CYCLISTS BE ON THE ALERT FOR POLICE AND TICKETS

It was announced on the CBC that there will be a campaign by the police to ticket cyclists.  Be careful.

HELP TO GET A BICYCLE BRIDGE ACROSS THE VALLEY OF DEATH IN NDG AT DE MAISONNEUVE AND DECARIE

It is hard to believe that a bicycle bridge across de Maisonneuve at Decarie is not in the plans for cycling at a time when the transportation for the MUHC is being developed. http://www.freepresspaper.com/pdf/FP-Apr-11-2012.pdf

 It is a very dangerous intersection no matter where one is headed.  It would promote cycling because it would increase cyclists’ safety.  And compared to other infrastructure projects it is not expensive.  Is this another sign that cycling and active transport are not a priority with governments?

The NDGCPA (Notre Dame de Grace Cycling and Pedestrian Association) is organizing a mass critique ride Monday May 7th when the NDG borough meeting is taking place. Cyclists are asked to meet at NDG park (Girouard and Sherbrooke) at 1730h to leave  on mass at 1800h to the NDG council meeting  which starts at 1830h.  Children are welcome.

The Westmount Walking and Cycling Association supports this initiative and will be asking its members to participate.

BIKE PARKING IN WESTMOUNT- FIND A PARKING METER, LIGHT STANDARD, OR TREE

The lack of parking for bikes is a sign that this city and the city of Montreal are not truly serious about active transport and increasing cycling.  There is no lack of parking lots for cars on our streets or in special lots but try to find a place for a bike..give up ..and go to a tree, a parking meter or a light standard.  And certainly don’t ask Metro for bike parking spaces.  Cars line up with their engines running to get into the Metro parking lot.  Those of us who use our bikes to buy groceries are out of luck for a place to park.  We are light years behind Holland.  Imagine having parking garages for bikes!!http://www.dutchmobility.com/1023/the-hague-cannot-do-without-its-bike-tower/

DO YOU KNOW THE QUALITY OF THE AIR YOU ARE BREATHING?

Air quality is affected negatively by vehicular traffic.  Areas near to the Turcot and the Decarie interchange are particularly affected because of the high rate of traffic.  The MUHC is right along the Turcot.  There are eighteen stations on the island of Montreal which measure the quality of air around them.  The air quality index measures the concentration of six pollutants in the air.  It is possible to find the station closest to you and know what the level of pollution is and what pollutants are causing it by using the following link:http://ville.montreal.qc.ca/portal/page?_pageid=7237,74495616&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL

MAKE IT LESS CONVENIENT TO DRIVE THROUGH WESTMOUNT

Westmount residents are being asked to choose six priorities from thirteen given by the city for the Westmount Traffic and Active Transportation Master plan. http://www.westmountindependent.com/WIv6.3d.pdf

The goal of the plan is to reduce vehicular traffic going through Westmount and traffic within Westmount.

One of the thirteen points listed by the city is to minimize congestion and travel delays for all users.

The position of the WWCA is exactly opposite to this solution.  Rather than making it more convenient for drivers to get through Westmount, it is our position that it should be made less convenient and less attractive to cross the city. What follows is a letter from Dan Lambert, president of the the WWCA.   

 

Yay to the traffic questionnaire

Our association [Westmount Walking and Cycling Association] welcomes Mayor Peter Trent’s Master Traffic Plan letter to residents in which he asks for their com- ments. We agree that the city needs to take steps to reduce the high volume of traffic.

Unfortunately, Westmount is currently encouraging people to drive by offering two key incentives, which must be reduced if the city hopes to reduce traffic.

First, Westmount provides free-flowing traffic routes through our city, which en-

courage drivers from outside Westmount to cut across on their way downtown. Cur- rently, it only takes about seven minutes to cross Westmount on any of our main east- west streets.

If the city wants to reduce through traf- fic, it must reduce this incentive by reduc- ing vehicle capacity and not by facilitating it. This can be accomplished in various ways, such as replacing a few strategic car lanes with bike paths or public transit lanes. Only by making it less convenient and longer to cut through Westmount will drivers adopt alternative routes (like Ville- Marie) or alternative means of transport (like public transit).

Second, Westmount provides abundant free or low cost parking, which encourages people to drive to Westmount rather than using public transit, walking or cycling. Westmount should, like many other pro- gressive urban centres, gradually reduce the availability of parking spots and grad- ually increase the cost of parking to en- courage drivers to gradually adopt alternative means of transport to and from Westmount.

The quality of life in our community is being eroded by the overwhelming pres- ence of motor vehicles, so the city needs to reverse this trend by establishing a health- ier balance between motor vehicles and other forms of transportation.

We encourage residents to support Mayor Trent by responding favourably to his questionnaire and by voicing their views during the public consultations that will follow.

Dan Lambert, Lansdowne Ave. resident and member of Westmount Walking and Cycling Association