$6M Kitsilano bike route project gets green light

Vancouver city council has approved a controversial bike route project that will include closing Point Grey Road to through traffic.

After more than 200 residents spoke to the proposal over the course of five days of meetings, the motion passed in council last night, to the relief of Vision City Coun. Heather Deal, who put forward the original motion.

"I'm excited, I'm a little emotional actually, I'm exhausted," she told CBC News.

"[City crews will] start working on it quite soon. Hopefully they'll take a short break first, cause I think they're pretty tired too," she said.

Deal said construction of the seaside greenway corridor between the Burrard Bridge and Jericho Beach has been a long time coming, despite some strong local opposition to the plan.

"It comes down to whether or not you think Point Grey road is alright the way it is," she said.

The current configuration of the road and sidewalks is narrow and unsafe, and doesn't work well for cyclists or for pedestrians, Deal said.

But NPA Coun. George Affleck says the project needs more work.

"I don't see them listening. I just see them ramming things through here at city council," he said.

Affleck's motion to send the report back to staff and delay council's vote until October was defeated.

An earlier proposal that would have seen Cornwall Avenue modified to include a separated bike lane was abandoned in favour of the current plan, which is to designate York Avenue as a bike route connecting the Burrard Bridge to Point Grey Road.