Sunday, July 18, 2010

Normal Fellow Twin-Citian Urbana to get Bike Path

The Daily Illini reports that Urbana will begin work on a bike path. Bike Urbana created a Bicycle Master Plan, increased bike usage, and helped Urbana earn the League of American Bicyclists' "bike-friendly community" designation (the first one in downstate Illinois).

I lived in Urbana (and Champaign) for quite a few years and I remember that area as having so much bicycle traffic that this effort to increase bicycle usage surprises me. Of course, I spent most of my time around the U of I campus, so I wasn't aware of bicycle riding on the outskirts of the area, where the planned bike path will be located. I actually rode my sister's bike to run errands during my first year there (before I got a car). (I can't believe I rode a bike on Springfield Ave.! Seems risky to me now.) There were bike lanes along the streets throughout campus, which was helpful for bicyclists but gave pedestrians another lane to cross with caution. I always admired the MTD drivers who (usually) managed to get around campus without hitting people, bikes, scooters, cars, or squirrels.

Good luck to Urbana with their bike path! Hope it is as nice as the Constitution Trail.

No comments:

Post a Comment