OTTAWA, 18 January 2011 — The board of Citizens for Safe Cycling (CfSC) supports the City of Ottawa's East-West Segregated Bike Lane Pilot Project because it will provide cyclists with a much-needed route through downtown, and it will encourage more people to use active modes of transportation. City Council's Transportation Committee is scheduled to vote on the project at its Feb. 2 meeting.

The 18-month pilot, requested by City Council in 2008, calls for bike lanes on both sides of Laurier Ave. between Bronson Ave. and Elgin St. Painted lines and other pavement markings will visually define the bike lanes, while concrete barriers and parking lanes will provide a physical separation between cyclists and motor vehicles. If the project is approved, the City will make the changes when it resurfaces that Laurier between Bronson and Kent St. this summer.

"The East-West Segregated Bike Lane Pilot Project is an excellent opportunity for our new City Council to show leadership for a safer, healthier Ottawa," says CfSC President Hans Moor. "The Laurier Avenue lanes will make cycling in Ottawa much more appealing, especially to people who would otherwise avoid the downtown core because they are afraid to bike in heavy traffic."

CfSC maintains that, while the Laurier Ave. bike lane pilot project may not be a perfect solution to Ottawa's transportation challenges, it does begin to address the need for a direct, cross-town bike route that maximizes safety and efficiency and minimizes any downside for motorists, residents and commercial interests. It will also help City Council meet its targets for increasing active transportation and decreasing dependence on cars.

"Any change requires a period of adjustment, but separate bike lanes have been shown to increase the number of cyclists while decreasing the number of accidents per capita," Moor says. "Better cycling infrastructure has also been shown to decrease traffic congestion and to boost business for local shops.

"By creating a greater sense of security for cyclists, we will encourage more people to cycle to work, to school or to the store. That's good for our health, it's good for overall traffic flow, and it's good for local businesses."

A 2009 study by the University of British Columbia, titled "The impact of transportation infrastructure on bicycling injuries and crashes," concluded that "purpose-built bicycle-only facilities (e.g. bike routes, bike lanes, bike paths, cycle tracks at roundabouts) reduce the risk of crashes and injuries compared to cycling on-road with traffic or off-road with pedestrians."

Also in 2009, the Clean Air Partnership concluded that new bike routes along Bloor St. in Toronto would have a positive economic impact, stating that "patrons arriving by foot and bicycle visit the most often and spend the most money per month." A City of Ottawa Origin-Destination Survey in 2005 found that 50 percent of cyclists are full-time workers, and 56 percent live in single detached dwellings.

The East-West Segregated Bike Lane Pilot Project is expected to cost between $1.17 and $1.43 million, which includes custom signage and traffic signal upgrades, as well as the cost of dismantling the bike lanes at the end of the trial period, if necessary. By comparison, the 4 km Terry Fox extension in Kanata is expected to cost $47 million.
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About CfSC
Citizens for Safe Cycling is a not-for-profit, membership-based organization that advocates for safer cycling, better bike routes and road conditions, and greater respect for cyclists in the Ottawa area. CfSC promotes cycling as a fun, healthy, safe, economical and environmentally-friendly form of transportation and recreation.

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