When: April 16, 2018
Doors open 5:00 PM, presentations start at 5:30 PM
Where: John Dutton Theatre – 616 Macleod Trail S.E. (second floor)
Admission: Free, but seating is limited
Your Main Street is either a vibrant pedestrian-focused public space that values people or a regional transportation corridor that values the movement of motor vehicles. It can’t do both. What do you want for your Main Street?
Join us and guest speakers, Dr. Kay Teschke and Rebecca O’Brien, for a discussion about what factors make people of all ages and abilities feel comfortable walking and riding a bike, and how cities can design our spaces to make walking and riding a bike safer. We’ll delve into how The City of Calgary is incorporating this research into our update of the Pathway and Bikeway Plan. The vision for the updated plan is a seamless city-wide pathway and on-street bikeway network that:
- connects people to the places they want to go,
- provides safe, continuous, and efficient non-motorized travel options,
- creates recreational opportunities, and
- supports active transportation.
We’ll also explore what citizens are doing in Calgary and elsewhere to create more liveable, loveable communities for residents of all ages to interact and play.
Speakers:
Dr. Kay Teschke is a Professor Emeritus with the University of British Columbia School of Population and Public Health. She initiated the Cycling in Cities program of research to investigate route infrastructure that encourages or discourages bicycling and increases or decreases risks of cycling injuries. She currently sits on the OECD International Transport Forum Roundtable on Cycling Safety, two BC Road Safety Strategy Working Committees, and the BC Road Safety Law Reform Group. Her field of research for 25 years has been occupational and environmental health, focusing on exposure assessment for epidemiological studies and determinants of exposure modeling.
Rebecca O’Brien has served as the Business Improvement Area (BIA) Executive Director of Inglewood since 2009 and is committed to the revitalization and historic reinvestment into this urban neighbourhood, one of Calgary’s oldest. During her time with the Inglewood BIA, they have won many accolades, including the Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP) Greatest Neighbourhood in Canada award. Since starting her BIA role, there has been an almost tripling of the ratepayers for the Inglewood BIA from 90 to over 230. The business area continues to thrive and densify (despite floods, construction and a major recession) , while proudly retaining its village feel and form. Rebecca loves the edgy diversity of Inglewood, and above all values the importance of bringing people, not vehicles, in to the area. Rebecca is currently involved in an exciting streetscape plan that, if it is successful, will be a game changer in Calgary and Canada as it will transform Inglewood’s main street from a regional transportation corridor to a vibrant Complete Street.
Jennifer Black is the project manager for The City’s Pathway and Bikeway Plan Update and a senior transportation planner in the Liveable Streets Division at The City of Calgary. She is dedicated to enabling Calgarians of all ages, abilities and income levels access to a safe, comfortable and connected transportation network designed for wheeling, walking, cycling and public transportation. Previously, she was the Active Transportation Program Manager for Victoria’s Capital Regional District, where she was recognized for her work by being awarded the Planning Institute of BC’s Excellence in Planning Gold Award.
Brought to you by the City of Calgary, the Canadian Institute of Transportation Engineers, and the Federation of Calgary Communities.