On Sunday April 21 BikeWalkLee and Lee County Parks and Recreation hosted another Tour de Parks ride and Bike Audit for City and County
officials, advisory board members and staff.
We had 11 participants, including representatives from City of Fort
Myers Public Works, and Community Development, Lee County Office of
Sustainability and several local planning consultants. We were also happily joined by two riders from
Naples Pathways – one, an avid cyclist at age 86!
Starting in the early morning coolness, riders received
instructions on Rules of the Road from guide Dan Moser before heading out from
Lakes Park, off of Gladiolus Drive, and traveling east and north along the Six
Mile Cypress multi-use path to the Calusa Nature Center in Fort Myers. Most, both experienced and new cyclists alike
chose to ride the entire 20 miles, returning via the John Yarbrough Linear
Trail. Several, though were more comfortable opting for the two shorter
alternatives routes of 12 and 16 miles.
Throughout the ride, stops were made to observe and analyze
roadway and intersection conditions, assessing design, engineering, and
maintenance with an eye to those features that support safe and enjoyable
cycling. Some aspects of the roadways and trail system were very well designed
and others hindrances to both safety and convenience.
Our guests from Naples found it “a most informative and
pleasant ride” and “a wonderful program (they) would like to see it expanded to
other counties and municipalities.” They
had never been to Lakes Park or cycled any of the links of Lee County’s Tour de
Parks and were quite impressed with the quality of these facilities.
The next Bike Audit for staff, committee members, and local officials is planned for Saturday May 18th,
starting at 8:00 a.m. from the Calusa Nature Center in Fort Myers.
Report by Ann Pierce
No comments:
Post a Comment
BikeWalkLee is not responsible for the validity of any comment posted at this site and has the right to remove any comment at any time.