COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The City of Colorado Springs is working to get top marks from the League of American Bicyclists with some upcoming projects.
In 2021, the League of American Bicyclists receritifed Colorado Spring as a "Silver Bicycle Friendly Community." The certification highlighted categories that make Olympic City, USA, biker-friendly, It also offered recommendations for how the city could level up the bicyclist and trail user experience.
As part of that, the city implemented about 15 miles of new bike lanes and added three new trail crossings, according to the multimodel program manager for the City of Colorado Springs Kerry Childress. This summer, the city plans to add eight new trail crossings at the following locations:
- Templeton Gap Rd and Rock Island Trail
- Fontanero St at Shooks Run Trail
- Meadow Ridge Dr at Briargate Trail
- Jet Wing Dr at Sand Creek Trail
- Lexington Dr at Woodmen Trail
- Chelton Rd and Verde Dr
- Cache La Poudre St at Sunny Vista Senior Living Community/Betty Krouse Park
- Cordera Crest Ave at Village Cooperative of Briargate
Improvements to the Sinton Trail are also slated to start on Monday. The improvements will take place along the trail between Holland Park Boulevard and N.Chestnut Street. This section of the trail is located just west of Interstate 25 and south of Garden of the Gods. A city spokesperson explained the project includes removing old asphalt and abandoned utilities, along with installing a new concrete trail, grading, and drainage enhancements to improve safety and accessibility. This portion of Sinton Trail is scheduled to be closed through mid-September, weather permitting. A detour is in place with signage to help keep people on the rest of the trail by utilizing Darby and Ellston Streets.
The League of American Bicyclists recertifies the city every six years. In 2021, these were the "Key Steps to Gold" from the League of American Bicyclists:
- Continue to focus on implementing to new bike plan and to expand and improve low-stress on-road bike network. Ensure that your community follows the plan’s bicycle facility selection criteria that increases separation and protection of bicyclists based on levels of motor vehicle speed and volume, to maximize safety and comfort for bicyclists of all ages and abilities. This means identifying gaps and adding new facilities that complete and expand the bicycle network, as well as upgrading existing bike lanes into protected bike lanes by adding physical barriers that improve safety and accessibility for all ages and abilities.
- Continue to increase the amount of high quality bicycle parking throughout the community, and to upgrade the quality of existing bike parking to meet APBP standards. Adopt a bike parking ordinance for new and existing buildings that specifies the amount and location of secure, convenient bike parking available. Develop community-wide Bicycle Parking Standards that adhere to current APBP guidelines. Conduct a bike parking study or audit to determine current conditions of bike parking, both in terms of quality and quantity.
- Expand bicycle safety education to be a routine part of education for students of all ages, and ensure that schools and the surrounding neighborhoods are particularly safe and convenient for biking and walking. Work with the school district, local bicycle groups, and interested parents to create Safe Routes to School programming for all K-12 schools.
- Develop a community-wide trip reduction ordinance/ program, commuter incentive program, and a Guaranteed Ride Home program to encourage and support bike commuters in Colorado Springs.
- Adopt a comprehensive road safety plan or a Vision Zero policy to identify specific strategies to reduce traffic crashes and deaths for all road users, including bicyclists and pedestrians. Road diets, lane diets, and traffic calming treatments are important engineering components for addressing safety.
In 2018, the City of Colorado Springs released a "Bike Master Plan." Click here to read details of the plan that was unveiled seven years ago. According to Bike Colorado Springs, this was the first master plan released by the City of Colorado Springs since 1996.
