Edmonton trying to build new bike lanes

The city of Edmonton is working towards sorting out it’s contentious bike lanes with a new proposal for 106 Street and 76 Avenue. As reported by the Edmonton Journal, the proposal comes from the Engage 106/76 initiative that was co-created by the City of Edmonton Transportation Services department and community representatives. Engage 106/76’s  goal is to transform 106 Street and 76 Avenue into walkable, bikeable and livable public spaces that safely connect people. The new plan would introduce fully separate bike lanes on the streets replacing sharrows (painted symbols on the road that tell cars and bikes to share the lane) and bike lanes that are currently painted on the roads.

>>Read about how three small towns in Ontario are improving their cycling infrastructure

However bike lanes are not always popular with Edmonton residents and the city has already invested significant amounts of money in removing bike lanes after complaints from community members. The grievances were centered around the fact that residents felt they were not properly consulted before the changes that reduced parking and lanes of traffic were made. The city council voted in July 2015 to remove a bike lane on 40 avenue from 106 to 119 Street along with one on 95 Avenue from 142 to 189 Street. The eight-km bike path on 95 Avenue was built in October 2013 and linked west Edmonton to downtown. The city spent close to $500,000 to remove the 95 Avenue lane.

In March, Engage 40 Avenue presented three options to residents for a bike lane that would either run along 40 Avenue or 43 Avenue between 106 Street and 119 Street. The 43 Avenue option proposed a shared-use pathway on existing green space at a cost of $2 million. The options for 40 Avenue were between a raised median with a separate bike lane or a shared-use path on the north side of the road. Global news reported that these proposals would come at a cost of between $12 and $17 million dollars. Recreational cyclists who spoke to the Edmonton Sun had varied opinions about the proposals but agreed that the consultation sessions with stakeholders were a step in the right direction.

A general supervisor in the city’s urban transportation department Daniel Vriend told Global News that residents are demanding the city install bike lanes, “What we heard is that we should be looking at something physically separated. That it was the on-street bike lanes that weren’t acceptable. It wasn’t good for people with families and young children.” The cost remains a concern as the city and residents way the options between the various proposals.

To view the full proposals see Engage 106/76 and Engage 40 Avenue