A boost for bike traffic

When Sarah Guebert lived in California, she bicycled to and from work each day.

She'd do it again, weather permitting, in and around her Cape Girardeau neighborhood, if more and better bike trails existed.

"It'd be nice, especially if they did it all over town," she said. Her neighbor heads out to Perryville Road "and comes back the way of the bike trail, in a big loop."

The draft comprehensive plan being considered by city officials emphasizes the use of pedestrian and bike trails. The Southeast Missouri Climate Protection Initiative is supporting a plan to add bike routes along several Cape Girardeau streets, including along the Cape LaCroix trail system.

Bicyclist Eric Redinger will talk about the plan at 7 p.m. today at the Cape Girardeau Public Library, 711 N. Clark Ave., during the initiative's meeting.

Expanded streets are part of a national movement, Redinger said, citing Chicago as one city with a high rate of bike commuters and a street design plan that takes walkers, cyclists and cars into account. The bike plan he's promoting comes from a Leadership Cape brainstorming session earlier this year.

"We're looking at streets that could be retrofitted. Lexington from Route W to Sprigg already has a sidewalk for pedestrian travel and the street is wide enough to add bike lanes," he said.

His Leadership Cape group picked only city streets with no parking allowed and lanes at least 12 feet wide.

"Most streets just have to paint a stripe on the shoulder to designate the bicycle lane," he said. "We wanted to make a very realistic and attainable plan to retrofit some streets and plans to see when new streets are made, that they will be planned out with all users in mind and looking at tying the trails in and schools and parks, for kids especially."

Redinger, assistant director of recreation services at Southeast Missouri State University, said he wasn't involved in the comprehensive plan meetings.

After he presented the bike route plan at Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce's First Friday coffee in May, the chamber endorsed it. Defining bike routes would cost an estimated $34,000. Redinger said the Missouri Department of Transportation and Cape Girardeau's Transportation Trust Fund could pay for the work.

Redinger's lecture opens the Southeast Missouri Climate Protection Initiative's fall meeting series.

Alan Journet and Kathy Conway run the group. Journet, a Southeast Missouri State University professor, teaches ecology and conservation biology.

"We need to accommodate pedestrians and bicyclists," said Journet, who confines his cycling to a home exercise bike.

He said he joined residents at Arcturis' comprehensive plan information sessions held earlier this year to argue for the plan to protect forested and wild areas.

"We also talked about the need to provide access for people who are cycling and walking because the city is not very pedestrian-friendly," he said.

The comprehensive plan drafted for the city of Cape Gir­ardeau by the St. Louis-based consulting firm Arcturis suggests creating a trail system linking the Osage Community Centre, Cape Rock Park, the library, the university, hospitals and "other similar public spaces."

Redinger said he had not yet read the draft comprehensive plan.

Conway said residents at the Arcturis meeting she attended consistently talked about bike lanes, green spaces and parks for families. She said she hopes Redinger's talk encourages residents to support the comprehensive plan's trail and park-related recommendations.

Guebert regularly rides to the Osage Community Centre's section of the Cape LaCroix trail. She got started biking to work while living in San Diego and in Sicily, Italy.

"When I lived in California, that's all you had to ride, in certain places. You had a trail in Ventura County. I used to ride my bike from my apartment to work, in the bike lane, right next to cars. That's just kind of a way of life," she said.

She says most riders prefer using the road rather than the sidewalk.

"You don't have the little dips every time you cross a drive," she said. "It's a smoother ride. And you're not dodging people."

Guebert said she understands that drivers may not be thrilled to share the road with bikers, but "eventually people would learn to accept it."

Journet said he and other members of his group will attend future city planning and zoning commission meetings on the draft comprehensive plan. He said he hasn't see the plan yet but intends to read a copy soon.

The comprehensive plan is available online at www.cityofcapegirardeau.org. Paper copies are available at the library, the chamber office and city hall, 401 Independence St. To learn more about the Southeast Missouri Climate Protection Initiative, visit cstl.semo.edu/semocpi.

Cape Girardeau's planning and zoning commission is scheduled to discuss the draft comprehensive plan at 5:30 p.m. today at the Osage Community Centre, 1625 N. Kingshighway.

pmcnichol@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127