Thunder Bay examining separated bike lane on Memorial Avenue

A proposal for a five-kilometre separated bike lane along Memorial Avenue in Thunder Bay will be studied by the city after being pushed during a council meeting Monday night. 

A petition in favour of the project received support from more than 1,800 people. The Memorial Link would run from Miles Street to John Street. A representative for the initiative said the goal is to ensure "it's a complete street," if implemented. 

"This proposal that we've got here is basically to get bicycles off the road," said Dean Stamler, the group's campaign organizer.

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"I don't know what could be more perfect for people who hate the idea of bike lanes and want to drive everywhere. We're going to take bikes, and we're going to remove them from the space that you hold beloved," he said.

Stamler said he wants the route to be added to the list of the city's transportation priorities.

"A road to nowhere is much better than no road at all. The reality is right now, we have people that are getting hurt on this corridor," he said.

"If you can access a piece of Memorial Avenue now, that's a place that you can get now that you couldn't get before," said Stamler.

City council passed a resolution asking the administration to consider the project's feasibility, including how much it will cost.

As for how this route would be maintained during the winter months, Stamler said "that's a totally different fish to fry."