In his letter to the editor in the Jan. 29 edition of The NEWS, Paul Roberts complains about potential cycle traffic on the French Creek bridge.
He seems to believe that cyclists do not pay transportation taxes and therefore should not use the road, and yet the vast majority of local cyclists are also motorists and pay just as much road tax as he does.
Although he makes the apparently sensible suggestion that cyclists use the provided footpath beside the bridge, one wonders if he has actually walked across that footpath with a bike?
Should he do so, he will find that it is barely wider than the handle bars on a hybrid bike, making it difficult for an opposing pedestrian to pass, let alone someone on an electric scooter or wheelchair.
Would it not be better for Roberts to campaign for proper cycle paths beside the bridge so that a wider selection of taxpayers can go about their daily business in an efficient manner?
Failing that, why not simply recognize that cyclists travel much faster than street sweepers, hay carts and other slow vehicles one expects to find in a rural community, so a loss of a few seconds to his travel time is not that significant.
Perhaps a bit more “live and let live” is called for?
Tony Marsland
Qualicum Beach
