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Crews are getting ready to pour concrete for Edmonton’s newest set of bike lanes, but cyclists and others worry they look more like sidewalks.

The 102 Avenue bike lane is being installed as a shared-use path on the north side of the road from 136 Street to Groat Road. It looks like a wide sidewalk. Residents worry about collisions between pedestrians and bikes. Cyclists are concerned about dangerous intersections. City staff are already planning an education campaign.

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“I don’t like the sidewalk,” said cyclist Ken Borch, who figures he’ll stick to the street even when the new path is finished. He cycles the route almost daily.

“When you’re on the street, you’re not in as much danger as on the sidewalk because of the intersections.”

The city’s own literature warns cyclists to stay off sidewalks because it makes bikes more difficult for motorists to spot at intersections. “A very high percentage of car-bike collisions happen at intersections when the cyclist is coming off the sidewalk,” says a city fact sheet, citing CAN-BIKE research.