After a motion from the Active Transportation Advisory Committee in 2018, Council finally got a staff report with recommendations about standards for clearing bike lanes in September 2020. Why did this take a motion from ATAC rather than being baked into the Integrated Mobility Plan? I dunno. 2/11
The staff report noted at the time that the sidewalk clearing standards were considered inadequate by people who actually use them. Staff also noted that the service standards do not consider accessibility needs, like beg buttons and access to the sidewalk from accessible parking spots. 3/11
Staff only recommended improving accessibility considerations in snow clearing (e.g., attention to TWSIs & beg buttons), around schools, and around healthcare facilities. 4/11
They recommended against improving service standards, even though comparable cities had better standards, it would be consistent with the Integrated Mobility Plan & it's what people want. 5/11
Side note: It's truly a mindfuck to read this report and all the machinations that staff do to try to avoid providing adequate snow clearing, especially if you consider whether they'd ever write a similar report about street clearing. 6/11
For bike lanes, staff recommended clearing them to the same standard as the adjacent sidewalk, rather than the street. The cost would be higher where HRM implements bike lanes that are too narrow for standard equipment to clear. 7/11
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