The Campolide train station will be closer to the city center by bike. The construction of a section of cycling path on Avenida Calouste Gulbenkianwhich will connect to the existing bike path and cycling infrastructure in Praça de Espanha. In the future, this bike path will also bring Alcântara (and Belém) closer to the city center.
The new track will be realized in the bidirectional typology on top of the sidewalkwhich, because it is not very busy, allows for its reduction. As we approach the station, at Rua Engenheiro Ferreira de Mesquista, the lane will be transformed into a shared corridor (30+Bici). It will connect to the existing cycling infrastructure around the station (and that integrates the so-called Alcântara Valley Green Corridor), through again a bidirectional design.
This link will be important to connect the central part of the city, loaded with companies and commerce, to the Campolide railway stationwhere Fertagus trains run to Setúbal, CP's long distance trains on the Linha do Sul, as well as CP's suburban trains to Sintra, Rossio, Azambuja or Alcântara-Terra.
You can see the planned project in its entirety below:
Problems of the existing section will not be repaired
With the construction of the section, the intersection that already existed when the bicycle lane went from one side of Avenida Calouste Gulbenkian to the other will be redone, in order to better delimit the space that belongs to the pedestrian and that belongs to the cyclist. However, there will be no changes to the existing bike path and the sidewalk that flanks it - both are in visible poor condition, with some holes, puddles and mud from rainfall, and old, outdated paint. A source from the Lisbon City Council's mobility council explains, however, to Lisboa Para Pessoas that it is being an eventual maintenance contract was studied of this pedestrian and cycling path, different from the work that is now underway.
The existing bike lane also has other problems. When approaching Praça de Espanha, there is a STOP sign for cyclists before a bicycle crossing on Rua Armando Cortez; in this type of crossing, the bicycle has priority, so the STOP sign there can create a confusing situation for all vehicles. What's more: despite the STOP sign, the horizontal marking of the bike lane indicates a give way, increasing the confusion. The situation was not corrected under the intervention in Praça de Espanha. This work also maintained the mixed pedestrian and cyclist sharing area that existed right in front of the Spanish Embassy, despite all the new cycling infrastructure created in the area. In a preliminary project to which Lisboa Para Pessoas had access, this mixed zone would at least be reduced, with the construction of the bike lane where the width of the sidewalk allowed segregation.
Another situation that is also not included in the contract now underway is the extension of the cycle path from Avenida Calouste Gulbenkian to Rua Cardeal SaraivaIt allows not only a connection to the Amnesty International Garden (alternative to the stairs where there is a rail to carry the bicycle up and down steps), but also to the future bicycle path in the Avenida José Malhoa. In the municipality's planned cycling network planThis section we are now referring to is not designed.
The construction of the new bicycle path section on Avenida Calouste Gulbenkian started at the end of June. Besides connecting to Campolide station it will also allow a direct route to Alcântara and, by extension, to the Belém area through the Green Corridor of Alcântara Valley and Avenida de Ceuta. However, the construction of this Green Corridor, which was supposed to be completed in 2017/18, is overdue.
