It’s shaping up to be a busy evening at Brandon’s City Hall. Not only is there a public hearing scheduled regarding the city’s new plan, which just had its first reading in July, but a special agenda is on the books in regards to 26th Street reconstruction.
According to attachments to the agenda, the city has been looking at adding active transport elements to 26th Street. They’ve examined the possibility of bike lanes, multi-use pathways, and active transport lanes both with and without parking.
Residents, however, aren’t fully sold on the idea. When the city put out a survey on the subject, just under half of the respondents said they preferred not to see any accommodation made for active transport.
On the survey and in public open houses, the city said they heard concerns ranging from safety in school zones to parking concerns for those running businesses out of their homes. Some residents also questioned whether there was enough cycling traffic to merit a dedicated bike lane.
26th Street is scheduled for a substantial reconstruction project between Victoria Avenue and Park Avenue due to what the city called severely cracked pavement. They have received a provincial grant in support of this project. When completed, 26th Street would be part of a proposed city-wide active transportation network that connects Maryland Ave to McDonald Ave.
Council will begin its session at 6:00 PM.
