Cycling advocates raise concerns with plan for bike lane on Wellington Street

Part of the plan to reopen Wellington Street in front of Parliament Hill features bike lanes, encouraging more people to get around downtown Ottawa on two wheels.

The problem is cycling advocates say the lanes aren't planned well and they could even be dangerous for cyclists. 

"You’re not going to convince your grandma to get on a bike on this kind of infrastructure," said Patrick Munro.

He tested out the new bike lanes between Elgin and Bank streets but found they abruptly end when right-turn lanes appear on Wellington Street. In the past. Munro has had some close calls.

“I’ve had near misses and I’ve been clipped in my handlebars by people (near) Rideau Street and it was absolutely terrifying,” Munro said. 

For more than a year, the stretch has been closed to motorized vehicles, a result of the so-called 'Freedom Convoy' that occupied downtown Ottawa streets for more than three weeks. Pedestrians and cyclists are enjoying the car-free zone.

“This layout shows we prioritize car traffic, not people biking," said Florence Lehmann with Bike Ottawa.

The advocacy group has been pushing to keep Wellington Street closed to vehicles.

However, with the city of Ottawa pushing ahead with plans to open Wellington Street to vehicles this spring, advocates want more safeguards in place.

"We want to see a protected bike lane with concrete curbs that separate you from motorized traffic. This is safer than flex post,” said Lehmann.

“Everyone wants to get where they’re going safely… we had an opportunity to make that happen and unfortunately I see some weak links,” said Munro.

On Wednesday, city council passed the Transportation Master Plan which includes a remake of Wellington Street. Councillor Ariel Troster says that will include a fully raised cycle track, but it is still in its early stages. 

“As part of the motion to re-open Wellington, I made sure we had a provision to put in a temporary bike lane, that includes paint and flex posts,” Troster said. “They're not the permanent ones but at least they're getting us somewhere when we open up the streets to active transportation.”