Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to salute and support the creation of Yellowknife’s superb system of bicycle paths and recognize government’s role in assuring safety.
Riding a bike is an individual route to greenhouse gas reductions that add up big. The ability to bike is one of the things that make cities the places of people, not cars. Because we live amid the world’s greatest wilderness, bikeways are also an avenue to fabulous backcountry recreation for residents and tourists.
The City of Yellowknife continues to develop the bike path system that contributes to its ranking as the most sustainable small city in Canada for the third year in a row. Bike path work is underway right now in the greenway alongside the Deh Cho Boulevard extension, linking Kam Lake to Highway No. 3, and discussions are underway on the Old Airport Road and rounding the Jackfish Lake loop sections.
The realignment of the Ingraham Trail and Giant Mine Remediation Project give us the opportunity to embark on a major addition to our recreation, tourism and sustainable transportation system. Installation of a dedicated bikeway out from the Explorer Hotel will require territorial dollars, given it’s a territorial highway, and possibly could be cost-shared with the City. We can work with the City to ensure a bikeway, not just a wide shoulder, but a bicycle and pedestrian thoroughfare looping through the bush is included in the design. There is a prospect of federal dollars out there under the Giant Mine Remediation Project.
We shouldn’t be thinking just about the Giant Mine Remediation Project. The Dettah Road project is underway and the road to Prelude Lake lies beyond. Imagine the allure of a bicycle greenway paralleling the Ingraham Trail, not just a wide shoulder again, but a bicycle and pedestrian thoroughfare looping through the bush.
To begin, there’s the prospect of federal dollars. Because a wilderness bikeway isn’t primarily a route between two points, we can build sections that complement and supplement the Ingraham Trail and add to this recreational legacy as we go along, ultimately targeting Prelude Lake and all points before as a premiere recreational and tourism experience available to anyone.
I’ve raised this in the Assembly before and I will continue to be pedalling this issue every chance I get. Let’s follow the Yellowknife example close to home and build a pathway of green transportation and enjoyment for our generations ahead. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.
