BikeWalkLee: A question of supply and demand

BikeWalkLee Column ‘Go Coastal’
The News-Press, April 21, 2022
by Ken Gooderham

 

Daniels Parkway, Fort Myers (Google street view)

Looking out my office window, I can see a portion of a nearby bike path still under construction… a condition it’s been enduring for a few months now, as various drainage and grading and paving projects shamble towards some measure of completion.

Yet, almost since the day the bulldozers first carved out the curving path, people have been trying to walk or bike on it. That’s how eager they are to put it to use.

They’ve been warned not to travel on it, that it’s still under construction and not ready for prime time. All that accomplished was keeping people off the path while workers toiled on its various parts during business hours. Early morning, evening and weekends? There’s almost always someone traversing its half-mile stretch… even when the gaping holes were large enough to swallow bike and rider in a single gulp.

Why? Because given the choice between a glorified dirt pathway and a narrow two-lane road with no shoulders and plenty of ditches, there was no choice.

When it finally opens for actual business, I have no doubt it will be populated with peds and pedalers almost every daylight hour. It connects to another new path (which likewise is almost never empty), which then connects to the greater bike/ped path system that covers most of the county.

I have ridden the road in question many times, since it’s the only way to get out to the great cycling system beyond my doorstep. So do many other riders in this corner of the world, willing to take their changes playing in traffic rather than being trapped in their one small community.

But when cyclists of all skill (and bravery) levels are given the option of a bike path separated from vehicle traffic, you’ll see a lot more of them being willing to venture out – especially during season, when vehicle counts along this roadway go through the proverbial roof.

If you build it, they will come… because they’re already there, just waiting for a safer option.

That’s the part some people don’t understand – the ones who worry that improving the bike/ped facilities will attract more people from other places to use said facilities, an “attractive nuisance” of a sort.

“Attractive”? Yes. Nuisance? Depends on your perspective.

If you don’t like cyclists and pedestrians using the roadways, then perhaps “nuisance” fits… except for the fact that they are allowed to use those roads by law.

Giving them a safer place to ride and walk? No “nuisance” there… and many of the people who’ll use these new paths and lanes are neighbors and visitors from right down the street. They just haven’t felt comfortable biking or walking on that street until they got a little place (or at least space) of their own.

Bike paths and lanes usually don’t create demand, they simply meet the demand that’s already there. They also make it safer for all road users – especially motor vehicles – by giving all of those users distinct spaces in which to move.

I can’t begin to count the number of times I’ve heard drivers express their concerns over possibly hitting a cyclist or pedestrian who’s traveling down the side of the road (usually along a very narrow shoulder).

Want to alleviate those fears? Support building more bike paths and lanes along our area roadways, or back making the existing ones better if possible by making them wider, more separated and more connected (so people who want to can actually go places by bike).

If the path outside my door is any indication, the demand is there. We just need to increase the supply.

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EVENTS

FORT MYERS TRACK CLUB (ftmyerstrackclub.com):

• GiGiFit Acceptance Challenge, Saturday, April 23, 5K, 1-mile walk and kids’ dash, 9 a.m., Estero Park.
• Lovers Key Turtle Trot 5K, Saturday, May 14, 8 a.m., Lovers Key Park, Fort Myers Beach.
• Priority Business Solutions Freedom 5K Run/Walk & Gunterberg Charitable Foundation Kid's Fun Run, Monday, July 4, 7 a.m., Cape Coral Chamber of Commerce..
  

GC RUNNERS (gcrunner.org):

• Tropicool 5K, Saturday, May 14, downtown Naples.
• Park to Pier Swim, Sunday, May 29, 8 a.m., Lowdermilk Park, Naples.
• SNIP Collier, Monday, May 30, 7:30 a.m., Cambier Park, Naples.
• 2022 Firecracker 5K, Monday, July 4, 7 a.m., Lake Park, Naples.
  

ELITE EVENTS (runeliteevents.com):

• Paradise Coast Half Marathon, Sunday, April 24, North Collier Regional Park, Naples.
• USA Independence Day 5K, Monday, July 4, 7 a.m., Hertz Arena, Estero.
  

CYCLING

• Thursday, May 18: Annual Ride of Silence, to honor those cyclists who have been killed or injured on our roadways. Details at caloosariders.org.
  

The Caloosa Riders are offering member rides, but some are open to non-members (and it wouldn’t hurt you to join the club); check their ride calendar (caloosariders.org) for a description of the distance and speed, and to see if the ride is open to all.

SW Florida Critical Mass is offering their usual slate of family-friendly rides. Check out their line-up online (www.meetup.com/Biking-SWFL/events/) for details and times (and to make sure the ride is still rolling).

• SW Florida Critical Mass ride, first Friday of the month. A family-friendly slow night ride through Fort Myers. Front and rear bike lights required. Helmet and lights required, meet in the parking lot at 2180 West First Street, Fort Myers. 
• Sanibel Critical Mass night ride, second Saturday of the month. Gathers at Jerry’s Shopping Center, 1700 Periwinkle Way, on Sanibel. Lights required, helmets recommended.
• NE Lee Critical Mass ride, third Friday of the month. Gather in the Winn Dixie parking lot on Palm Beach Blvd. about five miles east of the Interstate; gather at 7 p.m. and roll at 7:30 p.m. for a slow ride through Fort Myers Shores.
• Cape Coral Critical Mass ride, fourth Friday of the month. Gather at the Southwest Florida Military Museum parking lot at 4820 Leonard Street for a family-friendly night ride through the Cape; helmets and lights required.
• Saturday Morning Slow Roll, fourth Saturday of the month. Meet-up at 2160 McGregor Blvd., Fort Myers. Recommended for inexperienced/young riders. Distance is 6 miles, includes group ride instruction.
  

TRIATHLONS

• St. Anthony’s Triathlon, Olympic and sprint, Sunday, May 1,  St. Petersburg (satriathlon.com/).
• 2022 Game On Suncoast Olympic & Sprint Triathlon, Saturday, May 21, Fort Desoto Park, St. Petersburg (GameOnRaceEvents.com)
• Naples Fitness Challenge, reverse sprint triathlon, Sunday, June 5, Naples (thefitnesschallengetriathlon.com/)
  
• Heartland Triathlon, sprint and Olympic tri, duathlon and aquabike, Sunday, June 5, Sebring (heartlandtri.com/).
• Fort Desoto Triathlon Series Race #1, Sunday, June 19, Olympic & sprint triathlon, Fort Desoto Park, St. Petersburg (fortdesototrilogy.com/). Also July 17, Aug. 21 and Sept. 18.
  
• Siesta Key Sirens & Merman Triathlon, Sunday, June 26, Siesta Key (run941.com/).
  

 

TELL US ABOUT YOUR RIDE

Have a favorite route you like to bike, or a unique walk you’d like to share with others? Tell us about it at info@bikewalklee.org, and maybe we can feature it in an upcoming column.

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Ken Gooderham writes this on behalf of BikeWalkLee, a community coalition raising public awareness and advocating for complete streets in Lee County — streets that are designed, built, operated and maintained for safe and convenient travel for all users: pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists, and transit riders of all ages and abilities. Information, statistics and background online at bikewalklee.blogspot.com.