A key east-west cycling connection at the University of Ottawa could be closed for the summer as it undergoes a major facelift as part of light rail construction.

In early May, the tunnel underneath Nicholas Street and the Transitway, which is used heavily by those travelling between the campus, Sandy Hill and the west side of the Rideau Canal, will close for at least 12 weeks as crews tear down the Transitway bridge and reconfigure an adjacent plaza as part of construction of the new uOttawa LRT station. The Nicholas overpass will not be replaced, partly because Nicholas will be used by some OC Transpo buses that would normally travel along the Transitway.

The spot is a crucial linchpin for east-west travellers, as it connects a cycling spine that includes the Corktown Footbridge over the canal and the new Adàwe crossing over the Rideau River.

“This is basically the cycling equivalent of the 417 in terms of cycling through downtown,” said Daniel Spence, the university’s sustainable transportation manager.

But as anyone who’s ever walked or biked there knows, it’s a total mess of blind spots and potentials conflicts between cyclists and pedestrians.

The poorly-marked cycling lanes run down the centre of the tunnel, while pedestrians are supposed to stick to the sides. A large S-curve, likely designed for people who use wheelchairs or electric scooters, weaves from one side of the plaza, while pedestrians walk up a staircase in the middle. The two paths cross at several points, while another staircase off to one side connects to the upper platform of Campus station, which brings hundreds of people to this small plaza every hour.

Meanwhile, as more people have taken up cycling as a way to get around — and the city has encouraged as much by building cycling and pedestrian bridges nearby — the pressure here has only increased.

According to Spence, it’s also a key spot for the university, which acknowledges that the LRT will be, in the long run, a benefit, even if it brings with it some short-term headaches.

“We’ve been taking in stride things that would otherwise be hard to swallow,” he said.

The university has been meeting monthly with city officials to discuss LRT construction, Spence said, adding he’s seen at least four different sets of drawings for how the plaza might look once the $2.1-billion Confederation line opens in 2018.

Spence said the new plan aims to essentially keep cyclists on one side of the plaza and pedestrians on the other.

Given that Campus station is set to close in less than two weeks, he’s hoping the city and OLRT Constructors, the group building the LRT line, come forward soon with a detailed plan for the corresponding tunnel closure.

City councillors are also eager to hear what’s going to happen.

They say city officials are meeting daily with OLRT to come up with a plan both sides can live with.

“There’s been progress, but no confirmation,” said Rideau-Vanier Coun. Mathieu Fleury.

If the tunnel closes completely, one option for cyclists would be to cross Colonel By Drive and then immediately veer to the left and follow a path that would connect to Laurier. The pathway along the canal also hooks up with Laurier.

Somerset Coun. Catherine McKenney says the detour may not be too arduous for cyclists, but something must be done for pedestrians, especially Golden Triangle residents who currently use Campus station.

She wants a shuttle service to run during morning and afternoon peak periods down Elgin and Laurier to deliver people to the nearest Transitway stop.

“I don’t support the closure of the tunnel until we come up with a way to get residents to a Transitway station,” she said.

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