Workers on the Jacques Cartier Bridge have modified bike gates installed at strategic points along the bridge's multi-use path after cyclists complained about getting injured trying to manoeuvre around them.
The barriers — also called chicanes — have been placed in sets of three and are intended to force cyclists to slow down, preventing accidents.
Instead, cyclists have been getting injured because the gates are too close together to weave around safely.
One of the three gates at each of the five sets of chicanes is being opened up today.
Cyclist and pedestrian advocacy group Piétons-cyclistes du Pont Jacques Cartier posted a video of the work being done.
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/scoop?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#scoop</a> Ouverture d’une barrière de la 3e chicane de la piste multifonctionnelle du <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/pontJacquesCartier?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#pontJacquesCartier</a> le 25/05 à 8h49 <a href="https://twitter.com/sarahleavittcbc?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@sarahleavittcbc</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/LeDevoir?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LeDevoir</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/VinceResseguier?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@VinceResseguier</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/VeloQuebec?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@VeloQuebec</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CVMBC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CVMBC</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CyclistBartek?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CyclistBartek</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/v%C3%A9loMTL?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#véloMTL</a> <a href="https://t.co/uA6EE7XGu4">pic.twitter.com/uA6EE7XGu4</a>
—@APCPontJCartierWorkers are also putting up signs to indicate who has the right of way on the path, said Nathalie Lessard, spokesperson for the Jacques Cartier and Champlain Bridges Incorporated.
"We're not removing the equipment at this point," Lessard said. "We're just opening a side barrier, and we're going to see [what] the behaviour of users is going to be."
Facing unique challenges
Lessard said this is a temporary measure while it continues to monitor and collect data on how well the chicanes are working to protect everyone who uses the path.
"We have to understand that it's a multipurpose path," she said. "We have different kinds of users — cyclists, pedestrians, joggers, people with reduced mobility. It's not just a cycling path."
The path poses unique challenges to ensuring users' safety, Lessard said.
It's 2.5 metres wide, has several sharp turns and blind spots, and cyclists and pedestrians are travelling in both directions.