Safe 4th Street Walk and Bike Ride this Saturday

Come Walk and Bike for a Safer 4th Street - This Saturday Morning!

This Saturday, explore 4th Street – and learn about plans for it to become a “bicycle boulevard.” There’s an easy bike ride and a short walk, all designed to make folks more aware of the changes proposed for the future of 4th Street. They’re taking place this Saturday July 24th 2010. The above flier is available in Spanish and Korean, below.

Come on down, meet neighbors and discuss how to make our streets safer for everyone! It’s free, and there will be refreshments, courtesy of Larchmont Bungalow restaurant.

Vamos a la Calle 4!

Get on your Cha-Jan-Go and ride 4th!

A bike boulevard is a somewhat misunderstood bike facility. It’s not a bikes-only bike path. Bike Boulevards are shared facilities – quiet streets where bikes, cars, and pedestrians all coexist. Watch this short video to see how they work. Bicycling and walking are prioritized – but cars are definitely still in the mix. Bike boulevards can reduce cut-through traffic and make neighborhoods safer, quieter, nicer, greener… and bikey-er!

Cities including Portland, Palo Alto, and Berkely have pioneered bicycle boulevards. Lately they’ve been spreading all over – including San Luis Obispo, and one under construction in Long Beach.

San Luis Obispo bicycle boulevard diverter feature - bikes go straight through whiles cars must turn. Photo by Drew Reed L.A. Streetsblog

To make a residential street into a bike boulevard, there are a number of new features that can be implemented. These include “traffic calming” such as: traffic circles, chokers, medians, etc. In some cases, intersection signals or stop signs may be re-worked. To prioritize bicycling, often cars may be diverted (forced to turn) while bicycles continue straight through.

I joined a group of local cyclists, convened by the L.A. County Bicycle Coalition, that are campaigning to make 4th Street into a true bicycle boulevard. If you’re interested in joining the campaign, sign-up at our group page – or just come this Saturday.

4th Street from Cochran to Hoover - Map by Jessie Lee AECOM

4th Street Bike Boulevard or “4SBB” would extend nearly 4 miles – from Hoover and 4th (near LaFayette Park) to Cochran and 4th (near Park La Brea.) We’ve done some brainstorming of ideas of what features might be added to 4th Street to make it much more bike-friendly… but nothing is set in stone yet – we’re sharing our ideas this week, and looking to hear other ideas. Follow this link to see rough sketches of proposed changes. We’re pushing for the city of Los Angeles to take on this project – and to seek project funding from Metro’s Call for Projects.

The bike ride starts at Pan Pacific Park, departing at 10am.

The walk starts at 4th and Normandie, departing at 10:30am. I’ll be there – leading the walking tour. Come join us!