Critical mass, progress cannot be stopped

Across North America, progress in cities has always been a step-forward-step-backward affair. There are people in Edmonton and Calgary who railed against their LRT systems as wasteful expenses -- or who said they support these things in principle, just not the routes the planners had chosen. 

The discussion about bike lanes everywhere is especially acidic. The rancour here is nothing special; it's just part of a repeating pattern.

Harsh opposition to cyclists is not a function of city size, either. There have been campaigns in New York City to remove bike lanes. The mayor of Toronto has been bellicose in his opposition to bike travel, but then again, he is bellicose about nearly everything.

Rather like Red Deer city councillor Chris Stephan, whose voting record has been to oppose just about everything the city does. Now he wants the city to remove our small incursion into bike lanes, because of the flood of complaints he's gotten about them. If enough people complained about a ban on burning witches, he'd likely be against that, too.

Examples of successful support for people's choices in how they move around are not limited to Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Paris, Montreal, Vancouver, Portland or Seattle. They went through their growing pains, too, but medium-sized cities like Billings, Boulder, Colorado Springs, Fargo, Eugene, Little Rock, Sioux Falls, Gary -- as far as Anchorage, and many others -- all went through the same process Red Deer is experiencing. And today they are listed among the top 50 cities in North America for being bike-friendly.

Some complainers characterize people who ride bikes as "the other." As if cyclists are an aberrant minority whose choices ought not be considered. We're your neighbours and fellow taxpayers who happen to prefer (or need) to commute by bike from time to time. We are as entitled to safety as anyone else, and we pay our full share for city infrastructure. 

In fact, if you think taxes are too high, you should encourage more cycling, because riding a bike -- including  its infrastructure -- is vastly cheaper and more efficient than any other kind of transport. If it can be done safely.

The emergence of bike lanes here is an expression of a change in attitude and desire of a significant portion of this city. The era of cities built around automobiles is not over -- yet. But there is a significant group that questions why we should need to drive a car for every errand or activity. Significant enough in Red Deer to demand that our legal choices be respected. A critical mass? We'll see.

We're in a state of change. That so many people are so upset with Red Deer's bike lanes indicates the profound nature of the change. But this process must continue, if Red Deer is to grow. Bikes replaced horses in North American cities, and cars replaced bikes. Now bikes are becoming popular and useful again.

Red Deer has not experienced upsetting events, such as Critical Mass, where hundreds of cyclists suddenly show up, clog main arteries for a short period, and then disperse -- sometimes after arrests have been made of both cyclists and drivers. They are part of this process, too. Rather, we law-abiding Red Deerians will quietly gather Saturday at St. Thomas Aquinas at 9 a.m., and enjoy a little bike ride downtown.

Not enough, in my view. But progress has always been step-forward-step-backward. Everyone needs a little patience here, even me.

Greg Neiman is a former editor at the Red Deer Advocate. Please reply to greg.neiman.blog.gmail.com.