City staff wants the proposed cross-town connector re-routed, with bike lanes installed on both sides of Windsor Street. This means the single, connected bike route uniting the north and south ends of Halifax would link Windsor, Vernon and Seymour Streets for cyclists.
The original proposal, in November 2010, named Agricola Street as the best option for the connector. That routing would require the removal of 75 percent of the on-street parking spaces on Agricola, which angered many of the owners of businesses along the street.
But Allison Moz, co-owner of eyecandy SIGNS INC on Isleville Street, supports the original proposal.
“In terms of layout Agricola is arguably the best route,” she says.
One of Moz’s primary goals is blending business with residential.
“Bikes create vibrant communities, as a business that jives very well with me,” she says.
Moz is aware of the parking concerns of the Agricola route, but says the cross-town connector can help the situation by making other modes of transportation more palatable.
The final decision whether to install a bike lane on Windsor Street will be made by regional council later in the summer. The staff report has been submitted to the Active Transportation Advisory Committee and will be considered at its May 16 meeting. The public is welcome to attend these meetings.
The revised cross-town proposal brings problems of its own. Because the standard width of a bike lane is 1.5 metres, the new recommendation for the CTC will make on-street parking north of Welsford Street no longer possible. Vehicles will be allowed to stop in the bike lane to load and unload, but otherwise only the existing accessible parking spaces will remain.
The Halifax Cycling Coalition doesn’t like the proposed Windsor routing of the cross-town connector.
“From the beginning Agricola has been our preferred route for many reasons,” says Matt Neville, a coalition member. “A number of cyclists already use that route. It can’t be beat!”
“If we just take Windsor there’s a fear that we’re just creating more fragments,” says Neville. “Agricola really presents an opportunity to make a more complete route. Unfortunately the Windsor recommendation falls short. “
Neville says that from a destination point of view, the lack of hills and the fact that there’s currently no buses makes Agricola the best location in all of peninsular Halifax for the connector. He also believes it’s the safest for our two wheeled friends.
Jennifer Watts, councillor for the north end, says no final decision has been made on routing for the CTC.
This article appears in May 23-29, 2013.
Start with Windsor, add a bike lane on Agricola when the political will is there in a few years. Both are good routes. Agricola is already a busy bike route. Windsor is more central and will appeal to university students and West Enders. Also, parking on Windsor is already a safety issue. Look at how wide the street is in front of Phat’s Barber. Let’s eliminate these few spaces and park on Duncan and Lawrence instead.
This issue is a perfect example of how our so-called democratic system works. There were public hearings which made it clear that the public preferred Agricola. Then the real people in power basically ignored what the public said and ensured that a few business owners, concerned about a couple of parking spots, got their way. Private profit concerns always trump the public interest in this country. What galls me most is that the city feels obligated to make a show of engaging the public, but participatory democracy this certainly ins not!
I use Windsor Street every day on my commute, because of where I live and the relatively wide lanes on Windsor. That said, I support the Agricola Street location for the following reasons:
1) There is no continuity of the bike lane along Bell Road travelling west. Drivers hate it when cyclists ride beside them on the section of Bell Road that has two car lanes, just before it becomes Quinpool. This needs to be addressed before putting bike lanes on Windsor. (the same problem holds for Agricola unless the city plans to extend the Bell Road bike lanes along North Park and Trollope).
2) The intersection at Chebucto and Windsor is a narrow nightmare now, and it will be more of a nightmare if they try to lead bike lanes to it. As it stands now, the safest thing for cyclists to do at that intersection is to take over whatever lane they wish to use. Drivers hate it when we do that, but it’s the safest option. This is typically not a safe technique for more timid, inexperienced cyclists, however, and inexperienced cyclists are supposed to be the people served by bike lanes.
3) The Windsor Street location ignores the large population that lives in the residential blocks between Gottingten/Novalea and Robie Streets, north of Cogswell Street all the way to the end of the peninsula. Agricola would serve this population well. Windsor Street is completely out of the way for this population..they’d have to unnecessarily travel west across Robie to access it. People who live west of Robie would still be able to take advantage of an Agricola Street corridor in their commute, if they wished.