Construction occurred between mid-July and mid-October, 2021.

Construction on 12 Avenue S.W. was originally planned for 2020. The initial design included the removal of a significant amount of street parking between 15 Street and 19 Street S.W. We decided to take extra time to make revisions that preserve some of the on-street parking while keeping the intent of the project and providing more travel options along the corridor. As this technical work takes time, and construction is weather-dependent, it was not feasible to complete the work before the end of the 2020 construction season.

Work on Phase 1 and Phase 2 was completed in October 2019. Several improvements made along the corridor included:

• Extending the dedicated lane for people cycling from 11 Street to 15 Street S.W.
• Adding bicycle turn boxes at 12 Avenue and 11 Street S.W.
• Improving travel time for drivers by providing three uninterrupted driving lanes for morning rush hour.
• Removing the rush hour parking restriction on the north side of 12 Avenue between 15 Street and 16 Street S.W.
• Providing a loading stall on the east side of 12 Street S.W., just north of 12 Avenue S.W.

Check out the maps for the improvements we completed in Phases  2:

• Phase 2: 12 Avenue S.W., between 11 Street and 15 Street S.W.

To allow for smooth and predictable traffic flow, on-street parking on the south side of the roadway remains. Some of the on-street parking on the north side also remains, however, short sections are now designated as Loading Zones to ensure emergency services can continue to have access to both sides of the street. 

Public engagement for 12 Avenue S.W. improvements was conducted in 2019. Read the What We Heard report to learn more.

Initial Phase 3 designs were presented to the community in late 2019. As a result of continued community concern regarding the availability of on-street parking, we did more technical work on the design in 2020. Construction was completed in fall 2021.

A number of corridors, or groupings of streets, were identified for the Centre City study area based on the idea that a single cycle track within the corridor would be able to appropriately serve the demand for that specific area. For each corridor, a number of potential cycle track alignments were identified.

These alignments were based on current best practices in North American bicycle planning and design, understanding of the local context, and feedback received during the ongoing engagement. These cycle track alignments (combining a street selection and facility layout) were then evaluated based on a set of technical criteria including connections to key destinations, existing and future bicycle demand, impact on other modes, conflicts at driveways and transit stops, and cost and constructability. Based on this analysis, 12 Avenue was selected to serve the demand for an east/west corridor in the north part of the Beltline. Additional background information can be found in the Centre City Cycle Track Network- Development and recommendations report.

You can learn more about the types of cycle tracks and bike lanes and tips for cycling in Calgary here.

We have tips on snow-clearing a sidewalk beside a cycle track. Please review this information and share with contractors.

This year, the east extension of the 12 Avenue S.E., from Olympic Way S.E. to the Elbow River Pathway, will be converted into a temporary adaptive roadway to help provide Calgarians with the space needed to safely walk, run, skateboard and cycle.

Given the close proximity to the new Calgary Event Centre, the east extension cycle track will be led by Calgary Municipal Land Corporation (CMLC).  To keep updated on this project, please visit the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation website.