Work crews this week began dismantling the 23rd Street bike lanes in Saskatoon’s downtown, closing the book on a project that never found much love from drivers—or, apparently, from many cyclists. At first glance, it may seem like another example of a disturbing trend of removing critical cycling infrastructure that is occurring across Canada. However, it may not be all doom and gloom.
The lanes were installed in 2015 as a two-year pilot. Instead, they lingered for a decade, often the subject of complaints about traffic flow. City council voted in June to have them removed. That is a decision officials say will save roughly $50,000 annually in upkeep.
Transportation director Jay Magus told CBC News the city hasn’t tracked ridership on the corridor in years. However, the savings will now support other active transportation projects.
Cycling advocates say the experiment still taught Saskatoon some lessons. “It actually had a purpose,” Saskatoon Cycles chair Gord Holtslander said to the CBC, noting the corridor linked the Meewasin Trail to Idylwyld Drive. But the bus mall interruption made the lanes less useful.
Holtslander described the plastic bollards separating bikes from traffic as “a little bit of performance art,” telling CBC they were often knocked over and failed to provide real protection. Winter made the path even less practical, as snow from sidewalks was routinely shovelled into the lane.
“It was a little bit doomed from the get-go,” Holtslander said. “But the city is not doing nothing. Props—the city is doing quite a lot, and future plans are definitely moving in the right direction.”
Removing the lanes is expected to cost about $38,000 and take a week, according to a city release. The west-side 23rd Street lanes beyond Idylwyld will remain in place.
In other parts of the country, there have been numerous public battles by governments to remove existing bike lanes, Alberta and Ontario being prime examples.