Vancouver announces date and details of lane reallocation trial.

June 23, 2009 - City of Vancouver communications and neighbourhood transportation staff gave a special media briefing Tuesday, explaining some of the details and logistics surrounding the upcoming $1.4 million cycling lane reallocation trial on the Burrard Bridge.

Here are seven things about the upcoming trial cyclists and pedestrians should know. Feel free to post questions and I’ll do my best to answer them. If you’d like to know more, read the media briefing for more detail on the plans at this Vancouver Sun link, take a look at the city’s lane reallocation technical details web page, or keep it brief with this summary backgrounder. (All images below are from the City of Vancouver reports)

1. Monday, July 13 is the big day. Barriers, lane painting, and roadwork will be done the weekend previous. Expect the bridge to be ready for your morning commute unless bad weather the previous week delays roadwork. Banners reminding drivers of the change will go up on the bridge at the end of the month and a three week media blitz will commence.



2. A particularly nasty section of road where northbound cyclists currently leave the bridge and merge with eastbound traffic on the north side of the bridge should see some improvements -- with the addition of a bike lane and bike boxes on the stretch between Burrard and Hornby making it easier for cyclists to use the Hornby Street bike lanes as a route into the downtown core. A slip lane will allow bikers to cross over the eastbound car lane and continue north on Burrard, but extreme caution will be the order of the day as this problematic intersection may yet retain some of its inherent dangers.



3. All pedestrians will be using the west sidewalk. Apparently, city data suggests two-thirds of walkers already use this side, perhaps because of the ocean view. The best place to get over the east side of Burrard before you get to the bridge itself is at First Ave.



4. Cyclists will have the benefit of barriers on both their protected lanes. With the lack of pedestrians to act as deterrents to excess speed, it will be instructive to see if any new safety issues related to cyclists passing each other arise.

5. Bike lanes on Pacific and Burrard on the northwest side of the bridge should give cyclists a clear route onto their new protected lane of southbound road space on the bridge deck.

6. There was no commitment to an end date, meaning that an unsuccessful trial can be abandoned early, despite assurances from the City that a report will be prepared after three months.

7. Buses heading south on the bridge will see their bus lane extended past Pacific Boulevard, so that buses will have some measure of priority when getting onto the bridge. If transit experiences severe and prolonged congestion problems, engineers may implement special transit phasing of traffic lights at the intersection to keep buses moving.

Letter to Council

The following letter was sent to Vancouver Council last week. Please add your voice to the growing number of sensible people urging a safe, cost-effective, progressive solution to the dangerous shared sidewalk on the Burrard Bridge.  Links to emails for the Mayor, councillors, and MLAs whose ridings are in the area can be found at the bottom of this post. Wouldn't it be nice to see this sign finally come true?

Dear Mayor Robertson and Council Members:

I am writing you to express my support for the two lane re-allocation trial planned for the Burrard Bridge. I also wish to extend my appreciation to you for tackling this thorny issue.

I have no doubt there will be nay-sayers, bent on shutting down this cost-effective, safe, progressive solution to the very real dangers posed by a shared sidewalk. I have no doubt that supporters (of the trial) will be mis-characterized as selfish and unrealistic by the two-lane trial opponents. Most of all, I have no doubt that if the trial proceeds as planned, the long-term ramifications will be negligible for car users and significant for all the people who utilize transportation alternatives more suited to individual travel in a modern city committed to sustainable practices.

Supporters of the trial are eager to hear the concerns of opponents and those who, for whatever reason, like the idea but question its implementation. We certainly want to assist City staff and politicians at all levels, in any way we can. We are also sensitive to your needs–especially your duty to consider all input and represent the wishes of your constituents. Having said that, I think it's incumbent upon anyone involved in this initiative... and especially those with the opportunity to speak to the public through the media, to separate reasoned arguments and valid concerns from reactionary calls for the status quo.

It's a grossly unfair characterizations to call those who lobby for better cycling facilities as motivated purely by self-interest, or guilty of proposing unworkable plans. This is simply not true. I believe you already know this. I hope you will do what you can to correct this erroneous appraisal of lane re-allocation supporters at every opportunity.

The two lane trial is already getting coverage in the media. This is a good thing. The more people who know about it, the better informed everyone can be concerning alternative routes, the reasons for the decision to pursue this plan, and its benefits to our city. I urge you to stay committed to green initiatives and a safer, more sensible use of road space. As our leaders, we need this from you more than ever. I believe we can trust the City engineering staff to find workable solutions to valid concerns, within the framework of the two-lane trial. I am hopeful you will give them the tools they need to identify and implement those measures.

The evidence is in. The reason we don't have more people adopting cycling for transportation is the perception (and all too often, the reality) that cycling in our city is a dangerous choice. Only separate cycling facilities as required, to provide safe passage for cyclists of all ages and abilities, can change this perception and encourage sustainable transportation. Only you can make the decision to choose forward-thinking, well-reasoned planning over emotional knee-jerk responses to progressive measures. You have the support of many in this endeavor and a chance to make concrete the ideals so many of us share.

Thank you for your time,

Chris Keam
(A Friend of the Burrard Bridge)

Council email addresses (click on their pictures to send an email):

Spencer Herbert-MLA

Vancouver-Burrard

Gordon Campbell-MLA

Vancouver-Point Grey

Jann McGinn-MLA

Vancouver-Fairview