cycling

Photo: The Queen Elizabeth Driveway. (Via National Capital Commission) In the midst of a city council-declared climate emergency, what does Ottawa’s Mayor Mark Sutcliffe deem to be his priority? Scratching away at what little space we have for safe, urban active transportation that reduces emissions and gives residents more options to stay healthy. ...

Photo: Residents enjoy cycling in May, 2020. Photo by Farah Kahn/OttawaStart.com. In addition to the existing weekends-only closure of the Queen Elizabeth Driveway, the National Capital Commission will now close the Sir John A. MacDonald and Sir George-Étienne Cartier Parkways to cars this weekend to enable active use. ...

“The White Bridge”, photo of the Bank Street Bridge by Alain Villeneuve, via the OttawaStart Flickr Group. (Via Bike Ottawa) Today City Council voted in favour of improving the Bank Street Bridge for people who ride bikes, walk, and roll. Council voted in favour of reducing the number of car lanes from four to three, and widening and converting the sidewalks into two-way multi-use paths on either side of the bridge. ...

“Winter Bike” by Christiane Wilke, via the OttawaStart Flickr pool. Getting out in the winter can be brutal. However, with the way that Ottawa’s winter is turning out, getting involved in winter activities shouldn’t be a hassle. So, strap on your winter boots, gloves, and helmet because cycling — winter cycling, to be specific — is an increasingly popular way to explore the city and get to your daily destinations. ...

Lots of bike business at Union Street Kitchen Cafe. Photo/@HansontheBike via Twitter. Just look at the trails, bikeways and main streets of Ottawa and it’s pretty clear that we live in a cycling city. Although many people bike even in the winter, the warmer months are definitely when most people get out and explore their community on two wheels. ...

Katy Chancey tweeted this picture of an Ottawa Police cruiser parked on a bike lane Tuesday evening. Lots of complaints recently about drivers going into bike lanes and staying put. Earlier this month, cyclist Lukasz Lukaszek tweeted about this car blocking the lane on O’Connor Street. ...

The city’s proposed redesign for the Slater and Elgin Street intersection, with a floating bike lane. The city says the concept is under review pending stakeholder feedback. The City of Ottawa has recently proposed redesigns for two downtown corridors — Rideau Street and Albert/Slater Streets — both of which I found surprising, considering the city’s “complete streets” policy. ...

Raised cycle tracks, similar to this example located near Prince of Wales Drive, are coming soon to Bay Street downtown. The City of Ottawa posted a construction notice last month that construction will begin this summer on new cycle tracks for Bay Street, for a five-block segment between Laurier Avenue and Wellington Street. ...

Bikes at the uOttawa campus. Photo by Jordan Schulz, used under a Creative Commons license. Bike to work month is over and, while I see others posting about 100+ kilometres logged for the last few weeks, I’ve finished it out with only about 46 km down. ...

Photo: Aftermath of a hit-and-run downtown that killed a cyclist on Thursday, May 16. (Photo/Gabriel Rivett-Carnac) It was a hit-and-run driver that killed a cyclist on Laurier Avenue Thursday, but the underlying cause of their death was bad road engineering. ...