HALIFAX—The Halifax Regional Municipality is rolling ahead with its plan to connect the city’s sparse bike infrastructure over the next two years.

On Tuesday, members of Regional Council’s transportation standing committee passed a motion to approve the installation of 2.8 km of protected bike lanes in the downtown core. The four new lanes will run through some of downtown Halifax’s major arteries, including Hollis St., Upper and Lower Water streets, Terminal Rd. and George St.

“We’ll have a high-quality separated bike route on Hollis; this is amazing,” said Councillor Sam Austin during the meeting.

The new lanes will run southbound on Hollis St. from the Cogswell Interchange to Barrington St., northbound on Upper and Lower Water streets from Terminal Rd. to the interchange with East-West lanes on Terminal Rd. from Hollis St. to Lower Water St., and from Barrington St. to Lower Water St. on George St.

These lanes come as part of Halifax’s push to link up the city’s scattered bike infrastructure as part of the overarching Integrated Mobility Plan (IMP). The IMP outlines specific goals for active transportation in the city, including a target of 30 per cent of trips being made on foot, bike or bus by 2031.

The Hollis St. lane is scheduled to be built in 2019 and expected to cost $739,045 before taxes, according to the staff report.

Read more:

Halifax tackles a Common problem for cyclists with proposed new bikeways

Bike and bus lanes still on the chopping block as Halifax council again defers capital budget debate

Cogswell ready for the wrecking ball as Halifax council approves design

The new downtown lanes will form part of the all ages and abilities (AAA) bike network, which plans to lay 50 km of bike lanes in the regional centre by 2022.

Councillors at Tuesday’s meeting were excited to approve the lanes, but some questioned the city’s plan for snow clearing on the busy downtown lanes.

Staff told the committee that the lanes on Hollis and Upper and Lower Water streets would have a priority 3 standard for winter snow removal—the same priority as sidewalks in the area, but lower priority than the streets themselves. This means city crews would aim to clear the lanes within 36 hours after a storm.

“At this point we don’t have the equipment, we don’t have the experience, we don’t have the formal standard and so what you’re seeing is an abundance of caution,” said transportation and public works director Brad Anguish.

“This is the first time we’ve had a standard for clearing a bikeway,” said staff member David MacIsaac. “This will be kind of a learning process for our snow clearing folks.”

Staff expect that maintenance of all four lanes, including snow clearing, will cost just shy of $82,000 annually.

During the committee meeting, Councillor Shawn Cleary asked staff whether the new lanes will interfere with loading and unloading on some of downtown Halifax’s busiest streets.

The city considers Hollis and Upper and Lower Water streets to be both major vehicle arteries and full-time truck routes. Both streets see an average of 10,000 or more cars per day, and serve as the primary routes for trucks travelling in and out of the Halifax Port. There are also several bus stops along both routes.

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

Staff proposed the introduction of raised platforms at bus stops to create a shared track for bus-users and cyclists. There have been no examples of raised platforms in Halifax yet, but one is soon to be constructed on the South Park St. bike route.

The committee approved the new lanes unanimously, with the expectation that a further report on snow clearing will come to the committee in the fall.

Detailed designs and construction for the four lanes will be implemented in phases between 2019 and 2022.

Read more about: