Fewer than 1% of Glendale commuters bike to work, but city officials hope to increase that to 5% in 20 years by implementing a sweeping plan to improve bicycle transportation amenities throughout the city.
The 225-page Bicycle Transportation Plan, which is set to come before the City Council Tuesday night, includes nearly $5.8 million in improvement projects, including about 100 miles of bike lanes, paths and routes — roughly five times more than what currently exist.
The plan may be ambitious, but other cities that have made similar efforts saw a boost in the percentage of bicycling commuters, according to the final draft of the plan, which cites U.S. Census data.
The bicycle plan comes after two years of community outreach and studies on how to make biking more attractive in Glendale.
While most City Council members heralded a draft version of the plan several months ago, some parts of the long-term planning document have sparked controversy, particularly so-called “road diets,” or slimming streets by one lane in each direction to make way for bike lines.