While the City of Montreal will attempt to clear the bike path on de Maisonneuve for year-round cycling, Westmount has no such intentions. The section of the bike path between Green and Atwater reverts to on-street parking between mid-November and April.
Although the measure provides extra parking for clients of Westmount Square and Place Alexis Nihon, it makes these destinations – as well as Dawson College – more difficult and dangerous to access by bike. East-bound cyclists find themselves heading into oncoming, one-way traffic and must either brave it for 2 blocks or make a 2-block detour onto Ste-Catherine street.
18 comments
Well done, only make sense.
The quantity of people that will use those parking spaces far outweight cyclist in the colder months.
Good move by Westmount. The rest of that bike path should have been seasonal. Having a year-round bike path is so stupid. In summer, it’s great. In winter, why take away all that parking?
I am an urban ‘commuter’ cyclist in Montreal, but I don’t ride much in the winter. Not so much because of the cold, but rather because I really REALLY do not like riding in the dark! I have enough problems with drivers not seeing me in the daylight, riding in the dark (during the peak hours no less) just seems to be asking for trouble.
Until recently, I have not been much of a fan of the city’s bike lanes either. I really don’t feel comfortable on the bi-directional ones. The single lane paths painted on the road (such as on St. Urbain or in the reverse direction on Clark and Milton) are more to my taste. Nonetheless, I notice that there are improvements being made all the time and the network is starting to come together into something which is functional for commuter cyclists like myself.
Concerning keeping the bike lanes clear of snow in the winter – I personally think that this is wasted effort. Until there is a truly functional and well-connected bicycle network in the city, I think that it is better to keep the sidewalks clear for pedestrians.
I am riding my bicycle now for the third winter in Montreal (and am seeing many other cyclists). I find that since some parts of the bicycle paths network close due to parking, I have to change my route to take either a big Boulevard or a complicated mesh of little streets. There is enough parking space in the summer, so why extend parking in the winter anyway? And if you think that it is difficult finding parking in Montreal, look at some European cities.
Not clearing parts of bike paths essentially takes away my mobility after a snow storm, when the larger roads have been cleared, but due to excess snow on the sides I am unable to pass beside cars, nor on the sidewalk, and I have to push the bicycle through high snow – very frustrating on a 6km commute. How would you like to have to push your car for most of your route?
All this could be avoided by just leaving open and clearing the priority parts of the bicycle network, equaling maybe to route 15, 25 and 40 for cars. Bicycles on dedicated bike path can pass much faster than cars in their post-snowstorm gridlock and more people would switch. Remember, in the space that one car takes, several bikes can pass, yielding much higher benefit for clearing a single lane from snow for the bicycles!
1) we’re not in europe, parking is very hard in montreal, even harder in the winter.
2) you presume that roads are magically and instantly clean for vehicles, they’re not. The masses (buses and taxis too!) have to deal with it, i don’t understand why such a tiny minority have to enjoy such a luxury. And since biking wasn’t intended to be a winter activity anyways, my suggestion is to live with the consequences or find yourself a nice bus route for the winter months.
malek,
ad 1) you obviously never had to search for 1 hour for a parking space, to only find one in another arrondissement more than 1 km away – consider yourself lucky about not having made that kind of experience :-)
ad 2) i am asking that people choosing a different mode of transport not be discriminated against. please explain to me how that is luxury if i want to be able to pass as soon as people using other forms of transport can pass?
as to your suggestion (biking not a winter activity), i feel it is discriminating against people that do not live the way you do in your (presumed) suburban/car niche … let me add that every cyclist means one car less on the congested roads where you’re driving, aside from not polluting our common space, therefore improving everyone’s quality of life.
thank you for your attention
Malek wants everyone to pollute. That is his purpose in life, or at least in posting here.
Parking along there has always been difficult, and it’s the usual suspects that clog everything up and unnecessarily pollute trying to hustle for a spot. Westmount has it’s own laws, which can be a good/bad thing in relation to the fact that it borders downtown.
We have been doing it wrong for a long time and anything that gives priority to personal automobiles is truly backwards, regardless of perceived “needs” or time of year.
I nearly got mowed down by a cyclist running a red the other day on de Maisonneuve. Worst of all he yelled at me to move out of the way. Not to mention they frequently swerve all over the place in traffic, and never shoulder check. They just veer in and expect everyone to cater to them.
Perhaps if cyclists want the same rights as drivers, they should have the same responsibilities. This includes obtain a license and passing a safety course.
@ Mr Robertson:
I seriously doubt that more bureaucracy, city fees, and licensing regimens would curb bad cycling habits. Licensing certainly doesn’t seem to have much effect on the idiot drivers in this city.
I personally find it to be the pedestrians who are the group with the most dangerous and reckless road habits. They rarely ever check in the right direction when jaywalking, and cross the bike lanes with impunity.
One must always look before crossing the street, even when you have the green light. It’s common city road sense, my friend.
“I nearly got mowed down by a cyclist running a red the other day on de Maisonneuve. Worst of all he yelled at me to move out of the way. Not to mention they frequently swerve all over the place in traffic, and never shoulder check. They just veer in and expect everyone to cater to them.”
I almost got run over trying to cross des Pins yesterday on foot (in a crosswalk, with a walk signal in front of me, thank you very much) by a Volkswagon turning right without signalling or, apparently, looking first; its driver then honked at me as I scrambled shellshockedly to get out of its way. A few months ago I was driving down Parc and had to brake frantically to avoid hitting a pedestrian crossing against the light. This does not mean I excoriate either drivers or pedestrians as an entire population. Perhaps other groups are due the same respect?
Finally; a district that has a clue!
Considering you can actually bike MAYBE 3 months out of year, wasting parking space and tax payers money makes absolutely no sense! Montreal (or rather le Quebec) is already at the forefront of international urban ridicule; adding bike paths to already narrow and lousy road design, will do nothing more but increase the laughter of those mocking from the outside. There are many in the French Canadian gov’t that have what I refer to (in French so that they can understand as well), le complexe des riches; an inferiority complex towards those with a little more money, and they do everything imaginable to be a royal pain in everyone’s ass!
Not only are 99% of bikers rude, but they are dangerous and abide by no street rules. Come winter time, with the ice and the snow storm, these ‘convenient’ bike paths will do nothing more than stall up traffic and be dumping yards for snow trucks.
You simply gotta love French Canadian common sense! Vive le QC!
Jason, congratulations! I think you’ve succeeded in leaving the most ridiculous, ignorant, and just plain stupid comment ever left on SpacingMontreal! And, as a moderator, I’ve read every single comment posted here.
I’m not sure what city you’re living in, but to suggest that one can bike “MAYBE 3 months out of [sic] year” leaves me to believe that you’re confusing Montreal for Antarctica. Even the frailest biker would be able to handle the weather in Montreal for at least 5 months of the year (May to September) and most cyclists would agree that the weather between April and October are more is more than adequate for riding a bike. I buy a Metro pass for only 4 months of the year and I live way the hell up in Villeray and go every day to Concordia. When I lived nearer to downtown, I biked all year.
I think you might be disappointed to find out that the people ridiculing Montreal for its friendliness towards bikes are in the vast majority as this (now, quite outdated) article in the Gazette http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=a34013bf-a825-42c4-93dd-07e592d52722 would suggest. As would the thousands upon thousands-the most (by far in North America, even despite our climate) of cyclists who criss-cross the island everyday.
Furthermore, I don’t see how language has anything to do with the bike paths in the city. Hell, if you want to take your anger out on anyone, you might want to look at your fellow anglos as well. Bicycle Bob (also discussed in the article linked above), an anglo, was one of the best known cycling activists in the city. He was fighting for the de Maisonneuve bike lane that you so loath decades ago.
Lastly, I’m not going to dignify your assertion that 99% of bikers are rude and dangerous with a response.
Chris; let me begin by saying that I didn’t mean to offend you or anyone else. I’m simply stating my opinion. I lived in Montreal for 3 years so yes, I know what it’s like here. Montreal is one of the greatest cities in the world, but unfortunately, as far as gov’t and efficiency goes, it’s beyond ridicule. Not only are you the highest taxed province in Canada, but you’re the one that makes the least income to begin with. Combine that with other horrid proofs of inefficiency (i.e. every been sick and needed to see a doctor at the hospital? GOOD LUCK!, Add to that appalling road conditions, bridges falling apart and killing innocent civilians, etc, etc…I could go on you know; this is all public information, Im not making any of this up. Oh and here’s the cherry on the cake…a tax on top of a tax. That my friend takes the gold medal. LOL. So yes, I do think Quebec is one of the most inefficient places out there. In my opinion, if Montrealers were taxed 100%, the province would STILL be in debt. Again, don’t get me wrong. I am not ridiculing the people or anyone in particular, I am simply stating FACTS. Most people are sheep here; lazy sheep. No one ever stands up and complains, and as a result, of course, you get walked all over.
Montreal urbanism the way I see has not changed much over the past 70 years. Only difference, there are tons more people living and driving there, and yet, the same number of roads (shitty roads I must add). So how are things evolving here? Exactly. So when you get a bright idea like cutting off MORE roads for a ridiculous bike path; yes, you are setting yourself up for more ridicule. Not only are weather temperatures in Montreal NOT suited for long term biking (shall I remind you of your last summer 2008 and winter 2007), but the way the roads and traffic and construed; it poses an even bigger danger for the bikers themselves. It’s bad enough that in Quebec, 18 wheeler trucks are allowed on the same roads as civilians. What kind of moronic decision is that? Most modern countries have roads for trucks only. Bikes do not belong in everyday traffic no matter how good any one thinks they are on a bike.
And yes, most bikers that I came across in while in QC are extremely rude; riding their bikes in the middle of the road as if they owned it and not giving a damn to anything known as etiquette and politeness.
If you want a bike path; then make sure that the entire urban planning map is upgraded accordingly. Patch work will only blow up in your face.
I bike all year, and use the Maisonneuve bike path a lot because I study and work at Concordia. It’s a wonderful thing, and though it’s not very busy in the winter yet, it’s worth keeping open in order to allow the public the choice of biking.
To close down a bike path in the winter as Westmount has done, is to tell cyclists to put away their toys and to buy a car for the cold months.
In the meantime, I have been snowbiking for four years now, and have noticed a lot of advantages to it. For one, I no longer experience ‘February blahs’ which is a pretty common sickness among Montrealers. Also, the streets are quieter in the evening in the winter, and this means that evening tours of various neighborhoods become more peaceful and even historical feeling.
That Jason is so angry with French Canadian governance seems to indicate that he is trolling in an ironic way. That cyclists don’t follow the rules that were created for cars isn’t a sign of rudeness so much as a symptom of the ad hoc nature of our current traffic situation. Cars continue to create hell, while cyclists try to cut through the slime and noise in the best way they can. Cars stop at their lights and blow their horns when they’re angry, while cyclists are forced to make due with the garbage traffic that is slowly disappearing thanks to Osama and The Great Depression.
This is a non-argument. Most drivers just don’t have the facts. People biking, walking, bussing, etc. is good for everyone. If everyone in montreal drove it would require a billion dollar investment in highway infastructure that would make this beautiful city look like downtown Mississauga (if you haven’t been there I encourage you to check it out).
On the other side if more people biked, the city would:
1) Save millions each year in road maintenance and construction.
2) There would be less land use by roads so more space could be freed up for property yeilding a)increased tax revenue for the city b)lower property taxes for the average joe c) more population closer to downtown making it more affordable to live closer thus allowing for more of the population to walk, bike, etc, and reducing housing cost downtown d)quieter cities that are more safe for our children
Every biker on the street frees up one parking place. Does anyone else notice that it is easier to find parking in the summer than in the winter? With parking being freed by closing bike paths you’d think it would be the opposite. When I’m biking, it is cars and traffic lights that slow me down. You guys are getting in my way, and it’s my high city taxes that are paying for the roads that I hardly use.
As an asside, it has been shown that people who commute by bike make more money on average than people who drive! Once again, who is paying for the roads? Not to mention the cost to our healthcare system by fatty drivers.
Thank you for listening, now I gotta go burn around the city in my studded tired hummmer with a piano on the roof.
Since when it’s easier to find parking in the summer in Montreal compared to the winter?? Hello? Do you even have a car? Do you have any idea what you are talking about?
In the winter, streets are clogged with snow, making things difficult for parking, but in the summer, people go out much more often, there’s much more tourists and compound that with retarded street closures and it’s as bad or worse finding parking.
In my personal experience, finding parking in the enlarged downtown disctrict is extremly painful in the summer, much more so than in the winter.
People who commute on bike make more than people in cars!?!? oh my god, please back that up with some source because this is the most ridiculous comment this far i have ever heard from a pro-cyclist lobbyist such as yourself.
I drive a car & a bike so I understand a bit of both worlds. I mostly use my car on road trips up north or down south, but in Montreal I prefer bike and wish they would charge more fees for those driving their personal cars in the city. If you’re in the city get on a bus or a bike, that’s the only way things will change. BRYAN has made the best point of every comment here, although I wish he had a source to back up some statements but still I agree with his reasoning. If we had more direct & safe cycle paths and make cars have to drive around, than more people would resort to bicycle & bus which would free up roads for IMPORTANT traffic like police, fire, medical, delivery trucks, snow plows, busses, trams, Taxis (but made more expensive)? etc. In my opinion the perfect Montreal would be one where those are the only vehicles that would ever be on the road. If you want a personal car save it for off island or out in the country… but in such a close city everyone should use bikes or bus (and if we had less cars on our city roads our BUS & bike systems would be that much more efficient in time and space management make those systems just as good to use in the long run)