A ghost bike memorial was installed Thursday in Edmonton's Mill Woods neighbourhood for Alfred Reisdorf, a 65-year-old cyclist killed in a collision with a speeding driver in November 2025. His widow, Zeenat Damani, said the memorial serves as a grim warning about the dangers of speeding.
Ghost bike installation
The all-white bicycle was placed on the west side of the intersection at 34 Street and 28A Avenue, where Reisdorf was struck by a Hyundai Tucson operated by a 41-year-old man on Nov. 23, 2025. He died in hospital later that day. The driver has been charged with careless driving.
Bike Edmonton announced the installation in a Friday news release. The ghost bike was created by the Bike Edmonton Community Workshop, a grassroots organization that advocates for cyclist accessibility across Edmonton. It is the 21st ghost bike the group has installed since 2007.
Memorial ride and family tribute
Members of Reisdorf's family and Bike Edmonton representatives rode bikes at 11 a.m. along 34 Street, from the Mill Woods LRT station to the scene of the collision, carrying the ghost bike to its resting place. Damani added flowers to the memorial.
“He was my whole life and now I am all alone,” Damani said. “I wake up every morning and just think that maybe I will hear him.” She described Reisdorf as a “very kind, compassionate man” who cared for her, her mother, and her brother who suffers from a mental illness. “He was helpful to anybody. He would talk to strangers and help them,” Damani said. “My neighbors called him man in a white shirt because he was watering their plants when they were not home. That’s his nature.”
Warning against speeding
Damani said the ghost bike is a “blessing” that might save someone’s life. “This will at least make it a little bit safer and deter people from speeding,” she said. “I live a block away from here and I can hear people speeding. This neighborhood has grown a lot and when people are coming out, taking a left or right turn, they will see this.”
Coreen Shewfelt, community workshop co-director at Bike Edmonton, expressed condolences in the news release: “We send our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Alfred Reisdorf, who continue to mourn his untimely death in this tragic collision. Everyone deserves to make it to their destination safely, no matter what form of transportation they use.”
Cycling infrastructure concerns
The practice of ghost bike memorials began in St. Louis, Missouri, in 2004. Bike Edmonton noted that while recent improvements to cycling infrastructure in Edmonton have increased safe mobility options, roads like 34th Street are still designed to prioritize driver speed over safety. “Recent improvements to cycling infrastructure in Edmonton have increased the number of safe mobility options for everyone,” Shewfelt said. “However, roads like 34th Street are built to prioritize the speed and comfort of drivers over the safety of other road users.”
