Murray Wood: Who's scary... and who's scary good?
Every Friday, Murray Wood takes a look at the week's news and decides who's hot... and who's not. This week, in a specia...
Saskatoon city council has a busy day ahead of them on Monday, as they get set to vote on whether to make downtown bike lanes permanent and where a bus rapid transit system should be installed between 8th Street and the city core.
City staff are recommending a permanent downtown bike lane network, with the widely despised 4th Avenue bike lanes moved to 3rd Avenue.
The lanes on 23rd Street would be made permanent, and another set would be added on 19th Street.
Combined with sidewalk improvements to the downtown, the project would cost approximately $4.6 million.
City councillors will also vote on whether a planned bus rapid transit (BRT) system should run along Broadway Avenue or avoid it altogether and travel across the Sid Buckwold Bridge.
Some Broadway district business owners have expressed concern about what a BRT system would do to the feel of the district, while some have said they’d be okay with it as long as the buses don’t have dedicated lanes.
Administration is recommending that council approve the Broadway Avenue corridor for BRT, but has advised council to hold off on a decision on dedicated bus lanes. To start, the BRT buses would be provided with traffic signal priority technology, which would provide more green lights as byses travel along Broadway.
City councillors dealt with passionate pleas on both BRT and bike lanes over the weekend.
Ward 6 Coun. Cynthia Block said on Twitter she had received dozens of emails in support of the recommended plans, while others tweeted at her to reject the bike lanes.
“I wasn’t expecting that,” she said of the support.
Cycling enthusiasts have also planned a rally Monday.
Saskatoon Cycles has put out a call for cyclists to gather outside city hall as a show of support for the downtown bike lane network. The demonstration is set to begin at noon.
