Bow Avenue in Banff will remain a one-way street with angle parking despite concerns the scenic riverside road has been turned into a parking lot.
At a meeting Monday (Nov. 23), council voted 6-1 to keep the current configuration of angle parking and one-way vehicle travel from south to north, but agreed to discuss the issue again in the fall of 2017 before the next municipal election.
Officials say they believe the current layout was one piece of the overall plan that helped with parking woes and traffic congestion this past summer, however, Councillor Brian Standish outright opposed making it permanent and Coun. Chip Olver voiced concerns.
“Bow Avenue is the iconic residential street in Banff, and what we’re doing is turning it into a parking lot,” said Standish.
“This not only affects the streetscape, but also affects the character of the neighbourhood. I’d like to see it go back to the original layout.”
Parking on Bow Avenue changed from parallel parking to angle parking to increase the number of parking spots around the downtown core in 2014, and the road became one-way in order to fit the reconfigured vehicle spots.
According to the Town of Banff, data gathered in the first week of August shows that stalls were generally well used in 2014 and 2015, but even better used this year compared to last year.
Coun. Stavros Karlos said he wants to see the existing plan for Bow Avenue continue.
“I believe we have significant data indicating all the tactics used in summer 2015 resulted in well distributed parking in the community,” he said.
“This was one of the pieces and, therefore, I’m not willing to shift any major decisions.”
Residents of Bow Avenue have raised concerns about traffic flow, garbage, bike travel on the riverside trail and the esthetics and safety of angle parking on the street, generally preferring to see two-way traffic and parallel parking on the riverside.
Coun. Chip Olver said angle parking detracts from people’s experience of the area, and noted parking is too close to the river for environmental reasons.
“All the cars really block the river views and with cars on the river side, we don’t have the recommended 30-metre setback from the river,” she said.
“All the cars right next to the trail reduce the enjoyment for people because they feel like they are next to a parking lot.”
Karlos disagreed. “I can’t say for a person driving in a car whether or not it detracts from the driving experience, but the primary way to enjoy that area is on the trail and it’s a multi-use trail,” he said.
“I believe my experience on the trail is not detracted by a hunk of metal by the road …. whether cars are parked this way or that way.”
Olver unsuccessfully tried to convince her colleagues to bring Bow Avenue back for discussion next year.
“I would like to see the day come when we move away from the need to see this in the long-term,” she said.
The Town of Banff is investigating several long-term solutions to its transportation troubles in the face of growing visitation, including intercept parking lots, a gondola and improved transit, among others.
Mayor Karen Sorensen said she prefers the issue come back in the fall of 2017 before the next election, rather than next year.
“I want to see where we are with other ideas for the future and how we’re doing with transit, and if we’ve moved ahead at all with discussions with Parks Canada for other parking solutions,” she said.
“I don’t believe there’s going to be significant change in the next 12 months, but I would like to believe there’s going to be significant change at some point.”
