More and more citizens use their bikes in winter, but surprisingly, for some, winter weather is not the main obstacle, while many motorists park on bike lanes.
The Réseau Express vélo (REV) has more than 2,000 rides a day on weekends and more than 8,000 rides on weekdays, a sign of the great popularity of this mode of transport.
But cyclists complain about the behavior of some motorists who park on cycle lanes when parking is scarce.
One of Montreal’s most problematic thoroughfares is Viger Avenue, where signage might be debatable; In fact, the lack of signage makes it difficult for motorists to become aware of the bike path’s limitations.
“There are often motorists who park on bike lanes; Sometimes it is unintentional, sometimes due to lack of awareness or lack of concern. They think that the person who rides a bike will miss it,” explained Jacques Nacouzi, who champions active transport.
“But if you have several of these in one day and have to get out on the road every time, well, if you have 1,000 or 2,000 passages on a cycle path like Saint-Denis in winter, it becomes problematic, there can be a risk of collision a passing car,” he added.
The City of Montreal is aware of the situation and is asking cyclists to report these dangerous behaviors by calling the community.
“The referee [Réseau express vélo] is an infrastructure that ensures the safe travel of cyclists, certainly not parking spaces for cars. We condemn this behavior in the strongest possible terms at a time when we are seeing sad results in terms of the safety of the most vulnerable road users,” commented in particular Sophie Mauzerolle, in charge of mobility at the Montreal Executive Committee.
Remember that the Sustainable Mobility Agency has also intensified its monitoring of the cycle path network and increased the amount of fines.