Cedar Falls, Iowa is looking at ways to enhance bicycling as transportation and to make the city more friendly to bicycle commuters.
Bob Morgan, a member of the committee studying the proposal, said that use of bicycles as practical transportation could grow. “Bicycling can do more for the city. It can reduce traffic. Bicycles don’t send noxious fumes into the air, they doesn’t pollute.”
The committee has asked the City Council to look at a comprehensive plan for bicycle transportation, including things such as bike lanes on new or reconstructed roads. It also asked the council to look at pilot projects to start this year and to plan for long-term adaptations to make streets more hospitable as bikeways.
Bike corridors would include more places to park bicycles, designated bicycle routes, bike lanes and separated facilities. In addition, an important part of a plan would be to educate cyclists and drivers to safely coexist. Statistics show commuting by bicycle is safer than by car, but that is not the perception.
In addition, the committee hopes that Cedar Falls can incorporate on-street bike facilities on the roads connecting Cedar Falls to nearby Waterloo, making bicycle transportation a practical alternative for commuters between the two communities.
Source: WCFCourier.com