A plan to move cyclists through the core using a network of pathways and cycle tracks has been recommended by city council and will be referred to the Transportation and Transit Committee for approval later this month.

On Tuesday morning, representatives from the city revealed the plans for the proposed Centre City Cycle Track.

The tracks separate cyclists from other traffic by a physical barrier and are designed to minimize potential conflicts between pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.

The Centre City cycle track will connect the Elbow and Bow River pathways through the core and some of the routes have drawn a lot of criticism from area residents.

A portion of the proposed track will run along 1 Street S.E. and eliminate one lane of traffic on 25 Avenue all the way to the Bow River.

A pilot bicycle study is also proposed for Stephen Avenue and that has some pedestrians concerned.

"Several concerns have been raised about the prospect of cycling on Stephen Avenue, they primarily have to do with the safety of pedestrians. How can lots and lots of bikes work with people that are walking, especially during busy times. Our analysis shows that the busiest times for bicycles in the centre city, if we look at 7 Street southwest, the busiest on-street bike route, and we look at the busiest pedestrian times for a route like Stephen Avenue, those times do not coincide," said Blanka Bracic, Transportation Engineer.

Bracic says the busiest time on the mall for bikes is during the commute and for pedestrians is during the lunch hour and that they believe they can come up with a plan to satisfy all stakeholders.

A number of information sessions will be held over the next two days so residents can get a chance to better understand the process and design of the cycle track network.

They will be held at the following times and locations:

  • Hotel Arts (119 12 Avenue S.W.), Wednesday, April 9, 5-8 p.m.
  • Devonian Gardens (#400, 317 7 Avenue S.W.), Thursday, April 10, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
  • Dragon City Mall (328 Centre Street SE), Thursday, April 10, 2:30-5 p.m.

If the proposal is approved at the committee level on April 16, it will then go to a vote before council on the 28th.

The one year pilot project is expected to be fully operational by next summer at a cost of $11.5M.

"Our plan is to install all of these tracks at once and pilot them as a network for one year. We want to open the network in 2015," said Bracic.

Bracic says the pilot period is important as it gives them immediate feedback and allows them to make adjustments quickly. "We also want to collect information on how it's working and that shows us, in the one year of information that we will collect, the success of this network and then we can decide, council can decide, if it's working to leave it, to change it, or to remove some things that aren't working so well."

For more information on the Centre City cycle track, click HERE.