Edmonton’s rapid expansion of its active transportation network had the potential to move in a different direction, as the city considered Wednesday a modified approach for bike routes that have not yet been built.
But after lengthy debate, councillors elected to stay the course.
City administration had been recommending changes to how the remaining routes are delivered, citing growing community concerns, construction challenges and expected changes to Alberta’s Traffic Safety Act.
Discussions took place at an infrastructure committee meeting on Wednesday.
Council approved $100 million in the 2023-26 capital budget to rapidly expand Edmonton’s active transportation network.
According to the report, the program has delivered about 35 kilometres of new active transportation routes in 2024 and 2025, with another 24 kilometres expected to be completed in 2026.
Under the proposed approach, routes that have already started construction would continue.
Routes that do not require changes to travel lanes or parking could also move ahead.
However, more complex projects — particularly those requiring significant changes to existing streets — could have been re-evaluated for alternative designs and their budget implications.
The city said it has received more than 1,000 email and phone inquiries about the active transportation program since 2023.
According to the report, only about two per cent of those inquiries represented positive public sentiment.
Residents have raised concerns about parking removal, changes to traffic patterns and impacts on established neighbourhoods.
The city says building new bike infrastructure in existing neighbourhoods can require significant trade-offs because streets already have space allocated for vehicle lanes, parking, sidewalks, trees, boulevards, utilities and street lighting.
As a result, adding a new route can require changes elsewhere.
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Potential trade-offs identified by the city include parking restrictions, changes to lane widths, changes to travel patterns, removal of vehicle or parking lanes and, in some cases, tree removals.
Mayor Andrew Knack said administration has the authority to make some changes, but the direction from city council is to proceed with the project, so he questions the report.
“Frankly, I’m actually not sure what purpose this report actually serves because council has been clear about direction and admin already has things within their delegated authority, which in turn addresses a lot of what I heard from (Transportation Minister Devin Dreeshen), which is thoughtfulness behind every installation,” Knack told reporters Tuesday.
Another factor is expected provincial legislation.
The Alberta government has indicated it expects to introduce changes to the Traffic Safety Act later in 2026 that could affect municipal authority over bike lanes.
The city says those changes could significantly affect both current and planned routes.
Earlier this month, Dreeshen said he supports bike lanes in appropriate locations, but does not want projects to remove parking or limit driving capacity.
He has also said the planned legislation could result in some existing bike lanes being removed, although exactly which routes could be affected has not yet been determined.
Global News reached out to the Transportation Ministry regarding the city’s report.
In a statement, Dreeshen says the government is developing legislation to make sure transportation infrastructure works for all users.
“Albertans elected us to make decisions that put their safety and quality of life first, and that’s exactly what we will continue to do,” the statement read.
“For too long, transportation decisions have been driven by ideology rather than common sense. We need to consider how infrastructure works for everyone who uses our roads,” Dreeshen added.
The statement went onto say that the province is working with the City of Edmonton to make roads safer.
“Alberta approved four projects through the Alberta Traffic Safety Fund in Edmonton, providing more than $216,000 in provincial funding for safety improvements in Silver Berry, McConachie and Edgemont,” the statement read.
The city says weather conditions during the 2026 construction season are creating additional challenges.
For routes where construction has not yet started, administration says postponing work until 2027 would be more realistic than beginning projects that could remain incomplete going into winter.
The city was not proposing to abandon active transportation expansion.
Instead, administration says the experience from the current program — including construction challenges, community feedback and potential provincial legislative changes — should be considered as Edmonton plans its next phase of investment.
Future budget implications and priorities will be considered as part of the 2027-30 capital budget process.
Knack hopes Dreeshen is willing to work on other issues, too.
“I hope the minister, like I’ve said many times, at the end of the day I think we are spending a lot of time on this when I really want to make sure we spend time on improving safety on our streets,” Knack said.
“I want to make sure we’re improving our goods, people’s movements and corridors, and working with the minister on things that matter to the vast majority of Edmontonians.
“I worry this is taking up a lot of oxygen.”
More than 60 people registered to speak for the infrastructure committee on Wednesday. The majority of speakers spoke in favour of the city continuing with the bike lanes and the expansion.
Those in opposition asked for more consultation and better planning for routes in certain neighbourhoods. While some voiced their opposition to the current plan, others expressed concerns with the province getting involved in the bike lane debate.
Committee kept the current plan as is, but is aware changes could still be coming from the province.
“I hope as we lead into the fall, they maybe rethink their approach and recognize that it’s much more important for Edmontonians and Albertans that we’re dealing with the issues that actually matter instead of focusing our time on a culture war,” Knack said.
None of city council will be returning come the next election! They do not care what the majority of Edmontonians think!
Instead of these bike lanes, why not invest in repairing potholes, snow removal, and generally ensuring the existing infrastructure is properly maintained? You know, just to avoid the things like the Calgary water main disaster in the future.
It’s amazing how the elected officials are clueless about the real priorities.
Edmonton city council, lacking common sense, and led by an ideology enamoured Mayor is clearly giving the tax paying majority the finger.
When is the next municipal election?
City of Edmonton can’t do any residential snow removal but can spend 100 million on bike lanes what a joke and big waste of tax payer dollars.
Again the city is ignoring the majority. The city should change their city motto to “We don’t believe in that stinking democracy thing”
The millions they have spent on bike lanes there should be hundreds of people using them daily for 12 months of the year. But you don’t see that instead you see thousands of cars jammed bumper to bumper in construction and moving around bike lanes. No more money until bike lanes are so jammed packed like our roads!,
If these bike lanes keep being built we will vote ALL of City Council out! Ridiculous that we spend taxpayer dollars on bike lanes when so much else is needed in this city!
This is what happens when the city keeps electing mayors and councilors that don’t care what the citizens want.
If only 2% want bike lanes, why is the city wasting any more money on these dangerous projects. End them all now. Put back the parking and driving lanes.
As anonymous pointed out, I see people illegally riding on the sidewalk, and in crosswalks, instead of using bike lanes. And my rims hurt from bumping into bumpouts. I had to replace my muffler from grounding out over speed bumps in the middle of the street. Time to make it safe out there for everyone.
Get rid of the existing ones. I see people riding bikes on the street not using the bike lanes. A waste of money just like half the things the municipality spends money on.