Petition looks to keep enhanced bike route on Wellington Crescent open
A petition is looking to keep the enhanced bike lanes on Wellington Crescent open a little longer as a motion at Winnipeg City Hall calls for an early end to the initiative on the street.
The program limits vehicle traffic on the street to one block from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday to Sunday, to allow access to cyclists.
It is scheduled to run from April to November, however in June a city hall committee voted in favour of reducing the bike route hours in September.
A petition signed by more than 1,200 people looks to keep the program running for as long as it was originally planned.
"We're concerned the city is poised to cut short the closure of Wellington Crescent and Kings Drive to daily traffic, and we're hoping they can stick with the pilot program as it is originally designed to go to November," said Bill Hamlin, a concerned resident.
The program has faced backlash from some residents in the area, with the city hearing concerns from homeowners who said the current setup is a "human rights issue" that "favours able bodied cyclists to the detriment of people who are unable to ride bikes but can only enjoy the street by motor vehicle."
Other homeowners said prioritizing access for cyclists is "discriminating against thousands of Winnipeggers."
READ MORE: Possible changes to Wellington Crescent as an 'Open Street' for cyclists
Hamlin said, while there are some residents opposed to it, many people across Winnipeg like the enhanced bike lanes
"They don't want it cut short," Hamlin said.
"They shouldn't cater to a few loud voices, they should stick with their original plan and then have a meaningful consultation after it's all over."
The proposed changes to the enhanced bike route along Wellington Crescent will go to city council for a final vote on Thursday.
-with files from CTV's Mike Arsenault, Mason DePatie and Michael D'Alimonte
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Competition bureau finds 'substantial' anti-competitive effects with proposed Bunge-Viterra merger
The proposed merger of agricultural giants Viterra and Bunge is raising competition concerns from the federal government.
Douglas DC-4 plane with 2 people on board crashes into river outside Fairbanks, Alaska
A Douglas C-54 Skymaster airplane crashed into the Tanana River near Fairbanks on Tuesday, Alaska State Troopers said.
BREAKING Mounties will not be charged in shooting death of B.C. Indigenous man
Three Mounties in British Columbia will not face charges in the killing of a 38-year-old Indigenous man on Vancouver Island in 2021.
Canada's favourite sport to watch is hockey, survey shows
The 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs have already delivered a fever level of fan excitement in Canada.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
“It's just so hard to let it go. I mean, everyone is telling me, ‘you have to move on,’ but I know someone is not here [anymore]. So I don't know how I will move on." That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.