Cyclists concerned over delayed bike path to Vendome

Watch above: A cycling group is sounding the alarm on what they term “an accident waiting to happen” involving the divided bike path, or lack thereof, in the area. Billy Shields reports.  

WESTMOUNT – If you’ve ever been anywhere near Vendome metro, you know what kind of a headache it is, traffic wise.

A cycling group is sounding the alarm on what they term “an accident waiting to happen” involving the divided bike path, or lack thereof, in the area.

Tatjana Nisic regularly takes the divided bike path that extends down de Maisonneuve east into Montreal.

It’s the part of the street’s bike lane that lies west of St. Catherine Street that gives her pause.

“It’s usually a mess,” she said.

“For pedestrians, for cars, for everybody.”

The divider stops on de Maisonneuve past St. Catherine Street up past the Vendome Metro station, and bike traffic splits in two, merging onto the street in separate lanes that flow with traffic.

The problem, cycling advocates say, is that cyclists are suddenly forced to share the road with buses that cluster in the area for pickups and drop-offs.

“During rush hour this area’s totally chaotic with buses, pedestrians, cars, cyclists,” said Daniel Lambert, of the NDG Cycling and Pedestrian Association.

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“There’s 200 cyclists a day which use this bicycle path through here.”

In addition, Lambert’s organization estimates that traffic will increase by 40 percent after the so-called Superhospital comes on-line within the next six months.

“Right now it’s not a good situation, because there’s no clear indication of who gets to go first,” said Jeff Stroub, also of the association. “You’ve got to take your chances.”

Stroub said that city officials have pushed back plans to extend the divider by more than a year due to concerns expressed by the STM, the crown corporation that manages buses and the Metro in Montreal. STM officials were unavailable for comment Sunday.

Advocates are frustrated the path won’t be extended sooner.

“We really hope the city doesn’t wait until there’s a death in this area before reacting,” Lambert said.