Looking for separation : Task force wants bike lanes, not side paths, on Garland Avenue
Posted on Thursday, June 19, 2008
The Sidewalks and Trails Task Force will request bicycle lanes be included in the designs for the widening of Garland Avenue.
The Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department is partnering with the city of Fayetteville on a project to widen a 0. 75-mile section of Garland Avenue (Arkansas 112 ) from North Street to just past Melmar Drive.
The current plan calls for the section of road to be widened from two lanes to five lanes, with four travel lanes and one continuous center turning lane. The plan also includes a 10-foot-wide side path on the west side of the road in addition to 5-footwide sidewalks on each side.
The task force wants two 5-foot-wide bike lanes to replace the side path. The group held a special meeting Wednesday to go over the state's designs and come up with a proposal to forward to the Fayetteville Street Committee, which could then make a recommendation to the highway department.
Matt Mihalevich, trails coordinator for the city, said side paths are not the safest way to go for bicycles.
"It doesn't really work for commuting, for alternative transportation needs," he said.
Mihalevich said the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials recommends against the use of side paths and provides a list of problems associated with them, including cross streets and driveways where bicycles have to contend with turning vehicles.
A safer option is a true bike lane with a 5-foot minimum width that includes arrows and bike symbols, he said.
That's what the city proposed and what is being built on Crossover Road (Arkansas 265 ) between Mission Boulevard and Joyce Boulevard.
Citizens lobbied for bike lanes when the state was designing improvements to the highway. The road was originally planned to be improved north to the city limits, but because of funding limits the city had to choose between doing the entire length of the project without bike lanes or opting for a shorter distance with bike lanes and a median included.
Members of the task force said they think the argument for having similar bike lanes on Garland Avenue is a good one.
A lot of University of Arkansas students reside in the area and use alternative forms of transportation to get to campus.
Ron Chioldi, a resident of the area, said bike lanes wouldn't just benefit students but would help anyone who would rather walk than get in their vehicle to go a short distance to the grocery store.
"People in this community would like to have a safe place to walk," he said.
The task force discussed the possibility of the highway department taking the continuous turn lane out of the design or considering keeping Garland a two-lane street and just adding a turn lane to make room for bike lanes within the right of way.
Task force members decided to keep their recommendation simple and promote 5-foot-wide bike lanes on either side of the street as well as 5-foot-wide sidewalks and greenspace, keeping within the right of way by removing the 10-foot-wide side path.
The task force will take its recommendation to the Street Committee meeting at 4: 30 p.m. Monday in the City Administration Building, 113 W. Mountain St.
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