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Province’s bike lanes bill appears to have limited local impacts

Province’s bike lanes bill appears to have limited local impacts

A sign points cyclists to the Paris-Notre Dame Bikeway. Tyler Clarke / Sudbury.com The provincial government’s proposed actions to limit bike lanes are unlikely to…

Monday, Nov 04

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A sign points cyclists to the Paris-Notre Dame Bikeway. Tyler Clarke / Sudbury.com The provincial government’s proposed actions to limit bike lanes are unlikely to have much of an impact in Greater Sudbury.

That said, the legislation is ambiguously written, making it unclear whether it might delay the creation of future bike lanes.

At issue is Bill 212 , called the “Reducing Gridlock, Saving You Time Act,” which recently received second reading and is in the public comments stage (consultation closes Nov. 20).

The legislation, if passed, would require municipalities to obtain government approval before adding bike lanes where vehicle lanes are removed. Bike lanes built in the past five years would also be evaluated by the province.

It also cites three major arterial roads in Toronto as having problematic bike lanes which would be removed.

Drawing from past and ongoing bike lane projects, city Linear Infrastructure Services director Joe Rocca told Sudbury.com the City of Greater Sudbury wouldn’t have much of an issue with Bill 212 in the event it were to pass.

That said, applying to the province for future bike lanes might create some additional work.In recent years, two bike lane projects resulted in a reduction of vehicle lanes,The first was a stretch of Elm Street in Sudbury from Ethelbert Street to Regent Street, which narrowed vehicle lanes from four to three and added bike lanes on both sides.Constructed in 2018, Rocca noted that it’s outside the five-year window the province is looking at, but offers a good example of what the […]

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