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Ride with Candidates: Elizabeth Clarke, Regional Councillor (Kitchener)

Posted on October 1, 2018October 7, 2018 by Emily Slofstra
Posted in: I bike I vote, Rides with Candidates

In the months before the 2018 municipal election, CycleWR volunteers have been taking municipal electoral candidates for bike rides to show off the best and worst of the cycling infrastructure in their ward/city/region. For a full list of completed rides, click here. CycleWR is a non-partisan organization that does not support any particular party or candidate. Summaries are written by volunteers or candidates and may not reflect the mandate or views of CycleWR. For more information, contact us at hello@cyclewr.ca.

Thank you Councillor @EClarkeYW for joining me on a #CycleWR ride this evening around Kitchener. We talk good, bad, and downright perplexing bike infrastructure. Thanks for being such a strong community advocate! pic.twitter.com/E6iU9o1eJC

— Matt Rodrigues (@mattjrodrigues) August 23, 2018

Here’s what Matt had to say about the ride:

I wanted to highlight the gaps in infrastructure and the general inconsistency in bike infrastructure in KW. Gaps are the areas where cyclists have to make on-the-fly decisions that put them at risk, and could be seen by car drivers as ‘risky’ or ‘dangerous’. Gaps include lack of signals along our trails, bikes lanes which end, or indirect routes into the Downtown area.

We generally felt safe during the ride. There were some instances, such as turning from Park St. onto Victoria, where you become a true motorist, or when you cross West Ave. along Victoria. These areas certainly wouldn’t be safe for all ages and abilities. There are areas, such as the trails, along quiet streets, and within bike lanes that are.

I hope that there is funding allocated with a strong vision. Not a 10-20 year time frame. Within a Council term. Compared to traditional road works, cycling infrastructure is significantly less expensive, and yields a higher return on investment due to less wear and tear, promoting healthy living, and just the sheer smaller size.

Elizabeth was extremely keen on improving cycling in the Region and proposed ideas for how Council can go about it – including phased funding for new protected infrastructure. She was generally aware of the larger issues, but appreciated being shown the oddities, such as how traffic signals don’t traditionally detect bikes, or how there is a shared multi-use trail along Weber St that she didn’t know about. I have a good feeling from Council that things will improve over the next 4 years.

Elizabeth chose not to sign our pledge, but sent this explanation instead:

I strongly support the creation of a minimum cycling grid (and much better cycling infrastructure, generally), and know that increasing active transportation funding is critical if we’re going to achieve this and other goals of our new Transportation Master Plan (and in meetings of the TMP Steering Committee as well as the Planning and Works Committee, I’ve expressed that clearly), I can’t make any specific funding commitments outside of the context of a complete budget. I don’t want to make you a promise that I may not be able to keep.

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Join us online on Thursday, January 21, from 7:30 Join us online on Thursday, January 21, from 7:30 – 9:00pm for a look at what we accomplished in 2020 and what’s coming up for cycling in the region in 2021 and beyond.

Active transportation leads from the three cities and the region who will be joining us:
 
• Lisa Chominiec
Sustainable Transportation Coordinator, City of Cambridge
 
• Liz Christensen
Design & Construction Project Manager, City of Kitchener
 
• Darren Kropf
Active Transportation Planning Project Manager, City of Kitchener
 
• Louise Finlay
Project Manager, Bikeways, Trails and Greenspaces, City of Waterloo
 
• Kornel Mucsi
Manager, Transportation Planning, Region of Waterloo

Check the link in our bio for meeting instructions.
Are you curious about winter biking or determined Are you curious about winter biking or determined to give it a try this season? Our next Virtual Folks & Spokes welcomes Elysha and Sarah-Beth to share their winter-biking experience! 

Join us online on Thursday, November 19, from 7:30 – 8:30 pm. to learn about biking in cold weather, bike maintenance tips, and more. There will also be an opportunity to ask questions and for other participants to chat about their winter-biking experience, too.

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Meet Elysha

I'm Elysha! (she/they)

I'm a winter cyclist. I couldn't decide on adjectives for that because sometimes it's fun and sometimes it is horrible, but I always do it anyway. I've been riding my bike through the winters for around 10 years. You also may know me from my mending and upcycling project, @beyondrepair519, where I share my textile artwork.

On Thursday, my partner Scott will be joining me as a model for some of our winter cycling tips. He works more closely with bike stuff in the region—mostly cycling education right now, but he was also a mechanic for a long time. We have been loving the recent heat wave but don't want to be caught off guard when winter hits!

Join us and share what you know/learn more about how to get your bike ready for winter.

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Meet Sarah-Beth and Ryan

Sarah-Beth (she/her) and Ryan (he/him) have been biking with their kids - ages 8 and 5 - for the past 4 years. You may know Ryan from being featured on Instagram as part of our #WinterRiders storytelling last year. He was a first-time winter bike rider last year. This year, Sarah-Beth is hopping on the bandwagon and they're bringing their kids along with them. They'll share their experiences figuring out how to prepare for the cold months ahead, and how to keep their kids interested and safe along with them. 

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We use Zoom video conferencing to host Virtual Folks & Spokes. It works on most computers and modern mobile devices.

If this is your first time using Zoom, we recommend joining a few minutes early.

Visit the link in our bio to launch the Zoom meeting.
The next Folks & Spokes will be hosted online on T The next Folks & Spokes will be hosted online on Thursday, October 15 at 7:30 – 8:30 pm.

We will kick things off with special guest Kornel Mucsi, the new Transportation Planning Manager at the Region of Waterloo. Kornel will share some of his experience from leading the Active Transportation program in Ottawa for the last decade as well as his early impressions and directions for Waterloo Region.

After question and answer with Kornel, we will continue with a casual discussion of anything and everything biking.

To participate, find the Zoom video call link in our bio!
Cycling into the Future, in cooperation with Cycle Cycling into the Future, in cooperation with CycleWR, STSWR and ClimateActionWR is offering one or more cycling training sessions for students ages 5 and up. 

Please indicate your interest and availability with this form:

https://bit.ly/2ZWGDxw

These practical sessions will cover various components including:

* Tips for teaching how to ride for beginners
* Proper helmet fit
* Bike handling skills
* Hand signals and road signs
* Bike lane etiquette
* Parent session: how to coach kids while riding with them
* Simple bicycle maintenance
* Tips for riding in fall and winter

The sessions will be held in a parking lot with an optional on-road session for grades 4 and up. Parents must accompany their children, and all participants must practice social distancing with non-family participants.
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Organizations who’ve signed the pledge

Full Circle Foods
Zero Waste Bulk
Greycoat Software Inc.
Swift Labs logo
Open Sesame
KW Professional Organizers
queen street yoga
Ziggy's Cycle & Sport, Kitchener Ontario.
Coretec logo

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