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On-ramp Shoulder Access

Switching the bikeway to the south side allows the possibility of bicycles using the emergency shoulder of the new on-ramp as a Barrington Street access.The shoulder is sufficiently wide to accommodate bicycles, except when needed for emergency situations.

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There would be little or no additional cost to using the on-ramp shoulder as the idea employs existing design features. Additional need for street crossings would be removed for cyclists traveling northbound from downtown to Dartmouth and potential interference by car traffic should be reduced.Westbound cyclists wishing to use North and Brunswick Streets have access to the crosswalks, and cyclists entering the bikeway from North Street can directly connect to the bikeway. Using the on-ramp shoulder would enable direct northbound access to the Tran Canada Trail and provides a future option to create a northbound trail link from downtown Halifax. However, without the additional dedicated bike route from the downtown, the link may only appeal to skilled, utilitarian cyclists using Barrington Street to commute northbound. As in other switch options, constraints for pedestrian and wheelchair traffic using the north side would still exist without additional alterations to permit safe and convenient crossings to North and Brunswick Streets. The crossing options discussed earlier would remove circuitous access to these streets, while still providing a way to Barrington Street for those walking to Dockyard and Shipyard locations.

It is possible to expand using the on-ramp shoulder to configure a two-way cycle lane. It retains the direct Trans Canada Trail connection and removal of the need for street crossings. In addition, it would replace the two narrow emergency shoulders with one wide multi-use shoulder at almost no additional cost. Reduced on -ramp traffic during the morning peak makes the second on-ramp lane redundant permitting lane use by southbound cycle traffic. During the evening peak, however, southbound cyclists would have to use Brunswick Street unless the ramp wall is modified substantially adding potentially high costs to the cycle route. In addition the two-way cycle link may require a physical barrier to separate counter flow cyclists from car traffic. The barrier and cycle lane poses an additional problem as there may not be sufficient space for snow storage on the opposite side of the ramp. This option repeats the north side pedestrian access constraints mentioned earlier, if desirable alterations are not included to accommodate walkers and wheelchair users.

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