The City of Yorkton is proceeding with the first stages of its On Street Bikeway Plan following a decision at the regular meeting of Council Monday.
"In 2009 Council approved the City of Yorkton Cycling Network, which is an initiative of the Yorkton Active Transportation Collaborative. Included in the Cycling Network is the establishment of on street bikeways for Darlington Street and Gladstone Avenue," explained Darcy McLeod, Director of Community Development of Parks& Recreation with the City."These bikeways were approved as part of the 2010 Capital Budget process and as a result Associated Engineering, who was the engineering firm of record in the development of the Cycling Network, were engaged to complete the design of these on street bikeways. A steering committee, which was utilized to provide direction to the consultant, consisted of members from the Yorkton Active Transportation Collaborative, staff from the Planning and Engineering Department, the Public Works Department as well as Community Development, Parks and Recreation."
The bikeway on Gladstone Avenue extends from Bradbrooke Drive to York Road. The Darlington Street bikeway extends from Husky Road in the east to Gladstone Avenue on the west."The existing roadway was reviewed using the Transportation Association of Canada (TAC) Geometric Design Guide, taking into consideration the roadway width, lane configurations and parking to determine ways to fit the bikeway. The resulting design features a mix of dedicated bike lanes and shared use driving lanes," said McLeod.
The two streets involved initially are Gladstone Avenue and Darlington Street.
The Gladstone Avenue design resulted in a recommended conversion of one driving lane into a shared use driving lane in both directions for the entire distance with one exception. The portion of Gladstone Avenue between Broadway Street and Smith Street is relatively narrow to fit two driving lanes and one parking lane in each direction. A bikeway would only fit if one driving lane or a parking lane was removed and the steering committee suggested that removing a driving lane would be less disruptive pending the results of a traffic volume study.
The Darlington Street design resulted in a recommended conversion of one driving lane into a shared use driving lane in both directions for the entire distance with one exception. The portion of Darlington Street from Mayhew to 6th Avenue would convert one driving lane to a designated bike lane in each direction.
A major component of the cycling system's acceptance will be educating the public, said McLeod.
"Pending Council approval, the launch of this bikeway is scheduled for July 13th in order to prevent confusion with the large volume of traffic anticipated during the Yorkton Exhibition. The Yorkton Active Transportation Collaborative has received funding, and has begun work on a community awareness campaign to support the implementation of this bikeway. This education component will include signage on the roadways in advance of the launch to remain in place for a number of months, following media releases and educational materials. Also planned are various events and presentations aimed at educating motorists and cyclists about these changes and how to safely utilize the bikeway," he said.
