DIDSBURY – An avid bicyclist and library fan has made a successful pitch to accommodate bicycles and potentially other alternative modes of transportation a better way outside of the Didsbury Municipal Library.
Council has recently committed to discussing adding an alternative mobility structure in front of the library during the strategic planning process this fall.
In the interim, members have instructed town staff to have ready for the next council meeting possible solutions for installing a bike rack.
Janine Overwater-Rosenke made a presentation during the Aug. 23 council meeting touting the benefits of having publicly accessible parking structures for bicycles, scooters and other alternative modes of transportation.
“Right now the focus is outside the library. In my dream world it would be throughout the whole town so I could bike to pick up medication at any drug store,” said Overwater-Rosenke, adding having no accessible structures to affix bicycles to discourages their use.
“Right now my bike is parked out there and I have nothing to affix it to so I usually do not shop on my commute to and from work. I save it for the weekends. So ideally I dream of bike racks/safety structures around town, outside municipal buildings, here,” she told council.
Alternative modes of transportation like bicycles decrease the carbon footprint and they’re healthier alternatives, she said.
She has a seven kilometre bike commute to work and said in months when school is in, she'll see anywhere from 15 to 30 kids on scooters and bikes. She also sees a lot of seniors in the community on scooters.
About two years ago, a bike rack previously placed at the Didsbury Municipal Library was removed to accommodate a bench and a garbage receptacle. Library staff said they were under the impression the bike rack would come back, but it never did.
Coun. Dorothy Moore commended the addition of the bench but as the business owner next door to the library sees the ramifications of the bike rack removal as “all the bikes end up on my side and in front of my building.”
The town’s director of engineering and infrastructure said it wasn’t immediately known if the bike rack was still around but added “we did talk about installing some of those loops just to the building so that along the sidewalk they can attach to the loops but I don’t know if that ever went anywhere.”
In her presentation, Overwater-Rosenke talked about the potential for installing a variety of design of structures that could accommodate not just bicycles but scooters and other modes of transportation as well. She gave examples of covered structures, structures that were placed on the street and more simple designs like loops as well.
While a more fulsome discussion will take place during strategic planning sessions this fall, Moore liked some of the examples that acted like safety rails were a good idea.
“There’s all kinds and a lot of them provide some protection from the street. And being that my building’s been hit three times I think that having some iron pipes there, I would absolutely be in favour of that,” she said.
Further discussion on a bike rack in front of the library is expected during the next regular council meeting on Sept. 13.
