I normally use this space to call out government decisions or shine a light on community issues. This week, I want to take a step back and share a few things I’ve noticed on recent walks around Lloydminster.
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It started with a new hobby my wife picked up and one I’ve been drafted into helping with, picking up cans.
She sold it to me as a good way to get exercise.
What I didn’t expect was the window it would open into parts of our community I hadn’t thought much about.
Alcohol cans scattered along our roadsides is first to stand out. On any given walk, about half of what we pick up are alcohol containers of some sort. Let’s be honest, they didn’t just blow out of the vehicle on the way to the bottle depot. It makes me wonder just how bad drinking and driving still is here.
But not all the signs are negative. Weekend mornings, I notice parking lots around local bars always have a few vehicles left behind. That tells me some people are making the right choice, either planning ahead or deciding not to risk getting behind the wheel after a night out. For that, the community thanks you.
Another thing I’ve noticed is how little 10 cents means to some and how much it means to others. Early in the week, around 8 a.m., groups of people on bikes or on foot move along 50 Ave. with blue bags or boxes full of cans.
For some of our more industrious of the city’s most vulnerable, that isn’t pocket change, it’s grocery money, and it’s easy to see why Alberta leads Canada in recycling and ranks among the best in North America.
One last observation from these walks: does this city even have a speed limit? School zones, reduced speed areas and construction sites often look more like suggestions than rules. Conversations I’ve had with tow truck drivers, bus drivers and emergency crews back that up.
Maybe it’s time we look at what parts of eastern Canada have done, rolling out 30 km/h limits during the day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., everywhere except highways. The difference between 30, 50, and 80 km/h in good conditions can be the difference between life and death in a collision.
Do you have positive and negative observations of Lloydminster? Feel free to share it with us at ne**@************ce.ca.
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