Survey shows resistance to bike lanes on Commercial Drive
Group claims majority of businesses oppose city plan
A majority of business owners on Commercial Drive are opposed to a City of Vancouver proposal to add separated bike lanes along the street, according to a survey conducted by the Commercial Drive Business Society.
The group, which represents 750 businesses along The Drive, received completed surveys from 164 business owners and 128 property owners, asking them whether they support the city’s plan to add separated lanes. Of those, just over 83 per cent of respondents said they are against the city’s proposal, while 16 per cent support the idea.
The survey found that 83 per cent of owners believe a bike lane will negatively impact business, while 82 per cent said lower sales and even job losses could result.
Nick Pogor, executive director of the business society, said in a statement Tuesday that Commercial Drive is a destination shopping and entertainment district for many people travelling from other areas in Metro Vancouver, so cycling is not an option.
“Our businesses rely on both local shoppers and destination shoppers to remain viable,” he said, adding that bike lanes will result in a loss of street parking in an area that already lacks sufficient parking spaces.
Eighty per cent of those surveyed agreed that a better cycling route would be Victoria Drive, adjacent to Commercial. The society noted that there are already bike lanes on nearby Woodland and Lakewood.
“Our members very much support transportation infrastructure for cyclists, but not at the detriment of locally owned businesses and the jobs they support,” said Pogor.
However, a group of East Vancouver residents that includes 22 Commercial Drive business owners, called Streets for Everyone, argues that bike routes on Victoria, Woodland, and Lakewood are good for long distance, but they don’t encourage cyclists to stop and shop in neighbourhoods. The group says bike lanes on commercial streets provide a route for cyclists to safely do errands.
Alex Thumm, a spokesman for Streets for Everyone, took issue with the methodology used in the society’s survey, arguing that it did not represent an accurate sample of the business owners in the area, given the society represents 750 businesses, but only 164 completed the online survey.
He also said it is natural for business owners to worry that change could affect business, but he does not believe they have seen all the research, including studies from Portland that show bike lanes improved local business.
Thumm added that the city does not need to remove all parking spots to accommodate bike lanes, and he would like to see a compromise reached.
The survey was conducted online from the end of January to mid-March among business society members. It carries a margin of error of 5.8 per cent, according to the society.
In December, the city proposed a dozen new bike lanes across Vancouver and major upgrades to cycling infrastructure across the city, citing a 16 per cent yearover-year increase in the number of bike trips across the city.
The new routes include eight in the downtown core and four new lanes scattered across the city, including 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.