General Updates and News

[Drybrain]

Originally Posted by OldDartmouthMark

While I totally support safe biking lanes, just like I support sidewalks for pedestrians, I think it’s a misnomer to assume that cycling lanes are going to take a large bite out of traffic.

I actually somewhat agree with this. In certain parts of the city, a critical mass of cyclists will make a noticeable dent in auto traffic--but it probably won't be transformative. The important point is that as long as our bike lanes aren't taking up big chunks of former motor-vehicle lanes, they're not contributing to congestion, as so many people assume they must be.

[Drybrain]

Originally Posted by GTG_78

$93 million is not a "modest" investment. It is a staggering cost, particularly given the per-user base.

It's really not. It's less than just about any other individual road project (e.g., the Robie bus lane expansion, Windsor Street Exchange).

It's also a teeny-tiny fraction of municipal spending. Some numbers:

The city's annual budgets come to about $1.3 billion. The cycling network budget amounts to 7 per cent of that. But, of course, the spending is being spread out over a decade, so averaged out we're spending less than 1 per cent of our municipal budget over that period on the cycling network. And actually even less than that, since some of the funding is from the federal government. And actually even less again, since some of the cycling spending involves road recapitalization that has to be done anyway.

[JET]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

Please enlighten me on what it is in that case. I merely observed a style of driving seldom seen here previously. My first thought was how he could have possibly passed the driving test to get a NS license given his manner of operation.

“our sharply increased population.”

“The quite obvious new arrival to these shores”

“in his homeland.”

Disparaging immigrants, and ignoring behaviour of others is nasty. I can point it out to you, but I don’t expect you to understand.

[GTG_78]

Originally Posted by Drybrain

It's really not. It's less than just about any other individual road project (e.g., the Robie bus lane expansion, Windsor Street Exchange).

It's also a teeny-tiny fraction of municipal spending. Some numbers:

The city's annual budgets come to about $1.3 billion. The cycling network budget amounts to 7 per cent of that. But, of course, the spending is being spread out over a decade, so averaged out we're spending less than 1 per cent of our municipal budget over that period on the cycling network. And actually even less than that, since some of the funding is from the federal government. And actually even less again, since some of the cycling spending involves road recapitalization that has to be done anyway.

Yes, it really is. The per-user cost difference between the WSE and the bike lanes is considerable. More than 150,000 people move through the WSE each day alone. Hundreds of thousands more move through other main arteries. And Council still tried to kill a substantive overhaul because of cost and because it allegedly did not accommodate the niche population of cyclists. They only backed down because the Province would have (rightly) overriden their decision.

[OldDartmouthMark]

Originally Posted by Drybrain

I actually somewhat agree with this. In certain parts of the city, a critical mass of cyclists will make a noticeable dent in auto traffic--but it probably won't be transformative. The important point is that as long as our bike lanes aren't taking up big chunks of former motor-vehicle lanes, they're not contributing to congestion, as so many people assume they must be.

[OldDartmouthMark]

Originally Posted by Drybrain

It's really not. It's less than just about any other individual road project (e.g., the Robie bus lane expansion, Windsor Street Exchange).

It's also a teeny-tiny fraction of municipal spending. Some numbers:

The city's annual budgets come to about $1.3 billion. The cycling network budget amounts to 7 per cent of that. But, of course, the spending is being spread out over a decade, so averaged out we're spending less than 1 per cent of our municipal budget over that period on the cycling network. And actually even less than that, since some of the funding is from the federal government. And actually even less again, since some of the cycling spending involves road recapitalization that has to be done anyway.

And additionally, constructing cycling lanes is really just playing catch-up to add infrastructure that should have been in place decades ago (I recall being envious of Calgary’s bike lanes when I first visited there in 1983). IMHO, Halifax being an older city makes it much more challenging to add such infrastructure after the fact, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t happen. Hopefully the mayor’s action will result in well thought out infrastructure that plays well with other transportation modes (and a quantum leap in transit development - also a catch-up), and delivered within budget and in a timely manner. A big ask I realize, but I tend to be optimistic generally, except when it comes to heritage building preservation…

[Dmajackson]

Originally Posted by OldDartmouthMark

I’m not out on the roads so much these days, but have witnessed drivers pulled over by HRP several times in recent months. So I can’t concur that lack of traffic stops is a root cause of traffic congestion.

Interesting it might be a neighbourhood thing. I live in North-End Halifax and never see cops giving traffic tickets here and I am on the street quite a bit between driving and walking my dog. Despite living, working, and all of my main contacts being in HRP territory if I see a traffic stop it is usually RCMP. Of course HHB is a whole other level of traffic enforcement. I like to imagine a world full of that level of dedication to traffic safety.

I'm not being critical of HRP, by the way. They are great at dealing with regular crime and have helped me numerous times. It's just rare to see them react to a traffic infraction that happens in front of them.

I sent emails this weekend to Council, the Mayor and my district councillor. I am interested to see how she votes tomorrow since she doesn't voice her opinions on line at all and I'm yet to hear back from any emails I've sent her since October.

I am planning to buy a bicycle soon to take advantage of the Bikeway Network improvements made since my last one got stolen. It's just upsetting to know that the three outstanding projects that could further improve my commute are likely to be cancelled. Fortunately I already have a good chunk of 'AAA' biking along my commute route.

[OldDartmouthMark]

Originally Posted by Dmajackson

Interesting it might be a neighbourhood thing. I live in North-End Halifax and never see cops giving traffic tickets here and I am on the street quite a bit between driving and walking my dog. Despite living, working, and all of my main contacts being in HRP territory if I see a traffic stop it is usually RCMP. Of course HHB is a whole other level of traffic enforcement. I like to imagine a world full of that level of dedication to traffic safety.

I'm not being critical of HRP, by the way. They are great at dealing with regular crime and have helped me numerous times. It's just rare to see them react to a traffic infraction that happens in front of them.

I sent emails this weekend to Council, the Mayor and my district councillor. I am interested to see how she votes tomorrow since she doesn't voice her opinions on line at all and I'm yet to hear back from any emails I've sent her since October.

I am planning to buy a bicycle soon to take advantage of the Bikeway Network improvements made since my last one got stolen. It's just upsetting to know that the three outstanding projects that could further improve my commute are likely to be cancelled. Fortunately I already have a good chunk of 'AAA' biking along my commute route.

Anecdotally, I have seen quite a few vehicles pulled over on the Bedford Highway, and some other high volume roads, but I suspect that those are easy pickings, especially if it’s where they have a radar setup.

Not defending the HRP, but it is difficult to change peoples’ driving habits from a pure enforcement point of view, in that it's not reasonable to expect there to be a cop on every corner ready to nab every bad driver out there (and not to say that this is your expectation, either). It’s really about visibility and public messaging, IMHO. HRP used to have a dedicated traffic division, that was done away with some time in the 1990s, IIRC. It seemed like coverage was pretty good, as there always seemed to be a cop on the road keeping an eye on drivers as his/her main job, not just something to do when they didn't have another call to go to. Lots of radar and traffic stops, etc. So lots of visibility with traffic division vehicles everywhere, and the sight of somebody pulled over with flashing lights behind them puts out a message that you can't just ignore the rules of the road - other drivers notice, just like you've noticed the lack of enforcement in your area. Seems to me there were also public service messages and such.

After they deleted the division, there seemed to be more of a free for all on the roads... Mind you, this is anecdotal, so I’m sure that somebody had data that showed that the traffic division wasn’t needed or was worthy of a budget cut.

And that was before the proliferation of smart phones and touch screens in cars… which I think are the main culprits behind today's poorer driving, plus I believe that there has been a change for the worse in societal attitudes in regards to the seriousness and responsibility of driving safely and courteously. Folks seem to be more wrapped up in their own little worlds nowadays, or just phone addicted (or so I think whenever a light turns green and the driver in front of me doesn't see it because they are obviously looking down at a screen...).

As mentioned, I still think that the bike infrastructure needs to be built, but I don’t see any harm in examining the process, and improving how it’s done (if that's what is actually happening). I do get frustrated with how the media will sometimes attempt to turn it into a contentious issue, though. We’ll see how it goes.

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by JET

“our sharply increased population.”

“The quite obvious new arrival to these shores”

“in his homeland.”

Disparaging immigrants, and ignoring behaviour of others is nasty. I can point it out to you, but I don’t expect you to understand.

What I understand quite well is that you took an observation that I made after watching numerous instances of bad behavior on the roads and termed it as "nasty" on my part because you didn't like the fact that I pointed out because it highlighted an inconvenient reality, choosing instead to imply something else entirely.

[JET]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

What I understand quite well is that you took an observation that I made after watching numerous instances of bad behavior on the roads and termed it as "nasty" on my part because you didn't like the fact that I pointed out because it highlighted an inconvenient reality, choosing instead to imply something else entirely.

Since the silence from from other forum members is so deafening,
I guess I’m the only one who has a problem with immigrant bashing.

[HfxGuy]

Originally Posted by JET

Since the silence from from other forum members is so deafening,
I guess I’m the only one who has a problem with immigrant bashing.

FWIW I completely agree with you. Bad drivers come in all forms and it’s not fair to arbitrarily blame congestion (?) on newcomers to our city. Bad drivers have and always will be a thing. I was always taught to treat other drivers as if they don’t know the rules of the road because reality is that many of them don’t. I Just didn’t think chiming in was going to change Kieth’s mind.

[Dmajackson]

Originally Posted by JET

Since the silence from from other forum members is so deafening,
I guess I’m the only one who has a problem with immigrant bashing.

There have been changes made to the top of this page. Keith's first sentence was a fair point so I kept that and just removed the racist comment and the posts that quoted it.

I did see the report on the post in the Moderation Section. If members feel more needs to be done please use the private message option to reach out to moderators.

Please be careful with grouping everyone. Some people completely ignore comments from certain posters and others, like me, are busy and not here everyday so we might not react quickly. I personally work full-time, volunteer, have family commitments, and run my website so unfortunately SSP is not top priority. My workplace is full of wonderful people that are from every corner of the world. I shut racism down here just like I do at work.

[Dmajackson]

I just watched the entire Regional Council debate on the Bikeways pause. A few takeaways;

- It was defeated with a 12-5 vote. It was Fillmore, Purdy, Hendsbee, Young and Gillis who voted in favour. Purdy was by far the most controversial. She is 100% anti bike lane and even tried to claim she knows better than traffic engineers who actually run detailed models on all of the changes before they're brought before Council for every proposed bikeway!

- An alternative motion to take another look at Morris Street was passed. It was in design tender so it'll be delayed. The Brunswick Street side of that motion was defeated. That tender closes tomorrow. Construction will start this summer.

- The debate was impressive and lasted for hours. Councillor Austin and Cleary soundly knocked down all of Mayor Fillmore's points. Others made good points about how Fillmore used this motion as a way to divide Halifax, how this debate should of happened during budget debates, and how all bikeway projects come to Council for approval so the changes can be debated at that time.

Did you know that 15% of South Park Street traffic is bicycles? That is quite a few cars removed from traffic. Imagine if we could get to 15% modal share across the Regional Centre. That would be tens of thousands of cars off of the street.

April 2025 Regional Centre Bikeway Network Update

Here's a great local video that was released this weekend talking about the Bikeway Network and why it is important to finish building it.

• Video Link

[Colin May]

Imagine if we could get to 15% modal share across the Regional Centre. That would be tens of thousands of cars off of the street.

April 2025 Regional Centre Bikeway Network Update

Here's a great local video that was released this weekend talking about the Bikeway Network and why it is important to finish building it.

• Video Link[/QUOTE]
Dream on. Ask each councillor how her/his spouse gets to work and ask them if the spouse works shifts and where they work.
The best solution to the traffic issue is more jobs off the peninsula. I have traffic data from a few years ago and will soon have more recent data. Ask a bus driver what his/her job is like and ask when he/she is due to retire. The fast ferry idea is a waste of money and rail is a non-starter.
The math doesn't work for more bike lanes.

[JET]

Originally Posted by Dmajackson

There have been changes made to the top of this page. Keith's first sentence was a fair point so I kept that and just removed the racist comment and the posts that quoted it.

I did see the report on the post in the Moderation Section. If members feel more needs to be done please use the private message option to reach out to moderators.

Please be careful with grouping everyone. Some people completely ignore comments from certain posters and others, like me, are busy and not here everyday so we might not react quickly. I personally work full-time, volunteer, have family commitments, and run my website so unfortunately SSP is not top priority. My workplace is full of wonderful people that are from every corner of the world. I shut racism down here just like I do at work.

Thank you for providing correction to Keith, and for calling his comments wat they are, racist. Hopefully Keith will learn from this. My comments were not intended to call others racist, I felt the necessity to point out the silence that can follow abusive comments. When racism is not addressed it will perpetuate. Thank you for your role as moderator, I have always appreciated your contributions and positive comments.

[JET]

Originally Posted by Colin May

Imagine if we could get to 15% modal share across the Regional Centre. That would be tens of thousands of cars off of the street.

April 2025 Regional Centre Bikeway Network Update

Here's a great local video that was released this weekend talking about the Bikeway Network and why it is important to finish building it.

• Video Link

Dream on. Ask each councillor how her/his spouse gets to work and ask them if the spouse works shifts and where they work.
The best solution to the traffic issue is more jobs off the peninsula. I have traffic data from a few years ago and will soon have more recent data. Ask a bus driver what his/her job is like and ask when he/she is due to retire. The fast ferry idea is a waste of money and rail is a non-starter.
The math doesn't work for more bike lanes.[/QUOTE]

I know a family that lives 25 km from the peninsula, and 3 family members each drive their cars to their 9-5 jobs in the city.
I agree that shift workers probably need a car for work, but the majority of drivers are 9-5 workers. Perhaps transit should start earlier, that seems a real problem for many shift workers.

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by Dmajackson

There have been changes made to the top of this page. Keith's first sentence was a fair point so I kept that and just removed the racist comment and the posts that quoted it.

I would like to lodge an objection to the use of the term "racist" to characterize what I wrote. I did not identify anyone's race nor did I suggest anything other than that some new to this area can drive in a hazardous manner. That would be something for those working in the driver licensing area to deal with. But you be you.

[JET]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

I would like to lodge an objection to the use of the term "racist" to characterize what I wrote. I did not identify anyone's race nor did I suggest anything other than that some new to this area can drive in a hazardous manner. That would be something for those working in the driver licensing area to deal with. But you be you.

Immigrant bashing equates with racism.
Do you deny immigrant bashing?
https://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2018/07/immigrant-bashing-is-all-about-racism/

[IanWatson]

Originally Posted by JET

I agree that shift workers probably need a car for work, but the majority of drivers are 9-5 workers. Perhaps transit should start earlier, that seems a real problem for many shift workers.

With all the hullabaloo around hospital parking and the focus on improving healthcare it would be nice if the Province would step in to partner on expanding transit service hours to the hospital. Because yeah, right now transit isn't viable for a nurse or cleaner who is going to get off shift at 2am. I can't imagine it would cost THAT much to map where hospital workers live and keep two or three key hospital routes running 24 hours.

[GTG_78]

Originally Posted by Dmajackson

I just watched the entire Regional Council debate on the Bikeways pause. A few takeaways;

- It was defeated with a 12-5 vote. It was Fillmore, Purdy, Hendsbee, Young and Gillis who voted in favour. Purdy was by far the most controversial. She is 100% anti bike lane and even tried to claim she knows better than traffic engineers who actually run detailed models on all of the changes before they're brought before Council for every proposed bikeway!

- An alternative motion to take another look at Morris Street was passed. It was in design tender so it'll be delayed. The Brunswick Street side of that motion was defeated. That tender closes tomorrow. Construction will start this summer.

- The debate was impressive and lasted for hours. Councillor Austin and Cleary soundly knocked down all of Mayor Fillmore's points. Others made good points about how Fillmore used this motion as a way to divide Halifax, how this debate should of happened during budget debates, and how all bikeway projects come to Council for approval so the changes can be debated at that time.

Did you know that 15% of South Park Street traffic is bicycles? That is quite a few cars removed from traffic. Imagine if we could get to 15% modal share across the Regional Centre. That would be tens of thousands of cars off of the street.

There will never be anything close to that. Ever.

I would love to know when supporters of this sinkhole believe the costs are too much. When it triples again to $300 million? Is that worth getting a few hundred more people cycling?