Last April, we joked about the City removing the sidewalks from Jasper Avenue, and included this image: 5 lanes of traffic and 2 for parking, with no sidewalks. The reality of today's Jasper Ave is not so different from that satirical image: downtown Edmonton's premier Main Street is a 7 lane roadway, and its sidewalks, when not blocked by construction hoarding, often don't provide proper safety, comfort or accessibility (for strollers, wheelchairs, and walkers). On Monday, March 21, between 4:30-8:30pm, the City is hosting a drop-in open house at Oliver School (10227 118 Street) to discuss Jasper Ave's future; formal presentations are repeated at 5pm and 7pm.
Your voice at the open house is critical to helping ensure that Jasper Ave puts pedestrians first and includes dedicated infrastructure for cycling. Please attend and give your feedback to City staff so that they hear how important this is. If you are unable to attend on Monday, the City will likely have a survey available online following the meeting.
- Jasper Ave Drop-in Open House http://www.edmonton.ca/imaginejasperave
- Date: March 21, 2016 from 4:30-8:30pm
- Location: Oliver School (10227 118 Street)
Presently, Jasper Ave from 109 St to 124 St is undergoing redevelopment. The direction that takes is still being determined: while a draft vision document states "put pedestrians first" as one of its guiding principles, it also emphasizes a desire to recognize the "needs of all methods of transportation" along Jasper Ave: a double-edged sword of a phrase.
Pedestrians aren't just a method of transportation, of course. Pedestrians are the life of a street; they bring vibrancy and they activate public spaces. Pedestrians are also much more likely than anyone else to stop at a local business and spend money. People riding bikes, too, add to that vibrancy.
A street that puts pedestrians first, then, cannot be simply a street that "increases the priority on pedestrians" from the status quo. Pedestrians are, after all, second-last priority on most of Edmonton's streets: "increasing" their priority" from the current state doesn't mean much. A pedestrian-first street needs to make pedestrians the absolute first priority on the street. It's a tautological statement, but needs to be said.
We are strongly advocating for dedicated bike infrastructure on Jasper Avenue. Indeed, 102 Avenue will see a protected bike lane built in several years, but that is a very different class of infrastructure. The function of the 102 Avenue bike route is as a high-volume, efficient transportation corridor. Bike-friendly infrastructure on Jasper Ave, on the other hand, serves people engaging in activities along Jasper Ave: shopping, socializing, and participating in the vitality of the street.
A pedestrian-friendly street must be accessible and friendly to families, including families riding bicycles. The City risks making a serious mistake by trying to create a vibrant main street while pushing bicycles to side streets.
As an exercise, we mapped out a street with 4 travel lanes, 1 parking lane, landscaping, wide sidewalks and patios on both sides of the street, plus a bidirectional bike path at the same level as the sidewalks (similar to some European paths). This all basically fits in the existing road right-of-way along Jasper Ave (with some variation).
We're not the only ones asking for this: view and contribute to the collaborative map put together by Paths for People and you can see the desire for protected bike infrastructure along Jasper Ave, and strong north-south connections across it.
Most importantly: please attend the open house on Monday, March 21 and voice your support for good pedestrian and dedicated cycling infrastructure along Jasper Ave. If you can't attend in person, then please send your feedback to the Imagine Jasper Ave project. You can additionally message your councillor.