A protected bike lane along Dunsmuir viaduct is the latest step towards a secured cyclist route through the downtown core.
“We're looking at options coming from the east on Dunsmuir, or adjacent to, and coming from the south on Burrard, Hornby or Thurlow,” Mayor Gregor Robertson said Wednesday at the opening of the Dunsmuir viaduct lane. It resembles the Burrard Street Bridge bike lane with a concrete barrier dividing the road.
As plans move forward on the downtown cycling grid community stakeholders, such as businesses and residents, would be consulted, he added.
Creating secured cycling lanes is one measure the city can take independent of TransLink to offer alternative transit options.
“It's something we at the city can make decisions on and take action to increase in a much more simple way than we can with transit increases,” explained Robertson, an avid cyclist who days after the Olympics lobbied Ottawa for funding to increase transit capacity. “Many of us want to see more transit options and that is a complicated and expensive path forward we hope to be resolving soon.”
Cyclist Jarred Duivestein, who commutes downtown each day from Commercial Drive, has had a couple of close calls with vehicles over the past six months when travelling across the viaduct. He welcomed the change.
“It provides a level of safety that you feel compared to what was there before.”
