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Letters: Where are the cycling improvements?

I’m particularly disappointed about usability and safety around Scott Road
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North Delta resident James Gray would like to see far more cycling improvements in light of Delta’s recent approval of its Cycling Master Plan. Photo courtesy James Gray

Editor:

Re: Delta’s cycling master plan

I haven’t seen any major AAA projects from it implemented yet. Nor have I seen movement on some of the low hanging fruit like community bikeways.

Recently I ended up in North Delta due to rental circumstances. Biking around I can see why there are so many high priority routes for that area now, as the roads are much more dangerous than those in Ladner.

I’m particularly disappointed about usability and safety around Scott Road. What painted bike lanes or sharrows that currently exist leading toward Scott Road all seem to evaporate 200m from the commercial artery, leaving users trying to compete with cars racing to make the light or forcing them on to the narrow existing sidewalks.

80th Street is one of the high priority bike lanes for getting AAA quality protected infrastructure as per the cycling master plan. Instead, after recent repaving work, it got an unbuffered bike lane. This lane is squarely in the door zone between parked cars and an ever busier street. I hope this is merely an interim solution until greater capital can be acquired for quality infrastructure, because the current situation is not clearly superior to a total absence of bike infrastructure in that area.

In summary I hope quality infrastructure projects are built in a timely manner rather than a continuation of unsafe designs that prioritize parking over the safety of vulnerable road users.

James Gray