Intersection under scrutiny after cyclist struck, killed
There are ways city can make roads safer for active transportation, advocates say
A memorial of flowers at the corner on the south side of College Drive and Wiggins Avenue in Saskatoon grew where a Saskatoon mother, athlete, teacher was killed while she was cycling on Wednesday.
At this intersection, it's difficult to be seen by a long line of vehicles if they're on a bicycle beside them, James Arnold a board member of Saskatoon Cycles, explained in an interview on Friday.
There are solutions, he said. He mentions that in some jurisdictions in Canada, there are “bike boxes.” These have vehicle traffic stop behind a box painted on the roadway at intersections where cyclists stop, aimed improving visibility.
Saskatoon Cycles advocates for active transportation — which for the most part in Saskatoon has been cycling, but the recently introduced e-scooters will be using the same infrastructure.
They're not interested in using tragedy to promote anything, Arnold said. “We are a community. We are all trying to navigate our way through and make Saskatoon a better, livable place.”
Natasha Fox, 33, was killed on Wednesday in a collision with a cement truck as she was cycling to the wrestling facility at the University of Saskatchewan with her children. The children were not physically harmed. There were no further updates issued by Saskatoon police as of Friday.
Wiggins Avenue is one of the main access points to the University of Saskatchewan's campus, on the north side of College Drive, and as Arnold notes, it's a residential street not designed for heavy traffic, while College Drive is also one of the city's most heavily used roads.
“This intersection is really a disaster in terms of volume of traffic and safety of road users who are not in automobiles,” Arnold said.
The general manager of the City of Saskatoon's Transportation and Construction Division, Terry Schmidt, offered his condolences to Fox's family in a statement, but declined to comment on specifics related to the collision due to the ongoing police investigation.
Schmidt said College Drive between Clarence Avenue and Preston Avenue is identified as a future bus rapid transit route and a corridor suited for infill growth.
He said the proposed conceptual design for College Drive to accommodate the future BRT and corridor growth includes intersection improvements for connecting roadways and a multi-use pathway on the north side of College Drive for cyclists and pedestrians.
“The City will continue to rely on these plans with the necessary reviews as we move toward implementing bus rapid transit along College Drive,” he said.
SAFETY
Arnold said the greatest danger on the road to people not in vehicles is vehicles. Vehicle occupants have airbags, seatbelts, the vehicle's metal frame, he explained.
“The people who are inside are protected, but the people who are outside of it are not,” he said.
There's also the feelings of safety — or lack thereof — among cyclists. Arnold said they've found the reason people don't cycle in Saskatoon is because they believe and feel it isn't safe to.
Drivers are required to leave one metre of distance when passing a cyclist, but Arnold said there often isn't enough room, especially with vehicles parked at the side of the road or where lanes aren't wide enough to accommodate passing in the same lane.
Protected bike lanes have been a contentious issue in Saskatoon. The Fourth Avenue protected bike lanes installed as part of a pilot project were removed in 2019. The protected lanes on 23rd Street downtown remain.
Arnold lists examples of pieces of active transportation infrastructure in Saskatoon: the Meewasin Trail, some separated lanes on Victoria Avenue, and changes coming to the Dudley Street corridor.
“There's pieces of infrastructure in Saskatoon that kind of work, but they're not connected,” he said.
One goal right now is to see how disconnected pieces of infrastructure can be connected to the Meewasin Trail, he said.
COMMUNITIES IN MOURNING
On Friday, more tributes were paid to Fox, a well-respected wrestler on a provincial, national and international level.
The Canadian Sport Centre Saskatchewan, in a post on its website outlined her athletic accomplishments and noted the ways she gave back: through coaching and starting a wrestling tournament for children and youth.
The Canadian Olympic Committee is mourning the loss of Fox. In a statement to the Starphoenix, its chief executive officer and secretary general David Shoemaker shared condolences with Fox's family and friends: “We are thinking of them and the entire wrestling community during these challenging times.”
Closer to home, the community association representing the area where one of the schools she taught at is located, said in a Facebook post that her passing leaves a void in the school's community.
“She was not only an exceptional teacher but also a builder of strong bonds within the NPRH community,” the North Park Richmond Heights Community Association's post said.