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The Daily Utah Chronicle > Opinion

Bike lanes are worth the small cost

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Published: Friday, November 7, 2008

Updated: Friday, November 7, 2008

Editor:

Apparently Liz Carlston hasn’t ridden a bike around campus lately. If she had, she would have acknowledged in her column (“Campus bike lanes a waste of U funds” Nov. 6) that the new campus bike lanes are overdue. She would know that even when biking at a mild pace you are constantly having to suddenly apply your brakes as an unknowing pedestrian steps into your chosen path.

The new bike lanes will help establish separate zones for cyclists and pedestrians, greatly reducing the potential for bike-pedestrian accidents.

First of all, $3,500 for the lanes to be established is a small price to pay when you consider that a couple of broken bones due to an accident could easily cost as much. Liz’s alternative to the bike lanes, “a campus police watchdog system,” did not come with a specified cost. I can guarantee hiring people to police the sidewalks will cost more than paint, not to mention it does nothing to eliminate the problem of bikes and pedestrians all on the same crowded walkways.

Second, I’m sure the process of planning where the bike lanes would be established was based a lot more on common sense than just the “ad hoc” study mentioned in her article. True, there may be a learning curve as both pedestrians and bicyclists are educated on the proper use of the lanes, but something has to be done. There have been too many close calls and accidents already.

Jacob Morrill,
Junior, Biomedical Engineering

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3 comments

Your name
Wed Jul 1 2009 02:49
dang, pay me$3500 bucks and I'll build a separate bike path, paint doesn't cost that much.
jameson
Sun Nov 9 2008 14:08
I think the responsibility should be on the bicyclists; as it is with motorists. In some circumstances yes, the pedestrian should be at fault; but looking around campus, I often see cyclists riding very fast in between crowds of people, causing them to jump out of the way. The problem lies with those cyclists who think pedestrians should move from instinctual self preservation. Just because a cyclist can travel faster than a pedestrian, does not mean that they have the constant right of way. If the problem cyclists would SLOW DOWN and pay attention, perhaps they wouldn't need a different lane for their incompetence.
Erik Lopez
Fri Nov 7 2008 16:33
I have been bike riding around campus for four years now and have yet to see an accident occur between a bicyclist and a pedestrian. Like lightning, unfortunately, bike accidents will happen but the real question remains is it worth the 3500 dollar price tag to give a "sense of safety?"

It is not the responsibility of the University (or in the case of money NOT well spent here, the nanny-versity) to make bike lanes that are ineffective at best. Separate zones were already created by the instinctual flow of traffic -- the right lane goes one way, the left lane goes another. It is the responsibility of both pedestrians and bicyclists to be aware of each other -- both parties know the flow of traffic and in turn should be able to navigate the roads together. If it is such a hassle for you to suddenly apply your breaks as you weave in and out of people who are walking, do what I do -- get off your bike and walk. The key point here is that instead of bike lanes, there should be education about bicycles.

I commend Liz's well written and articulate editorial for bringing to light such egregarious use of funds. In such tight financial times such as these, the U should think of spending their money more wisely instead of throwing it away on such useless sidewalk paint, we should give money to such organizations as the bicycle collective here on campus.







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