Winnipeg councilor's 'bike Nazi' comments about cycling advocate draw fire from mayor

A Winnipeg city councilor is in hot water after calling a cycling advocate a “bicycle Nazi” at a committee meeting this week.

The comments came at a meeting of the city's public works committee Tuesday, which discussed how to calm traffic on Osborne Street to prevent pedestrian and bicyclist deaths.

Number. Russ Wyatt (Transcona) argued that increasing the size of the island at Osborne Street and River Avenue would help slow traffic nearby without removing the slip lane (a curved lane that allows motorists to move from Osborne to the river without entering the intersection).

“I think it's a problem for ordinary people who don't come to the committee,” he said. “I understand that the Nazi bike wants to take out all the roads and cars.”

Mark Coho, executive director of Bike Winnipeg, was at the meeting to advocate for the safety of pedestrians and cyclists.

In a press release Wednesday, the group called for White to be removed from the standing public works committee, saying his comments violate the city council's code of conduct.

White's characterization of Coho and the community it represents is “deeply troubling,” Beak Winnipeg said in a release.

Comment “not accepted”: mayor

Mayor Scott Gillingham called White's comments “unacceptable.”

“I hope he takes the opportunity to reflect … and actually reach out to the group and apologize,” Gillingham told the CBC on Wednesday.

He said the city council determines who sits on city committees, but anyone with a complaint against a council member can report it to the integrity commissioner.

Gillingham says he's always had a good relationship with Bick Winnipeg.

“Even though we didn't always agree on city politics, we always managed to get along.”

Number. Janice Lux (Waverly West), who chairs the Public Works Committee, says she will report White's comments to the city's integrity commissioner.

Lux said there are a lot of moving parts to presiding over meetings and apologized for not hearing White's comments.

“I miss him, I feel terrible that I miss him. I didn't hear it,” he told the CBC on Wednesday. “I don't want to say I tune it out sometimes, but I think I will.”

Lux then, as committee chair, contacted Bick Winnipeg to apologize, he said.

He said White “could make a public apology. I'd like to see him apologize publicly.”

White welcomes a possible investigation

White told reporters Wednesday afternoon at City Hall that he would consider an apology.

He said Bike Winnipeg is trying to make it harder for people to ride in Winnipeg under the guise of promoting the interests of cyclists, adding that he understands the wording he used was “scary”.

“'Nazi' means dictator, to tell you how to live your life,” he said. “That was the term I used. I'm thinking about whether or not I'm going to apologize, and if I do, I'm going to do it in writing.”

He said his comments came out of “frustration”.

“We've had a number of councilors support the construction of bike lanes,” including the Transcona Trail and the North Winnipeg Parkway, White said.

“Unfortunately, Bike Winnipeg doesn't necessarily recommend these projects when they come forward, but wants to mean vehicular lane closures like the closure of Assiniboine Avenue on Main Street or the removal of the slip lane in Osborne Village.”

White Baik understands Winnipeg is upset by his comment and wants him off the committee, but said the committee is “democratic — it represents a diversity of views.”

He was not aware of Lux's plans to report to the integrity commissioner, but said he would “welcome any investigation by the integrity commissioner at any time.”