City plans to rip out successful downtown cycle track this fall
(Photo by Matt Greer)
The 3rd Avenue South cycle track was introduced by the City of Calgary in 2020 as both a pathway detour for the Bow River Pathway reconstruction and as a long term solution to “create resilience in the area and future-proof our pathway and bikeway network.” Unfortunately, the City now intends to rip out the cycle track this fall despite its huge success.
The 3rd Ave South cycle track connects from 8 St SW to Centre St leading to a traffic calmed shared road (bikes and cars) from Centre St to 1st St SE.
6x increase in people cycling in only one year - according to unreleased city report
According to an unreleased city report obtained by Project Calgary under Freedom of Information (FOI) request, the 3rd Ave South cycle track saw a whopping 6x increase in the number of people cycling on 3rd Ave South in the first year alone. The majority of post-installation survey respondents reported feeling safe on the street and satisfied with the upgrades.
The City's unreleased 3 Avenue South Walking & Wheeling Upgrades Street Metrics Summary shows a massive 6x increase in people cycling on 3rd Ave South. It was supposed to be publicly released in Fall/Winter 2022 but is still withheld from the public as of June 2023. The report was recently obtained by Project Calgary through FOIP.
“Minimal” impact to parkade operations
The City analyzed before and after operations at local parkades to measure any impacts.
A second undisclosed report obtained through freedom of information (FOI) request by Project Calgary indicates that the cycle tracks and increased number of people cycling on 3rd Ave South did not impact parkade operations along the avenue. Recommendations to address peak period queuing issues in parkades while maintaining cycle tracks appear to have been ignored by the City, which is now opting to rip out the cycle tracks instead.
Report prepared for the City of Calgary by leading transportation planning and engineering firm Bunt & Associates and obtained through FOIP by Project Calgary indicates that the 3rd Avenue South cycle track had “minimal” impact on parkade operations along the avenue.
City ignoring its own Downtown Strategy and Climate Strategy
The 3rd Avenue Walking and Wheeling Upgrades project is cited in the City’s Downtown Strategy as a “strategic investment” in the plan to revitalize Calgary’s declining Downtown Core. Ripping out the cycle track would be counterproductive to attracting more residents and bringing vibrancy to the ailing Downtown Core, especially for developers hoping to attract new residents to live in the numerous city-subsidized, office-to-residential building conversions now underway.
Map of city-subsidized downtown office to residential conversions shows at least five of these conversions would be closely impacted by the removal of safe cycling infrastructure on 3rd Avenue South. (Source: City of Calgary)
The 3rd Avenue South cycle track is strongly supported by numerous City of Calgary policy and planning documents created by past and present City Councils including:
- Downtown Strategy
- Tomorrow’s Chinatown ARP
- Climate Strategy
- Calgary Transportation Plan
- Pathway and Bikeway Plan
- Centre City Mobility Plan
- Cycling Strategy
Making Downtown Calgary less safe and accessible for people walking and cycling would send a signal to potential newcomers and investors that the City’s Climate Emergency Declaration and Climate Strategy are empty gestures.
Unprecedented downtown support for 3rd Ave South cycle track
Over a dozen Greater Downtown organizations spanning community associations, arts and culture groups, social enterprises, private developers and businesses are asking the City to stand up for its Greater Downtown Strategy and keep the 3rd Avenue cycle track to support downtown community safety and vibrancy.
Shaw and Rogers, whose Calgary HQ is directly on 3rd Avenue, are among the many Greater Downtown supporters of the cycle track:
"With our employees returning to the office, the cycle track provides our employees with an affordable and alternative mode of transportation to safely get to and from work, while supporting viable options to help reduce our carbon footprint in alignment with our ESG objectives."
-Shaw / Rogers
⬇️ Click below to read the letters of support
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Red Mile Complete Street Advocacy Group |
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TAKE ACTION
1) 📋 Sign the petition!
Mayor Gondek and Downtown City Councillors Wong and Walcott must stand up for the Downtown Strategy and keep the 3rd Avenue South Cycle Track!
2) 📣 Spread the word
Share this petition with your friends and family!
3) 🥳 Join the list of supporters
Do you know an organization that would like to add their name to the list? Have them email us at [email protected].
