Multi-modal transportation use should be encouraged
By Lethbridge Herald on April 29, 2023.
Editor:
I write once again to respond to a bad take published in your Commentary section regarding Mr. Scott Harvey’s letter published April 14 “Adding parking and bike lanes will be a waste of money.”
Mr. Harvey states that in his 39 years of driving in Lethbridge, he has never seen such poor states of the roads. I must agree, they’re in bad shape.
However, it is not the proposed redevelopment of 3rd Avenue to increase bicycle infrastructure and pedestrian access (which will help remove weighty and damaging personal vehicles from our streets) that is the cause of our roadway woes: it is our development pattern.
I propose that the thousands of kilometres added to the City’s footprint in the 39 years of his tenancy, built through Euclidean zoning practices that create car-dependent, sprawling neighbourhoods with few local amenities within walking/cycling distance are to blame for our lack of paving perfection.
You see, it has well been proven in the urban planning world that our development pattern over the last 60-ish years (that so-called suburban dream) which has resulted in our heavy reliance on weighty vehicles to move efficiently around our city, and that does not generate adequate property taxes to cover the costs of the aging infrastructure it requires, are more to blame than those projects not even funded yet.
Indeed it is by redeveloping these poorly developed areas, particularly in our downtown and adjacent areas, to encourage more multi-modal transportation use that will free up future funds to maintain our otherwise be-vehicled streets. This small, incremental investment will draw those neighbours who do reside in proximity to such places, out of their vehicles and into the open air to experience their city at a much more leisurely pace when their hectic lives may best benefit.
By investing now, we pave a smoother way to a better future for both bike-riders and drivers alike.
Kelti Baird
Lethbridge
11-10
Hear hear. I for one am tired of repeating the same old tired road expansions over and over and then acting surprised when our cities are broke and our roads are crumbling. The definition of insanity and all that…
Have you actually lived in Lethbridge for a year or more? It is all fine and dandy to plan a city with multi modal transport. During our cold or inclement months, usually about 8 a year, who do you think is going to bike around? So we end up with roads that aren’t able to accommodate the traffic flow because it is either too cold or too wet or both to ride a bike or walk and those people are back to driving.
The urban sprawl, and city planning faux pas don’t apply to Lethbridge. This is a idea that comes from ad-hoc planning in the USA’s bigger cities that are now becoming real messes. Even a major Canadian city like Calgary (10x our population) doesn’t really have these issues as it is most compartmentalized allow residents to stay close to their houses and still shop for groceries, gas up vehicles, or go out for a meal. They have a efficient public transportation system for the ones that work in other areas. The newer sub-divisions have the basic amenities in their local area.
We aren’t big enough for this to apply here. If you could drive the speed limit, you’d find most of Lethbridge reachable in 15 minutes or less. Our major division (West side) has more and more stores and restaurants added so residents don’t have to commute to the other side of the river to do basic shopping, eating out, recreation, or even medial and dental visits.
Could the real issue here be a few too many youtube documentaries about being greener and following the “Gold Standard” of some bike friendly European communities? If they had near our climate they would be driving around as well.
people bike in the winter – not as many as in the summer, but there are those that are keen enough. moreover, there is enough interest, and intelligence, to appreciate the benefits of non-combustion movement. when cars emerged, might you have been front of the line pointing out that there are not enough roads and gas stations and auto shops to warrant promoting car use?
bike lanes are a relatively small investment, for a good cause, and if we build ’em, the riders will come.
I agree people do. But do we really benefit from removing car lanes of traffic to accommodate those 5 people biking in the winter?
Far more people drive in inclement weather and, when they are driving those are the numbers we have to plan for our roads to support.
Have YOU lived in Lethbridge for a year or more? 8 months a year, are you serious?! Lethbridge is easily bikeable year round, and the coldest month of the year has an average LOW of -12. The vast majority of the year you can bike just fine with a toque and a coat. Try going outside sometime, you may be surprised to learn that you can manage it.
And we don’t have issues with sprawl? We’re literally experiencing those issues right now, or have you not noticed the pot holes? Sprawl means we need more roads, and therefore have more trouble maintaining them.
Canadians are always using our weather as an excuse. News flash, we’re not the only cold country.
I have indeed. I can’t remember seeing more than the odd rider in the coldest of months, and very very few until the late spring. Even the most devout bike riding acquaintances that I have are driving daily till the weather has warmed up enough. It is kind of funny that you assume that I am some one who doesn’t know this. I spend the majority of the winter outside engaged in activities. But thanks for the tip.
Urban sprawl has nothing to do with potholes. It is the uncontrolled expansion of a city. Our pothole problems are caused by the frost heaving from the warming and cooling cycles that we had this winter. The city will get to it when they get to it. It was a different winter than our usual which caused bigger breakups than normal. If you were outside during this winter you’d have noticed it being warmer than usual…. and also noticed a distinctive lack of cyclists.
Simply put it is the expansion of big cities, with lots of people and little planning, to accommodate everyone. This causes the inhabitants to have to move great distances during their daily life. We don’t have the population numbers to sprawl, nor did we have “rapid expansion”.
Your own definition doesn’t support what you’re saying, no part of that definition requires a large city. And yes, potholes are related, because urban sprawl increases the quantity of roads we have to maintain. Even if they were caused exclusively by frost heaving (they are not – potholes occur all over the world, including places that never freeze), the point is that Lethbridge has “low-density residential housing, single-use zoning, and increased reliance on the private automobile for transportation”, and that means more roads to fix and maintain. A denser city needs less infrastructure, a city of sprawling suburbs (like Lethbridge) needs more, and infrastructure costs money. The article you linked is quite good – I’d recommend you actually read it.
It’s quite clear you don’t understand what you quoted – you mention “lots of people” (not mentioned at all, just a rapidly growing population), Lethbridge has grown by 8% in the last 5 years, while the article mentions sprawl in cities like Chicago and Kansas City, which grew by 1% or 16% over 20 YEARS. You say little planning, when the definition is the opposite – single-use zoning is a form of over planning, where only one type of building is allowed.
Regarding winter riding, you apparently think you know a lot more than you do. I can’t really blame you for that, people who get around by driving are chronically bad at noticing cyclists and pedestrians, that’s why so many of them get killed. Certainly as the temperate drops many cyclists will switch to the bus, but there are cyclists out in Lethbridge even in -25 degree weather, and once you get above -10 or so it becomes quite common to pass other people on bikes.
Its the extra weight of electric cars causing the damage.