As the clock ticks down to civic election day in British Columbia, organizations that represent cyclists and pedestrians in Vancouver are pushing for changes that will make the Burrard Street Bridge a safer place for people who walk or ride their bicycles across the key commuter artery.
Members of the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition (VACC) and Friends of the Burrard Bridge met with reporters on Tuesday to voice their concerns about the lack of space available to cyclists and pedestrians.
"It's a pretty scary situation right now,'' said Rob Wymen, a spokesman for Friends of the Burrard Bridge. He says the status quo just isn't working.
"There's too many pedestrians and cyclists squeezed together, and it's about doubled in ten years so the volume of cyclists and pedestrians is going up drastically,'' he said.
Fortunately for bike enthusiasts like Rob, they have allies in the two men vying for the mayor's office in Vancouver.
Aside from being avid cyclists - Vision Vancouver's Gregor Robertson and Non-Partisan Association (NPA) candidate Peter Ladner have both included bridge improvements in their election platforms.
The NPA plan for the bridge will see the construction of a barrier to keep pedestrians and cyclists from falling into the vehicle lanes. The NPA won't touch the vehicle lanes on the bridge.
Vision wants to shut down one lane of traffic and turn that into a bike lane. It would then put in a rush hour counterflow system for the remaining car lanes.
This leaves voters with a clear choice. They can opt for NPA's barrier plan to improve safety but not expand bike and walking space, or they can support Vision's plan to convert one vehicle lane into a dedicated bike route.
Cyclists like Rob have already made their choice...
"If we really want to increase the amount of cyclists biking in Vancouver and make pedestrians safer, we need to accommodate them," he said.
With a report by CTV British Columbia's Stephen Smart
