Maybe you haven't noticed.
Maybe you don't go Downtown often enough. Or maybe the coverage of what seems to be dozens of small projects hasn't made the impact it should have. Heck, maybe Streetsblog hasn't done a good enough job of covering it, but slowly and surely Downtown Los Angeles is building a working bike network.
Tonight, the Downtown Neighborhood Council and Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition host a forum to highlight all the work that has been done, and all that is left to do. Led on this issue by the Valerie Watson, the DLANC has become one of the most aggressive Neighborhood Councils when it comes to supporting safe streets for all users, especially vulnerable ones. Tonight's event features representatives from LADOT, City Planning, Metro, Bike Nation, Downtown L.A. Streetcar Inc., CicLAvia, Melendrez and Associates (working on the South Figueroa Corridor Project) and representatives from the office of Councilman Jose Huizar.
"The event will highlight projects and planning efforts that are making Downtown LA even more transit friendly and will make the walking and biking experience in Downtown LA even more practical and enjoyable," writes the Downtown L.A. Neighborhood Council in a flyer announcing the event.
While the bike network is beginning to grow, there's still a lot of work to be done. The 7th Street Bike Lanes, installed just last year, provided a key link between Downtown and points west, but similar bike lane connections don't exist with other parts of the city. The Spring Street Green Buffered Bike Lane caused an explosion of new bike activity, but they only go in one direction. The promised Main Street Bike Lanes aren't coming until later this year to provide the northward companion to Spring Street's southern lanes.
There's bound to be plenty of developments in Downtown's efforts to be leaders in bike safety in the coming months. If you're a Downtowner, or just an interested Angeleno, tonight provides a good chance to learn about what's next.
