THUNDER BAY – The city is getting provincial dollars that could be used to create a cycling corridor to link the city’s north and south cores.
Through the Ontario Municipal Commuter Cycling Program, Thunder Bay will receive $910,000 for 2018.
In a report to Thunder Bay city council on Monday night, administration identified a number of projects that have been deemed eligible for the provincial funding, including a new multi-use bridge over the McIntyre Floodway to connect Carrick Street to Vickers Street.
The report said the funding is flexible and can be used for any project included in the approved list submitted by the city. One of those approved projects is the bridge and trail alignments, which would eliminate one of the major barriers to connecting the Carrick and Vickers route, with leveraged funding for the design of the bridge available in this year’s budget to define the project and determine a cost estimate.
Cycling advocates have called for the creation of a Memorial Link, a five-kilometre route that would protect users from motor vehicle traffic to pave a direct path from both ends of the city.
Coun. Aldo Ruberto said he believes that even if the Carrick and Vickers route is developed, cyclists are still going to be on Memorial Avenue.
“I guess I’m surprised that Memorial Avenue was not on the list,” Ruberto said.
“When you look at cyclists, the number one place you see cyclists is always on Memorial. Eventually, we may develop that, I hope, at some point. I don’t understand why we wouldn’t try to access funding that now to start somewhere along that trail.”
City engineering director Kayla Dixon said the new bridge does not rule out a route centred along Memorial Avenue.
“We are looking at a short-term option that could be put in place relatively quickly, which is that north-south Vickers-Carrick route as we are able to then plan for the Memorial route in the future,” Dixon said. “This is a key link in that corridor that is missing and is something we’re looking to address in the long-term plan.”
Ruberto argued that it would be more efficient to start right away on developing the Memorial Avenue link.
“I don’t want to spend money on temporary things. I’d rather put the money in permanent solutions and get the biggest bang for our buck,” Ruberto said.
“Spending on temporary things when looking at the long-term project, to me it makes more sense to focus on the long-term project even if it takes longer and is harder to do. We have to start somewhere, even if it’s bits and pieces.”
Projects on the potentially eligible list submitted by the city include a new Oliver Road multi-use trail from Balmoral Street to Keith Jobbit Drive, a multi-use bridge over the McIntyre Floodway into the River Terrace subdivision with a paved multi-use trail linking to the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, Lakehead University and existing trail network and a pedestrian crossover on High Street near Bay Street.
