The NPA, once again, doubled down on its anti-bike-lane strategy by voting against an Engineering recommendation for a separated route on the Cambie Bridge.
As noted below, the Globe and Mail is mystified at this a traditional NPA platform issue:
. . . . Any party that bucks the worldwide cycling trend risks branding itself as a band of troglodytes. It’s a bit like railing against the internet: not a smart move for a party that needs to grow its base and freshen its image.
After losing two elections with bike-lane opposition as a prominent plank, why do they keep doing this? They’ve also voted against the removal of the Viaducts, and their mayoral candidate last time (and maybe this time) had as his key transportation strategy the facilitation of car traffic in and through the city. (The Curious Case of the Counterflow Lanes).
How far is the NPA from where the world is going? Here’s an example:
Markus Shaw has worn many hats in his lifetime. The 58-year-old former lawyer turned businessman and environmental campaigner – and grandnephew of late TVB creator Sir Run Run Shaw – is now busily promoting an ambitious scheme to pedestrianise one of Hong Kong’s most crowded, polluted roads.“That’s a direction in which I feel Hong Kong should be going and I’m convinced will be going, because more and more people will see and understand that our current car-focused transport policy is unsustainable.
“When I first went to China in the early ’80s, most of the cities were bicycle-focused. Now they have become car-focused cities and they are experiencing all the problems that come with that: congestion, pollution and destruction of old neighbourhoods. I’m sure they will be moving back to pedestrian-focused, bicycle-focused city planning as well. It’s inevitable.”
Maybe the NPA strategy is ‘Keep Vancouver Suburban!’
The only meaningful traffic improvements in Vancouver: more bike lanes. Gregor’s only legacy. Congrats !
Brilliant. No subways, no more tunnels or bridges, no tolled higher capacity highways in tunnels, just more immigration and construction of tower but nothign in terms of meaningful infrastructure improvements.
Of course Cambie is poorly designed with poor access to seawall on either side and no bike lanes at all.
Why not hang a bike land below ?
How about:
– Safety improvements for all users at both ends of Burrard Bridge
– Safety improvements for all users and improved traffic flow at Knight/.Marine intersection
– Powell St overpass
I;m sure there are many more
Note that bike lane on Cambie bridge will have zero effect on motor traffic but will improve safety for all users. Bridge height is probably set by federal government so under bridge bike path is not allowed. Also, any other approach would be very costly.
Other items mentioned are regional in nature, so CoV has little influence in these matters, though they have pushed very hard for a skytrain extension in Vancouver.
I disagree. There have been many non-cycling traffic improvements. (I also wish there were more though.)
The Burrard Bridge and the intersections on both ends are much better for driving than before.
The intersection of Marine Drive and Knight Street was the most dangerous intersection in the city and now is safer. All done for motor vehicles and very little cycling stuff in the project.
There have not even been enough bike lanes built for the demand. If any other person or party had been in power the last ten years there still would have been bike lanes. This is just the times we are in and what people want.
All the usual repaving, pothole filling and usual maintenance of motor vehicle infrastructure continues. Not being new it doesn’t make headlines though.
There of course is much room for improvement but so much more could happen. Things like subways take many years to plan and build so they should be planning a multiple lines so that there can be always a new one being built at any given time. I would like to see at least two more lines being planned and designed while they concentrate on the Broadway one.
The media frames everything to make it seem like their only focus is on cycling but it’s just simply not true.
first I will read the paper as a opinion piece from Adrienne Tanner, and not as a position endorsed by the Globe and Mail editorial board: that is at least what read the newspaper!
Second Thomas says: The only meaningful traffic improvements in Vancouver: more bike lanes. Gregor’s only legacy
You are probably right it will be probably the only transportation legacy thought it should not be minimized since the symbolic of it is pretty high (especially the Burrad bridge project or the Point Grey road one, in order to effectively shift policy and mind toward a more bike friendly city. Some other improvement, like the said “pedestrian improvement” on Burrard bridge, are basically the return to the pre-bike lane situation, and more generally allother noticed improvements steam from a bike lanes first agenda.
Mr. Affleck says the NPA’s transportation policy will be fine-tuned before the next election and will likely emphasize transit and pedestrian traffic.
“It is unlikely bike lanes will be as much of a priority as they have been [under Vision].”
Adrienne Tanner believes “That could be a big mistake. Cycling has become so popular, even some of the harshest critics have become bike lane supporters.”
At least the Kitsilano park bike lane controversy and ensuing election proves her wrong.
More generally we can hope a right move from the NPA. Pedestrians and Transit users have been neglicted for too long by Vision, and NPA can make a difference here:
See again the NEFC report: no segregated row for the streetcar is planned here, when such has as always been in the card (Pacific Bld, west of Nelson, 1st avenue…)
NPA could be much more pro-transit active, learn from the King street streetcar experience at the difference of the belaguered Vision…and finding that most of the Translink financial woes come of very inefficient Vancouver transit operation come up with an aggressive transit priority agenda, on some keys arterial (starting by Georgia, Commercial and Main), and still reframing the bike lane discussion in a more holistic transportation scheme, where bike lanes are welcome but shouldn’d work against transi, but compliment it.
We just have hope for that, since the probable alternative to NPA will be the reactionary Vancouver greens and its regressive views on transit.
Several things wrong here.
The Burrard Bridge’s remake stems from the need to replace the sewer line. All other things were tacked on to it.
Transportation policy was shifted long before Vision even existed decades ago. They were just the first to effectively implement it.
The Cambie Bridge trial bike lane is really for the benefit of pedestrians. The plan for a bike lane on Cornwall was switched to York for the benefit of bus riders.
Having a place at the table is not the same thing as having the upper hand. Cycling was disenfranchised for a long long time. Now that it’s starting to be included in the mix of travel modes some people interpret that as going against the natural order of things. They will have to get over that.
When you’re pretty much bankrolled by a single donor maybe your platform will reflect his worldview?
As an aside, I noticed that the above Globe & Mail journalist formerly worked as an editor with the Vancouver Sun. That makes about a half dozen former Sun journos now working at the Globe at least in a consultant or contracted capacity. I take that as a comment not just on Postmedia’s financial predicament but on the success of the Globe to maintain its integrity while social media pummels all papers.
Last Saturday’s edition featured another very long investigative piece (six pages punctuated by a few ads) by Stephanie Nolan, this one about the impact of a highway through the Amazon. Gone are the days the Sun published such a piece. The last one I can remember was a multiple-edition article on Simon Fraser by one of my fave journos, Stephen Hume. That work ended up in an excellent book which now occupies a prominent place on my shelves.