Have you had a chance to check out Edmonton’s brightest new additions? The temporary rainbow crosswalks were installed last week to show the City’s support for the Pride festival. Strategically placed along the Pride Parade route, the rainbow crosswalks added even more fun to the already exciting parade!
The parade was attended by an impressive number of people this year, with around 50,000 celebrating diversity through the streets of Strathcona.
The Transportation Department and CITYlab worked together with the Old Strathcona Business Association to make this project come to life and they have all been amazed by the positive response from Edmontonians. The Facebook post that announced the colourful street features was one of the most popular posts the City has ever had! Edmontonians voiced their support on Twitter and Instagram as well; many made suggestions for the installations to become permanent and thanked the City for supporting Pride Week.
Jeff Chase, planner for CITYlab, credits the completion of the sidewalks for a collaborative City response, saying “the crosswalks would not have been possible without Transportation Services and their willingness to jump on board and collaborate to make this happen. It has been a really positive experience for all of us at CITYlab and turned out so well for everyone involved.”
Transportation Services echoed the feelings of gratitude for the partnership. “The crosswalks were a great idea put forth by the Old Strathcona Business Association,” says Stephanie McCabe, Director of Policy Implementation and Evaluation Section for Transportation Services. “Many people worked hard to make it a reality and I am proud that Transportation Services got to be a part of it. Not only did we get to work together to do something creative, we got to show our support for an amazing cause too!”
The six rainbow crosswalks can be found until next week at:
• 108 Street and 82 Avenue
• 106 Street and 82 Avenue
• 84 Avenue and 104 Street
The crosswalks were a pilot project that provided an opportunity to try something new and measure the results to have something similar recreated in the future. Feedback from the pilot will inform the potential for future temporary or permanent installations. Based on the reaction we’ve seen so far, the rainbow crosswalks were a huge success!
Thanks to all of you that have taken the time to check them out. If you haven’t, make sure you get there soon!
Check out this video of what it took to prepare the crosswalks for the Pride Parade on Saturday.