Finally, the city has serious plans for the bike in its transportation
routes
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rt-@queensu.ca
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Jun 02, 2009 09:20 PDT
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Pointofview
Posted By THE WHIG-STANDARD
Posted 3 hours ago
Finally, the city has serious plans for the bike in its transportation routes.
With the inevitability that higher gas prices will force more people to consider cycling and using public transportation, it's high time the bike had a real chance to play favourably in the city's transportation network.
A shift in the global economy may prove good for the bike, too. A former bank economist-turned-author predicts rising oil prices will shrink the global economy. Jeff Rubin suggests a global oil shortage will raise oil prices to US$225 a barrel by 2012, creating an economic shift away from globalization to regional economies.
Last year, when gas prices rose above $1.30 a litre, people were prompted to consider taking public transit. This shift in mindset was due to cost.
Still, our society is reluctant to move to cycling, partly due to roads not designed for bikes. But those roads are changing.
Over the next two years, the city is linking up a cycling network to make biking safer and a more realistic mode of transportation. This week, the city will introduce its plan, called "Share the road: A guide for motorists and cyclists." This plan is long overdue.
When fully implemented in 2010, the city's "on-road bikeway" will create four new cycling routes. The most critical route -- because of the volume of traffic -- is from the west end to downtown. The route will weave through the Cataraqui Woods subdivision, cross Gardiners Road to Centennial Drive, follow Bath Road to Queen Mary Road, and finally link up to Johnston Street to reach downtown. Union Street will also be a cycling route. Routes are also planned to run south on Division Street and from Ontario Street to the LaSalle Causeway.
Cyclists can also use Kingston Transit buses that carry bikes and meet up with cross-town bus routes at five main transfer points.
The challenge for Kingstonians is that our roads are built for vehicles. Cyclists and vehicles currently use the same main routes, and at times this causes problems.
The creation of the bikeway will make the roads safer for cyclists and put them on a route that may encourage more bike trips.
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Er, have you actually read the report?? Evidently not.
The current state of cycling routes is a sad joke and the plans for 2010 are a spectacular under achievement.
The city is not "getting serious" about cycling routes. The city is doing the absolute minimum possible prior to a municipal election.
Reply | Report | Page Top Post #1 By FedUpTaxpayer, 2 hours ago | -1 Votes | Vote:
Yup. They need to build actual bike paths as well.
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