Cyclists brace for Macdonald Bridge construction

The prospect of losing the Angus L. Macdonald Bridge's bike lane this summer is already starting to worrysome cyclists.

The lane, along with the pedestrian walkway, are both being removed during the "biglift" the project to replace the deck of theMacdonald Bridge by lifting pre-made sections into place from barges.

The construction starts next July and is expected to take 18 months to complete.

In anticipation of the disruption it will cause to people who bike across Halifax Harbour, the Halifax-Dartmouth Bridge Commission, the province and the Halifax Regional Municipality have spent $30,000 on upgrades at the Dartmouth ferry terminal.

They include the installation of new bike racks, extra security cameras, a bike repair station and automatic doors.

During the "big lift"the bridge commission also plans to run a round-the-clock shuttle service across the Macdonald bridge during the day, and across the MacKay Bridge during nighttime construction.

The commission has set aside $1.5 millionto run the service.

Force people into cars

It's appreciated, but the owner of a downtown Dartmouth bike shop, The Bike Pedaler, isn't convinced it will be good enough.Marc Rickard thinks the added inconvenience will force people into their cars.

"I think we're going to see a significant drop in people using their bicycles and walking, he said. Which means there's going to be an increase in car traffic.

"We're going to see much more congestion even than what we have right now. So we're going to see morning rush hour traffic and afternoon rush hourtraffic be a real nightmare."

Cameron MacKay works at the shop.He lives in the Hydrostone area of Halifax and uses the bridge every day.

It now takes him 10 to 15 minutes to cycle to work.

He thinks using the ferry will be his best option during the construction period.

"I might have to just bike down to the ferry terminal, catch the ferry over. It's going to add at least an hour on my day, he said.

Rickard would like to see the city extend ferry service overnight to ensure those who work late nights have a way to get home faster than shuttling across the MacKay Bridge detour.

His municipal councillor, Gloria McCluskey, likes that idea too.

It would be a great idea as far as Im concerned," she said. And we have more people living downtown now in Dartmouth. So I think it's very important that we look at that."