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A new national report from the Alliance for Biking and Walking shows that Columbus has maintained it’s rank in 40th place out of the 51 largest US cities when analyze miles of bike infrastructure. The “Bicycling and Walking in the U.S.:2012 Benchmarking Report” also reveals that Columbus is now the second largest US city without any on-street bike lanes Downtown.
“The City of Columbus has demonstrated great enlightenment and commitment to developing bicycle infrastructure in the past 3 years via the Bicentennial Bikeways Plan,” says Doug Morgan, Board President of Consider Biking. “The Benchmarking Report reinforces the economic and health benefits of facilitating bicycling; we’re concerned that our competition is moving much faster than us.”
The report does show that Columbus is ranked a bit better at providing bike trail facilities, such as the Alum Creek Trail and Olentangy Bikeway. And while Columbus doesn’t have bike-dedicated lanes running through Downtown, it does have a sharrow system on several Downtown streets.
“A much greater investment is needed in biking and walking to increase active transportation,” says Jeffrey Miller, Alliance President and CEO. “The Benchmarking Report shows that biking and walking are smart and cost-effective solutions that will pay for themselves many times over in healthcare savings and impact on local economies.”
The report shows a direct link between high levels of bike transportation infrastructure and a lower obesity rates. The average number of on-road bike lanes for a US city is 134 miles, and Columbus currently has 20 miles.
In a response to this report, Consider Biking is launching a new “Connect the Core” Campaign that will increase the priority of adding 12 miles of bike lanes to Downtown Columbus. This plan was laid out in 2008 with the adoption of the Bicentennial Bikeways Plan.
“Cities across the country have proven that prioritizing the installation of bike lanes in their downtowns, have resulted in more people bicycling, and subsequent increases in safety for all road users,” says Bryan Saums, Program Manager of Consider Biking. “Downtown bike lanes have made those communities more economically vibrant and livable.”
The Benchmark Report provides additional data to support these claims. It says that providing bike lane s can increase bicycle ridership, improve bike rider safety, improve public health, and provide three dollars of benefit for every dollar invested.
To view the full report visit www.PeoplePoweredMovement.org.
CLICK HERE to view more information on Consider Biking’s Connect the Core campaign.
Chicago’s mayor has committed to 100 miles of protected bike lanes. It’s great to see some urgency in improving conditions for cycling. I’m fortunate to be managing the design of quite a few miles.
For all the readers. After living in Germany for 4 years I think they really had a great idea. they separated the sidewalks into a bike lane and a walking lane. In Columbus and the surrounding suburbs there is a lot of unused sidewalk space. What really intrigues me is that Columbus overid the state law to forbid riding on sidewalks. in some areas I think this would be a great idea and in others the marked streets are fine. Morse rd is the perfect example. it has perfect sidewalks for its entire length yet they created risky bike lanes on a 45mph roadway. Riding on roads that have a 35 mph speed limit seems pretty straight forward unless its high street cause it is just crazy with buses and parked cars. All in all Columbus has quite a bit of work to do to become a bike city, but I don’t mind helping out at all since I live here as well.
Confused by what you mean by “override the state law”? In 2006 a bill was passed that clarified Ohio cycling laws by making the laws far more uniform across the board. Prior to ’06 it was possible to ride from say Whitehall to Downtown Columbus and somewhere along the way break the law because of inconsistencies across the jurisdictions (just a hypothetical, as I can’t recall specific laws in these areas back in ’06).
Specific to the issue of sidewalk cycling, from Ohio Bike Federation’s Q&A when the bill passed:
“Q: You mentioned mandating “unsafe practices”. Can you give an example?
A: Sure. Some cities required riding on sidewalks. These laws are no longer effective. Sidewalk cycling is unsafe, especially at speed, because then cyclists violate the expectations of other drivers — they suddenly appear on a collision course at intersections and driveways. Sidewalk cyclists are also a hazard to pedestrians. Unfortunately, there are many other bad laws I could cite. The problem is most people, including government officials, do not understand proper bicycle operation. That leads to bad laws. ”
Source [PDF]
And that goes to why design is everything. A set up on Morse like you describe could work but there are many conflict points at the driveways into commercial areas.
ETA
To everyone: If you’re not following the parallel discussion in the message board, I’ve offered to meet with anyone and ride the bike lanes on W. Broad. If you make the claim based on fear that lanes are the only way to get you riding, I’d like you to come experience what you’ll get given current precedent. PM me if interested.
Connect the Core Meetup #3:
More Here: http://http://www.considerbiking.org/category/connect-the-core/
Columbus is putting bike lanes on King Avenue in Grandview – any minute now! And, as a result bringing all of the intersections on King Avenue up to ADA compliance. Very exciting news! It will be a corridor for commuting to downtown and OSU from the Grandview area. Go C-bus! The City of Columbus has worked with the 5XNW Area Commission which held public planning sessions, sent out over 300 emails to local residents and business owners, mailed postcards to everyone along King Avenue, called in City planners to walk through maps as large as a white board with input from local citizens, and announced it in the Columbus Dispatch – through media contacts.