Motorchairs and bicycles are popping in and out of traffic because cars are parking in the city's bike lanes.
Although Ruth Blank is concerned for her health as she drives her motorized wheelchair around those parked cars, the law is clear. The cars are allowed to be there.
"Why are they building bike lanes if you can't even use them?," she said. "Why don't they put a law in that says no parking in bike lanes?"
RCMP spokesman Cpl. Craig Douglass said the present conditions allow drivers to park in any of those wider side-lanes for bikes unless there is a sign designating them as No Parking zones.
"Those scooters are to be used on sidewalks, where one exists. We ask that they be on the sidewalk whenever possible," Douglass said. "Those machines are considered a wheelchair which puts it into the same category as being a pedestrian. That is why the city invests in ramps for the curbs."
Not bicycles, however. Bikes cannot be ridden on sidewalks (small children are allowed), their speed puts them into a different class. They must use the bike lanes and if necessary, enter the regular flow of traffic when safe to do so. Once in the flow of traffic, vehicles must consider them a motorized vehicle and only pass them in a safe, legal manner.
"[Motorchairs on sidewalks] is perfectly legal, but in some places it is hard to do that, for example where there is a power pole or a sign in the middle of the paved area," said Council of Seniors manager Lola-Dawn Fennell. "There are definitely areas in town where sidewalks are not in great repair and if somebody has mobility or balance or vision problems, they could really run into trouble. You really need to take a walk around Prince George and see it through someone else's eyes."
Blank said she feels intimidated when she uses the sidewalk, or uses the main flow of traffic. "Everybody curses us out, no matter what we do," she said.
Fennell said her own mobility is not to the point of needing a walking aid, but even she has difficulties getting from her house to the bus stop. Like Blank, she has no other form of transportation.
The City of Prince George has an online feature where pedestrians can report places where they have trouble travelling. If a curb ramp is lacking, if the pavement is broken, if no sidewalk exists in a place that must be walked, that is what the municipality wants to hear about, so it can develop its list of priorities.
The online form can be found by going to the city's home page, hitting the Info Centre button on the top menu, then looking for the I Want To Report heading on the left menu where you can click "pedestrian hazard" and report your issue directly.
If you do not have internet access, or feel uncomfortable using computers, call the city's service desk at 250-561-7600 and tell the receptionist you wish to report a pedestrian hazard, and they will fill the form out with you.
