Location
The path for cyclists as suggested by the city is along the blue line. The red dot is the location of the difficult intersection.
This topic is for cyclists travelling east on Innes Rd. The designated City of Ottawa cycling route has cyclists turning left onto Innes, rather than straight on the Blackburn Hamlet Bypass. There are two lanes for straight-through traffic, and two left-turn lanes.
The speed limit is 80km/hr.
The problem
Cyclists are expected to take a left (from Innes onto Innes), but need to get to the middle of four lanes.
This is difficult to shift from the right shoulder to the right of the left turn lanes when there is 80km/hr traffic going straight through the lights.
Also, the signals are not useful for cyclists.
Once a cyclist does get into the turning lane, he has no way to trigger the signal to get a green light to turn let, so invariably he ends up waiting for cars to accumulate who can trigger the sensor. That wait is dangerous as he has traffic whizzing by on the right, with drivers accelerating so they make it through before their light goes yellow.
The curve of the road can also confuse drivers into thinking that the cyclist in the middle of the road (possibly alone) is supposed to be on their right.
Suggestions
Solution 1:
- Add a bicycle box in front of the left turn stop line.
- Lower the speed limit before the intersection
- Add a designated bicycle lane on the road that shows that bicycles are supposed to cross
- Signs that indicate that cars should yield to cyclists
Solution 2:
- Add a bike-only sensor on the right that will trigger a special left turn, which gives a red for straight-through traffic, and allows bicycles to stay on the right lane through the intersection.
I never ride through the bypass, as is. A paved shoulder would help motorists and cyclists, but I still think I would be inclined to avoid the bypass.
Getting in the left turn lane is a challenge. If I got to the intersection without being able to change lanes, I would gladly stop and push the pedestrian button to cross.
To get to Navan, try Innes Rd, left on Innes Rd, right on Page, left on Navan. An alternative could be Innes, Anderson, Renaud, Navan.
I would suggest that if any cyclists want to want to go on the bypass should go through Blackburn Hamlet and STAY OFF the bypass road. Cyclists are in more danger on that road because there is no bike lane and no shoulder. I have sent numerous emails and going to petition the city to have the bypass made a no bike zone. Cyclists are more of a hazard on that road and most insist to bike to the left of the white line, thus creating a danger to themselves when I see big trucks trying to avoid them by swerving into the left lane to avoid side swiping them. Blackburn Hamlet has a bike lane that will take you the other end of the bypass. As for your suggestions concerning the intersection, ie. special beacons or bike boxes, how about biking up to the lights and pressing the button and when the light turns green, then proceed. Cyclists want to be treated with fairness on the roads, then follow the rules of the road and come to a stop at stop signs and red lights.
I don’t see any addresses that can’t be easily reached by cyclists by either going through Innes or Anderson, so I agree this could be safer as a non-cyclist zone. I don’t know of any 80km/hr places in Ottawa that do not allow cyclists.
Even so, cyclists don’t know that there are better choices given that there’s no signage.
I have ridden on this stretch before (having followed signage to my destination of Blackburn Hamlet), and I know that the shoulder is poorly maintained and not rideable. It is why cyclists are riding on the road, which is perfectly legal and the only choice.
I don’t understand how pushing a pedestrian button helps cyclists take a left turn. First, cyclists need to dismount to reach the pedestrian crossing and then need to walk across the intersection. This is an unreasonable requirement for cyclists on a designated bicycle route, particularly if you’re trying to keep cyclists off of the bypass. It is akin to asking drivers to exit their vehicle to push a pedestrian crossing button, then walk around their car a few times.
It is the lack of cyclist-friendly facilities that makes being a law-abiding cyclist less attractive.
I also find it strange how this intersection will have far fewer pedestrians than cyclists, yet we have invested in pedestrian crossings.
Hi Mike,
Further to Alex’s point below about the lack of signage, the Bypass is a far more direct route for a cyclist who is (for example) heading to Navan Rd.
Rather than blame cyclists who are riding legally and seeking to ban them, why don’t we invest in proper infrastructure? It’s not the cyclists’ fault that the City didn’t pave the shoulder.
Another solution would be to create a bike lane on the Blackburn bypass. This would eliminate the need for cyclists to have to cross the two lanes of traffic. However it would introduce a new issue which is having to ride next to cars that sometimes are exceeding the speed limit on the bypass by as much as 20-30 km/h.