Neighbourhood Greenway Reduced Speed Pilot

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Up to date information about Winnipeg's neighbourhood greenways is available on our neighbourhood greenways webpage.

Neighbourhood greenways are on-street routes designated to comfortably and safely move both cyclists and pedestrians and motor vehicles. Greenways typically include a range of treatments from low-impact things like signage, bike signals, and pavement markings to varying degrees of traffic calming including a best-practice speed limit of 30 km/h.

Winnipeg currently has 11 greenways, all of which operate with a speed limit of 50 km/h. The pilot has been in place since summer 2021 on four existing neighbourhood greenways:

Please note: this project is different from the Council-approved Enhanced Summer Bike Route Program which is in effect from May-October. Learn more here.

Up to date information about Winnipeg's neighbourhood greenways is available on our neighbourhood greenways webpage.

Neighbourhood greenways are on-street routes designated to comfortably and safely move both cyclists and pedestrians and motor vehicles. Greenways typically include a range of treatments from low-impact things like signage, bike signals, and pavement markings to varying degrees of traffic calming including a best-practice speed limit of 30 km/h.

Winnipeg currently has 11 greenways, all of which operate with a speed limit of 50 km/h. The pilot has been in place since summer 2021 on four existing neighbourhood greenways:

Please note: this project is different from the Council-approved Enhanced Summer Bike Route Program which is in effect from May-October. Learn more here.

Background

In 2020, the Standing Policy Committee on Infrastructure Renewal and Public Works directed the City to pilot reduced speeds on five existing neighbourhood greenways. Working with area Councillors, the City selected four greenways (all of which already have some existing traffic calming treatments and enhanced pedestrian crossings) for the pilot program. (A fifth street was initially proposed as part of the pilot, but was removed.)

The speed limit will be lowered on each of the five planned pilot locations, and each will also receive a variety of new traffic calming interventions ranging from new signage and barricades to speed humps and enhanced pedestrian crossings.

Technical guidance and case studies from other cities tell us that these measures should reduce vehicle speeds and volumes, increasing safety and comfort for cyclists and creating a more desirable environment for both cyclists and pedestrians.

Case study: In the early 2000’s, the City of Portland set out to ensure at least 80 percent of their residents had access to a neighbourhood greenway within a half-mile of home by 2015 (watch the project video that explains their plans and progress). As their greenway network grew, the Portland Bureau of Transportation saw a number of benefits for their community – including some they didn’t anticipate. As expected, vehicle volumes along the greenways lessened and bike volumes exponentially increased. But the changes didn’t stop there. Schools started reporting more kids riding bikes to class more often, and also saw younger kids learning to ride a bike earlier. Today, Portland has a robust greenway network that is growing year over year.


While the pilot program may slightly increase travel time for some, the intent is for these streets to shift to serving local-only motor vehicle traffic and increased cycling and pedestrian through traffic. We also recognize traffic may slightly increase on surrounding streets, but other cities’ experiences and technical data tell us the increase should be minor, which would mean an acceptable trade-off for increasing safety and vitality of these important route types.

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Page last updated: 21 May 2024, 01:30 PM