A couple of recent letters to the Citizen (March 19 and April 2) criticizing the imminent construction of bike lanes on Coronation Avenue and a federal funding motion defeat in North Cowichan are the catalyst for this letter.
The two letter writers complain that bike lanes will contribute to increased traffic congestion. Not true. Our car-centric attitude toward mobility is causing the congestion. Nearly every time we go somewhere we reach for the car keys! Bike lanes are intended to counter this habit. More bike lanes = more cyclists = fewer cars!
And another aspect of traffic congestion, on-street parking, was the focus of the defeated motion at North Cowichan's mid-February council meeting. Three councillors felt the loss of 50 parking spaces was not acceptable on a major arterial road. Sherman Road's primary purpose is to facilitate the movement of traffic, not the storage of residents' vehicles. And bike lanes will be an integral part of Sherman Road's function.
The loss of the funding opportunity is particularly disappointing because the grant program offered a 60 per cent portion for a qualifying project, higher than most, and came with a generous timeline free of the more common requirement of a project being “shovel ready” (design, engineering and community consultation completed prior to application). C'est dommage!
Although parked on the shelf for now, it is probable that the new North Cowichan council will have another chance to further the development of protected bike lanes on Sherman. Unfortunately, the delay will most likely translate into an increased cost to the taxpayers of North Cowichan.
It is interesting (exasperating for some of us) that Victoria's obviously successful cycling network and the clear support from Cowichan community members for MNC's new Master Transportation Plan and the CVRD's Regional Active Transportation Plan don't find a foothold in the minds of our local politicians.
Alex Haddad
East Glenora
