WATCH ABOVE: Business and community members in Old Strathcona are banding together to change how traffic flows down Whyte Avenue. Tom Vernon explains.
EDMONTON — A group is calling Whyte Avenue “unacceptably dangerous” and wants city council to make changes.
The Whyte Avenue Reboot Committee has released data showing over a ten year stretch from 2004 to 2014, there were 205 serious injuries and deaths to pedestrians or cyclists on 82nd Avenue, between 96th and 112th Street. The data was drawn from police records.
READ MORE: Old Strathcona Business Association to revisit proposed car-free Whyte Ave plans
The committee wants city council to initiate a “design reboot” of the three kilometre stretch on Whyte Avenue, by redesigning it according to Complete Streets Guidelines. The group believes the move would ensure increased safety for cyclists, skaters and pedestrians.
“Whyte Avenue is unacceptably dangerous for people walking or riding bikes, how can the City be okay with there being one or two injuries or deaths every month in its most vibrant pedestrian district?” questioned Conrad Nobert, Whyte Avenue Reboot Committee.
The group has organized an “awareness walk” for Friday in conjunction with the three-year anniversary of Isaak Kornelsen’s death. The 21-year-old University of Alberta student was killed while riding his bike on Whyte Avenue in 2012.
READ MORE: Cyclist killed instantly in crash on Whyte Ave.
The goal of the walk is to raise awareness for the need to improve safety for everyone who uses the road.
“We’re just asking the City to do the right thing and create a street design that balances safety and convenience for everyone using the road,” said Murray Davison, Old Strathcona Business Association.