City Council adopts improvements to Bicycle Master Plan

By Mariana Munoz

Nov. 12, 2014

Bicycles have become a main source of transportation for many
Austinites.

                                       

AUSTIN, TEXAS—

On any given day in Austin, you are likely to see people getting around from place to place on bikes. In a city known for its efforts to “go green,” however, there is still much public concern for the safety of riders and the improvement of bicycle infrastructure.

The Austin City Council unanimously adopted new changes to the Bicycle Master Plan on Thursday, Nov. 6. The changes to this plan, which was first implemented in 2009, aim to significantly increase bike use and improve bike safety throughout the city.

The council listened to plan supporters discuss benefits of the
expanded bicycle network.

The new plan calls for more protected bike lanes, which include a physical barrier between motor vehicles and bikers as well as pedestrians. Austin was already one of six cities in the U.S. chosen to participate in the Green Lane Project, an effort to encourage the construction of protected bike lanes used in bike-friendly European countries. The program can be seen on places such as Guadalupe Street, South Congress Avenue and Barton Springs Road where lanes are marked with bright green paint.

The Green Lane Project can be seen on Guadalupe Street, among
other popular areas.

The new bike lanes would first be constructed   on main roads with heavy traffic and then  expanded to other roads. The network is set to     be completed within the next 10 years and will cost the city $151 million.

Robert Spillar, city director of transportation, urged the council about Austin’s need for complete bicycle networks.

“Bicycle use will increase if we switch to a protected, connected network,” Spillar said. “The lanes we have right now just start and end.”

Supporters of the plan believe that protected lanes are necessary because painted white lines are not enough to encourage bicycle riding.

“The new plan definitely has my support,” said Jonathan Carr, a sophomore biology major at The University of Texas. “I would like to bike to campus since it’s cheaper than driving, but I don’t feel safe if the only thing dividing me from a car is white paint on the ground.”

Bicyclists are weary toward the current system in place.

  

Protected bike lanes in more heavily congested streets are a priority for the plan developers.

“The vision is to provide a network so that someone setting out to bike could actually get to each of their destinations without being exposed to conflicts with car traffic,” said Chris Riley, Austin City Council member.

Austin’s bicycle network has already grown from 126 miles to 210 miles since 2009—a 70 percent expansion in only five years.

Aside from traffic-dense areas, the placement of protected bike lanes will also be focused on places where there are high concentrations of “short trips”—trips

to neighborhood destinations throughout the city such as schools, parks, business and shopping districts that are usually less than three miles.

The map shows the bicycle network that will run through
most of the city.

  Those who oppose the bicycle plan argue that it will only make Austin’s traffic issue worse.

“It already takes me half an hour to get from South Austin to campus,” said Sam Guerra, a junior economics major at UT. “If you take lanes away from cars to give them to bikers, then it’ll probably take me an hour now.”

Although the council members supported new changes, they considered the repercussions that could arise if it is not properly implemented.

“There is no guarantee that this plan will not cause issues with motor vehicle lanes,” said Council member Laura Morrison, “but if it does, there should be a robust public involvement.”