Bike lanes slated for Foothill

LA CRESCENTA — Foothill Boulevard will soon get outfitted with new bike lanes, which will make the road safer and friendlier for cyclists, officials said.

The bike lanes will be added on Foothill from Pennsylvania to Briggs avenues when county crews work on re-striping and repaving the road as part of the Complete Streets project, said Paul Novak, planning deputy for Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich.

His office is also working with Glendale officials to extend the bike lanes into the city’s jurisdiction, he said. The county portion of the bike lane is expected to be installed by the end of December.

News of the project surprised Crescenta Valley Town Council President Steve Pierce, who said he never heard back from county officials after lobbying for the bike lane.

“It’s not something that is required, but it’s just something that is recommended that they take a look at for complete streets,” Pierce said.

Cyclist Paul Rabinov said he has been looking forward to a set of bike lanes on Foothill for many years.

More than a year ago, he contacted the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority in an effort to get funding for bike lanes on Foothill Boulevard. In the following months, Rabinov and Town Councilman Robert Thomas met with county officials to discuss the feasibility of the bike lanes.

The large volume of traffic on Foothill makes the road unsafe for cyclists, said Rabinov, who has ridden bicycles for 30 years.

“It will feel a lot more comfortable,” he said of the bike lanes.

“There will be a lot more elbow room for everybody, and it’s probably going to make people drive a little more safer on Foothill.”

To accommodate the bike lanes, traffic lanes on Foothill will be narrowed, officials said.

With the safer bike access, Rabinov said he was hoping more families would be encouraged to ride their bicycles on Foothill.

“This will gives kids an opportunity to more safely and confidently ride,” he said

Glendale officials have been studying the feasibility of re-striping a bike lane on its portion of Foothill Boulevard in an effort to make the La Crescenta corridor more bicycle-friendly, he said.

The North Glendale Community Plan Committee in September discussed the potential of bike lanes on Foothill Boulevard as a way to slow cars down and make it safer.

The committee looked at the pros and cons of having bike lanes and at who would use them.

The county plans to study Foothill as part of its Bikeway Master Plan project, officials said, to determine if more bike lanes and routes can be added in the future.

County officials are planning to hold public meetings starting in January to talk about the bike plan.