Last month, the city experimented with a bike-only lane. This month, buses will have those exclusive rights.

The City of Guelph has announced that from Oct. 19 to 23, the northbound lanes of Gordon Street between Kortright Road West and South Ring Road will be transformed into what it is calling a transit priority corridor.

During this time, the right-hand curb northbound lane will be a bus-only lane, which the city says will “allow for more efficient transit service,” a post on the city’s website says.

The left-hand northbound lane will remain open to other vehicles, and the bike lane will remain accessible to cyclists.

“Only Guelph Transit vehicles will be permitted in the bus-only lane, and emergency vehicles responding to a call will continue to travel in the left-hand lane,” the post says.

“In the event that an emergency vehicle approaches from behind, motorists will be asked to move to the right and may temporarily enter the bus-only lane until the emergency vehicle has passed.”

In an email to the Mercury Tribune Thursday, Jennifer Juste, the city's sustainable transportation manager, said GO Transit buses would also be permitted in the bus-only lane.

Barrels will be placed along the lane to indicate the bus-only area, and there will be signs and a gap in the barrels for people to enter or exit properties and side streets.

The right-hand northbound lane of Gordon Street between Kortright Road and South Ring Road will be turned into a Guelph Transit-only lane from Oct. 19 to Oct. 23. The pilot project is part of the city's work to create a new transportation master plan. | City of Guelph graphic

The test of a bus-only lane follows the temporary setup of a protected bike lane on a section of Woolwich Street in September.