Tofino recently completed an $85,000 Multi-Use Path upgrade.

A 0.5 kilometre stretch of MUP between Olsen Road and Gibson Street was widened and new yellow curbs were installed to improve safety, according to the district’s manager of community sustainability Aaron Rodgers.

Rodgers told the Westerly that the $85,000 project was paid for with a $40,000 Cycling Infrastructure Partnership Program grant through BC’s Ministry of Transportation, $40,000 from Tofino’s Federal Gas Tax reserve and $5,000 from Resort Municipality Initiative (RMI) money.

“We’re always trying to improve our cycling network,” Rodgers said. “This was a section that we’d identified a number of years ago so when the grant came by we applied and got it.”

He said MUP improvements could lead to a healthier community with less parking concerns as locals and tourists opt to walk or cycle rather than drive.

“The more people biking or walking, the less people parking downtown,” he said.

The MUP currently spans about 7 kilometres and ends near the Cox Bay Visitors Centre but Rodgers said the district would continue to explore grants and development amenities to extend the path past Maltby Road. 

 â€œWe also know that we need to do some pretty significant improvements on existing parts that are starting to heave…and the old sections are quite narrow,” he said.

“It will probably be a two-pronged approach where we’re going to try to improve where we can and either wait for a grant, or wait for a development to come along and have them help contribute to finishing it off.”

 Andrew.bailey@westerlynews.ca

Tofino-Ucluelet Westerly News