Officials glean concepts to make Glendale friendlier to bicyclists.

City finds bike ideas in the Bay

By Melanie Hicken

Thursday, April 29, 2010

CITY HALL – City officials were looking for inspiration last week when they
hit the streets of Berkeley via bike.

Six city employees from a range of departments joined Councilwoman Laura
Friedman and consultant Colin Bogart, a liaison with the nonprofit Los
Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, for a two-day trip that included a bike
tour of Berkeley’s amenities for local cyclists.

"I thought it was valuable for people to see firsthand what Berkeley has in
place for bicyclists and pedestrians," said Bogart, who organized the visit
as part of his efforts to help Glendale implement a Safe and Healthy Streets
plan. "It’s easier to visualize the possibility of implementing the same
infrastructure here in Glendale."

It was the second city Glendale officials have looked to for inspiration as
they attempt to catch up to neighboring cities with more bicycle- and
pedestrian-friendly infrastructure improvements.

Earlier this year, officials twice visited Long Beach, which last year
publicly proclaimed a mission to become the most bicycle-friendly town in
America.

"The most striking thing about both cities is their commitment to bicycles
as a viable alternative source of transportation and their recognition that
the more they can make it safe and easy for people to use bikes to get
around town, the more people will use them," Friedman said.

Glendale bike advocates have said the relative lack of bicycle amenities and
safety concerns are likely keeping potential cyclists from hitting the
streets.

In Berkeley, Friedman said, the bicycle improvements have helped treat
traffic safety and congestion problems similar to those that plague
Glendale.

"They are really managing to deal with their traffic congestion all around
the city by trying to get people off the roads . . . and onto public
transportation, foot and bike," she said. "And it’s working so well that
their bike stations are so jammed that they are opening new bike stations."

A plethora of bike racks and other bike storage options is one of the
improvements that Bogart said city officials noted on the recent trips.
Others included miles of marked bike routes and way-finding signs and maps
to help cyclists with their routes.

City officials were especially struck by Berkeley’s bike boulevards, where
diversions – such as forced right turns – that were initially installed as
traffic-calming measures have been used to shield cyclists from vehicles,
Bogart said.

While Glendale is far from the sophistication of Berkeley’s bike network,
strides are being made, Bogart said.

Public works officials have added bike racks downtown and begun to
incorporate bike improvements – such as the addition of "sharrows," which
designate shared vehicle-bicycle lanes – into regular street maintenance
projects.

Friedman said the biggest challenge will be changing public perception about
the roads, which are dominated by cars.

"You can’t have both the safe streets and the complete freedoms of the cars
as well," she said. "That’s going to take a real understanding and a buy-in
from the people of Glendale."