Anyone who has experienced the traffic congestion in Banff during the summer months knows the aggravation is real.That’s why residents will vote Monday in a plebiscite whether to maintain a pedestrian only zone on Banff Avenue between the May long weekend and Thanksgiving.Since the summer of 2020, the mountain town has closed the main thoroughfare along Banff Ave. which was ostensibly imposed to allow restaurants to maintain capacity restrictions during the lockdowns.It has since been extended even after the pandemic restrictions were lifted..Although the businesses want to make it a permanent measure, local residents submitted a petition with 1,000 signatures — more than a quarter of Banff’s eligible voters — in May to have it rescinded.Those against say closing the main artery through town has the unintended effect of increasing residential street traffic and creates parking chaos.Supporters include local environmental groups including the Community Cruisers, which promotes bicycle use as a means to “improve health, sustainability and equity in the Bow Valley.”“When they arrive in Banff, we’ve observed many people choosing to park their cars and get around by transit, bike, scooter, skateboard, wheelchair, or on foot, reducing vehicle congestion in town,” it said in a letter to the Rocky Mountain Outlook. .Parks Canada has opposed the closure, but the results of the plebiscite will be binding either way. If residents choose to keep the closure, it will be business as usual.However, if it’s rejected the town council will meet at the end of the month to pass a new bylaw rescinding the street closure and reopening it to vehicle traffic by mid-September.Polls close tonight, Monday, at 8 PM. Only registered Banff residents will be allowed to cast ballots.
Anyone who has experienced the traffic congestion in Banff during the summer months knows the aggravation is real.That’s why residents will vote Monday in a plebiscite whether to maintain a pedestrian only zone on Banff Avenue between the May long weekend and Thanksgiving.Since the summer of 2020, the mountain town has closed the main thoroughfare along Banff Ave. which was ostensibly imposed to allow restaurants to maintain capacity restrictions during the lockdowns.It has since been extended even after the pandemic restrictions were lifted..Although the businesses want to make it a permanent measure, local residents submitted a petition with 1,000 signatures — more than a quarter of Banff’s eligible voters — in May to have it rescinded.Those against say closing the main artery through town has the unintended effect of increasing residential street traffic and creates parking chaos.Supporters include local environmental groups including the Community Cruisers, which promotes bicycle use as a means to “improve health, sustainability and equity in the Bow Valley.”“When they arrive in Banff, we’ve observed many people choosing to park their cars and get around by transit, bike, scooter, skateboard, wheelchair, or on foot, reducing vehicle congestion in town,” it said in a letter to the Rocky Mountain Outlook. .Parks Canada has opposed the closure, but the results of the plebiscite will be binding either way. If residents choose to keep the closure, it will be business as usual.However, if it’s rejected the town council will meet at the end of the month to pass a new bylaw rescinding the street closure and reopening it to vehicle traffic by mid-September.Polls close tonight, Monday, at 8 PM. Only registered Banff residents will be allowed to cast ballots.
