Love 30 on 30 August
The 30th of every month is a day for communities to come together and raise their voices to advocate for safer speeds in Winnipeg. Durdana Islam, the organizer for Love 30 on 30 for Waverley says that safer speeds are something worth fighting for, “This is something we need to fight for and raise our voice for. We need our community to come together at these pop-ups and share their views.”
Islam saw the gap in advocacy work between the city centre and the south, “We want people to be talking about safe speeds and active transport here too, there’s a big gap so I said I wanted to do something in Waverley.”
The Waverley event fixed almost 20 bikes and already has plans for a workshop to help youth learn how to fix up bicycles. Islam says she feels so strongly about the cause because of her children’s safety, “I want my kids to bike in a place that they feel safe.”
Malaya Marcelino, the MLA for Notre Dame says that it would be the safest move for the community, “Changing the speed limit would mean safer streets for everybody. We’ve been experiencing a lot of unnecessary, totally avoidable collisions here.”
Marcelino has a vision for sharing the road, “It would mean we could share the road with motorists and not only have it for them, I think it would bring a better quality of life.”
Having slower speeds would not only make communities safer but also healthier Marcelino says, “People can have other forms of transportation and have healthier lives that’s what we’re hoping to see.”
Waiting for change can be hard but Marcelino says that the most important thing we can do is continue the conversation, “The most important thing while waiting for politicians to act is to just raise awareness, continue to educate the community members about this campaign.”
“This is the future, we have evidence that this is the safest speed, other cities across North America and Europe are doing it and I think it’s a matter of time before Winnipeg does it too.”
