Pedalling for votes: Montreal's parties eye the cycling demographic

The explosion in recent years ofthe number of cyclists in Montreal has created a new and valuable demographic that is actively being courted by the two main challengers for city hall in next month's election.

BothquipeDenis CoderreandProjetMontralhave been upping the ante againsteach other in an effort to secure as many votes as possible from the estimated 1 million Montrealerswho cycle on a weekly basis.

Their reaction to last week's deathof a cyclist on Mount Royalunderscores just how seriously the two parties take cycling issues.

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Over the weekend,quipeDenis Coderrepromised a series of new measuresaimed at securing the mountain for cyclists.

They hadalready promised a working group to study safety improvements following the death of ClmentOuimetbut went a step further Monday, saying they would implement traffic-calming measures onCamillien-HoudeWay, where Ouimet collided with an SUV performing an illegal U-turn.

Marc-Antoine Desjardins a candidate for city councilin Jeanne-Mance also announced that the mountain would close to vehicular traffic on Sunday mornings over the summer.

"Camillien-Houdewill be made safer as of right now,"Desjardins said. "People are already concerned."

These were among a flurry of cycling promises thatCoderre's team made at a Monday news conference. Others included the building of elevated bike lanes around Viger Avenue and Saint-Antoine Streetand across other major arteries in the city as well.

Also on the tableisa coveredvelodrome,Desjardins said.No dollar figure was given, but previous reports suggest such a project would cost around $20 million.

Lack of ambition?

The promise byquipeDenis Coderreto implement traffic-calming measures on the mountain comes after Projet Montralaccused the mayor's administration offailing to act on a previously tabled report that contained several safety proposals for the area where the accident occurred.

"I think there is a big lack of ambition in what [Coderre]is presenting,"ProjetMontral'sleader, Valrie Plante, said Monday.

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Plantesaid that while the city has expanded its bike network over the past four years, it has done so simply by painting bike lanes onto city streets, as opposed to creating bike lanes that are actuallyseparate from vehicle traffic.

ProjetMontral is proposing to build35 kilometres of bike lanes annually over a four-year mandate.

"If you really want to make sure that cyclists, pedestrians and car drivers feel safe you need to do separate bike lanes," Plante said.

Debate on cycling issues

On Tuesday, theMontrealBike Coalition will be hosting a debate at theCentre Saint-Pierre focusing explicitly on cycling issues.

quipe Denis Coderrewill be represented by Marc-Andr Gadoury, the city councillor responsible for bike safety,andProjetMontral,by PlateauMont-Royalborough councillorMarianne Gigure.

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The biking issue is one in whichPlante's underdog campaign feels it can score points against quipe DenisCoderre.

The boroughs run by ProjetMontral RosemontLa Petite-PatrieandPlateauMont-Royalare known as cycling havens. Their borough councils havealso implemented extensive traffic-calming measures, often at the displeasure of businesses.

Meanwhile, cycling enthusiasts blasted city hall earlier this year for shutting down the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuveover the summer.

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The racetrack which is a popular site for serious cyclists to train was given over to a private event promotions company, which usedthesite to host summer concerts while the city has been building it an amphitheatreinParc Jean-Drapeau.

On Monday,Desjardinsvowed the Coderre administration would, in the future, better accommodate cyclists who use the racetrack.

"For 2018, and the years to come, if ever there are concerts and other reparations, we will ensure access to a closed track for cyclists," he said.

But under Coderre, Montreal has also committed toVision Zro, a promise to reduce traffic deaths on Montreal streets as much as possible,ideally to zero.

As part of that commitment, Coderreannounced last month the citywould spend$150million over five years in an effort to further develop the city's cycling infrastructure.

The Montral Bike Coalition debate begins at 7:30 p.m. at 1212 Panet Street.