Since snow began to blanket the Edmonton area, more than 200 city workers have been focusing on clearing the main arterial and collector roads. However, in some residential areas, the bike lanes have already been plowed.
“We are trying to have the bike lanes cleared within 24 hours of the snow falling,” said Janet Tecklenborg, director of infrastructure operations for the City of Edmonton.
“The bike lanes going into the downtown core are arterial bike lanes. They are of a higher priority in some areas.”
READ MORE: First seasonal parking ban of 2018 declared in Edmonton as snow blankets much of Alberta
Cyclist Simon Crossley uses the bike lanes every day and is appreciative that they have been plowed.
“I think it’s fantastic. It’s a much better job than they did when the first ones went down 10 years ago,” Crossley said. “They’re really good at getting cleared this winter and de-iced. It’s excellent. I think if people tried them out they’d find it’s so easy and worth it.
“Riding a bicycle is more important than using your vehicle to get around so they take precedence in my opinion.”
When asked why the bike lanes in residential areas are cleared before the road, Tecklenborg explained that the classification of the roadways differ.
“A lot of the roads that the bike lanes are on are not main arterial roads …. but it is an arterial bike lane,” Tecklenborg said.
The first seasonal parking ban of 2018 will go into effect as of 11:59 p.m. Saturday.