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TRAFFIC

Filling gaps in bicycle routes in Boise may take years

BY CYNTHIA SEWELL cmsewell@idahostatesman.com - Idaho Statesman

Copyright: © 2009 Idaho Statesman

Published: 07/03/09

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Joe Jaszewski / Idaho Statesman

Without a bike lane or shoulder on Fairview Avenue, cyclists don't have many options but to ride on the sidewalk of the busy thoroughfare.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Bike safety response team formed

The team will immediately review efforts to promote road safety and recommend ways to improve safety for cyclists.

The eight-member team includes partners from ACHD, ITD and the Ada County prosecutor's office, as well as city staff members from the mayor's office, Boise Police Department, the city attorney's office and Planning and Development Services.

The team is going to reach out to cycling groups and motorist groups as well as other residents, said the mayor's spokesman, Adam Park.

The team expects to report to the City Council by the end of August.

What roads should you avoid

We asked professional cyclist Kristin Armstrong and enthusiast Kurt Holzer to identify some of the worst roads for cyclists. Then we asked Ada County Highway District and the Idaho Transportation Department what the future holds for these roads.

1. State Street

Who's in charge: ACHD has jurisdiction from 23rd to Glenwood; ITD controls the rest of the highway and Glenwood.

What's planned: The state's current Glenwood and Idaho 44/State Street projects are just to maintain the pavement, and additional right-of-way was not purchased - so new bike lanes or wider shoulders won't be added.

For the next five to 10 years, ACHD will be concentrating on improvements to alternate routes like Hill Road, Floating Feather, Beacon Light and Ustick.

2. Broadway Avenue

Who's in charge: The state.

What's the problem: It has sidewalks on both sides, but no bike lanes and narrow traffic lanes. Commercial development limits the ability to widen the road for bike lanes.

What cyclists should do: ACHD recommends Federal Way or the Greenbelt for cyclists wanting to get into town from the east. Otherwise, cyclists can take a patchwork of local and collector streets but still will have to cross at major intersections.

3. Fairview Avenue

Who's in charge: ACHD.

What's the problem: Officials say this street is simply too congested and needs a complete redesign to accommodate cyclists and pedestrians.

What's planned: ACHD is working on the Pine-Emerald and Ustick corridors as alternative routes for cyclists.

4. Eagle Road

Who's in charge: ITD from I-84 to State Street. ACHD north of State.

What's planned: ACHD wants to create an alternative to using Eagle by adding bike lanes to Cloverdale between McMillan and Emerald to connect to existing road sections with lanes or signed bikeways, where the shoulder width is more extensive but less than a true bike lane.

5. Chinden Boulevard

Who's in charge: The state.

Some good news: ITD put in bike lanes between Eagle and Mountain View when it rebuilt the road.

What cyclists should do: ACHD suggests McMillan, which is planned to have lanes from Eagle out to the county line, possibly within the next decade.

6. Overland Road

Who's in charge: ACHD.

What's the problem: Officials say the section from Linder to Cloverdale is fine - but it doesn't connect to anything on the west and there are gaps to Five Mile.

What's planned: Nothing is in the short term, but riders can jump up to Locust Grove to catch Pine/Emerald or Ustick for good east-west travel.

Plans for bike paths

ACHD's new Roadways to Bikeways master plan calls for $14 million in improvements within the next five to 10 years. This would provide 38 miles of new bike lanes and almost 149 miles of new bike routes.

Some upcoming projects include:

® Meridian Split Corridor, multi-use pathway, this summer.

® East ParkCenter Bridge, bike lanes and Greenbelt connection, this fall.

® Ten Mile, Franklin to Cherry, bike lanes, 2010.

® Eagle, Victory Road to the Ridenbaugh Canal, bike lanes, 2011.

® Overland Road, Ten Mile to Linder, bike lanes, 2011.

® Hill Road extension, Idaho 55 to State Street, 2012.

® Five Mile, Franklin to Fairview, bike lanes, 2013.

State roads:

Idaho Transportation Department controls 114 miles of state highways within Ada County, including State/Glenwood (Idaho 44); Broadway Avenue, Front/Myrtle and Chinden (U.S. 20/26); and Eagle Road (Idaho 55).

New bike lanes:

ITD included bike lanes on the new Locust Grove and Black Cat overpasses, and it will include bike lanes on the Vista, Orchard and Ten Mile overpasses, which are now under construction.

Other parts of the state highway system in Ada County have wide shoulders but no dedicated bicycle lanes:

® Meridian Road (Idaho 69) from Kuna to I-84.

® Eagle Road (Idaho 55) from Franklin to State.

Chances are that in Boise, you've either been on a bike recently or seen plenty on the road.

Per capita, the city ranks fourth in the country for bicycle commuters, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ada County Highway District knows this and plans to spend $14 million to boost bikeways and expand its 95 miles of bike lanes by 40 percent over the next 10 years.

But even then, almost eight out of every 10 miles of the 587 miles of roads in the county will be without bike lanes.

And the 114 miles of state highways in Ada County have even fewer bike facilities.

The Idaho Transportation Department has dedicated bike lanes on 3 miles - less than 3 percent - of the state highways in the county.

In fact, local cyclists including Olympic gold medalist Kristin Armstrong and attorney and avid cyclist Kurt Holzer say State Street, Broadway Avenue and Chinden Boulevard - all state roads - are among the worst biking roads in the Valley.

The ITD board supports more bike facilities, spokesman Jeff Stratten said, but the state can't afford to build them now.

But compared to much larger and equally bike-heavy cities like Portland and Chicago, which have 174 miles and 115 miles of dedicated bike lanes, respectively, Boise's nearly 100 miles of bike lanes looks pretty good.

Cynthia Sewell: 377-6428

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