If you ride your bike along 108th Street, you may have to cross the busy roadway a few times to remain on a pathway. Grande Prairie resident Matt Vavrek says this is his problem when he wants to commute by bicycle from his neighbourhood of Mission Heights to the Grande Prairie Regional College.
“There has been noticeable improvement in the accessibility along that path. I just want to make sure that some of the considerations of crossing back and forth on that road to get to those trails has been taken under consideration.”
He adds that not only does crossing multiple times slow down the commute, it also poses safety hazards. Vavrek explains that he wants to be able to take his family around the city.
“I do try and ride, when I can, with my kids to school and the grocery store. I would never take them along that route right now. I wouldn’t feel safe crossing the road with a small kid on a bike and another in a trailer.”
Vavrek says he is glad to hear that the city is working on making the city more accessible.
City of Grande Prairie Capital Planning and Construction Manager Matt Hinton explains that pathways for pedestrians and bicycles is part of their Community Mobility Plan. There are plans to start work on pathways north of Canfor to 84th Avenue along 108th Street this year.
Hinton says that on average the city adds 3 kilometres of trails every year.