Some things just don’t mix, buses and bikes among them.
That’s why Citizens for Safe Cycling is advocating for new cycling infrastructure on Booth Street, especially the area around the planned Pimisi LRT station.
“Buses are big and they have lots of mirrors, but they do miss cyclists,” says Hans Moor, a member of CSC. “For cyclists, it’s kind of a scary experience to have a bus boxing you . . . you can’t go anywhere.”
The area in and around new LeBreton Flats developments has some excellent pre-existing cycling infrastructure, such as multi-use paths, says Moor. But he argues that the lack of infrastructure on Booth Street makes it unsafe, especially around the controversial Pimisi Station along the planned Confederation Line.
“If buses are lining up at Booth, for example, to drop people off and you have to pass all those buses, you’re sitting in the left lane now,” Moor says. “So now you have buses on your right and cars passing you on the left. It’s just a very uncomfortable situation for bicycle riding.”
The Ottawa branch of CSC has recently published a blog post that details the problem using illustrations of the proposed station. The organization has been pressing municipal candidates with their concerns.
Being boxed in can be a deterrent for cyclists, even with decent infrastructure. Tara Andronek, who lives and works in the downtown area, says she is disinclined to bike to work because of the heavy traffic in Centretown. She adds that she has nearly been hit as a pedestrian in Centretown, too, let alone on the road as a cyclist.
“You have cars that are so desperate to turn so that they can get through the light,” says Andronek, a government worker. “They’re not waiting for the people to cross the street. So I couldn’t imagine what it would be like on a bike, next to that person, having them turn into you as well.”
Andronek says she prefers cycling on the multi-use paths along the Rideau Canal, where she feels safer. But she does admit the bike lanes help.
“It’s just too dangerous to not have them,” Andronek said. “I mean, you’ve got huge trucks and speeding buses going down some of those roads. You have to have bike lanes.”
Hannah Denomme, who bikes to work out of necessity, goes out of her way to take quieter streets instead of major roads without bike lanes.
“The biggest thing to me would be, when there’s no bike lane, biking on the street – which kind of freaks me out,” says Denomme. “When I come home from work, it’s kind of peak hour. . . I’m scared that people aren’t going to see me, are going to hit me.”
Denomme says people find their own ways to feel safer on high traffic streets.
“I’ve also seen people biking on the sidewalk because there’s no bike lane,” she said. “Which I know technically is illegal but I totally understand their mentality behind it. You’re going to put your safety above . . . the danger that could be biking on a busy street.”
These dangers could increase as the infrastructure around Booth Street changes.
“The area around Booth is changing rapidly,” says Moor “And we also know there’s more and more people taking the bicycle in the city.”
Citizens for Safe Cycling would like to see provisions for cycling in the LeBreton Flats development plans, either immediately or in the future. Moor says that Booth Street will become the main road connecting cyclists from Chaudiere Crossing to the LRT at Pimisi Station. Booth Street will also see an increase in traffic due to the proposed developments on Chaudiere and Albert islands.
“Obviously, there will be a lot of people living in LeBreton Flats and downtown is very small,” says Moor. “If you want to encourage people to bicycle, you have to make sure that people have the infrastructure where they feel safe.”