Calgary council votes to make downtown cycle track permanent

It should stay, it shouldn't go.

That's what council has ultimately decided after hours of debate on a contentious item: should we keep the downtown cycle track network?

The 10 to four vote showed council has changed its stripes since the pilot was proposed and voted for in 2014 with eight votes for and seven against.

"This has been a very very interesting project for a number of reasons," said Mayor Naheed Nenshi. "But I want to say that in one way it has been extremely helpful for us on both sides, because this crazy debate...has forced us to do a better job."

He said proponents were forced to analyze and think about the benefits, and skeptics forced administration to be thoughtful in the implementation.

Peter Oliver, of Calgarians for Cycle Tracks, said his group is thrilled council listened to citizens and businesses.

"Calgary is a better city for this decision," said Oliver. "The disproportionate amount of scrutiny on this tiny project never made sense."

Coun. Shane Keating brought some amendments to administration’s recommendations. He asked that the remaining money not yet spent ($1.65 million) be used to improve parking, loading and other transit issues.