Show Your Support For Buffered Bike Lanes on Colorado Boulevard

A cyclist rides by Eagle Rock City Hall, where the Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council meeting will be held.

If you want to see a safer, more civilized Colorado Boulevard be sure to voice your support at tonight’s Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council meeting. The meeting will start at 7pm and be held at Eagle Rock City Hall, located at 2035 Colorado Boulevard. If you want to speak at the meeting, you must fill out a speaker card at the beginning of the meeting.

Whatever your reasons are for supporting buffered bike lanes, the neighborhood council wants to hear them.

Perhaps you want to better enjoy outdoor seating at your favorite restaurant by not having cars loudly whiz by at speeds that exceed the speed limit.

Or maybe you want Colorado Boulevard to be safer for bicyclists so that you don’t have to worry about a loved one when you know they’ll be riding on the street to reach a destination.

Maybe you’ve noticed more youth cycling in the neighborhood and you want to encourage their healthy lifestyle

Or maybe you’d like to take your own kids by bike to places around the neighborhood

Or perhaps you’d rather not spend 10 minutes trying to find parking at Trader Joe’s next time you need a gallon of milk

There are plenty of social, public safety, public health, economic, and environmental reasons to support bike lanes and encourage more bicycling in the neighborhood– go to tonight’s meeting and share with the neighborhood council your reasons for supporting buffered bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard.

If you can’t make it to the meeting but want to voice your support for bike lanes, feel free to write the neighborhood council at this email address info@eaglerockcouncil.org and cc the below email addresses as well so that your email reaches necessary people at the LADOT and in council member Huizar’s office.

nate.hayward@lacity.org
Councilmember.Huizar@lacity.org
tim.fremaux@lacity.org
nate.baird@lacity.org
info@takebacktheblvd.org

If you are on facebook, you can  confirm your attendance there.

This is likely to be the last opportunity to speak in favor of buffered bike lanes before the neighborhood council and Huizar decide whether or not to endorse buffered bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard. They will only endorse buffered bike lanes if community members show up and make their support clear.

Addressing Concerns With Implementing Bike Lanes on Colorado Boulevard

(“Creating bike lanes by reducing the number of lanes available to motorists will hurt businesses,” one of the many arguments presented against bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard. See “Bike Lane Concern #4″ below to find out if bike lanes are really likely to hurt local business)

Bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard, as planned in the Los Angeles Bike Plan, are coming closer to being a reality– a meeting on March 27th hosted by council member Huizar’s office will be held to determine based on community input how to move forward, if at all, with bike lanes on Eagle Rock’s main street.

During on-going opportunities for community input throughout phases of the Bike Plan formation, the Bike Plan’s environmental impact review, and most recently at a public hearing regarding the results of the environmental impact review comments have been mostly positive. However, now concerns about the potential impact bike lanes may are popping up in growing numbers. There is nothing wrong with this, concerns are well warranted for any proposed changes in town and a change to Colorado Boulevard’s public right-of-way will affect daily travel for many.

To gain a clearer perspective of what the current circumstances are and what may possibly change as a result of bike lanes being implemented, it may be beneficial to have the recurring concerns and questions people have regarding bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard actually be addressed. That’s what this blog post will attempt to do– address concerns that have been raised in conversations about bike lanes in the community.

Bike Lane Concern #1: “Shouldn’t we spend money on (insert priority here) instead?

• With city services getting cut left and right many rightfully feel bike lanes should not be a priority for the city. Some say we should spend the money on something more important, like police officers, keeping libraries open, after school programs, paving streets, etc. Important as these services are, the money that would be spent installing bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard would come from a portion of the 2008, voter-approved, Measure R specifically intended for bicycle and pedestrian safety improvements. Also,  re-striping streets to create bike lanes is relatively cheap– even if the money could go elsewhere there are few services that it could substantially fund.

Bike Lane Concern #2: “Reducing the number of lanes available to motorists will cause a traffic nightmare!”

• It seems intuitive– removing the number of lanes available to motorists will cause traffic to back up, especially during peak-hours, so much so that drivers will move at a near crawl. According to the Los Angeles Department of Transportation’s (LADOT) own estimates, converting one lane in each direction to create bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard will only impact peak-hour travel (morning and evening rush hour)– adding no more than about 3 minutes to the time it takes to travel the three miles from Eagle Rock’s border with the City of Glendale to Eagle Rock’s border with the City of Pasadena. To put things in perspective, this is the equivalent of listening to one extra song on the radio during one’s commute, and this is under the LADOT’s “worst-case scenario” estimate. The reason for the minimal impact bike lanes are projected to have on Colorado Boulevard is likely because the street carries very little traffic relative to it’s engineered capacity. The street is engineered to carry between 30,000 to 50,000 trips per day yet for traffic counts conducted over the past 15 years seldom has the street carried above 35,000 trips per day. Colorado Boulevard’s relatively low levels of traffic become evident when there are unexpected lane closures during rush hour and traffic manages to move just fine.

Bike Lane Concern #3: “The street is just fine the way it is– no need for bike lanes.” and  ”If the street isn’t broken, don’t fix it.”

• This concern with bike lanes is entirely subjective, though because the street carries little traffic relative to it’s engineered capacity and because an average of a crash a week occur on Colorado Boulevard there is reason to believe that the street is not fine and that it is broken, statistically speaking. Year after year the leading causes of crashes along Colorado Boulevard are speeding, failure to yield right-of-way, and running red lights– all these things happen when a street is engineered poorly and encourages dangerous, illegal behavior. Following a horrific crash in 2008 caused by an illegal street race over 600 tickets were issued to people for speeding on Colorado Boulevard. The crash, but especially the 600 speeding tickets issued in the wake of the crash, demonstrate the street is surely broken if so many people are unable to adhere to the current 35mph speed limit.

Bike Lane Concern #4: “Bike lanes will be bad for local business”

• Nobody wants to hurt local businesses– they make Colorado Boulevard the attractive, interesting street that it is. Without local businesses, Colorado Boulevard would be indistinguishable from any other business corridor lined with big box retailers and chain restaurants. Why bike lanes would hurt local businesses any more than maintaining the status quo of daily unsafe speeding and weekly crashes is unclear, though the logic seems to go something like this: “Bike lanes will slow down traffic on Colorado Boulevard so much so that people will stop patronizing local businesses because it will take too long to make a quick visit to their favorite restaurant or boutique.” There could be merit to this argument though there is not hard evidence to suggest that reducing the number of lanes available to motorists will be bad for business. A case study of the business corridor along York Boulevard in Highland Park, just south of Colorado Boulevard, by UCLA student researcher Cullen McCormick demonstrated that reducing the number of lanes available to motorists to create bike lanes on York Boulevard did not hurt business. Meanwhile, a growing number of studies in other cities show bike lanes are actually proving to be beneficial to local businesses. Perhaps worst for local business is relying on people to drive to there in the face of escalating gas prices and limited amount of convenient parking. Why not make cycling a pleasant, viable option so people don’t have to spend money in gas and parking to patronize their favorite local business?

Bike Lane Concern #5: “Reducing the number of lanes available to motorists to create bike lanes will hurt emergency response times!” and “We need to maintain the number of lanes available to motorists so that we don’t delay emergence responders!”

• Naturally nobody wants to delay emergence responders and potentially risk losing lives because people can’t get medical attention quickly enough. It is very understandable and commendable to have safety be a prime consideration. However, perhaps this concern is a little overstated, let’s explore why.Firstly, the local Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) Station on York Boulevard has not raised concerns to the LADOT about being able to respond to emergencies. In Downtown LA, at the request of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), the LADOT will remove a bike lane on 1st street. If there were a significant impact on the ability for emergency responders to reach their destinations because of bike lanes on York Boulevard, the LADOT would remove the bike lanes immediately.
• Also, as noted by Tom Vanderbilt, author of Traffic: Why We Drive The Way We Do and What It Says About Us, generally speaking any time saved by emergency responders by not implementing a traffic calming measure is negligible. In fact, Vanderbilt notes the status quo is likely more dangerous– as he succinctly puts it “speeding cars have surely claimed more lives than speeding responders have saved.” If we turn to York Boulevard again, we see what bike lanes may mean for Colorado Boulevard. The number of crashes on York Boulevard went down following the implementation of a “road diet” that reduced the number of travel lanes available to motorists. Part of York Boulevard went on a “road diet” in 2006 and utilizing traffic collision data available through UC Berkeley’s Traffic Injury Mapping System one will note that from 2002 to 2005, there were 92 crashes on the section of York Boulevard that would eventually go on a “road diet.” From 2006 to 2009 that same stretch of York Boulevard saw only 61 crashes. Comparing pre- and post- “road diet” data on York Boulevard show additional safety benefits.  The number of misdemeanor and felony hit-and-runs are on a decline and as are the collective number of visible, severe, and fatal injuries. Collision data from York Boulevard suggests there is reason to believe that reducing the number of lanes available to motorists will make Colorado Boulevard safer and reduce the need for emergency responders to go to the scene of preventable crashes.

Bike Lane Concern #6: “Are there enough people cycling to warrant reducing the number of lanes available to motorists?” or, “do bicyclists really deserve bike lanes until they constitute a significant proportion of daily travel on Colorado Boulevard?”

• There are a number of ways to approach this though the LADOT’s simple response to this concern is that the bike lanes are intended to increase the number of people the choose to cycle for local trips. People sometimes respond to this by saying “Eagle Rock Boulevard has bike lanes but hardly anyone uses them.” This is true, and this is most likely because the bike lane does not provide sufficient subjective safety for the average person to feel comfortable cycling in it. Many people who oppose bike lanes say “I wouldn’t feel safe riding in a mere painted bike lane, drivers can still veer into it.” This is why the proposed bike lane design on Colorado Boulevard is a more substantial, a design called a “buffered bike lane,” that has has demonstrated to have vastly increased the number of journeys made by bicycle on Spring Street in Downtown LA. The Eagle Rock Boulevard bike lane is a good example of what a low quality, minimal bike facility produces– low levels of cycling.  Additionally, the LADOT has frequently stated at public meetings that the more complete a network of bicycle facilities there is, the more people will cycle. Part of the reason why few people use the bike lanes on Eagle Rock Boulevard is that in addition to providing low levels of subjective safety, the Eagle Rock Boulevard bike lanes only connect to the one other bike facility– the bike lanes on York Boulevard (which did not extend beyond Avenue 54 until recently).
• Though perhaps a better way to address this concern is to compare it with curb cuts on sidewalks. Relatively few people actually benefit from curb cuts, intended to allow people with disabilities to cross the street. More often on Colorado Boulevard one will see a person pushing a stroller than someone in a wheelchair utilizing a curb cut to cross the street.  This concern asking if there are enough bicyclists to warrant bike lanes is ultimately an ethical question, something which is entirely subjective– some say “yes” while others say “no.”  However, because we live in a democracy, and the bike lanes would be installed in public space, it seems that the percent of traffic bicycling constitutes should not be a prime consideration of whether or not to implement bike lanes. While few people currently cycle in Eagle Rock they are just as entitled to safe, pleasant travel as motorists and pedestrians are– aren’t they?

(An older man doing some utilitarian bicycling approaches Colorado Boulevard from Townsend Avenue)

Bike Lane Concern #7: “Removing lanes available to motorists to create bike lanes only benefits a small minority”

• Related to Bike Lane Concern #6, this concern is that reducing the number of lanes available to motorists to create bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard will only benefit a small margin of the local population and therefore is unfair or unacceptable. While this concern is again largely subjective, there is some reason to suggest that more than a “small minority” would benefit from bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard. First, the proposed buffered bike lanes are likely to improve safety for all people on Colorado Boulevard– whether they travel by car, foot, or bicycle. As has happened on York Boulevard, safety improvements benefit everyone – not just cyclists – who travels, lives, and patronizes businesses along the street . Fewer emergency responders are sent out to clean up crashes when safety improves. Fewer people get into crashes when a street becomes safer. People are less likely to be delayed by crashes if a street becomes safer. And so on… Also, because buffered bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard are likely to increase the number of people cycling to destinations along the street, people who continue to drive will benefit from reduced competition for scarce parking spaces. Because buffered bike lanes will likely reduce the number of people cycling on the sidewalk, pedestrians will benefit from a not having to negotiate limited sidewalk space with bicyclists. Because bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard will likely slow down motorized traffic to be in better compliance with speed limits, pedestrians will benefit from being able to cross the street easier. Because gas prices continue to rise year after year, anyone unable or unwilling to keep up with the price of gas will benefit from having bicycling become a more viable, safe, and pleasant option for local trips. The reality is that maintaing the status quo on Colorado Boulevard is worse than any perceived negative impacts implementing bike lanes will have. Nobody benefits from the dangerous speeding the current situation encourages. Nobody benefits from feeling compelled to drive a mile to the grocery store because bicycling is seen as unsafe and unpleasant. Nobody benefits from parents chauffeuring their children to school by car during rush hour. Perhaps a better question is– what are the benefits of maintaining the status quo?

Closing Remarks

Proposed bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard seem to be of high contention but there is little reason for this to be so. Let’s recall that the LADOT projects no more than an additional three minutes to travel time if traveling the three mile entirety of Colorado Boulevard during peak-hours. In other words, bike lanes will only have a minimal impact on a small number of trips being made during the rush hour and most of the time bike lanes will have have virtually no negative impact on travel times of motorists. Because there are a lot of potential impacts – both positive and negative – how about we still move forward with buffered bike lanes but do so provisionally for a year to evaluate the impacts of the bike lanes? What is being proposed on Colorado Boulevard is not radical– it’s a simple re-striping of the street, it can easily be reversed or adjusted (with funds from Measure R) if necessary. Long Beach recently installed a pair of physically separated bike lanes (which reduced the number of lanes available to motorists) on a year trial to study the impacts and the findings have been quite positive. See the video below to learn what kind of an impact separated bike lanes had in Long Beach, skeptics may be pleasantly surprised and perhaps be willing to give bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard a chance.

Observing A Temporary Lane Closure on Colorado Boulevard

One concern regarding the potential installation of bike lanes on Colorado Boulevard is that it would cause a “traffic nightmare” since it would reduce the number of travel lanes available for motorists between Broadway and Townsend Avenue, a 1.5 mile stretch. The Los Angeles Department of Transportation’s (LADOT) Bikeways Division has communicated  it doesn’t anticipate any major delays in travel times by implementing bike lanes but concerns among residents persist, and understandably so. However if a recent, temporary closure of a single travel lane is any indication, it seems Colorado Boulevard will function just fine if bike lanes are implemented.

Friday, January 11th, a film crew was out on Colorado Boulevard on the block between Caspar Avenue and Maywood Avenue and due to all the equipment present during the filming, one eastbound travel lane was closed to traffic on this block of the street. Generally speaking, such unanticipated lane closures tend to cause bottlenecking, but this was not the case on Colorado Boulevard during this particular filming. Eastbound traffic appeared to be moving just as smoothly with only two of three lanes available as the westbound traffic where there was no unexpected lane closure.

Could it be that the LADOT’s projections are accurate– that creating bike lanes by removing one travel lane for motorists really won’t have much impact on travel times?

This temporary block long lane closure can’t provide conclusive evidence of what conditions would be like with bike lanes but it was interesting to observe nonetheless. Below is a video of the traffic conditions as they appeared between 5pm to 5:25pm

(Note  the block before the lane closure traffic was forced to merge from three lanes to two lanes and there didn’t appear to be any clogging of traffic there either.)

Subtle Signs of Take Back The Boulevard’s Efforts

(In my last post I asked if there was anything specifically I should write about in 2013, one reader requested I keep followers updated with the status of Take Back The Boulevard. So to kick off the year, here’s an update on the initiative.)

It’s been almost two years since Walk Eagle Rock first covered Take Back the Boulevard (TBTB)– the community driven initiative to make Colorado Boulevard a safer, friendlier street for  all.  While there were initially some public meetings following the launch of Take Back the Boulevard, the past few months have been relatively quiet. So what’s new? Why hasn’t the boulevard been taken back already?

According to Bob Gotham – chair of the Take Back the Boulevard’s steering committee – the initiative isn’t intended to transform Colorado Boulevard over night or even over a couple of years. To fulfill it’s goals, the initiative is realistically envisioned as an on-going process that will consist of short-term and long-term solutions to improve the boulevard. This is in part because any substantial, visible changes to the boulevard will only be able to move forward as funds are made available and if the City’s departments are willing to act. A safer, more pleasant Colorado Boulevard that functions for all users is at least a few more years off, but Take Back The Boulevard has taken steps towawrds bringing change to Eagle Rock’s main street. Let’s take a look…

• April 2011–  LADOT Bike Blog noted that bike lanes along Colorado Boulevard had been prioritized in the City’s Bike Plan due to the momentum of Take Back The Boulevard. Originally scheduled to be implemented sometime after 2015, the City will likely be moving forward with bike lanes along Colorado Boulevard in 2013.

Once bike lanes are installed, the street will likely have the same configuration as this bike lane on Sloat Boulevard in San Francisco. Photo credit: San Francisco Bicycle Coalition

• March 2012 – Take Back The Boulevard announced: ” In earlier public meetings, the challenge of crossing Colorado Boulevard and the shorter time limits of the parking meters on the north side of the street (one hour) were the most frequently cited reasons for the lower usage of those meters… based on recent efforts by the Council Office, the time limits on the meters on the north side of Colorado Boulevard have now been changed to two hours.”

• March 2012 – In the same March 2012 announcement, it was also reported: “The public parking lot at the intersection of Merton and Caspar Avenues significantly mitigates the parking issues in that area. Many have claimed they did not know this parking lot exists. New signage has been installed, making the availability of this lot, which is located within three blocks of a large number of commercial establishments, more apparent.”

One of the new sign on Colorado Boulevard pointing towards the public parking lot at Caspar Avenue and Merton Avenue

• January 2013 – The most recent development since TBTB formed occurred just a few days ago. Yield markings known as “shark teeth” were added to the crosswalk at Hermosa Avenue and Colorado Boulevard at the request of the TBTB steering committee. The markings remind traffic where to yield for crossing pedestrians.

New shark teeth yield markings indicating where motorists must yield to crossing pedestrians

Look at those shark teeth!
Where the yield markings were applied for eastbound travel

There has also been a subtle change to the two curbside parking space in front of Cacao Mexicatessen and Eufloria. In mid-2012 the parking space were converted from 30-minute parking space to one hour parking spaces. This may not be the direct result of  Take Back The Boulevard, but it would not be surprising if it were as the Department of Transportation has been reevaluating conditions along Colorado Boulevard following requests from TBTB’s steering committee. Hopefully the additional half hour granted to the parking spaces now makes them more attractive and useful for patrons of Cacao.

Note the curb in front of Eufloria and Cacao is no longer green, which indicated parking there was only allowed for 30 minutes– not enough time if one parking there wishes to comfortably enjoy a meal at Cacao

The above changes aren’t the most visible or high-profile – nor are they the only accomplishments from the initiative – but they are meaningful changes that we can point to and thank Take Back The Boulevard for. Hopefully 2013 will continue to bring more visible accomplishments from Take Back The Boulevard’s hard work.

Walk Eagle Rock in 2012

2012 was a good year for Walk Eagle Rock, let’s take a look at some blog stats and highlights from the past twelve months:

Most Popular Posts From 2012

1. Some Thoughts on Outdated Bikeway Designs
   
2. Restoring Angled Parking on Eagle Rock Boulevard
3. A Look at Eagle Rock’s Relationship with Parking
4. Galco’s and Bike Lanes
5. Flawed Views on Bicycling, Part 2

All these posts deal with either bicycling and parking but only two of the top five posts deal with the community of Eagle Rock specifically.

I never imagined I would write a lengthy critique of bike lane design in Los Angeles or that such post would end up being the most widely read article on this blog. It had little to do with Eagle Rock but gained a bit of traction with the bicycling community. ”Restoring Angled Parking on Eagle Rock Boulevard” and “A Look at Eagle Rock’s Relationship with Parking“, however, offer a bit of historical perspective on Eagle Rock’s main streets, which I personally enjoy looking into. ”Galco’s and Bike Lanes” and the related post “Flawed Views on Bicycling” were my response to comments local business owner John Nese made about bike parking, bike lanes and bicycling customers. The posts gained a bit of attention due to Highland Park Patch and the bicycling community linking to them.

Some Personal Favorite Posts from 2012

• Crossing Colorado Boulevard
• A Decade of Crashes Along Colorado Boulevard
• Westdale Connection

I enjoy writing posts that examine crash data of local streets, as I did in A Decade of Crashes Along Colorado Boulevard. The analytical posts are time-consuming to write, but they are worth it to plainly illustrate that the streets of Northeast LA sacrifice safety in the name of speed.

Crossing Colorado Boulevard reflects something I notice whenever I walk around the neighborhood– all too often the needs of pedestrians are neglected in favor of swiftly moving automobiles. Anyone who regularly walks along Colorado Boulevard will tell you there aren’t enough crosswalks. And it’s true– especially considering Colorado Boulevard the community’s main street lined with a number of local businesses that are within walking distance of many residents.

I also enjoy the simpler posts that stem from pleasant or curious observations made while walking around town, as Westdale Connection did– the kind of posts that I envisioned when starting this blog.

Peculiar Searches That Led to Walk Eagle Rock

• rock on people
• sketch of mobility walking ramps
• drawings made by children on importance of zebra crossing
• silhouette outdoor child
• shirtless biking
• paving sidewalks and providing crosswalks near bus stops
• structures which take into concideration an old

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Thanks for reading– if you have any favorite posts from 2012 feel free to share, it’ll help me get a better idea of the kind of material people come here for or enjoy reading about.

Westdale Connection

Westdale Avenue is one of Eagle Rock’s shorter streets, only about a quarter of a mile long according to Google Maps. The street is bisected by Eagle Rock Boulevard, cut into two distinctive sections.

Westdale Avenue as seen from Google Maps. Image credit: Google Maps

Two blocks east of Eagle Rock Boulevard, Westdale Avenue terminates by Occidental College where the street meets with Campus Road. Many residents in the area have probably traversed at least part of this section of the street between Eagle Rock Boulevard and Campus Road– perhaps to reach Oxy or to get onto or off of Eagle Rock Boulevard.

Westdale Avenue, “Not A Through Street”

The western portion is an unassuming a cul-de-sac, as signified by a “Not A Through Street” sign placed where the street intersects with Eagle Rock Boulevard, one block before the street terminates. Oddly, Westdale holds the distinction of being the only street in Eagle Rock that ends in a cul-de-sac one block immediately west of Eagle Rock Boulevard. Most streets that intersect with Eagle Rock Boulevard connect to Ellenwood Drive, if heading west. But what does this part of Westdale really look like? What is this unique cul-de-sac like in person, beyond what a Google Map street view tour can provide?

Immediately off of Eagle Rock Boulevard the street seems fairly typical– narrow sidewalks, single family homes and a small apartment are visible. As one approaches the end of the street, the sidewalks terminate, which is a little unusual for streets in the flat, non-hillside parts of Eagle Rock. The sidewalk probably ends though because technically beyond that point land is private property, according to ZIMAS (Zone Information and Map Access System).

End of the sidewalk

Continuing, one is suddenly in a parking lot and there ends the street rather unceremoniously.

End of Westdale Avenue

However, looking at this “Not Through” street, visible is a navigable walkway in the corner of the parking lot.

Center left, the asphalt continues along a narrow path

A look down the paved path

And at the end of the path is Ellenwood Drive!

Looking east on Ellenwood Drive, behind the car and the bush is the narrow path that connects to Westdale Avenue

Upon closer inspection, one can see a cut in the curb adjacent to the narrow path as though perhaps at one point Westdale Avenue was a through street or there was an alley connecting it to Ellenwood Drive.

A slant in the curb as though there was at one point car access through to Westdale Avenue

However, according to ZIMAS the path is informal. Unlike similar paths found along Delevan Drive or the Delrosa Walk, this walkway is not recognized as navigable– not a real street, alley, or walkway. A 1930 sanborn map of the area – the earliest map of the area I could find – also shows no navigable path. In the 1930 map the configuration back then is almost identical to today: Westdale Avenue ends at the same spot and the location of the path is on land recognized solely as private property.

Without further investigation, this narrow path remains a bit of a mystery. If the path really is private, why is access to the public not restricted? Who benefits from this path being here and why is it paved? If anyone knows anything about the path or the history of area more generally, feel free to chime in.

New Bike Lanes in Garvanza

San Pascual Avenue, recipient of one of Highland Park’s newest bike lane

Avenue 66 and San Pascual Avenue recently received bike lanes as part of the LA Bike Plan; the bike lanes were implemented by simply narrowing existing travel lanes, no parking or mixed-traffic travel lanes were removed. The Avenue 66 bike lanes run for about half a mile, between York Boulevard and Meridian Street. The San Pascual Avenue bike lanes run for about 0.7 miles, between York Boulevard and Comet Street.

Looking South on the San Pascual Avenue, with new bike lane

As locals may know, both San Pascual Avenue and Avenue 66 are relatively calm streets. In fact, some may even question the merit of implementing bike lanes on already calm streets but a couple of observations can help put things in perspective, and justify their installation.

New bike lane on Avenue 66, looking North 

Currently York Boulevard, which intersects with both streets, only has bike lanes between Eagle Rock Boulevard and North Figueroa Street. However, as part of the City’s bike plan, York Boulevard will eventually have bike lanes running in its entirety between Eagle Rock Boulevard and the South Pasadena city border. Once those bike lanes are in place, bicycle access in Northeast LA will vastly improve. One will be able to cycle from as far as Glassell Park and travel to San Pascual Park, being in a bike lane the entire time since Eagle Rock Boulevard – the street one would likely use to cycle from Glassell  Park to San Pascual Park – already has bike lanes.

Another look at the San Pascual Avenue bike lanes

San Pascual Park is itself a beautiful, tranquil place to be but immediately adjacent there is also an access point to the Arroyo Seco trail.  The dirt trail – popular with dog walkers and runners – runs along the Arroyo Seco, leading all the way to the Rose Bowl area, which of course also offers recreational opportunities. The bike lane is a piece of a developing bicycle network that can connect people to park-space and recreational opportunities without relying on private automobile or public transit.

Also, since the presence of bike lanes tend to make cycling more appealing to those who don’t cycle, the San Pascual Avenue bike lanes may even make biking to San Pascual Elementary an attractive alternative to walking or driving to school.

As for the Avenue 66 bike lanes, they admittedly do not lead to any particular destination but the lanes themselves do offer utilitarian and recreational opportunity for immediate area. It’s not unusual to see children cycling in the parking lot adjacent to the intersection of Avenue 66 and York Boulevard– now kids have bike lanes on Avenue 66, in addition to lanes on San Pascual Avenue, to ride to their hearts’ content.

The Avenue 66 bike lanes could also serve utilitarian purposes for adjacent residents. Once the York Boulevard bike lanes are extended, residents along Avenue 66 will be able  ride to nearby Rite Aid and other business by bike and enjoy the comfort of being in a bike lane the entire time.

In themselves these new bike lanes may not seem very significant, but as Northeast LA’s bike network continues to grow, they will surely become more relevant and useful to the community.