The city is interested in seeing a few more commuters trade four-wheel transport for two over the next two weeks during this spring’s Go By Bike campaign.
Events promoting bicycling started this past weekend and continue through June 11.
Nanaimo, stretched and sprawling, might not be the most naturally cycle-friendly municipality, but the City of Nanaimo has made a concerted effort to change that over the years, as road re-construction projects are being designed to suit all users, not just those driving motor vehicles.
The city’s Nanaimo Reimagined draft integrated action plan notes that pedestrians and cyclists are typically more “vulnerable” street users, and so bike lane and sidewalk improvements and operational adjustments such as reduced speed limits are seen as providing not necessarily equal amenities, but rather “equitable” space.
The city’s previous transportation plan had a stated goal of quintupling cycling trips over 25 years. The new city plan, which supersedes that transportation plan, doesn’t mention that same numerical target. However, it states a policy of increasing active transportation in all its forms, complemented by numerous policies around improving active transportation infrastructure and connections, and other measures intended to make cycling a safe and appealing option. The city plan also points to active transportation’s role in enabling Nanaimo to meet its long-term emissions reductions targets.
Go By Bike Week, which invites cyclists to stop by ‘celebration stations’ to grab swag and have a chance to win prizes, is a good time to oil up that bike chain and pump those tires, and those interested in the campaign can find out more at this link.
Cycling won’t suit all Nanaimo’s residents. But it might suit more of us than it does now, and the city has short-term and long-term plans to try to keep the wheels in motion to create a go-by-bike community.
-files from Chris Bush/News Bulletin
READ ALSO: Oil that chain and pump up those tires for Nanaimo’s Go By Bike campaign
editor@nanaimobulletin.com
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