The decision, which will be made during a meeting Monday night, will remain in place until at least after the new park board is voted in October. One item on the agenda is the Stanley Park Mobility Study, which includes the separated bike path through the park — an idea that has divided many Vancouverites. It has also divided the park board commissioners. Tricia Barker has long been opposed because of the difficulties it has created for the elderly and those with mobility issues seeking to access the park. “We still have the access to get into the park, but pushing a wheelchair a mile to get somewhere is not easy access,” Barker said. “Yes it’s access, but it’s not easy access.” There is also the price. Last fall, CTV News obtained the cost of the bike lane, which came to $815,000 for public research, consultation and implementation. In addition, Barker said there is about $2 million in lost parking revenue “Right now we can’t afford to mow all the lawns, we can’t afford to pick up the trash, and we’re spending money and time and energy on something that I don’t think the majority of people want in Stanley Park,” Barker said. “I think it should have stopped a long time ago.” Commissioner John Irwin, on the other hand, is one of the strongest supporters of the bike lane. “I think it’s been a pretty good success,” he said, adding that it’s a step toward tackling climate change. “I think the point is, in a situation where we’re in a climate crisis — and it’s going to take us a long time to get carbon-generating cars out of our system — we have to look seriously at how we’re going to get people around,” Irwin said. “The pandemic was, and felt like, the pressing emergency of our time, but in my view … the biggest crisis is the climate crisis.” Irwin said he also has a vision to implement an electric bus through the park for tourists, operated by TransLink. “It could be two or three smaller community buses, right? Or ideally, smaller electric buses,” he told CTV News. “TransLink could pitch it as ‘This is our new direction for community buses.’ The segregated bike lane has been in place since the early days of the pandemic, initially to move cyclists away from the seawall and allow for greater physical distance. In October, Vancouver’s park board voted to extend the project until the Stanley Park Mobility Study is completed. The lane configuration through Stanley Park includes one-way traffic along Beach Avenue, meaning cars can only exit onto Georgia Street, creating exit bottlenecks when vehicles leave during rush hour and some weekends. COMPETING BUSINESSES Gerry O’Neil is chairman of Stanley Park Horse Drawn Tours and this year the company is celebrating its 40th anniversary. 2022 is also the first summer in two years that tourists visit the park, which means O’Neil’s business is back up and running. But beyond the staff shortage, with experience in operations across B.C., O’Neil and his staff also struggle with railcars having to use a lane through the park with other vehicles. “People are behind us and they’re honking and screaming, so, unfortunately, it’s unpleasant,” O’Neil said. “We already had two staff quit this year, two drivers, they just had it.” In addition to causing delays for other cars, O’Neil said his carriages also create challenges for paramedics and fire crews who are called to the park. “The first responders (had to) wait behind us for five minutes, 10 minutes,” he said. “We brought this up to staff, we were just ignored.” O’Neil said he asked Park Board staff if wagons could also use the bike lane, but that request was denied by staff, citing safety concerns. He believes the bike lane setup should be more flexible, especially during the weekend when the park is busy. “You could fire a cannon in the middle of the day, on a weekday, and you’re not going to hit anybody on the bike path,” he said. The Vancouver Park Board meets Monday night and residents can still sign up to speak.
