Concerns over Stanton bike lanes

The Camino Real Regional Mobile Authority is adding the region’s first two-way bike lane, as part of the ongoing El Paso Streetcar project. As the project is closer to becoming finalized, drivers are learning to adjust to the change in traffic and so are bicyclists.

As part of the addition of streetcars, there will be new two-way bike lanes, a designated green crossing lane for bicyclists, bicycle signals and four-foot high delineators.

“It looks like protection, but if a car goes out of control, if you fall and you hit this thing, it’s really for looks,” Scott White, Police Director with VeloPaso said.

“One of the interesting things about a project like this one is there are a lot of ways to bake a cake,” Martin Bartlett, spokesman with the El Paso Streetcar Project said.

Bartlett tells ABC-7 engineers chose the delineators specifically because the height allows for maximum reflectivity from a vehicle’s headlights.

“If you’re driving down this street at night, you have a lot of very visible red and white reflectors making sure you know this section is for bike and again, motor vehicles should stay on the other side,” Bartlett said.

White is also worried about the amount of space within the bike lanes.

“The lanes themselves, are only four foot wide. That’s not a lot of extra room if you’re going very fast down the hill and somebody else is coming up the hill,” White said.

Bartlett points out the width of Stanton street changes as you drive from downtown El Paso to the UTEP area, forcing the width of the bike lanes to change too.

“The CRRMA and the engineers are confident that the width of the bicycle lanes is adequate,” Bartlett said.

Engineers will continue to test the bike signals before opening up the bike lanes.