Cycling Advocates Worry About the Future of Biking in DC
DC added nine miles of bike lanes in 2014, but the outlook for 2015 isn’t so promising, reports WAMU 88.5. Most of the seven miles of bike lanes the district plans to add this year will go toward patching holes in the existing network of protected lanes. The rest will be normal bike lanes flowing right next to traffic. And that’s the thing: safety advocates say protected lanes are a big factor when it comes to increasing the popularity of bicycling in Washington. A national survey by advocacy group PeopleForBikes shows that 54% of US adults consider biking convenient, and 53% would like to bike more often, but more than half feared being hit by a car and 46% would be more likely to bike if they were physically separated from traffic. And it’s not just safety advocates who recognize the need. Employers, retailers and restaurants are also on board. [WAMU]
