In each ordinary session of the Lisbon Municipal Assembly, the mayor must deliver a written document with a summary of the municipality's activities. This file, which is shared with the municipal deputies and also published on the Assembly's website, is usually a good summary of what is going on in the city, containing information that is often not public otherwise. As there is another session this Tuesday, the document pertaining to it is now available and brings some new features to Cycling Lisbon.
Referring to the months of November, December and January, the document points out that "the planned expansion of Lisbon's cycling network is taking place with several works underway that will allow more and more people to choose this mode of transport in the future"We have already seen and advanced works on Avenida Marechal Gomes da Costa, Rua Fernão Mendes Pinto, in Belém, Rua Professor Fernando da Fonseca, in Telheiras, and Rua Professor Lima Basto, in São Domingos de Benfica.
However, there are some new features, the Avenue of India is in "project conclusion", developing between the already existing bike lanes on 24 de Julho and Fernão Mendes Pinto; "will be implemented on the north side road with suppression of one traffic lane (...) in the direction of entry into Lisbon with correction of all road markings".
As for The existing pop-up bike lane on Rua Castilho and Marquês da Fronteira will soon be extended to Campo de Ourique to connect it to the planned network. The study of this extension in the form of a bidirectional bicycle path has been completed.
The bicycle path along Avenida dos Combatentes, starting at Praça de Espanha, will be continued first through Avenida Egas Moniz, before the construction of the promised connection through Avenida Lusíada to Benfica. It will be a bidirectional corridor that will pass in front of Santa Maria Hospital and will allow reaching the University City.
In Campo Grande - where the NOS/Museu da Cidade intersection will be redesigned as part of the Alameda das Linhas de Torres bicycle path - will be solved the old problem of the poor condition of the floor next to the FCUL, since the "outcroppings and root expansion of pine trees that make a comfortable and safe crossing impossible". According to the document, the problem will be solved with the construction of a pop-up, bidirectional alternative to the existing cycling connection between the NOS/City Museum intersection and the University City intersection. The new bike lane should be created on the road next to FCUL.
The document also mentions a project to repair the cycle track near Santa Apolónia and the "sending the georeferenced data about the existing network to the Google platform"which may indicate that soon the bicycle users in Lisbon will be able to use Google Maps to navigate in the city with real-time directions.
