A timeline of this summer's debate over the Queen Elizabeth Driveway as cars return on weekdays

There will be more cars on the Queen Elizabeth Driveway starting today as the National Capital Commission scales back its active use program on the scenic parkway.

Both lanes of a section of the Queen Elizabeth Driveway were closed to vehicular access from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week between Canada Day and Labour Day. The closure was to allow active use, such as walking, running or cycling, on the popular roadway that runs along the Rideau Canal. There were exceptions, such as for the Escapade Music Festival and sports events at Lansdowne Park.

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As of today, the active use program will continue but only on weekends. The last day for the program this year will be Thanksgiving Monday, Oct. 9.

But just days after the daily closure of 2.4 km of roadway between Fifth Avenue and Somerset Street began, Mayor Mark Sutcliffe started to openly criticize the NCC's decision, calling for the road to be returned to drivers.

He first made the comments on Newstalk 580 CFRA's "Ottawa at Work with Patricia Boal" on July 11, saying he was concerned that the NCC was closing too many streets.

"There are already great places to run and bike along the QED, like the pathway by the water. I don't see a lot of people using the road when the road is closed," he said. "I'm not sure we're getting the benefit that the NCC may have hoped from that, and it's adding traffic pressure."

Several reporters asked him about it after the July 12 council meeting.

"I would like to see it open more often than what the NCC is proposing because it has huge traffic impacts. By my observations, I am not sure how necessary it is; there are great pathways on both sides of the canal," Sutcliffe said.

Kitchissippi Ward Coun. Jeff Leiper was critical of the mayor, penning a letter just days later, calling Sutcliffe's comments inappropriate.

"It needs to be clarified that your stated views are not Ottawa City Council policy," Leiper wrote. "It is inappropriate that you would use your platform as Mayor and Board membership to advocate behind closed doors for such a regressive position."

The next salvos in the battle over the road came in the form of opposing opinion pieces published in the Ottawa Citizen. Sutcliffe's came first on July 17, in which he wrote that closing the Queen Elizabeth Driveway inconveniences more residents than it benefits.

The debate, Sutcliffe claimed, was not about whether to have active transportation corridors in the city, but where best to deploy them.

Two days later, an opinion piece by Tobi Nussbaum, CEO of the National Capital Commission, fired back, saying the capital's scenic parkways, like the Queen Elizabeth Driveway, are "key to creating a sustainable urban experience", which is more important than ever in the face of climate change.

The NCC has said in statements to CTV News Ottawa that its scenic parkways, like the QED, the Sir George-Étienne Cartier Parkway, and the Kichi Zibi Mikan, were never meant to be commuter routes.

With city council not sitting for a few weeks over the summer, the debate quieted down until Sutcliffe posted a video to social media, in which he claimed he had data to back up his assertion that few people are actually using the road while it's closed to cars.

"When I recorded it yesterday afternoon, not a single pedestrian or cyclist passed me for the entire two and a half minutes," he claimed.

The National Capital Commission stood firm in its support of its active use programs, saying it was "proud to provide safe, accessible, and unique active use experiences and destinations throughout the capital."

CTV News Ottawa's Josh Pringle obtained data the city compiled between July 25 and 30, which found just as many if not more pedestrians and cyclists used the roadway compared to the path more often than not. It rained on five of the six studied days, however, and the active use program ended early on one of the days because of an Ottawa Redblacks game.

A look at the number of pedestrian and cyclist trips on Queen Elizabeth Driveway and the pathway on six days in July. The city set up a camera at Queen Elizabeth Driveway and Linden Avenue.

Cyclists held a "critical mass ride" event on Aug. 12 to protest the mayor's comments and show support for the active use program.

The debate rose to the pages of the Globe and Mail on Aug. 21, in a piece by the national newspaper's editorial board that argued Sutcliffe's position is "too typical of past political leadership" and put too much emphasis on cars and motorists. It highlighted a proposal by architect Brandon Lind, who suggested turning the entire road into an urban park, with tennis courts, playgrounds, community gardens, and a public swimming pool.

"It's such an amazing space and waterfront that we have in the city and just having it as it is now could be improved," Lind told CTV News Ottawa.

The Ottawa-Gatineau Hotel Association also commissioned Nanos Research to conduct a survey on people's perceptions, which asks questions about how often respondents walked, biked or drove along the QED, whether respondents find the pathways satisfactory or unsatisfactory for active use and whether the daily active use program had a positive or negative effect. The assocation told Newstalk 580 CFRA it wanted independent research to get an accurate depiction on how the community feels. Results of the survey have yet to be released.

The future of the roadway is unpredictable at this time. A city of Ottawa spokesperson says a report on the participation in the Queen Elizabeth Driveway Active Transportation Program will be presented to the Transportation Committee this month. The commitee's next meeting is scheduled for Sept. 28.

This spring, Mark Goudie, CEO of the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group, told the city's finance committee that it's his understanding that the NCC is planning to expland its closure of the Queen Elizabeth Driveway to vehicles all the way to Preston Street and all eventually shut it down to vehicular traffic permanently.

The NCC said at the time that plans had yet to be made for the 2024 season.

--With files from CTV News Ottawa's Josh Pringle, Leah Larocque, and Dave Charbonneau, and Newstalk 580 CFRA.