City considers rolling out additional bike lanes
New routes could affect downtown parking
The next five years could see a dozen new bike lanes across Vancouver and major upgrades to cycling infrastructure across the city.
The new routes proposed in the latest update from city staff include eight in the downtown core, such as one across the Granville Bridge, parallel oneway lanes along Smithe and Nelson, and a route linking Yaletown to the West End via Drake and Burnaby.
The other four new lanes would be scattered across the city and include Commercial Drive, Gore Street, Hudson Street and a short section along Kent Avenue.
Seventeen proposed bike lane upgrades span popular routes, including the Cambie Bridge, Ontario Street, 10th Avenue and the Stanley Park Causeway. Staff hope to bring all of these bike routes up to a so-called AAA rating for All Ages and Abilities.
Bike lanes are a perennial hot topic in Vancouver, where every new route inspires both applause and outrage. Vancouver leads Metro when it comes to developing bike lanes, but there are some bike infrastructure improvements happening in other municipalities as well.
Surrey built its first separated bike lane this year along 105A Avenue between University Drive and Whalley Boulevard.
In all, 10 bike lane and multiuse pathway projects were in the works for Surrey in 2015.
Over on the North Shore, the City of North Vancouver is building a bike route along Chesterfield Avenue that will include separated and painted sections, and recently completed new bike lanes along Boulevard Crescent.
And this summer, cyclists christened a new three-metrewide bike and pedestrian path across the Port Mann Bridge.
Vancouver’s staff report, scheduled to go before council this week, notes a 16 per cent year- over-year increase in the number of bike trips across the city, a leap that it credits to improved infrastructure. In the year leading up to August, there were 1.4 million trips across the Burrard Bridge alone.
Still, dozens of parking spaces could be lost if the suggested improvements go ahead. In the downtown core, those would include spots along one side of Beatty Street, 20 spaces on Smithe and Nelson, and some spots along Richards and Cambie.
The report also comes with the suggestion that bikers begin sharing their space with some other travellers.
Staff are recommending that skateboards, roller skates and push-scooters be allowed in protected bike lanes for a yearlong trial period, describing them as “healthy and environmentally friendly forms of transportation.”
Skateboards would still not be allowed in painted bike lanes without buffers between cyclists and moving traffic. Right now, skateboarding and in-line skating are not allowed on sidewalks and are only permitted on minor streets within Vancouver.
One goal of this trial is to reduce sidewalk conflicts, but the idea is raising concerns within the Vancouver Police Department.
The move could lead to “serious potential for an increase in injury accidents,” and an increase in conflict between cyclists and boarders, according to the VPD. In part, the concern is about the differences in handling, maneuverability, varied speeds and braking between skateboards and bikes.