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Winnipeg cyclists irked with city's 'haphazard' clearing of bike lanes

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One organization is frustrated with what it calls the 'haphazard' sweeping and clearing of Winnipeg city streets which has led to safety concerns for cyclists.

Mark Cohoe, executive director of Bike Winnipeg, says cyclists are running into trouble this spring. Gravel left over from winter sanding has accumulated on the edge of roads.

"What we're finding is that the clearing of the bike lanes, and really the sweeping of the sand has been pretty haphazard," he said. "In a lot of cases, you know, it's pretty clear that it's not really prioritized."

He said with the heavy snowfall this winter, there is more sand and gravel on the roads this year – in some cases, he has seen it about three inches (7.62 cm) deep.

"Which makes it pretty impossible to ride, so you've got to get out of the bike lanes actually to be safe," Cohoe said.

He said he wants to see a system that prioritizes walking, biking and bus routes.

Ken Allen, a communications coordinator with the city's Public Works Department, told CTV News that spring cleanup operations are done differently than the prioritized winter snow clearing system.

"During spring cleanup, the goal is to clean the city’s entire street, sidewalk and (active transportation) network within a six-week timeframe," Allen said in an email.

He said most of Winnipeg's priority one streets, sidewalks and on-street active transportation routes are cleaned at night when there is less traffic. The daytime cleanup focuses on priority two and three streets, and priority two on-street active transportation routes.

"As well, off-street active transportation pathways adjacent to streets are mostly cleaned during daytime hours for increased operator visibility, and so water can be supplied for dust suppression," Allen said.

Cohoe, however, said if the city wants to see more people choosing active transportation over driving, something needs to change.

"The city has to make a choice. We have to decide if we want to actually have people choosing active modes of transportation instead of driving, and to do that we have to make it convenient for them," he said.

"In the spring, it means getting the lane swept so that we have good traction for people."

More information about the city's spring clean-up schedule can be found online.

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