Montreal cycling advocates say adding a bike path on Sherbrooke Street is a “no-brainer”.
They say it’s regularly used and its configuration lends itself to cars and cyclists sharing the road.
But implementing a path might not be as easy as they think.
Concordia University student Jia bikes between the downtown and Loyola campuses several times a week and they do roll on the artery.
“It’s faster and less crowded as well,” Jia says.
They mean less crowded and less dangerous than the existing bike path on De Maisonneuve Boulevard.
“It’s mostly a hot mess whenever you get onto Decarie Street and you have to climb that hill,” Jia explains.
It’s one of many reasons why Jia is asking elected officials to add a bike path on Sherbrooke.
They say several universities, including McGill, are along the way and would benefit.
Cycling advocate Mathieu Murphy-Perron agrees, saying many cyclists are already using Sherbrooke.
“People are avoiding De Maisonneuve more and more because of the dangers associated to Maisonneuve, so they need alternatives, and Sherbrooke is literally the only street in the city that does east-west,” Murphy-Perron says.
Murphy-Perron argues Sherbrooke is wide enough to host a bike path like the Réseau express vélo (REV) on St. Denis Street.
The REV features two separate lanes on each side of traffic and its considered a huge success with more than 1,000,000 rides a year.
While rearranging St. Denis to accommodate the path was a major headache for merchants, they are now reaping the benefits.
The street’s merchants association reported higher occupancy rates and higher sales after the path was implemented.
That’s what Naomi Jeong who runs Art et Fleurs flower shop on Sherbrooke hopes a similar bike path would do for them.
“I think it would allow the businesses around here to be more accessible,” Jeong says.
Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce borough officials say residents have brought up the idea and they like it, too.
“I think it’s an interesting idea and my goal since we came as an administration is to make our streets safer, and we know it’s proven, putting bike paths make streets safer,” says borough mayor Gracia Kasoki Katahwa.
But she says many steps need to be taken before they can start planning such a project.
“It takes a lot of coordination: for the lights, for the cars, for the buses, for the pedestrians,” Kasoki Katahwa says.
Talks with neighbouring cities, consultations and feasibility studies also need to be conducted.
With other projects on the drawing board already such as potentially reviving the Terrebone Avenue bike path, the mayor says they won’t be able to get a move on Sherbrooke until after 2025.