To the editor,
Re: Cyclist who was struck on parkway dies of injuries, Oct. 5.
Cyclists have a responsibility to wear visible clothing and use lights if riding at dusk or in the dark, and obey traffic rules. But the overall cycling conditions in the Harbour City are deplorable. Very few roads offer a designated cycling lane and those that do, like sections of Townsite and Boundary roads, are littered with debris; screws, nails, much glass from recycling mishaps or car thefts and of course loose gravel and other detritus. My bicycle has gotten two flat tires, one from a staple and another from a roofing nail, both in a designated bike lane on Townsite Road.
Most roads have no shoulders or very narrow ones, always threatening to pull the cyclist off the road, or worse causing the rider to veer into the traffic. There are a few reminders to ‘share the road’ but most depictions of those bicycles are worn away and not visible at all.
We want more students to ride to classes at VIU? We want more cars off the road? With the dark days coming this is next to impossible. Where are the street cleaners? That one action could make things safer for cyclists and is a quicker fix than painting pseudo bike lanes and expanding the designated lanes, which we sorely need in this city.
Eleanor Thompson, Nanaimo
