Linwood

In 2009-2010, the main cross streets of the rural village of Linwood, Ament Line and Manser Road, were scheduled for reconstruction by the Region of Waterloo, due to the deteriorated condition of their asphalt. The reconstruction was viewed by the Region as an opportunity to make the streets more friendly for walking and cycling, especially as both streets were designated as cycling routes in the Regional Cycling Master Plan.

Public engagement included a public consultation centre, a community survey, a public input meeting, and meetings with representatives from the Mennonite community specifically. One concern raised centred around the proposed bike and buggy lane. Although wider than bike lanes installed elsewhere in the Region (1.5m instead of 1.25m), it would still be slightly narrower than the standard buggy (1.54m), and larger models exist, meaning buggies would encroach into the vehicle lane. However, this design had already been used successfully in a main street reconstruction in nearby Heidelberg, and was preferred to wider lane, which might encourage illegal vehicle parking.

Total cost of the project was $3.7 million, with an additional $50,000 from the Township of Wellesley for sidewalk repair. The project included the following outputs:

• Curb, and gutter installation (very little existed before), and storm sewer replacement
• Sidewalk repair, and installation of new sidewalks where none existed to provide continuous pedestrian facilities
• Installation of on-street bike and buggy lanes (1.5m wide).
• Installation of paved boulevard parking (sides of street). As on-street parking was mostly removed to make room for the bike and buggy lanes, parking stalls were added in commercial areas. In residential sections, these boulevards were grassed and treed instead.
• No tracking or evaluation has been undertaken for this project.