Thread by @AaronWardDene

I see some concern about the cost of $170m for implementing bike lane infrastructure. Additionally, I see “what about the homeless?” I’ll get to that as well.

🧵 that I will add to over time:

First, a little perspective:

The 50st overpass is $179 million dollars.

#yegcc

Yes. One small section to help alleviate driver frustration & increase safety costs more than the entire bike lane build out.

No one asked about the homeless when that was approved. Why?

Maybe because homelessness, addictions, and mental health supports are provincial files.

The issue homelessness is playing out on Alberta streets, Edmonton’s included.

That’s not finger pointing, municipalities literally can’t provide Health Care. I will get to the very substantial investments we have made in helping with housing, anyway, later in this 🧵

“Are cyclists going to pay for this?”

Yes, by cycling. Bike lanes are not just for bikes either. People walk in them when businesses or homes don’t shovel their walk. Seniors, scooters, ppl/ mobility aids use them, etc.

It’s a safe pathway.

https://twitter.com/brenttoderian/status/1507827369154781185

So essentially, the more people using these pathways alleviates pressure on the roadways. It is infrastructure that reduces frustration for drivers.

It’s less people on the road to avoid & less congestion when a few more ppl on your commute choose another mode of transportation.

“But we are a winter city.”

We have far more clear and sunny days in Alberta without that deep freeze of cold than you might think.

In other Northern Cities, people bike year round because the infrastructure allows it. People bike year round in Edmonton, as well.

We also walk.

“I sometimes see an empty bike lane”

That’s ok. We sometimes see empty car lanes, as well. Not everything useful or needed is utilized 100% of the time. There are gaps between seeing cars, people walking, and people biking, scooting, etc.

“What about maintenance costs?”

Due to obviously lighter weight, users of bike lanes have far less impact on wear and tear than roadways experience.

In fact, the more we can slow the inevitable growing traffic on roadways, the more we will see in roadway savings for repairs.

“Does this take away from road budgets?”

Bike lanes are road budgets.

And the money we spend on roadways is perhaps much more than you might think. In comparison, bike lanes are a percentage:

pathsforpeople.org/2022/09/bike-p…

I will add here that the issue of bike lanes has been used as a political wedge issue. Opinion v facts.

It’s become an ideological argument that I am not interested in. If the benefits of these lanes were not clear, I would not support it.

Heck, I rarely ride a bike myself!

“What about expanding transit?”

We need to expand transit. Not to “throw anyone under the bus” but long past Council moves did not build any extra capacity for bus garages!

We can add maybe 10 more buses with creative shuffling.

We are fixing that, too. More to come.

“What about businesses, will they be affected?”

Yes, they will. In really great ways.

Overall having a bike lane tends to translate into a more active local economy, a boost for local business!

In an age of online shopping, it’s a nice bonus for local.

strongtowns.org/journal/2016/7…

So local economy is helped.

What about local homeless?

Many ppl experiencing, or on the verge of, homelessness have jobs. Transportation is a problem & many of them ride bikes by necessity.

We have marvellous safety standards/infra for vehicles, but not really for anyone else.

Ok let’s touch on something that the majority of Edmontonians said was very important to them: the environment.

The GHG savings will be incredible. This is just an obvious outcome, isn’t it? ‘Nuff said

Morbid reminder: rainwater is now unsafe to drink.

phys.org/news/2022-08-r…

Still here?

All right. I am VERY happy to see that we suddenly have a bunch of folks who are passionate about helping the homeless. Welcome to the team!

Edmonton is currently purchasing housing to the tune of millions of dollars as an ongoing, yearly effort.

It’s called homeEd

We also partnered with the Federal Government to build permanent supportive housing. That means a focus on folks living on the streets and in encampments in dire need.

We currently have 450 units sitting empty, ready to get folks on the path to recovery & mental health support.

Empty?

Yes. As a municipality, we can’t provide Health Care, only provinces can do that. We need them to help us staff these units. By law.

It will cost them less than the cost to the system as it is right now. We would save money by helping.

They are not willing.

This is where you come in.

The City has built homes and units, we are buying units and continuing to build. We are doing everything we can.

By the way, housing is also a provincial responsibility.

You care about this issue which is great. Now, please, advocate. Use your voice.

Ask the province to save your tax dollars by doing the right thing. It’s so simple.

And shelters? Also provincial responsibility.

The problem with shelters, however is that they are not solutions. They are placeholder bandaids and the folks staffing them are working miracles.

Before you say “passing the buck” or “pointing fingers” - if we could legally do it, and had the same funding mechanisms the province has, the City would do it yesterday. It would be done.

That simple.

By legislation, the City cannot use infrastructure dollars for Health Care.

So if you care about the homeless, please encourage the province to solve what is an Alberta problem being played out in the streets of Alberta Municipalities.

You are already paying your income tax for the solution! You shouldn’t have to pay twice for it w/ your property tax.

In the meantime, money is being drained due to EPS calls and interventions, city Peace Officers, emergency room visits, judicial system, incarceration, clean up, economic impact for downtown and transit, and on and on.

It’s astounding.

Btw, Calgary gets 3x the funding than Yeg.

So while we are discussing the common sense solutions of a city wide bike lane network (economic, social, health, environment, infra savings over time, equity, etc

Let’s remember that we don’t have to limit ourselves to one issue at a time. We can work on all of these things.

“Are there any other benefits?”

Glad you asked! (haha)

Social Procurement and Local Hiring for jobs.

When capital projects are done right, it means more money flows back into the local economy and there is a more stable job rate - neighbours work and can put food on the table

Social Procurement also means that people with disabilities have a greater opportunity for work, as well as minorities, women, and marginalized folks. Again, this can relate to those who are most likely to find themselves pushed over the edge in homelessness without employment.

So the money spent actually returns to our communities. This is true of all Edmonton capital (infrastructure) investments. I made a point of it by making the motions in Council to embed this practice in everything the City does. @AmarjeetSohiYEG pushed for it on a Fed level.

“What about missing links in sidewalks?”

Not only did @AndrewKnack and I work hard to push for a funded plan to address these gaps, we pushed for accelerating that plan down from 30 YEARS to ten.

Additionally, the bike lane infra will help fill those gaps as well.

So for folks facing mobility challenges through disability, injury, age, etc - this is a plus.

There is a human side to this that gets lost in talk of cars, savings, etc.

This is about solving real challenges for real people. People you see every day.

“Why are you reinventing the wheel? Isn’t what we have good enough?”

No.

And we are not the first city to do this. Municipalities around the world are making or have made this investment.

For us, it’s about getting ahead of what’s coming.

Global instability means energy price instability.

We have seen the yo-yo of gas prices and that is not likely levelling out anytime soon. In Alberta that has a huge impact on our economy and our choices.

If gas goes too high, ppl will drive less. Too low, & our economy suffers

Which means… less people opting to purchase cars and instead choosing more affordable means of transportation. We are already seeing that trend with younger demographics and observing how people are moving around on a global scale.

This doesn’t necessarily equate to less cars!

Due to population increases we will very likely see an increase in the number of cars on the road.

Again, getting ahead of that, building out a City-wide mobility network is just plain prudence.

Adding an ever increasing number of lanes to roadways is impossible & expensive.

There must be transportation outlets available. Mobility networks are one of them.

I really want to stress that I did NOT always support bike lanes. I had an opinion, but to be honest, not a lot of facts.

That’s what’s great about municipal governance - evidence rules.