Bicycle lanes often empty

At a time in the history of Saskatoon when we have a rapidly growing population with increasingly heavier traffic flows on our streets, our city council is intent on reducing traffic lanes and available parking spaces in our downtown core.

Recently, at approximately 1 p.m., I drove on Fourth Avenue but no cyclists were using either lane.

I then talked to an employee at the Medical Arts Building who told me that on any given day, five days a week, there have not been any more than seven cyclists using the bike lanes on 23rd Street leading up to Spadina Crescent.

I then ask city council the following questions:

1. Why are you considering adding more bike lanes when we should at this point be evaluating the need for the existing ones and removing some, especially on busy streets?

2. Why do we have two bike lanes on one street?

3. Why have bicycles become a priority over vehicles in the city?

I also think that consideration to add bike lanes on busy Idylwyld Drive is ridiculous and unreasonable.

Add to this the difficulty to use parking meters, especially in the winter months when the unlit meters are hard to read, and shortage of parking spaces. I find going downtown to do business quite stressful so I avoid going downtown as much as possible.

John Romancia, Saskatoon