Cycling infrastructure (Separated bike lanes)

[Napoleon]

Richmond/Adelaide bike lanes are a pilot project. If council decides to make it permanent (which is almost 100% certain), there will be upgrades.

There will almost certainly be upgrades at some point. I think it's actually a fairly sound strategy. You don't scare the car people on council as much when you install a pilot project. Then once the lane is in and cyclist usage skyrockets it's easier to make permanent. Additionally, they've shown with data that there's been little to no impact on driving times for the streets.

There is actually already a lot of green paint in some places. The infrastructure though is a bit uneven. There are areas with great bollard protection and lots of green paint, and then there are areas with almost nothing. What's really missing is enforcement for vehicles parked in the cycle track. More than just ticketing, I would love to see points attached to this. Unlike a normal parking ticket, stopping in a cycle track directly endangers cyclists by forcing them to leave a safe area and ride in traffic.

 

[UserNameToronto]

It's an oddly mild December so far, and there are still a lot of cyclists on the road (and in these new bike lanes). On my morning commute I was in a pack of 10 - yes, 10 - cyclists headed westbound on Richmond at Jarvis. Strength in numbers, as they say...it bodes well for ridership next spring/summer.

 

[the lemur]

It's an oddly mild December so far, and there are still a lot of cyclists on the road (and in these new bike lanes). On my morning commute I was in a pack of 10 - yes, 10 - cyclists headed westbound on Richmond at Jarvis. Strength in numbers, as they say...it bodes well for ridership next spring/summer.

Weather aside, the separated lanes are really making a difference for me. They're faster than a lot of the more indirect east-west routes I used to take and now that it gets dark early, Richmond (which I take from Simcoe to Tecumseth) feels safer during the evening rush. The only other option that really competes with it and Adelaide is using Queen's Quay track (York-Dan Leckie, in my case), provided I have a little bit of extra time.

 

[UserNameToronto]

Jan/16 update:

It was a lovely dry winter morning: -5c and sunny. Somehow cyclist numbers have dropped off since the new year - I'm often seeing just 1 or 2 other cyclists in the lane with me now, even though the winter so far has been mild. The separated lanes on Sherbourne, Richmond, and Adelaide have been kept clear (thanks partly to tons of salt - the lanes have a white buildup 1-2cm thick in some places).

 

[nfitz]

Somehow cyclist numbers have dropped off since the new year .... The separated lanes on Sherbourne, Richmond, and Adelaide have been kept clear (thanks partly to tons of salt

It's be a few years since I've cycled, but my recollection is that the bike and salt didn't get along very well at all!!

Also, despite being a mild winter, it's definitely colder now, than it was before Christmas!

 

[the lemur]

Jan/16 update:

It was a lovely dry winter morning: -5c and sunny. Somehow cyclist numbers have dropped off since the new year - I'm often seeing just 1 or 2 other cyclists in the lane with me now, even though the winter so far has been mild. The separated lanes on Sherbourne, Richmond, and Adelaide have been kept clear (thanks partly to tons of salt - the lanes have a white buildup 1-2cm thick in some places).

This morning (Jan 20) was good as well: not too windy and the amount of snow boulders and piles of salt has decreased.

 

[the lemur]

It's be a few years since I've cycled, but my recollection is that the bike and salt didn't get along very well at all!!

Also, despite being a mild winter, it's definitely colder now, than it was before Christmas!

Salt is more of a problem when conditions are wet/slushy; it's why some people decide to ride a winter beater or else commit to cleaning their usual ride and if possible storing it indoors.

 

[UserNameToronto]

This morning (Jan 20) was good as well: not too windy and the amount of snow boulders and piles of salt has decreased.

Agree, this is the best winter cycling weather we've had in years - it does not get better than this! I swear there were more cyclists last year, which was much colder. It might just be the different time/route I'm commuting.

Salt is more of a problem when conditions are wet/slushy; it's why some people decide to ride a winter beater or else commit to cleaning their usual ride and if possible storing it indoors.

Also agree. If the salt is dry it's no different than riding on dirt or sand. My bike has a chain case and drum brakes, so the salt does not really get into the mechanical bits either.

 

[LNahid2000]

I was biking with 5 cyclists on Davenport during the afternoon rush yesterday. I was surprised there were still so many out in January! I usually don't bike at this time of year, but figured it was the best option to get from downtown to the junction yesterday with the subway being a zoo during rush hour.

 

[innsertnamehere]

the Richmond Adelaide lanes have remained fairly busy still, i'm far from alone when I ride on them.

 

[Filip]

If the lanes are to be permanent, then something needs to be done about the buses on that stretch. The morning/afternoon rushes turn into bikes and buses playing chicken (with most cyclists zooming around the bus and then yelling at the driver). Here's a hint dumbass.. Yielding to the bus applies to both vehicles and bikes... Gah.

 

[innsertnamehere]

^bikes are allowed to switch lanes, just like cars. Switching lanes into a car lane is legal. When a bus stops on a regular road to pick up passengers, cars can switch lanes to pass, they don't have to sit and wait while the bus picks up passengers. Its no different for bikes.

Getting angry at the bus is unnecessary though, for sure.

 

[the lemur]

^bikes are allowed to switch lanes, just like cars. Switching lanes into a car lane is legal. When a bus stops on a regular road to pick up passengers, cars can switch lanes to pass, they don't have to sit and wait while the bus picks up passengers. Its no different for bikes.

Getting angry at the bus is unnecessary though, for sure.

I haven't seen anyone on a bike getting angry at a bus on Adelaide ... ringing the bell, sure. And yes, you can go around. The yield law refers to letting a bus back into the lane you are in.

 

[UserNameToronto]

I haven't seen anyone on a bike getting angry at a bus on Adelaide ... ringing the bell, sure. And yes, you can go around. The yield law refers to letting a bus back into the lane you are in.

I think the "crazy" cyclists are more visible, but they are a minority. On Adelaide, I see cyclists waiting behind busses patiently. It is cumbersome to change lanes however, as there is an embedded streetcar track between Bay and Victoria...

 

[Admiral Beez]

I find that westbound Gerrard between Broadview and Parliament in the morning is becoming very busy with cyclists. A lot of cyclists jump the curb at Sackville St. to avoid the cars waiting from Sackville onwards, and instead ride on the sidewalk to Parliament - it's only a matter of time before a pedestrian gets hit by a cyclist there.

Wouldn't it be smart if part of the Regent Park development would be to shift the road southward, and copy the Queen's Quay model, with, starting from the north side of Gerrard: sidewalk, permanent bike lane, ROW for streetcars, and then east-west automobiles, then sidewalk?