Project updates

🔊The Ultimate and Quick Build sections are beginning construction! July 4th until mid-September.

Ultimate build construction:

• Occurring between Rose and Christleton avenues and will look similar to the existing Abbott Street corridor.
• 240 metres of bi-directional cycle track will be added with sidewalks on both sides of the road and parking on one side near Rose Ave.
• Landscaped boulevards, lighting and upgrades to the existing 3-way intersection at Christleton and Abbott avenues will be incorporated as part of the ultimate build as well.

Quick build construction:

• This will continue the corridor between Christleton to Cedar avenues.
• 1200 metres of cycle track will be added to the existing asphalt with concrete barriers and planter boxes as a physical buffer between vehicles and cyclists.

View updated detailed design drawings in more detail here.

Project background

Abbott Street is one of Kelowna's busiest bicycling and pedestrian routes.

Upgrades will create a safer and more comfortable bicycling route for people of all ages and abilities.

To extend the Abbott ATC sooner than 2030, until the permanent facility can be built, we're piloting the use of quick-build infrastructure.

Quick-build strategies combine interim materials within existing street space, with limited new construction, to deliver projects faster and at a lower cost.

The engagement summary is now available for the public! Learn about key themes and explore respondent data here. Thank you to the more than 1,000 people who shared their feedback. Most respondents (86%) indicated they are either very or somewhat satisfied with the project.

Updated concept design drawings can be found here, and in the Documents section in the side bar. These are subject to change and do not include all details. The in-progress detailed design phase will further refine and adjust the the final drawing as required.

Quick Highlights

Ultimate and Quick-Build Infrastructure

The 2021/2022 Abbott Protected bike lane project will achieve bi-directional bike lanes separated from pedestrians between Rose Ave and Newsom Ave. This is planned to be achieved through the combination of ultimate and quick-build infrastructure.

Traffic Calming

Speed data previously collected shows that average speeds along the corridor are between 30 – 40 kph. With the addition of protected bike lanes, narrower travel lanes, improved pedestrian crossings, and other active transportation enhancements, average vehicle speeds are anticipated to decrease.

Sidewalk Network and Accessibility

Although the Abbott Protected Bike Lane project is focused on cycling facilities, the sidewalk network in the area is an essential component of the ATC project and Neighbourhoods. Through public engagement, we heard that there is a strong need for accessibility improvements along the corridor.

Planned pedestrian improvements include, but are not limited to curb letdowns (where applicable), seven Zebra crosswalks (at suitable spacing are planned at intersections along the route that are not stop controlled), and the extension of the sidewalk between Rose and Christleton, which fills a critical missing link in the sidewalk network. With this gap filled, continuous sidewalk would be available from one end of the project to the other.

Wayfinding

It is anticipated that once the bi-directional protected bike lanes are constructed, the route will become clearer. Wayfinding will be implemented to help with key transitions and strengthen connections to key destinations along and adjacent to the corridor. This may include signage provided to/from the ATC towards other bike routes and local destinations. Pavement markings are another key tool to avoid the mixing of peds/bikes with clear direction and separation of users.

Parking

The project aims to retain as much parking as feasibly possible. Suitable locations for accessible reserved spaces will also be explored as part of the detailed design process.

The Hospital Area, Kinsmen Park area and Pandosy Urban Centre will be addressed. For details, visit the project page.

Barrier Type

One common reason for choosing ‘planter box’ and ‘concret curb’ barriers included a perceived higher level of safety as they provide good physical separation, which provides a higher level of comfort. Reasons provided in the comments section for choosing the 'concrete curb barrier' type also included lower cost and reusability.

Balancing cost, aesthetics, safety, and reusability also aligns with the City's desire for a material that is easy to maintain, reusable, and cost-effective. For those reasons, a combination of concrete curb barriers and planter boxes at key locations has been selected for the Quick-Build portion of the project. Both materials offer reusability, strong traffic separation, and have an aesthetic quality in most cases.

Maintenance

Routine cycle track maintenance will be performed similarly to other ATCs in the city. Planter boxes will require additional maintenance.

Next steps

The detailed design is complete and construction is scheduled to being July 4th until mid-September.

The detailed design process is currently underway. Property owners affected by the project will be communicated with as part of the detailed design process. - COMPLETE

• A Road Safety Audit is currently being performed by a consultant to further review the proposed design and inform the detailed design phase. - COMPLETE
• Construction is planned for early Spring 2022, subject to budget approval. - SCHEDULED
• The City continues to plan for ultimate infrastructure along the Abbott ATC in long rage plans. The existing 10-year Capital Plan identifies the Abbott ATC as a Priority 1 project scheduled for 2029-2030.

Abbott ATC preliminary design & quick-build infrastructure

CLOSED: This survey has concluded.