Victoria’s Ever Expanding AAA Bike Network
If cargo bike moms and dads are the indicator species of bicycle network safety and connectivity… then Victoria is pretty safe and connected... On this whistle stop tour of some of the city’s bike infrastructure, they were everywhere…
Cargo bike 1 and 2
More than most other cities I’m aware of, Victoria has actively built multiple new all ages and abilities bike (AAA) corridors every year since 2017. In around six years or so, they have created an extensive AAA bike network, and they’re not done yet.
How has it come together? A bicycle plan, political will to follow through on it, concept planning, engagement, detailed design and construction in a coordinated manner year after year.
There’s still naysayers with every new project. It’s impossible to implement change without someone voicing their disapproval, but with each project, the City follows through on not only it’s plans, but those of the provincial and federal governments for safer, cleaner, more accessible, more equitable, more inclusive, more active and healthy communities.
You may have seen previous posts on my old website. That is now long gone so I had planned to do a full recap, covering everything built in recent years, but other things got in the way. Still, I did manage to get around a fair bit of it so let’s take a quick look at what I was able to get too…
2017: Pandora Avenue
Pandora Avenue kickstarted this movement being the first protected bike lane in the city, opening on May 1, 2017. A quick Look back in time at the photo below shows, interestingly two vehicle lanes prior and after the bike lane was added. How did they manage it, well they did remove a lane of parking and narrowed the overly wide travel lanes. There’s a few things to note in this photo and a few lessons were quickly learned on this corridor. For example, the use of large concrete medians with bicycle parking perched on top were more expensive and less accessible than the designs that followed. If you look closely in the background you’ll also note the infamous bus stop that was the source of the BC Human Rights tribunal that continues to challenge bus stop design around protected bike lanes in the province today.
Interesting story… for me at least… the first page of my first book Bike Lanes includes a photo of the shop above that says COFFEE in the window. At that time, long before I planned to do any books, I was more interested in just taking pictures and was figuring out my new camera while wandering around Victoria. The people enjoying their coffee on the benches outside gave it a great vibe and I took a few photos of people riding by that later made it into the book.
Fast forward a few years to this trip, and unknown to me, they have a copy of fietspad in there to read while you enjoy your coffee. The shop is Habit Coffee, a locally owned business with great coffee. Check them out if you’re in the city.
Carrying on… The next block along Pandora houses City Hall that recently has been home to a free bike valet, providing people in downtown Victoria with a secure place to park their bike without worrying about theft. The infrastructure to ride on is only half the battle… We need more secure bicycle parking options…
While we’re on local businesses, another block further along Pandora is Bishop’s Family Cycles, a shop focused on functional bicycles rather than those built for sport, and an extensive stock of cargo bikes of all kinds to try out. I’m sure they are a big part of the reason for seeing so many around the city. They also had the right tubes for my Brompton, not all 16” tubes are the same apparently…
This section of Pandora is slightly different than the rest, including a bit more landscaping than other blocks, something that looks nice but in this case slightly restricts access. For example, coming from City Hall, the building in the background, I had to ride past the bike shop and double back. Landscaping is great, just provide access at each doorway…
Cargo bike 3… not counting those for sale…
2018: Johnson Street Bridge
In March 2018, the new Johnson Street lift bridge opened, replacing a previous bridge that was less accommodating of people walking and rolling. It’s an awesome piece of engineering that provides a dedicated pedestrian walkway on one side and multi-use path on the other. It connects the Pandora and Wharf Avenue corridors to Harbour Road and the Galloping Goose, and more recently Kimta Road and the E&N Trail. As long as you’re not late for something, it’s very cool to watch it lift and lower.
Another view of the structure and multi-use pathway on the north side…
And another… the bridge still includes painted bike lanes in addition to the multi-use pathway on the left. Many people on bicycles still use the painted bike lanes, but as you can see below, so do some people in cars… I’ll always take the protected option…
I was looking for some information about the old bridge and came across this great video about how it functioned for people riding a bicycle. It’s quite the eye opener compared to the options available today…
2018: Fort Street Phase 1
About a year after Pandora and a few months after the bridge, Fort Street opened in May 2018, and as I said above, adopting a few lessons from Pandora, reducing concrete work to the bare minimum to reduce costs while also improving accessibility. Bike corrals now become at-grade, making it easy to park your bike, especially heavier cargo bikes like you see here…
Cargo bike 4… parked…
On-street parking is still provided adjacent to the bike lane separated mostly by a hatched buffer with bollards, again reducing the cost of concrete and facilitating existing drainage patterns to the catch basins by the curb in most places. In this block, travel lanes were reduced from three to two - it’s a one way street - how many travel lanes do you really need?
Along Fort, there’s a few parklets creating small pockets of public space. I’ve seen these well utilized on nicer days, but it was empty on this cold overcast day… Plenty of activity on the street though…
Cargo bike 5
2019: Wharf Avenue and Humboldt Street
Wharf Avenue runs along the waterfront connecting the Johnson Street Bridge, Pandora Avenue and Fort Street. At this point, the corridors are starting to form a network of all ages and abilities facilities. Similar techniques used to Fort Street, but with less on-street parking, there’s more cast-in-place concrete barrier to provide the separation and protection that makes it safe enough for everyone. Gaps are usually left where there are existing catch basins or manholes. There remains one travel lane in each direction, but today parking is only provided on one side and there may be the loss of the odd turn lane here or there.
Cargo bike 6
The connection to Fort Street is quite interesting including turn storage, split crossings for each direction, bicycle detection, and importantly bicycle detected lights so that you know you’ve been detected.
Cargo bike 7
At the south end of Wharf, is a unique intersection at the south end of Government Street with a scramble crossing and one bike crossing on the outside of the pedestrian crossings. They’re usually on the inside, but no reason why they can’t be on the outside if it makes more sense.
Humboldt Street continues east from Wharf providing another east-west connection south of Fort Street. Immediately east of the intersection above it continues as a bi-directional bike lane like the many others, but further east it adopts an advisory bike lane - or advisory horse and cart lane in this instance - something quite rare in North America…
2020: Dallas Road
Dallas Road primarily features a multi-use pathway, but this section was recently upgraded with a new protected bike lane that separates people walking and rolling. It includes landscaping elements and these loungers to enjoy the sun… again cold on this day, albeit two people did get up and leave just as I arrived… I’m speculating, but I’d guess the three people in this photo are part of Cycling Without Age, an initiative to get less able people out of their homes. This wouldn’t be as feasible or enjoyable without the bike network in place.
Cargo bike 8
2020: Harbour Road
Harbour Road bike lanes opened in September 2020 and are located just west of the Johnson Street Bridge, connecting the bridge to the Galloping Goose, a regional active modes connection that extends out to the north and then west of the city. It was an obvious missing link and logical next step in the expansion of the network.
With the connecting pathways at either end on the east side, a bi-directional facility made a lot of sense. The connection from the protected bike lane to the bridge pathway system is quite an interesting design element…
Cargo bike 9
And another angle looking the other way… No loss to any vehicle capacity or parking here, there used to be painted bike lanes on either side, they were moved to the east side to better align with the connections at either end and vehicle lanes were narrowed to make space for the concrete islands.
2021: Vancouver/Graham
In June 2021, the Vancouver Graham facility opened providing uni-directional protected bike lanes for the first time within the centre, essentially between Fort Street and Pandora Avenue and a block or two either side. Beyond this, the facility type changes to neighbourhood bikeways featuring modal filters, speed humps and sharrows primarily for wayfinding. I didn’t have much time on this corridor on this trip, but here is a transition from protected bike lane to neighbourhood bikeway…
Cargo bike 10
A feature highlight on this corridor is the plaza that was created between two offset t-intersections, closing the Vancouver Street corridor to cars while allowing people on bikes to pass through and providing a place to sit outside. I’ve skilfully obscured most of the plaza with these people passing on bicycles…
2022: Government Street
Government Street opened in 2022 extending north from Pandora to Gorge Road. Gorge Road will extend the corridor and is anticipated to be constructed next year. It passes Chinatown and includes many of the red fixtures that indicate you’re in Chinatown. You’ll have to trust me on that one…
Reminder that all bikes can be cargo bikes, but I won’t count this one…
Bike corrals with red bike racks and unique designs for Chinatown. Again, you’ll have to trust me on the colour…
The corridor reverts to black fixtures north of Chinatown, parking availability at the famous Phillips Brewing. Some landscaped medians just out of shot to the left improve pedestrian crossings at this location too letting you cross one lane at a time.
Cargo bike 11
Government was generally a four lane roadway that has now reduced to three lanes. Interestingly such a change still largely has the same functional capacity if there is reasonable left turn volumes without turn lanes, as the likelihood of getting stuck behind someone turning left pushes most through traffic to use just the right lane. There were painted bike lanes previously so the loss of one lane made space for the protective islands.
2021: Kings/Haultain
I didn’t take many images along here really, sharrows for wayfinding in this one, but elsewhere along the corridor there are speed humps, modal filters, and crossing upgrades… and one more cargo bike…
Cargo bike 12
2022: Kimta E&N
This connection filled a missing link between the Johnson Street Bridge and the E&N Trail. The photo below comes out of a multi-use pathway due to space constraints and splits at this intersection to separate walking and rolling facilities. It’s somewhat of a 4-way stop, but the crossings kinda lead to drivers giving you priority. The stop acts more as a safety measure to prevent people on bicycles blowing through.
Further along, pockets of landscaping improve aesthetics and provide space for people walking to cross the bike lane and roadway in two stages. All ages and abilities include the roadies...
I pulled over and turned around, barely catching another cargo bike that had been just behind us…
Cargo bike 13
Then seconds later, two more longtails come by in the other direction… Like other corridors, using parking and bollards to provide protection while reducing costs. Note this road retained parking on both sides and the one vehicle travel lane in each direction. It just narrowed the overly wide lanes helping to also slow traffic down along this corridor.
Cargo bike 14 and 15
There’s a bit of a transition from multi-use pathway to bike lane then a switch in sides all predicated around the railway that doesn’t run… The crosswalk at 90 degrees to the roadway makes sense for pedestrians, but many people on bicycles tend to cut across at an angle.
There was always an awkward transition to the E&N Trail that now flows much better. Where previously many would take the trail along the railway, end up on the sidewalk and have to make an awkward turn by that building on the far side, today the bi-directional facility takes you right up to the crossing and it better aligns with the E&N Trail.
2022: Richardson
Richardson runs east-west and connects from the Vancouver Street bikeway to the Oak Bay border. It again uses sharrows for way finding, modal filters to reduce traffic volumes and speed humps for traffic calming. One interesting detail is the use of Calgary Curbs or traffic calming curbs to again achieve a desired outcome at low cost.
Saving money in one area can also free it up for something grander in others, just past that filter is a new modal filter and plaza restricting through traffic but still allowing bikes and buses through.
2023: Fort Street Phase 2
Fort Street is mostly open now in late 2022, when I rode it, they were pretty much finishing up one of the most interesting parts, a small plaza that manages the transition between uni-directional bike lanes to the east and two bi-directional bike lanes to the west. The extension now provides a continuous protected bike lane from the eastern border with Oak Bay to Wharf Street. Part of the corridor uses pre-cast curbs for protection as an interim measure until underground utilities are upgraded.
An important consideration on all the corridors is managing conflicts with vehicles. This signal controlled intersection includes separate right turn lanes for vehicles with their own signal phase that operates separately from the bicycle through phase, eliminating the chances of a right hook assuming drivers obey the no right on red.
Final bits of construction at the plaza that will transition people between bi-directional and uni-directional bike lanes… and are probably complete by the time you read this.
2023: James Bay
Despite staying in James Bay during this trip, I probably spent the least time there, but it got some upgrades in 2023. There are also some neighbourhood bikeway routes featuring primarily sharrows and speed humps that I didn’t photograph. With the exception of Dallas Road above, this is the one protected bike lane running east west through the neighbourhood on Superior Street. Not sure if they changed the name after adding the protected bike lane…
Below is the main intersection into James Bay at Government and Belleville, between the Empress Hotel to the right and Parliament to the left. Belleville got painted bike lanes for the block in front of Parliament. Being painted, those confident enough, tend to move across into the vehicle left turn lane to turn left onto Government towards the centre. For those that prefer, they can make a two-stage left turn here…
Parking protected bike lanes were added in front of the Empress Hotel, although I almost felt like they’d always been there which is odd… I looked back through time and it turns out there were painted lanes on half the block in the car door zone, so this is a nice improvement. You can see them in the first photo at the top, but here’s a night shot of Government Road south of Wharf/Humboldt to close out the post…
One bike lane won’t change your city, one bike lane every year for sure will…