TROY – Creation of a bike lane this fall along Adams Street in Troy sparked a council member’s questioning of its purpose and word of the city’s plans to pursue more, where appropriate.
“It does take some time getting used to. It is a fairly radical change to what we know in Troy,” Patrick Titterington, city service and safety director, said of the bike lane along the street near the Troy Junior High School. The lane was created during street paving using an existing traffic lane so there was no direct cost for its placement.
The Adams Street bike lane connects to nearby Archer Park, the Great Miami River levee and Community Park to Duke Park, all which have bike paths.
The project was part of a larger concerted effort by the city to be a bicycle friendly community, Titterington said. Troy was recognized for its efforts so far earlier this year with a bronze award from the League of American Bicyclists.
The continued bicycle friendly effort will include “a complete streets philosophy looking at various forms of alternative transportation,” Titterington said.
The philosophy will be incorporated in the annual street repair/resurfacing program and with any major street project with an analysis and identification of streets where bike lanes could be added, he said. Knowing the bike lane concept is new in town, the city will monitor its use and any issues that arise.
To the north, Troy’s Miami County neighbor Piqua placed bike lanes on County Road 25A (South Main Street) at the city’s south end in 2014.
Gary Huff, city manager, said the lanes were installed during a repaving program with the lanes striping part of the overall project. Businesses along the street requested a change in the traffic pattern from four lanes because of concerns about safety of traffic from Fox Drive and asked for bike lanes because some workers ride bicycles to work.
Piqua has had a complete streets policy since 2013 and was recognized by the Smart Growth America organization for that effort in 2014. The complete streets concept is design encouraging safe access and convenience for vehicles, bikes and pedestrians.
“As part of our complete streets policy, it is the city’s intent to connect neighborhoods, schools, parks and destination sites with on-road or off-road bike lanes throughout the city,” Huff said. “Bicycling and other multi-trail recreation uses are of great importance to the city and a key component of our economic development strategy.”
With regional efforts to expand trails north, east and west, Piqua is positioned to be a major bicycle hub for this part of the state, Huff said.
The city recently was recognized as a bronze bicycle friendly community and in May hosted the Miami Valley Cycling Summit.
Tipp City in southern Miami County has a section of bike lane along County Road 25A that was installed during the update of nearby Interstate Exit 69, said Brad Vath, assistant city manager.
Tim Eggleston, city manager, said if added bike lanes along the busy County Road 25A were requested, the best location would be behind the curb in lieu of a sidewalk. “This is the safest way to co-mingle vehicles and bikes on a secondary, collector, or main highway depending on the traffic makeup. Semis and bikes do not mix very well,” Eggleston said.
For local bike lanes, Eggleston said a system with use of one side of the street is preferable.
“Most property owners do not want to give up their off street parking option which makes it a contentious issue at times. I have found that in most communities that have bike lanes or pathways, it was due to the residents supporting the initiative, not the city imposing them on the neighborhood,” Eggleston said.
“This does not mean that the city should not plan a system, based upon community input, but planning and implementing are two different things,” he said.
The cities are working with the Miami County Park District, which maintains bike path sections outside of the cities, on providing additional way finding signs to assist trail users locate downtowns of the communities along the way. The sign system would be similar to those on the interstate where businesses advertise on the signs, said Scott Myers, park district executive director.
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