Bike lanes cleared of snow, ice
It should be easier for cyclists to ride this winter, now that the city has told plow operators to “put the blade down” on separated bike lanes.
Until now, this winter could hardly have been described as snowy, or even wintry. Until the last week of January, we barely had any serious cold weather and whatever snow happened to fall melted away in a few days.
But the past several weeks have been pretty seasonal, and with more cold and the big dump of snow that — finally — landed this week, city plows were back in action.
And cyclists who are pedalling their way through winter will no doubt appreciate that the city seems to be giving bike lanes the attention they deserve.
One of them is Brian Iler, who rides year-round and copied me on an email to transportation services manager Tom Kalogiannis, thanking him for the city’s efforts on bike lanes this winter.
“Tom, I’m writing to express my pleasure with the work done by your staff in pushing snow to the curb and out of bike lanes,” said Iler, a lawyer well-known for his advocacy on social issues.
“The lanes I ride daily — Beverley and College (Streets) — were plowed as I requested last year. It has made cycling a pleasure. Please pass on my appreciation to your staff.” Iler has for years copied me on notes to roads officials about how street plows were pushing snow from vehicle lanes into bike lanes, forcing cyclists into traffic.
Cycling lanes look to be well-used this winter and not just due to the weather. With 40 kilometres of new lanes added last year, it’s even more viable for a determined cyclist to ride all winter.
A tour of downtown cycling lanes after the last significant snowfall showed that separated lanes had been plowed with a sidewalk plow. And there was much less snow piled into bike lanes not separated from traffic and more plowed onto the curb area.
“We’re certainly doing all of the bike lanes,” Vince Sferrazza, director of maintenance and operations with transportation services, said in an interview.
Where sidewalk-sized plows are sent out to salt cycling lanes, the operators have been told that “you’re out there, you’re salting, so put the blade down as well,” he said.
I’m interested in what cyclists say about how the city’s doing at clearing bike lanes of snow, so send me a note with your observations.