Our final ride in this year’s Bike for the Future series will start and end in Michaëlle Jean Park in the Northwest Local Bike Group area. Join us at 1 PM for a family-friendly, no-drop ride that will run about 90 minutes.
About Bike for the Future:
Bike for the Future was first held in August of 2021 in response to the City of Winnipeg’s cuts to active transportation funding, and to demonstrate the need to create safe speeds for active transportation users in our neighbourhoods.
We are a group of concerned citizens advocating for safe spaces for our friends and families to actively commute. Walking and cycling are the two most environmentally friendly modes of transportation and need to play a key role in our greenhouse gas reductions. Transportation makes up 50% of Winnipeg’s emissions (https://winnipeg.ca/sustainability/ClimateChange.stm).
We are in the midst of a climate emergency. Extreme weather events are happening more frequently. Locally we have been suffering through extremes of heavy rainfall or drought which have had an extremely negative impact on farmers and will inevitably raise the cost of putting food on our tables. Air quality warnings became commonplace in the summer of 2021 as fires raged in northern Manitoba and Ontario. Every day when we turn on our radios and TVs and hear and see how our global neighbours are suffering from a host of extreme weather events being amplified by anthropogenic climate change. We have had enough foot-dragging by all levels of government. They have a responsibility to make walking and riding a bike the easiest way to get around within and between our urban neighbourhoods.
In 2019, we proudly watched our youth take to the streets of downtown Winnipeg to demand action on climate. Many of us marched in solidarity with them. We intend to continue their fight to push all levels of government to speed up the move to low-carbon transportation to help protect their future.
To encourage Winnipeggers to actively commute, they need a transportation system that allows them to safely, comfortably, and conveniently travel from point A to point B, they need access to safe bike storage, and they need affordable access to bicycles. Currently, 60% of Winnipeggers feel unsafe walking and cycling. To make it safe and comfortable, motorized vehicles need to drive slowly on our residential roads (no more than 30 km/h). We need separated and protected spaces on routes with higher vehicle speeds and we need plenty of places to safely cross busy streets and rail lines in a reasonable amount of time.