City adopts new bike regulations, creates Bicycle Advisory Committee
Right now, it can be a bit daunting for cyclists to ride in El Paso. But on Tuesday, City Council took additional steps meant to make it easier to get around town on a bike.
Council voted to adopt urban street and bikeway design guides from the National Association of City Transportation Officials, which have been endorsed or put into place by other major cities like Austin, Chicago and Denver.
The guidelines provide standard designs that can be adapted to fit the transportation of most any area. Council has revisited the idea of bicycle-friendly infrastructure several times in the past few months, and these new guidelines are expected to improve upon ones already approved previously.
“The standards really provide a good toolbox on anywhere from developing sidewalks, from constructing roadways bike lanes,” said Fred Lopez, transportation planning administrator with the city. “It really provides us the flexibility to create streets that are appropriate to neighborhoods, and really try to enhance the neighborhoods that people live in.”
These are the guidelines that the Bicycle Advisory Committee, also created by council Tuesday, will be using to help create bike-friendly infrastructure around town. The committee will be made up of nine members, each appointed by a city representative and the mayor. Its purpose will be to evaluate and make recommendations to City Council on including bicycle systems and lanes in all future city development and planning.
