Dan shared the following updates:
Cycling Plan – plan is being reviewed by senior staff in transportation department. Next step is to take the plan to Council and aiming for early 2020. Cycling Plan looks at all roads south of Hwy 407 and includes better cycling network aimed for ages 8 to 80.
North Burlington Active Transportation Strategy – the strategy includes adding active transportation facilities on roads north of Hwy 407. Two open houses were held early in 2019 and great feedback was received. The consultant developed a map showing the proposed active transportation facilities. A second phase of engagement will roll out starting with an online component (target mid-January), followed by an open house in March. The purpose of the engagement is to see if anything has been missed.
Bike Share - Council directed staff to investigate bringing a bike share program to Burlington. The industry is changing rapidly - it went from regular bikes, to electric bikes, to e-scooters. E-scooters are not currently permitted in Ontario, but Ministry of Transportation is reviewing this. Staff plan to bring a report to Council early next year.
Halton Cycling Summit - held on Nov. 19 at Velodrome in Milton and hosted by Tourism Halton. The goal is to promote cycling across the region, not only for those who live here, but also from a tourism aspect. The group plans to get together once a year.
2020 Cycling Event - committee looking to team up with the Moon in June road race on June 6, 2020 and provide a fun cycling ride following the same route as the running race. Currently talking to organizer and city special event staff to move ahead with this.
New sidewalk warrant policy – city's current sidewalk warrant policy is over 20 years old and driven by data. When a local road is being reconstructed, pedestrians are counted during peak periods and sidewalks are warranted based on the number of pedestrians. However, residents may not be walking because there are no sidewalks. New sidewalk policy will connect people to places and look at different land uses in the neighbourhood to determine if sidewalks are warranted (schools, shopping centers, churches, etc.).
Elgin Promenade - a portable counter was installed on Elgin Promenade in October. Over 9 days, there were approximately 500 people daily using the promenade. The counter includes all active transportation users and doesn't distinguish between pedestrians, cyclists, rollerbladers, etc.