Pilot project to create safety barrier for downtown Windsor cyclists

Residents and cyclists alike will begin to see work being done on Victoria Avenue. The city is creating a protected bike lane.

“What you're going to see is a bike lane here,” City councillor Renaldo Agostino demonstrated to a CTV camera pointing to an area near the curb.

“Then you're going to see the parking meter here. There's going to be parking blocks and then parked cars and then traffic as well.”

The parking meters and parking blocks would be alongside the road, protecting the bike lane from flowing traffic.

Cyclists have expressed their thoughts on the pilot project.

“That sounds like it could make things safer,” said cyclist Jeremy Proulx.

“I don't bike a whole lot, but I've almost been doored several times and avoiding that kind of thing can be pretty hairy at times so that sounds like a good play, at least on the surface.”

Agostino said the project will create a safe path to the core for cyclists who work, go to school or live in the area.

“It's been demonstrably proven that when people have, access to safe cycling infrastructure, that they spend more money in those communities,” Stephen Hargreaves told CTV News. The director of the Sandwich BIA and cycling advocate feels cyclists are encouraged when they feel safe.

“When infrastructure exists, people use it. When it doesn't, people decide, maybe I'll avoid that area, or maybe I'll go spend my money somewhere else.”

Work is expected to start shortly and be done by year's end. The bike lane will start at Chatham Street and go to Wyandotte Street East, where it'll connect to a recently added lane.

“We'll give it a go and if all is deemed good then I can't see why it can't happen everywhere else,” said Agostino who would like to see the pilot administered across the city.

Some residents in Ouellette Towers feel a recently installed bike lane on Pelissier Street could benefit from the same set up as the pilot.

“When I have to make a right-hand turn into here, I have to make sure there's no cars coming down the other lane, the bike lane, because they do drive down the bike lane,” said tenant Glen Gaines.

Some reportedly travel the full length of the bike lane from Elliott Street to Wyandotte Street without even realizing they might be in the bike lane.

“With all these changes, there's got to be a component of education as well,” Agostino said.

“I got another email this morning from somebody up on the corner where things don't seem to be working quite the way we want them to, so we're going to make adjustments along the way.”

With both commercial and residential growth expected on Pelissier Street, some feel bikes lanes don't belong on that stretch of road.

“I think you're going to see meters getting driven into and people just not going to know what's going on,” said Ray Blanchard, owner of the Bit Coin building. “I think it's a bad idea on commercial streets.”

He pointed to opportunities he’s bringing to the area along with the redevelopment of the parking area in the 600 block of Pelissier as factors that could bring high traffic to the street.

“If their solution is to move the meters out onto the street, that's going to make it even harder for businesses to get deliveries because big trucks have to come in and they have to get deliveries,” he said.

“It's going to basically create an obstacle course.”

Agostino said a report will go to council in the next few months.