Op-ed: Nanaimo blizzard highlights divide between walking and driving

Because snow and ice are nature’s traffic-calming tools. Those who could drive drove slowly, the streets became pleasant and safe because cars were few and their speeds were friendly. It would seem no amount of “Slow Down, Kids Play Here” signs can compete with a decent layer of snow and ice.

But, post-snowstorm is a different matter.

You can easily measure the walkability of an auto-centric city by taking a walk after a blizzard.

School’s out, businesses are closed and families are suddenly given a bonus day-off. Naturally, every kid wants to go play outside in the freshly fallen snow.

But how do you get to the toboggan hill when your car doesn’t have snow tires and you don’t feel comfortable driving in wintry conditions? You can’t safely walk because sidewalks aren’t shovelled since not every resident heeds the City’s suggestion to “be a good neighbour.”

You walk in the middle of the street because that’s the only available option as the City prioritizes plowing roads, not sidewalks.

So, we have most of the city not working, studying or driving, but we plow roadways and not sidewalks. Ironic that we incessantly prioritize roadways when there is a below average use of them by motorists due to city-wide closures and an above average amount of people resorting to walking – a more dependable form of movement in wintry conditions when you don’t have an appropriate vehicle.

Let’s be reminded sidewalks are City property just as much as any portion of roadway. Let’s also be reminded sidewalk-specific snow plows do exist and municipalities who prioritize pedestrians use them in conjunction with street plows.

So, if we want to prioritize pedestrians above all other road-users, which is something the Transportation Master Plan speaks to, why not prioritize primary sidewalks over secondary or tertiary roadways?

Everyone is a pedestrian at some part of their day, but not everyone is a motorist.

It’s non-debatable roadways need to be cleared for emergency service vehicles. But, around-the-clock prioritization of clearing all roadways gives the impression the only option for mobility is to drive.

The optics of this, I think, might factor into unskilled winter drivers being lured onto streets in conditions they don’t often encounter – effectively putting more people at risk for possible collisions. Instead of clearing roadways over sidewalks, let’s reverse the prioritization and provide safer sidewalks.

The proof is in the pudding. Next time snow falls on your street, look at where car tracks are and aren’t.

You might be surprised by how much space is given to motor vehicles but how little space is utilized by them upon the road deck. Virtually every single street in Nanaimo could have space for alternative modes of transportation, things like sidewalks or bike lanes. The untouched snow along the margins of streets prove this.

As Nanaimo transitions into an ever more urbanized city, the auto-centric nature of it will be challenged because millennials are gravitating less towards the burdens of car ownership and more towards car-sharing, bus passes and bicycles.

As the topic revolving around the recent municipal election clearly outlined, Nanaimo is striving to become a more walkable, human-scaled city, but the recent snowstorm is a reminder of just how much more work needs to be done for pedestrians to be prioritized in this city.

— Aaron Dixon is a masters student in transportation planning at Vancouver Island University

by Aaron Dixon

Op-ed: Nanaimo blizzard highlights divide between walking and driving

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