Bike ridership hits record highs

Bike usage is up sharply across Vancouver this summer, with record numbers recorded at eight of the city’s 10 protected bike routes in June.

According to a bulletin released Thursday by the City of Vancouver, there was also a notable jump in bike volumes along Point Grey following the completion of the Seaside Greenway last summer.

Part of the reason for the jump in cycling volumes is the recent hot weather.

“June, July and August tend to be the months with highest bike ridership, and good weather always helps get people out,” said Dale Bracewell, the city’s branch manager of active transportation. Bracewell also attributed the rise to the city’s growing cycling infrastructure.

“In particular, we have been developing a network that is accessible to people of all ages and abilities that has allowed people who may have been hesitant about riding their bikes to start using the network more frequently. Additionally, the growth of the protected bike network over the last few years has made cycling around the city easier. People can now easily make safe, comfortable cycling trips all the way from East Vancouver out to Kitsilano.”

The city noted that on Canada Day, bike counters recorded record volumes of 8,200 cycling trips at Burrard and Cornwall and 8,700 at Science World.

As well, the Burrard Bridge bike counter showed higher trip volumes, with the weekend average in June rising from 4,200 trips in 2014 to 6,600 trips in 2015, and individual weekday trips rising from 5,500 in 2014 to 6,400 in 2015.

Before the installation of the final phase of the Seaside Greenway, the average weekday number of cycling trips in that area was 600 (August 2012). After completion in 2014, the weekday average jumped to 2,700, 3,300 on weekends.

The city also said that in May 2015, it reached a 50/50 mode split, meaning 50 per cent of all trips in Vancouver were made by foot, bicycle and public transit.

Meanwhile, in a bid to reduce accidents, the city recently came up with a plan for improvements, including a new pedestrian/ cyclist traffic signal installed on Renfrew Street at its intersection with the Adanac bike route.