Columbus, Ohio Unveils 20-Year Bicycle Master Plan
by Andrew Posner, Providence, Rhode Island on 06. 2.08
Joining a growing number of cities, including New York, Seattle, Chicago, London and Copenhagen, Columbus, Ohio has just unveiled a $167.6 million, 288-page, 20-year plan to make the city more bicycle friendly. An integral part of the plan will be education--for cyclists as well as motorists--which, as we've seen before, is crucial to the safety of everyone on the road. Additionally, 58 miles of bike lanes will be added, as well as a downtown bike station (complete with bicycle parking and changing areas). Finally, "one of the biggest goals of the bike plan is to tie the area's trail system to neighborhoods and streets that will have bike lanes or bike signs."
There are also plans for a bike share program, the installation of more bike racks, the creation of several bike boulevards and significantly improved signage. Looks like nowadays cities of all geographies, political landscapes, and socio-economic conditions, are looking to find ways to make the bicycle a practical, safe and fun way to get around town.
Via: ::Columbus Dispatch and ::Alta Projects
Bike Share Programs
::University of Washington to Create Electric Bike Share Program
::Barcelona Has Gone Bicing Crazy: 30,000 Users in 2 Months!
::Next Stop For Bike-Share Programs: Capitol Hill
As much as I applaud this, a 20-year time line is ridiculous.
How about we reallocate some of the billions of dollars used for road infrastructure towards better bike and rail infrastructure, so more people will use it. They are already willing to...it just doesn't exist in a lot of places.
How much will a gallon of gas cost in 3 years, let alone 20? I think more space on the road for bikers will become a priority much sooner than 2028.
I live in Columbus and i think this is a great idea. i myself walk everywhere (within 2 mile radius) but if the city became more biker friendly i would/could ride my bike almost everywhere i need to go.
Just get on your bike and ride... If you have to wait until your city spends hundreds of millions to make it safe enough for you to bike - then you have found the perfect excuse to stay in your SUV for the rest of your career.
Call me a sceptical old so-and-so but:
'58 miles of bike lanes will be added'... over 20 years!
An average of just less than 3 miles of bike lane a year!
Columbus, we have a problem - now - 20 years is too long a time for solutions.
I could see 20 years for an all around light rail system (even then it's too long but...) but not for bike lanes.
At least they have a plan, which is more than I can say for my sorry state of Arkansas and city of North Little Rock.
I can't wait to get out of here.
Columbus is very good at greenwashing. If you listne to their ideas then we supposedly have a light rail system already, we supposedly have a recycling system, we supposedly have safe neighborhoods, etc. Its all talk, none of it ever happens.
20 years for rail Courtney, I wish. I live in a suburb near Seattle and Tacoma WA and we don't have any public transportation to these major citiies coming even in the next 20 years. In the next 20 years the light rail system is going to expand by something pathetic like 16 miles or something, it won't even make it into our county.
Christ Eugene, you sure are a pain in the ass. The light rail is on the way and any improvement is a sign that things are moving in the right direction. The world is going to change but it's not going to happen right away. The fact that a commuter city like Columbus can get enough people moving in the right direction is a huge step. I don't understand why people insist on being such pessimists.
I participated in a "critical mass"-type event calling for just this kind of program...in the early '70s!!
We had hundreds of cyclists and blocked all northbound lanes of High street from the Statehouse to Whetstone park. In the end, all they did was put in some bike lanes on campus (which have since been removed).
Columbus has always had lots of good ideas, but things rarely ever get to the implementation stage. This all sounds really good, but I'll believe it only when I see it.