Burrard Bridge bike lane to stay indefinitely

Protected bike lanes on the Burrard Street Bridge will become permanent, Vancouver City Council decided in a unanimous vote Thursday.

After years of wrangling over the bike lanes and a year-long, separated bike lane pilot project, representatives of the three civic parties on council – Vision Vancouver, the Coalition of Progressive Electors and the Non-Partisan Association – approved $2 million for a design for bridge rehabilitation that will include a permanent cycling lane.

"The separated bike paths created on the Burrard Bridge in July 2009 have been successful in creating a safer, more popular cycling facility," said Jerry Dobrovolny, assistant city engineer, in a staff report.

Dire predictions of traffic and transit chaos did not materialize and more than one million cyclists used the bridge since the pilot project began, according to the study.

"Over one million riders in less than a year shows that when you build safe, protected bike lanes, people of all ages will come and use them," said Mayor Gregor Robertson of the 26-per-cent increase in cyclists.

"The Burrard Bridge bike lanes have been a big success and helped make cycling and walking over the bridge safer for thousands of people every day."

Work is expected to begin in the fall with renovations on the west side to include "permanently installed barriers that will consume less road space and be more aesthetically compatible with the bridge than the existing pre-cast concrete barriers."

Coun. George Chow, a mechanical engineer, said: "Permanent modifications to the bridge could provide better cycling and walking facilities. Such changes can be incorporated into a major rehabilitation of this aging structure," said Dobrovolny, noting that bridge esthetics and heritage conservation principles will be protected.

Traffic patterns were also assessed.

"Transit operations appear to be unaffected by the bridge changes," said the report.

"The most noticeable change to vehicle traffic times is for trips approaching the north end of the bridge from the west along Thurlow or Pacific.

"Accessing the bridge from Georgia Street via Thurlow and Pacific now takes an average of one and a half minutes longer in the morning peak period and three minutes longer in the afternoon."

Some people are still not happy with the change.

"We don’t have enough lanes for the cars we got, let alone taking them away and giving them to bicycles, " said Black Top Cabs taxi dispatcher Don McColl.