Hot take: The city's new bike lane on 124 Street took me 40 minutes longer than it should have

Everyone seems thrilled about the bike lane they added on 124 Street near the shops. But I tried riding it last Tuesday around 4pm and it was a total mess. The lane just ends at a busy intersection with no warning, and I had to merge into car traffic with no space. Then there is this one section where the concrete barrier sticks out so far I nearly clipped my handlebars on it. I timed my whole trip from Jasper Ave up to 118 Ave and it took me 55 minutes when it used to take me 15 on the regular road. Maybe I missed something but has anyone else found this lane more frustrating than helpful?

2 comments

2 Comments

grant7282h agoRising Star

That 2 foot gap @finley_bennett28 measured sounds pretty bad. I actually read a city report online that mentioned the bike lane was designed by the same team that did the one on 102 Ave, but they had to rush this one because of some funding deadline. The report said they planned to fix the merge at 118 Ave next summer but it wasn't in the current budget. So basically we're stuck with a lane that just drops you off at a bus route with no warning. I timed my ride there last week too and it added 30 minutes to my usual commute.

finley_bennett282h ago

The concrete barrier sticking out near 106 Ave is actually part of a loading zone for the bakery there. The city put that barrier up to stop cars from blocking the delivery trucks but they forgot to leave enough room for bike handlebars. I measured it with my arm last week and the gap is only about 2 feet wide. So you basically have to slow down to walking speed or risk hitting the concrete. Plus the lane ends at 118 Ave because that whole stretch is a bus route and the city decided not to deal with the bus stops.