By Allison McNeely and Sarah Trick
The first snowfall of the year on Bank Street.
Ottawa cyclists will have to wait until at least 2015 before they see more pathways and bike lanes cleared in the winter.
City council voted unanimously Tuesday to pass the 2013 cycling plan, part of the city’s transportation master plan for the next five years. The plan proposes to nearly double the amount of winter-maintained cycling lanes from 21 kilometres to 40 kilometres.
The cost of expanding the winter cycling network is $200,000 per year for maintenance, according to the plan.
But the current council isn’t committing any funding. Instead they are leaving funding up to the 2014-2018 council term and have not set aside any funding in the 2014 budget for the cost.
Rideau-Vanier Coun. Mathieu Fleury introduced the motion to push funding to the next council term at the Nov. 15 transportation committee meeting. The motion also included a recommendation for more public consultation on the network.
Snow covered bike lane.
Fleury said the details of winter maintenance need to be worked out before the plan can be put in place, such as coordinating snow plows for the road, bike lane and sidewalk.
“It takes more than saying ‘Let’s plow this, let’s fund it.’ Before we do it and fail at it, we need to come up with a plan,” Fleury said. “We got into a tough spot last year where the lane was plowed and then the road plow would come and plow onto the cycling lane.”
Consultation will include speaking with cycling groups around town to finalize which routes should be plowed, Fleury said.
The plan currently suggests expanding the winter cycling infrastructure to Beechwood and Lees Avenues leading into downtown, along the O-Train line from Carling Avenue to Scott Street and other connection points to the existing winter network. The routes have not been finalized.
Cycle route information courtesy of the City of Ottawa.
Michael Napiorkowski, co-founder of the Ottawa Bicycle Lane Project, is disappointed winter maintenance won’t be expanded sooner but said the more segregated bike lanes there are, the more options winter cyclists will have, since the lanes are automatically cleared.
“We’re pushing to have a network of protected lanes and from our perspective if we had more protected lanes then this would automatically be part of the package for snow removal, like the Laurier bike lane,” Napiorkowski said.
“You’re establishing it as a real piece of infrastructure. You can’t just leave them in the winter.”
Snow buildup at the edge of roads with painted lanes makes winter cycling more intimidating, said Napiorkowski.
Hans Moor, president of Citizens for Safe Cycling, worked with city planners on the development of the cycling plan. He said he’s pleased with the progress that’s been made.
“Usually we know that between the plan and execution it’s about four years so having it in two years is actually pretty fast,” said Moor. “We’re not disappointed, of course we would have liked to see it this year.”
According to a City of Ottawa survey, developing winter infrastructure may be necessary to get more residents to use their bike in the winter. The City of Ottawa asked 4,257 residents if they would use the pathway system in winter as it is currently maintained and 50 per cent of respondents said no.
“Winter is key to get more people cycling and the easier we make it to get people on their bikes in the winter, the better,” Napiorkowski said.
