West Philly and Fairmount Park Could Soon Get New Bike Lanes
The lanes would give cyclists an easier connection to Center City.
A bike lane on Spruce Street
New bike lanes in West Philly and Fairmount Park could give cyclists who live in those areas easier commutes to Center City.
PlanPhilly reports that City Council is considering an extension on an existing bike lane on Parkside Avenue and adding new lanes in Fairmount Park in an effort to better connect the neighborhoods to Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive and Center City.
The Parkside Avenue lane would grow from Bryan Mawr Avenue to Girard Avenue (it currently runs from Bryn Mawr Avenue to North 53rd Street). Fairmount Park would see new bike lanes on Lansdowne Drive and South Concourse Drive.
City Councilman Curtis Jones, who oversees the district where the lanes would be implemented, said that he supports the lanes and that parts of Parkside Avenue are currently “very dangerous” for bikers, according to PlanPhilly.
Protected bike lane on Chestnut Street. | Photo via the City of Philadelphia
It’s not clear if the new lanes would be protected or separated from cars by barriers, though. Of Philly’s roughly 200 miles of bike lanes, only 2.5 miles are protected, and many biking advocates say more protected lanes are necessary to increase bike safety and ridership.
Jones did not immediately respond to inquiries this morning.
City Council will vote on the bike lanes in April. With Jones’s backing, they’ll likely secure approval.
