Many Fort Street business owners are taking a wait-and-see approach on new protected bike lanes, but some are finding the transition bumpy — especially when it comes to parking.
Karen Rousseau, owner of the Vegan Hippie Chick Cafe, said she has seen a slowdown in business during bike lane construction. One customer told her it was too frustrating to park along Fort Street or battle the traffic congestion.
“I think for me, [the bike lanes] will be great, but the transition is always tough,” Rousseau said.
Parking issues on the street came to a head Wednesday after confusion about where to park left some motorists blocked in.
Kristine Wilkinson was in 1000 block of Fort Street, between Vancouver and Cook streets, about 11:30 a.m. when she saw a row of cars parked in the metered stalls along the curb, in the area that will become the bike lane.
A half-hour later, she noticed a second set of cars had parked in the new painted spots on the outside of the bike lane.
“I looked at it and said ‘oh no,’ because if I was parked in the meter spots I would be furious if I was blocked in my car.” Wilkinson said there were no signs indicating where people were supposed to park.
Emma Speight, a receptionist at Gulf Island Organics Cannabis Dispensary, said she heard horns honking, either from drivers who were stuck behind the new row of parked cars, thinking it was a traffic lane, or from drivers boxed in.
“It was just ridiculous,” she said.
City of Victoria spokeswoman Rebecca Penz said the city received one complaint about the parking confusion. She said some cars drove through barriers and parked along the curb.
On Thursday, numbered meters along the curb had been removed and signs directed drivers to the new spots. Large bollards also blocked cars from driving into the bike lane.
Amy Jung, who works at Sally Bun, said she noticed the double parking debacle on Wednesday but didn’t hear from any customers who were stuck. She said the business has had to change its delivery times twice since construction started on Sept. 25.
Sarah King, the manager of Not Just Pretty, said she’s taking a wait-and-see approach to the project.
“I see [construction crews] working hard, working fast, but it’s going to be a bit confusing during the transition,” she said.
The two-way bike lane, which will run between Wharf and Cook streets, is set to open May 2018. The project aims to improve safety for cyclists, who will be separated from motor vehicle traffic using a combination of paint, bollards, parked vehicles and concrete barriers.
After the project is finished, there will be two lanes for motor vehicles and 11 fewer parking spots on the 1.2-kilometre stretch of Fort Street. Work is also being done on crosswalks and sidewalks, with new trees and benches added, and underground utility upgraded.
