San Francisco has some of the most beautiful, windy roads surrounded by historical sites and amazing landscape views. But it is those same beautiful windy roads that have parents across the city worried about taking their children with them on a bicycle ride. The city attracts a large amount of tourists which combine with residential traffic to create a high risk of being injured in a bicycle accident.
The busy roads can be dangerous enough for a person paying attention, but they can be especially dangerous for a young child who may not understand the need to pay attention or an elderly cyclist who may not be able to react as quickly as they once could. The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition has created a new plan for the city that would make the roads safe for bicyclists no matter what their age.
The campaign is called Connecting the City and its aim is to do just that. The campaign includes plans for a completely connected network of bikeways that would make the roads must more “bicycle-friendly” than they are right now. The plan would set routes that would allow cyclists to take in the scenes surrounding them without having to constantly worry about motor vehicles.
The proposed routes would include a cycle track down the center of Valencia Street, separate bike lanes on busy roads like Polk Street and San Jose Avenue as well as curbside lanes with distinctly painted buffer zones or even physical boundaries created by beautiful planters or by a pathway through a park.
San Francisco residents have joined in the campaign and recorded video spotlights that share their views about safe cycling. Many of the residents admit that they would ride their bikes around the city much more frequently if only there was a safer route.
Source: San Francisco Gate “Connecting the City sets a clear vision for bicycling in San Francisco” Aaron Bialick 1/19/11
