Many Winnipeg cyclists want the city to upgrade its bike infrastructure but others think it’s time the city open up its sidewalks to bikes.
A cycling advocate warns that could make your ride more dangerous.
Koree Stewart uses bike paths whenever she can but occasionally rides on the sidewalk even though she knows it's not allowed.
"I just feel safer and I avoid all that excess traffic,” said Stewart.
Stewart would like Winnipeg to open up its sidewalks to cyclists so riders would have a safe way to get around.
"I don't want to impede pedestrian traffic but then I have to look out for my safety as well,” she said.
It's an issue that's top of mind for Debra Duncan. She drove by a collision on Wednesday on Fermor Avenue involving a car and a cyclist. A 17-year-old girl on the bike was seriously hurt. Winnipeg Police said it appears she went through a red light.
"We were all worried about her,” said Duncan. “My kids especially were super upset by it."
Duncan said she won't let her kids ride without an adult and when they do go biking they rarely use the road.
"I have an 11 and 14-year-old and I would much rather see them riding on a sidewalk than on a road."
Most kids bikes are allowed on the sidewalk but if the diameter of your rear wheel exceeds 410 millimeters, which would be most adult bikes, it shouldn't be on the sidewalk and you could be ticketed $113.
Some Winnipeg sidewalks already do allow bikes, those ones are marked by signs.
Mark Cohoe with Bike Winnipeg said riding on sidewalks not designed for bikes is more dangerous than cycling on the road.
"Unfortunately with sidewalks what you run into are some really big severe issues with sightlines and predictability,” said Cohoe.
He said it can be difficult for someone driving a car to see you coming.
“Often if you're riding on a sidewalk, you're out of their field of vision."
