Post-Dispatch covers St. Louis bicycle controversy

Bicyclists in the St. Louis area have been discussing the problems that will be caused by planned work on Hwy 40/I-64 that will reduce lanes or even close that freeway completely, causing additional traffic on other routes and secondary roads.

Because of the additional traffic volumes anticipated, the county wants to re-stripe several of the main roads that are currently well used as bicycle routes.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

bicycle commuters have good reason to worry.

Some of the roads they use will be overrun with several thousand honked-off drivers who, starting next year, won't be able to drive a chunk of Highway 40. About 3,000 cars an hour are expected to fill county streets. Not all of those drivers will be forgiving when there's a bicycle in the way.

A group of bicyclists met last week with Garry Earls, the head of St. Louis County's Highways and Traffic, about their angst. Earls has plans to paint a third lane on parts of Clayton Road where only two lanes exist. This means every inch of pavement will be used for cars, and the lanes will probably be just 10 feet wide.


"The fact is that when we stripe the roads with more lanes, it makes it more uncomfortable to be on those roads with bicycles," Earls told the group.

The county has no plans to ban bicycles from busy streets. But Earls and his staff do plan to remind drivers that bicycles have road rights.

Additional "Share the Road" signs will go up. Some riders want signs with a picture of a bicycle above the words "use full lane," to remind drivers that the bicyclist may need to use the full lane. And state law says they share the same rights and resposibilities as someone driving a car.

A Suburban Journals article explored the issue further:

"One of our concerns is that a lot of traffic is going to be displaced onto roads that are popular with cyclists," Foster said.

Foster is concerned about plans to add a center turn lane to the four-lane Clayton Road, which would narrow or eliminate shoulder room for cyclists in some areas. . . .

Earls said part of the traffic-mitigation plan is to find additional bicycle routes that are not an option for through-traffic, such as roads through subdivisions or residential areas.

Foster agreed with that part of the plan.

"Cyclists can be part of the solution by taking less-used routes," Foster said. . .

No one is quite sure how severely arterial roads like Clayton and Ladue roads will be impacted by the highway project, but Foster said county officials have been sincere in their dialogue with cyclists.

"We're pleased that the county says they support cyclists and understand our concerns," Foster said.

For more of local bicyclists's view on this issue, see the St. Louis Bike Fed's discussion board.