New Bike lanes impact Bay St. Traffic

Choas, congestion and some profanity as drivers and cyclists learn to coexist on a newly redesigned Bay street in Hamilton. The new 2.3 kilometre bike lane caused lengthy back-ups during the morning rush hour clearing up around 9 am.

While the bicycle lane won’t be fully completed until next Friday, the city already had the street painted and traffic cones added, forcing all vehicles down to one lane. Some questioned the timing of the installation with winter right around the corner but Daryl Bender, the city’s project manager of alternative transportation, says the lanes had to be completed now.

“We couldn’t proceed any earlier because a year ago we just had a functional design for it. So through the winter and the spring we were busy finalizing the ultimate design.”

An area of concern for many drivers is the busy intersection at King and Bay, where the bike lane has forced two left hand turning lanes down to one making it very difficult to turn and potentially unsafe. But Bender says that intersection will soon be controlled by a new set of traffic lights.

As crews finish up construction of the project an official ribbon cutting ceremony is planned for next Friday in front of city hall.