Bloor/Danforth Bike Lanes

[West End Boy]

Couldn't find another thread on this, so I'm starting this one.

I read in the paper recently that the Bloor/Danforth bike lanes are hitting some roadblocks. The article alluded to some partial lanes on "Bloor Street West" going ahead sooner, but gave very little hard information (as usual).

Can anyone tell me what the chances are of getting this bike corridor done? Are there parts of it that are more likely to go ahead sooner?

I think this would be a very well-used corridor and a logical place for it. Too bad the "war on the car" rhetoric is polarizing everyone and making sides more unreasonable.

Thanks for any info!

 

[vic]

There was a public open-house last night at the Etobicoke Civic Centre regarding bike lanes on Bloor from Kipling to Mill Rd.:
http://www.toronto.ca/cycling/public-consultations/bloor-westmall.htm

Oddly enough, this is probably the first section of Bloor that is likely to get bike lanes. Quote from the display boards: "Subject to Council approval, bike lanes would be implemented in 2009, through the repainting of the roadway."

 

[Maggie]

Oddly enough, this is probably the first section of Bloor that is likely to get bike lanes.

The Avenue study for Dundas West on Bloor to Keele also had plans for bike lanes there. It was also suggested at the meetings that the bike lanes would hook up with the railpath if that ever gets approved hopefully. Realistically I can't see anything happening until the Roncey street reno is complete and that will take a couple of years.

 

[West End Boy]

Thanks for the info.

No offence to people in Etobicoke, but it's frustrating that a small bit of bike lane there will be done while there are often mobs of cyclists further downtown who need the infrastructure there.

Here's hoping for some progress soon!

 

[Chuck]

Hopefully we'll one day see bike lanes across the full length of Bloor. It will only compliment the pedestrian activity, retail, and public transportation already found along that corridor, and there are enough parallel streets of similar size that cars could easily divert to another route if lane closures are necessary. The same applies to Yonge between Front and Mount Pleasant cemetery.

 

[kettal]

Bike lanes on Bloor St. may be more likely to happen than you think. Possibly even sooner than expected. I was at the Bloor Street West and The West Mall Bike Lanes public consultation last night, and can report back that it it's mostly good news for cyclists.

Two new bike lanes were being presented at this meeting: A 3.1km stretch of The West Mall, from Bloor St. down to The Queensway (map), and a 3.4km piece of Bloor St. W. between Mill Rd. and Kipling Ave (map).

One of the points that several residents at last night's meeting kept bringing up went along the lines of, "But these lanes don't take you anywhere!". Well, contrary to popular belief, I feel that these lanes will actually fill in a much-needed gap in the network, providing safer cycling in mid-town and south-western Etobicoke.

The Bloor St. bike lane will start at almost the Mississauga border (not sure why they didn't extend it just a bit further), connect to a future Mill Rd. bike lane (in the Bike Plan), connect to the Renforth Dr. bike lane (which connects up to Rathburn Rd bike lanes, Centennial Park, Eglinton bikeway, etc.), West mall bike lanes, over Highway 427, Kipling Subway/GO station (via Aukland Rd. and the hydro corridor which is also in the Bike Plan), and the Etobicoke City Centre in the Six Points / Bloor / Islington area.

The West Mall bike lane will provide an important North-South connection between Bloor St., and the Queensway, eventually connecting down to the pathway along Etobicoke Creek and down to the lake, and also feed into the Bloor bike lane and Renforth Dr. bike lanes going north. It also brings cyclists close to the Etobicoke Civic Centre.

What are some of the obstacles to having these bike lanes installed? Very few, actually. On Bloor St., the bike lanes will not remove any on-street parking. No door-zones anywhere along the way. There are very few businesses along this stretch of Bloor, and therefore few conflicts with motorists turning in and out of driveways. There was some concern from area residents that the automobile traffic on Bloor St. is too fast and busy, so it is unsafe for cyclists. But that's possibly one of the best reasons to make it safer and slow the traffic down!

Perhaps two of the biggest obstacles to implementing these bike lanes are Councillors Doug Holyday (Ward 3) and Peter Milczyn (Ward 5). Milcyn already seems to be in favour of installing these bike lanes, but Holyday is likely to vote against any kind of cycling infrastructure at any chance he gets, especially in his own ward. Cyclists in Ward 3 should definitely put the heat on to Doug Holyday.

It seemed that the biggest obstacle for the West Mall bike lanes was that people felt it is an unsafe place for anyone to be on a bicycle, bike lane or not. There isn't a huge volume of traffic, and the road is very wide, but residents report that motor vehicles speed through here, and there can be heavy truck traffic between Dundas St. and the industrial areas south of there. Again, sounds like a good reason to install their planned bike lane (often with a wide buffer) to reduce cyclist/motorist conflicts and bring the motor vehicle speed down.

How soon might this happen? Sooner than I expected! According to the presentation notes:

Subject to Council approval, bike lanes would be implemented in 2009, through the
repainting of the roadway.

The first step is for these lanes, along with a whole host of others, to be approved at tomorrow's Public Works and Infrastructure Committee meeting. After that, it's up to council to make the final approval, and then get the lines painted. Hopefully it will be a fast and simple process (though I can just imagine the new round of "WAR ON CAR!" headlines coming out when these lanes come up for vote).

In closing, this isn't the most sought-after section of Bloor St. bikeways, but it has always been in the Bike Plan and will finally fill in a big missing gap in the whole Etobicoke network. Make sure you contact all of the appropriate parties at City Hall to give your support to the idea


Link

 

[catcher_of_cats]

The Avenue study for Dundas West on Bloor to Keele also had plans for bike lanes there. It was also suggested at the meetings that the bike lanes would hook up with the railpath if that ever gets approved hopefully. Realistically I can't see anything happening until the Roncey street reno is complete and that will take a couple of years.

The railpath, from Dupont to Dundas St W is nearing completion with a little more then the path to be paved.

 

[Maggie]

Can't wait

The railpath, from Dupont to Dundas St W is nearing completion with a little more then the path to be paved.

I did not know that. Thats excellent news. Do you know if progress has been made for the railpath going downtown ?

 

[junctionist]

Well...as of this spring Metrolinx is actually aware of the proposed path.

 

[catcher_of_cats]

It will be interesting to see how they make this rail trail cross the tracks just south of Dundas Street West. I wonder if they will make people cross at street level, go a hundred meters down the road, then back down near the No Frill's to continue on to at least King Street West.

 

[catcher_of_cats]

More bike lanes, but not on Bloor – yet...

As the public works committee today approved the installation of some 24 kilometres of new bike lanes in Toronto, defenders of the driver railed about the cost, while cyclists complained the city is neglecting the most obvious east-west artery – Bloor Street.

But for the chair of the committee though, addressing Toronto’s dearth of dedicated space for two-wheeled commuters has become a personal challenge.

“It’s not fair that people refuse to share the road with us,†said councillor Glenn De Baeremaeker (Scarborough Centre), who cycles to City Hall from his suburban ward most days. “It’s a personal issue for me. I pay the same taxes as everyone in this room… This is a good investment that might save someone’s life, or the lives of the people we love.â€

The committee approved placing pieces of bike lane in almost every neighbourhood of Toronto. In the west lanes will be added to Rathburn Road for example; in the core they will be put on Argyle Street and Gladstone Avenue; in Toronto’s east, it will be Huntingwood Drive, and many other streets in between.

But councillor Doug Holyday (Etobicoke Centre) questioned the rationale of spending $70 million over the next few years to put in a patchwork of disconnected lanes with no semblance of a network taking shape and no proof people will use them.

“I’m not anti-bike,†he said. “I think this is about the most embarrassing, colossal misuse of scarce resources that has come up at council in many years… They say it’s not a war on the car. If it’s not, I don’t know what is.â€

Cyclists, on the other hand, lamented that the city isn’t going far enough to making way for bikes on Toronto’s roads.

Most notably, they deplored the absence of Bloor-Danforth on the roster of streets getting new bike lanes.

“There’s no place more logical in Southern Ontario to squeeze the car… than beside the subway,†said Hamish Wilson, citing reports that suggested the thoroughfare as prime bike corridor dating back to 1992. “That’s very, very frustrating…Come on guys, we’ve got to get going on this stuff.â€

While bike lanes on Bloor was missing from today’s slate, Mr. De Baeremaeker said such a plan is still in the works and that he is a “strong supporter.â€

“It’s a very well-used route. There effectively is a bike lane there today, it’s just not formal. There are just so many cyclists there, when you come to a stop light, seven or eight or 10 of them line up behind a cab and they take over the lane anyway. That’s not safe for the cyclists, it’s not safe for drivers, so a more formal route is a good idea,†he said. “But in our democratic system we have to sit down and talk to all the [business improvement areas], you have to talk to the residents, you hve to talk to the local councillors… The world unfortunately doesn’t move as quickly as we would like and there is our due diligence.â€

 

[West End Boy]

Thanks for the info everyone.

I guess my frustration is that the city seems content to offer up a few politically easy bits of bikeway here and there, but consistently fails to deliver a true network when the going gets tough, like on Bloor/Danforth.

But maybe the bits and pieces will make some momentum to get things moving? I'm not sure I'm that much of an optimist!

 

[drum118]

I did not know that. Thats excellent news. Do you know if progress has been made for the railpath going downtown ?

The section at Queen St will not happen until the new Dufferin St bridge is built. At the same time, Once final design of the Rail corridor is done, work can start on that section. Going south of Queen, there is no room for the path.

Some shots from May 18

Davenport

Tag already

Love the paint going on the bridge

 

[ShonTron]

Again, thanks for the pics Drum. Looks quite nice, if not a little too short.

 

[Maggie]

Thanx for the pix Drum 118 very nice. I really like that bridge. I'm wondering why the path wasn't built closer to the tracks, is it because of the 30 meter rule from the railroad safety act?