on Edmonton city council, because Edmonton city council doesn’t listen to their constituents,” said Rawling.

Last week, Alberta’s Municipal Affairs Minister said in an op-ed that he was upset with cities’ “woke policies” like bike lanes, echoing comments from Alberta’s Transportation Minister Devin Dreeshen, who said the province wasn’t ruling out legislation on bike lanes.

The ministry told CityNews in a response, “While the province is investing in infrastructure like the Yellowhead Freeway and Terwillegar Drive to improve traffic flow and move goods safely, some municipal projects seem to be heading in the opposite direction. That’s why we are actively reviewing contentious bike lanes that take away from existing driving lanes.”

But the councillor for the neighbourhood pushing back says the city has done extensive consultation and studies when it comes to active transportation in the area, including how disabled Edmontonians will be impacted.

Adding that while she welcomes an open discussion with the province over bike lanes, she hopes the evidence will speak during the upcoming civic election.

“I do worry that sometimes these conversations, they’re at risk of being politicized, and we’ve seen that in the past. But at the end of the day, I’m interested maintaining an open dialogue on what is and isn’t happening in our communities,” said Ashley Salvador, the councillor, ward Métis.

Edmonton’s election is on October 20th.