Best Transportation Project

The first ever segregated bike lane implemented in Ontario. This pilot project launched in Ottawa in 2011 has now become permanent. Thanks to its environmental, economic benefits, and the data collected with its Eco-Counters.

Use of automated bike counters

To better analyze the impact of its new infrastructure, the City of Ottawa used automated bike counters to collect data on the Laurier bike lane. The results were displayed on a public webpage uploaded on a daily basis.

Increase in bicycle usage

Thanks to the work of its staff, the data collected using automated ZELT bike counters and the transparency provided by the public webpage, the city managed to overcome arguments and win over public opinion with simple data. This data clearly showed an increase in bicycle usage.

Laurier Avenue Bike Lane: Key Figures

• Traffic grew from 700 to 2,800 cyclists per day in two years
• 122 car parking spaces were removed with no significant impact on business
• Average cycle mode share downtown increased from 4% to 7%

Source: Federation of Canadian Municipalities