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Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 12:18 pm
by KCMax
Kansas City rolls ahead with bike-friendly plan
Specifically, Kansas City needs bike lanes:
  • From the river north to Gladstone on North Oak Trafficway and Cherry Street. This would extend North Kansas City's forward-thinking "sharrows" (shared roads), which already take cyclists from the Heart of America Bridge bike lane and connect the Northland to downtown.
  • Along Southwest Boulevard, from the Wyandotte County line into downtown. With Johnson County's Turkey Creek Trail, and Wyandotte County having federal money in hand to create bike lanes along Merriam Lane through Rosedale, this would create a long-needed safe bike commuting route. While crowded at times, overall this wide street is vastly underused. A bike lane would be a huge asset to cyclists and the business community.
  • From the Trolley Track Trail to downtown. There are several options, but the best might be Gillham Road into McGee Street downtown. The Trolley Track Trail provides a safe north-south route for much of the southern part of the city. Bridging the few remaining miles to downtown is vital and would connect a part of the city that census information says already commutes by bike at several times the national average.
  • Along Benton Boulevard, from Independence Avenue to 63rd Street. This is an essential corridor and would provide many of the city's poorer residents with a safe way to reach jobs. This is the longest single route we're suggesting, but one that, frankly, the city should have provided long before now.
  • To connect these north-south routes, at least one east-west lane. A lane along Linwood Boulevard would connect the east side, starting at Van Brunt Boulevard, to Penn Valley Community College. By crossing other paths, it would make getting around town more possible

Re: Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 9:12 pm
by pash
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Re: Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 9:39 pm
by KCFutbol
Upgraded Merriam Lane/Southwest Blvd. would be great. That's how I cycle downtown from northern JOCO.

Re: Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2011 10:20 pm
by grovester
I probably pass you on a regular basis, that route has some dedicated bikers.

Re: Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Sat Jul 02, 2011 5:19 pm
by kboish
I think Gilham would be a perfect way to connect DT to plaza/brookside trolley trail.  Then complete the making grand grand project and go all the way to rivermarket...seems like it would take minimal money and would be a huge boost to biking in this city.

I also think Gregory and/or Meyer need to be a southern east-west link over to swope park.  They're both wide enough.

Swope park roads should ALL be bike lanes...

another addition should be putting a real bike path down the middle of ward pkwy that feeds into the brush creek walkway.  Anyone ridden the bike path in Denver that follows there version of brush creek? (can't remember the name of it).  awesome amenity and would give people a nice city loop...ward pkwy>plaza>trolley trail>meyer



The mtn biking trails in swope are great, btw!  I can't wait for these to keep expanding and connect out south.  My only complaint is there was zero signage or markers to let me know where to start or any real details about the trail.  but, thats an easy fix.  great trails otherwise.

Re: Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2011 1:06 pm
by KCPowercat
Saw a LOT of bikers this morning going down main downtown to brookside riding on the curb lane.... definitely a need down this corridor.  Especially if we get the bike sharing.

Re: Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2011 1:38 pm
by DaveKCMO
here's your chance to send the message:

http://bikewalkkc.org/paint
Please Use the form at the right to send a note to Mayor Sly James and the City Council telling them why painting more crosswalks and bike lanes are important for our city's health, economy, environment.

Re: Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Mon Jul 18, 2011 9:36 am
by KCMax
Good editorial this weekend on the need for more bike lanes and pedestrian-friendly measures.

Kansas City has ignored walkers and bicyclists for too long

Re: Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Thu Jan 26, 2012 2:45 pm
by chingon
The new bike/ped trail along Brush Creek looks like its pretty close to completion from the Plaza all the way to Linwood and Cleaver.

The city desperately needs some kind of dedicated lane from River Market to the Plaza endpoints of the Trolley Track and Brush Creek trails now.

Why is there not a bike line down the middle of every Boulevard or Parkway with a median. Paseo? Meyer? Ward? Gilham? What would that take?

Re: Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Fri Jan 27, 2012 12:20 am
by pash
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Re: Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2012 9:41 am
by DaveKCMO

Re: Star calls for more bike lanes

Posted: Mon Mar 19, 2012 9:45 am
by KCMax
Wheels are turning to build bike lanes from Kansas to downtown
This summer and fall, Kansas City, Kan., and Overland Park will begin building portions of just such a downtown connector. Those projects and others in the works will eventually link the existing Turkey Creek Streamway Trail in Merriam to a park that’s being built in a flood-control project at the foot of downtown.

“It’s a pretty remarkable corridor,” Bartlett said.

Bike Lanes

Posted: Sat Aug 04, 2012 6:58 pm
by Demosthenes
I just recently visited Colorado Springs, a very bicycle friendly town, and one that has many bicycle lanes. This had me wondering why Kansas City is not down with bicycle lanes. I know that the average person in Kansas City is against bicycles in general and think they get in the way, and that bike lanes would be a waste of money in a town where "nobody bikes" even though its untrue; but I really feel that bike lanes would help everybody out. Having dedicated lanes for the bicycle would help let everyone know where they should be on the road. It gives confidence to everybody, both biker and auto driver. Obviously everyone should understand how traffic flows with bicycles on the road, but my experience is that many, many drivers simply don't even think bikes should legally be on the road. Without bike lanes drivers seem to freak out if a bike is in front of them, even if the bicyclist is all the way on the side of the road and there is plenty of space.

Basically, in a town full of ignorant people when it comes to bicycle laws, I think bike lanes would make everyone much happier. Bicyclists would feel safer, and drivers would more likely understand everything better. It would make life less stressful for everybody. So the question is, why are we as a whole against this? Isn't it time to move forward Kansas City?

Re: Bike Lanes

Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 9:45 am
by bobbyhawks
I was under the impression that the B-Cycle implementation was going to coincide with the addition of more bike lanes downtown (if there is even one right now). Maybe I get a different vibe, but I don't feel like lack of progress in this area is due so much to people being against it as it is a majority of folks not having the will to make this a priority.

Re: Bike Lanes

Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 9:50 am
by earthling
Demosthenes wrote:I know that the average person in Kansas City is against bicycles in general and think they get in the way, and that bike lanes would be a waste of money
Average person? I don't think I've ever heard a single person in KC say they are against bicycles.

Re: Bike Lanes

Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 9:57 am
by flyingember
bobbyhawks wrote:I was under the impression that the B-Cycle implementation was going to coincide with the addition of more bike lanes downtown (if there is even one right now). Maybe I get a different vibe, but I don't feel like lack of progress in this area is due so much to people being against it as it is a majority of folks not having the will to make this a priority.
they stated that they could possibly use the bike gps info to make a case for bike lanes with the city on commonly traveled routes

not that there would actually be bike lanes added

there is one bike lane lane with associated signs on Pennsylvania between 12th and 14th.

Re: Bike Lanes

Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 10:02 am
by flyingember
earthling wrote:
Demosthenes wrote:I know that the average person in Kansas City is against bicycles in general and think they get in the way, and that bike lanes would be a waste of money
Average person? I don't think I've ever heard a single person in KC say they are against bicycles.
http://bikewalkkc.org/content/businesse ... ic-meeting

Re: Bike Lanes

Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 10:10 am
by longviewmo
flyingember wrote:
earthling wrote:
Demosthenes wrote:I know that the average person in Kansas City is against bicycles in general and think they get in the way, and that bike lanes would be a waste of money
Average person? I don't think I've ever heard a single person in KC say they are against bicycles.
http://bikewalkkc.org/content/businesse ... ic-meeting
That says they're against bike lanes, not bicycles.

Re: Bike Lanes

Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 11:24 am
by KCMax
earthling wrote:
Demosthenes wrote:I know that the average person in Kansas City is against bicycles in general and think they get in the way, and that bike lanes would be a waste of money
Average person? I don't think I've ever heard a single person in KC say they are against bicycles.
Read any comments section of any article about a cyclist struck by a car. Its always the cyclists fault, people hate that cyclists dress up, and people love to tell stories about some cyclist they saw not following the law. Its awful.

Re: Bike Lanes

Posted: Mon Aug 06, 2012 12:03 pm
by earthling
And those complaints can be seen in any city. You should see the debates in San Fran. A lot of people are dying on bikes in SF. If I recall, about 15-30 die a year and 50 or so injured per week via car collisions even though there are bike lanes.

I bike around the city often and don't need bike lanes, but I stay off major roads with fast moving cars. Very easy to avoid issues if making a little bit of effort. And it would be naive for bicyclists to think cars are the ones who must yield.