Raise the Hammer

a great improvement to an area that has always been well-trafficked on foot by people who live close by and those who bike or jog there for the lovely scenery.

Great project, and done well it looks like. Sadly, we missed an insanely easy opportunity to link this pathway with the west end of Concession/Sam Lawrence Park area, and we missed a further simple opportunity to link West 5th over to Garth with a similar off-road path when the new hospital was built. We could have had a seamless, safe cycling route along the Mountain Brow from the Scenic Drive entrance to the Chedoke Radial Trail in the west to the Escarpment Rail Trail in the east.

This new path needs to be continued around the traffic circle and over to Mountain Park Ave. From Mountain Park and Belwood. From Belwood to Sam Lawrence we had a golden opportunity for a new bike path, but instead chose to narrow Concession and use the extra space for coloured concrete next to the sidewalks. Belvidere to Rosedene would have linked this area to the new St Joes Hospital site on West 5th where no cycling path was built when the entire site was torn up the past few years. Would have been an easy off-road link to Garth and Scenic Drive.

One of these decades it would be awesome if Hamilton actually had a plan for transportation modes other than cars. Instead we get piecemeal projects with no safe connections and one-off cancellations by councillors who perpetually live in 1970.

barf

Yeah, why would you want your multi use path to connect to other stuff on either end? Why can't folks just be happy riding their bikes back and forth between Mohawk and Oakcrest? We should just be grateful for whatever the city bothers to do instead of demanding excellence.

Screw that. Unless you're relocating Syrian refugees, curing Ebola, decommissioning nuclear weapons or ending human trafficking, you should just stay home and do nothing because your problems aren't important enough to do something about. :P

Comment edited by z jones on 2015-09-24 20:34:08

Unless you're relocating Syrian refugees, curing Ebola, decommissioning nuclear weapons or ending human trafficking...

Don't forget 'sitting at home trolling the internet under anonymous screen names'

Clearly the answer is incessant bitter sarcasm.

Dont know what comment you read. The one I read started with a compliment "Great project and done well it looks like." Then it pointed out missed opportunity to connect it to the Concession Street complete redevelopment, which has fancy colored sidewalk instead of bike lanes. Then it pointed out other ways to improve the network of bike lanes the city didn't take when it rebuilt other streets around the same area. Only the last sentence has any sarcasm in it, and it seems pretty justified when you look at how little this city has done to make it easier to bike somewhere.

I'll just ask that you browse this site and read any other comment this person has made. 'Incessant' is appropriate.

Hamilton could use more people being "incessant". There is way too much "oh well, good enough" going on, and it's been going on for generations.

I have no problem with advocacy and keeping our elected officials on their toes. It's just the constant negativity even for a simple feel good story like this one that gets grating after a while.

So I'm assuming that means you'd be fine with this suggestion copied from below?

let's close the Linc off just west of Dartnall and just east of Upper Wentworth. Then, you'll get to celebrate too.

I don't really understand the Dartnall road thing and I don't want to get into some extended argument about this. If you think I'm a troll then please don't feed me...

that quote was simply an example of what it would look like if we built car infrastructure the same way we build bike infrastructure. No connections, just a small stretch of highway to drive back and forth on via the Upper Gage ramps.

Well the city rarely gets it right - it has to be acknowledged, it doesn't help any of us to just ignore the issues or we will never do it properly

like I point out below, imagine we built our road infrastructure with the same connectivity as we do everything else? These posters would flip their lids.

Please illustrate for us how that argument is a strawman

Comment edited by Cultosaurus on 2015-09-25 09:58:49

It is not, actually. His username is JasonAAllen. But stay classy.

Ok, will do Cory.

Comment edited by ergopepsi on 2015-09-24 10:56:16

let's close the Linc off just west of Dartnall and just east of Upper Wentworth. Then, you'll get to celebrate too.

Interesting factoid: Most #HamOntStairs have their own twitter accounts.

They include: @DundurnStairs, @WentworthStairs, @JamesStStairs, @Chedoke_Stairs, and @KenilworthStair.

Does Mountain Brow-Margate have its own Twitter account?

I'm going to stay out of the whole connectivity debate and mention how impressed I am with the new water fountains. As someone who uses the rail trails in the West & East I really appreciate being able to easily fill my water bottle while on a ride. Whoever ordered these units should be commended. It's the little things.

The water fountains are absolutely brilliant, but......it's too bad we can't have public washrooms or outhouses along some of these paths. The City can't put them in, I'm told, because of ongoing vandalism issues.

agreed. I'm amazed how often I try to map out fountains on a ride, especially in hot weather. Dundas Valley Centre has one, and there a few along the lake-front and West Harbour. But they are really lacking in the city. I'm aware of new ones like this at the bottom of the Chedoke Radial Trail, top of Wentworth Stairs and now here. Hope to see dozens more.

Especially the dog ones. I'm always grossed out when I see a dog owner letting their dog drink from a 'people' fountain. The one at HAAA park is out of bounds for me now...

it would be nice if the by-law officers would stop by the HAAA grounds often again. it was cool to be able to go to the park and not have to worry about someone's untrained little abomination of nature jump all over you.

there was this one kid actually trying to play soccer and this dog just wouldn't leave him alone and obviously a young kid isn't going to be able to assert himself to an adult who finds the whole thing a load of fun because "who would think my annoying yappy designer dog isn't so much fun?"

dog parks probably shouldn't exist given how badly our society needs to get outside and exercise, but they do so let your dog run free there or just get a cat or fish or something.

end rant

props to the people who train their dogs properly though.

Agreed. I think the bar for dog ownership should be a lot higher and the penalties for not controlling your pet much more severe.

I recommend a Springer device for high-energy dogs. This allows the dog to safely run beside a bicycle.

dude. PREACH. So annoying

Comment edited by jason on 2015-09-24 14:50:02

I love these 21st century fountains. Much more sanitary design.

More water fountains everywhere!

Rode up the rail trail to this new pathway tonight. It's a gorgeous ride. The new path is fantastic. Would be nice to see the Brow path behind the Henderson Hospital widened to feel more like this new one.

http://cyclemeter.com/58cc8c80cc21e60f/C...

Couple observations:

• The Upp Kenilworth Traffic circle could easily house bikes with some minor tinkering. A pedestrian signal just N of the main circle with bike path cutting through would work (this is the route I took). Most cyclists wouldn't want to mess with that circle. It's def the first pinch point making this a 'dead end' for 95% of riders.

• Mtn Brow Blvd west of the circle is 4 enormous lanes that are simply not needed. One entire lane just disappears as a left turn lane heading west. Plenty of room exists for a similar bike path to be built in the northern half of the northern-most lane, and excess land next to the Mtn edge to connect seamlessly to the nice path in Mountain Park.

• Concession between Belwood and Wellington sees the traffic lane go from a normal width, to ultra-wide for no reason in the westbound lane. Easy opportunity to paint a bike lane here. Eastbound there is an entire lane that disappears as a right turning lane into a quiet side street. Again, not needed and could easily house a protected bike lane.

• Getting downtown is a real forehead slapper. Riding the Jolley Cut and it's 15 foot wide lanes (at least) was horrendous. No wonder everyone does 80-100k. It's wider than lanes on the 401. A down bound bike lane would be great, with a left turn signal jump at the bottom.

• Charlton was a horrible ride, but that will soon change

For anyone not wanting to risk their life, the ride up and the ride along the new path was really enjoyable. One could easily go up and then turn around at the Traffic circle and head back downtown via the trail.