While Grand Forks discusses bikeshare and closing a section of University Avenue, our neighbors to the south are embroiled in a bitter bike lane battle. A list of articles and current status of the project is being kept up by the Great Plains Cycling Club on their website.
What do you think of bike lanes? Does the general lack of bike lanes in Grand Forks affect your choice of whether to travel by a certain route? Are there any places in town you’d like to see lanes installed?
Bike lane ALL of university from the university to downtown. Bike lanes are probably more effective in number, especially with an educational campaign for drivers. Bike “routes” should become bike lanes. I didn’t realize the street I’m along now (east 32nd) is considered a bike route till I looked at the 2011 bike map.
Many of the streets that could benefit from a bike lane are too small (Cherry is a good example).
I agree that adding bike lanes in a vacuum doesn’t make a lot of sense if you’re trying to support cycle commuting. Adding lanes to University would be a great way to show support, however there would be backlash from people along such a “major” thoroughfare. The street seems wide enough, but the lane would be in the door zone for part of the trip. I’ve discussed this with various people and this seems to be okay, if only because the stretch of University west of North Washington is mostly residential and doesn’t have the number of people always moving in and out of parking spots you might find in an urban area.
Another idea to create space on those streets that are too small is to make them one-way and pair them with another one-way a block over. Chestnut and Walnut are already set up like this.
I honestly don’t think lanes are enough, to get people to commute, though. It might make them feel safer and get out more (which is a great thing, no doubt about it), but although bike lanes improve access, they don’t help people make the leap to deciding that they want to ride instead of drive. Incentives from employers such as healthcare credits if you ride instead of drive (similar to what you can get if you join a gym) or even a monthly parking refund (for the parking spot your employer doesn’t have to provide for you) would be other ways to show people that this whole “bicycle commuting” thing is acceptable and normal.