New bike lane on Carling, plus upcoming pop-up vaccine clinics
A few brief updates today…
Temporary bike lane opens on Carling Avenue
Back in early June, three city councillors announced that an approximately 1-km stretch of seasonal bike lanes on Carling Avenue, between Sherwood and Cambridge, would be coming this summer. Those lanes are now open, providing a route for cyclists separated from other traffic with cones. The lanes were paid for with ward traffic-calming budgets between the councillors Shawn Menard, Catherine McKenney and Jeff Leiper.
Despite Carling Avenue’s utility as a major arterial, it does not have much in the way of separated cycling facilities. According to Bike Ottawa, Carling is considered an LTS-4 facility, meaning it exhibits the highest level of traffic stress for cyclists.
Electric bus preview
OC Transpo tweeted this pic of one of four new electric buses that will be delivered to Ottawa this fall. The buses are still in production.
The buses will begin service this year and by 2023, 74 more of the battery-powered buses will enter the fleet.
More, more more weed shops
A few hours after I had read the Ottawa Business Journal’s report “Legal cannabis sales in Ottawa flat as stores continue to multiply” (linked here) the OttawaStart mailbox dinged with news of yet another:
“High Tide Inc … a retail-focused cannabis corporation enhanced by the manufacturing and distribution of consumption accessories, announced today that its Canna Cabana store located at 111 Rideau Street in Ottawa, Ontario, has begun selling recreational cannabis products for adult use.” So put that in your pipe and smoke it.
Upcoming vaccination clinics
The City of Ottawa sent out a notice this week that pop-up COVID-19 vaccine clinics will be open to anyone age 12 and up for a first or second dose.
“Expanding eligibility will help increase access to COVID-19 vaccines for anyone in Ottawa. Pop-up COVID-19 vaccine clinics will continue to be planned to reduce barriers in neighbourhoods experiencing lower rates of vaccination.”
A list of upcoming pop-up clinics is posted here…
Upcoming events
The World Press Photo exhibition has returned to the Canadian War Museum and will be on display until August 15. The exhibition features 159 outstanding large-format photographs documenting current events, armed conflict, social issues and natural phenomena of global importance. This year’s winners include Canadian documentary photographer Chris Donovan. Access to World Press Photo is included with general admission, and all visitors must book a timed ticket in advance. For more on the Museum’s current safety measures, and to book tickets, please visit warmuseum.ca. ($)
Whether at home, the cottage or on the patio, the 2021 TD Ottawa Jazz Festival has it all covered from Aug 19 – 22. Curated by Programming Manager Petr Cancura, the TD Summer Virtual Festival is taking the stage with 17 stunning paid (ticketed) virtual performances and artist interviews over 4 days. ($$)
Beyond Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience presented by RBC will be in Ottawa for a limited time. Art lovers from Ottawa and beyond will have the opportunity to revel in this unique and unforgettable experience throughout the summer of 2021, from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. 7 days a week, beginning on July 23. More info… ($$)
BOOK GIVEAWAY (AGAIN!!!)
Love hockey and its history? Local hockey historian Andrew Tidman has a new book called WINS: A Canadian Hockey Summareliquary, and he wants to give away an additional 10 copies to OttawaStart readers! WINS is Tidman’s tribute to Canadian hockey, through the collection of the game summaries of games in which a team represented Canada.
THE GREATEST CANADIAN HOCKEY GAMES OF ALL-TIME: THE GAME SUMMARIES
Tidman says that, before the Internet and 24/7 sports television coverage — and not living within range of radio and television broadcasts of the team he followed — information on how the games went often came to him via the next day’s newspaper summary. Although the newspapers would provide a brief prose summary of the highlights of the games, Tidman found the box scores to be much more info-packed. He would even consult the summary after having watched/ listened to the game, because there was so much information there. His book WINS is all about reviving this tradition by collecting the historical box scores and summaries of all the key games Canada played in history.
Want to win a copy? The first 10 OttawaStart readers to email feedback@ottawastart.com will receive a free copy of WINS in the mail from Andrew Tidman. Please use “Book contest” in the subject line!