Dear Editor:
Sunday, May 1 was a glorious day and families were out and about enjoying the weather. We were happily walking our dog at Ambleside when a close call happened.
A family of five, cycling eastbound on Argyle Avenue at 14th Street, nearly had a nasty collision with a car, when their son cycled into the path of the oncoming vehicle. Fortunately, the driver was cautious and the boy was not hit.
The point of this is that while cars travelling along Argyle between 13th and 15th streets must travel one way (west), cyclists seem to think they can travel in both directions. If this is true, and currently there are no signs that say otherwise, this has the potential to cause accidents.
Firstly, there are drivers backing out of parking stalls looking east to see if there is any oncoming traffic, they are not necessarily looking to see if cyclists are coming from the west.
Pedestrians walk both ways, which may be the saving grace for cyclists, but they can and do stop. Secondly, the current road is narrow and so on a sunny day there can be a lot of congestion.
If pedestrians are expecting the road to be one way, it comes as a bit of a shock to find cyclists coming in the opposite direction.
May I respectfully request that the District of West Vancouver makes a decision as to whether cyclists must obey the motoring rule on that street which is one way, or permit cyclists to travel as pedestrians, in which case look to provide a cycle lane. This might help all parties, pedestrians, cyclists and motorists alike
Anne Savill
North Vancouver
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