Politics & Government

Lakewood Bike Plan Gaining Momentum

Last week, at the city's planning commission meeting, city officials unveiled a comprehensive plan that paves the way bicycling in Lakewood.

Lakewood has taken another step forward in its .

Last week, at the city’s planning commission meeting, city officials unveiled a comprehensive plan that paves the way bicycling in Lakewood.

Nick Workman and Bryce Sylvester, who both work in the , offered up a presentation highlighting the finding of last month’s highlighting the strengths and weaknesses.

Find out what's happening in Lakewoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The presentation — now headed to city council for review — also offered a new few ideas.

The presentation highlighted that biking isn’t just for recreation anymore. In fact, in Lakewood, it’s how many residents get around.

Find out what's happening in Lakewoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

A recent traffic count at the intersection of Detroit and Andrews avenues saw an “astronomical” number of pedestrians and cyclists.

During one six-hour period, there were — count ‘em — 1,100 pedestrians and about 300 bikes at that intersection.

Not really much of a surprise for a city that ranked No. 1 in the state for bikeability, according to the American Community Survey.

“We know we can get better, which is why we put this plan together,” said Sylvester. “We need bicycling to be recognized as a main means of transportation in the city.”

The proposal called for the city to entirely use “shared use” lanes, meaning that cars and bikes equally share the road.

The plan recommends signage for bike racks, but also some to “remind residents that the roads are for everybody.”

A few of the other highlights include:

  • Creating “sharrows” that will allow painted signs on the streets, indicating the road is to be shared with cyclists. The first place to start, city officials said, is on Madison Avenue where a multi-million-dollar repaving plan is in the works.
  • Encouraging bike safety.
  • Asking residents to register their bikes with the police department.
  • Promoting awareness, including erecting billboards and providing handheld maps to cyclists.

Tom Bullock, Ward 2 councilman, said he’s been “beating the drum for bicycling as a priority” in Lakewood.

“The community has a deep and broad interest in this,” Bullock said. “This isn’t a side issue. This isn’t the icing on the cake. This is central to what we do.”

During the past year, the city hosted community workshops, conducted surveys and carried out bike traffic counts. City officials have spent the past couple months talking to business leaders and schools officials.

The studies outlined what city officials already suspected.

“We want to build on the fact that Lakewood is a great bicycle community and we want to make it better,” said Dru Siley, the city’s director of planning development.

The next step is to get feedback from the community. A community workshop to discuss biking in the city is set for Dec. 14.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here