Categories
Policy

Repealing Detroit’s Restrictive Youth Bicycling Ordinances

A public hearing to repeal these youth biking ordinances was held on Monday, October 26th at 10:30AM at Detroit City Council. The repeal was successfully voted out of committee and is on the Tuesday Council agenda for an expected final vote.

 

Last May, Detroit made a massive overhaul of its traffic ordinances. City Council repealed most of Detroit’s traffic ordinances and adopted the Michigan Motor Vehicle Code and Uniform Traffic Code in their place.

We supported this change as it makes Detroit’s traffic ordinances more consistent with other Michigan cities.

It also meant bicycles no longer required bells. We’re not anti-bike bell, we think they’re a great idea. We just don’t think bicyclists should get a ticket for not having one.

Three ordinances that didn’t get removed involved youth bicycling.

Sec. 55-4-11. – Operation of bicycles—Persons under twelve years of age.
No person under the age of 12 years shall operate a bicycle upon any street, highway or alley of the City, provided, that such person under twelve 12 years of age may operate a bicycle on the sidewalks of the city. (Ord. No. 09-14, § 1, 5-19-14)

Sec. 55-4-12. – Same—Persons twelve to seventeen years of age.
Any person over the age of 12 years and under the age of 17 years may operate a bicycle upon the streets, highways, and alleys of the City, provided, that such person has in his possession the written consent of the parent or guardian to do so. (Ord. No. 09-14, § 1, 5-19-14)

Sec. 55-4-13. – Same—Police to notify parents of violations.
If there is any violation of section 55-4-21 or section 55-4-22 of this Code, the Police Department shall notify the parent or guardian of the violation, giving the details of the violation, and shall recommend the confiscation of the bicycle by the parent or guardian for a period of not more than six months. (Ord. No. 09-14, § 1, 5-19-14)

These ordinances are archaic and unduly restrictive. To the best of our knowledge, they are not enforced.

We asked members of the Association for Pedestrian and Bicycle Planners if they were aware of another U.S. city with similar restrictions. The answer was “no”.

Repealing 55-4-11 does not mean all Detroit youth are prepared to ride safely in the streets, but certainly some are. Many youth under age 12 ride in the streets with their parents/guardians or with organized groups such as the Back Alley Bikes Youth Rides and the Safe Routes to School program. This happens safely across the city and should not be prohibited.

Also, Council adopted the Michigan Uniform Traffic Code by reference in May 2014. That includes a rule that holds parents/guardians responsible for their children:

R 28.1201 Rule 201. Required obedience to traffic ordinances; parental responsibility; violation as civil infraction. (1) It is a violation of this code for any person to do any act that is forbidden, or to fail to perform any act that is required, by the act or this code. (2) The parent of any child and the guardian of any ward shall not authorize or knowingly permit this child or ward to violate any of the provisions of the act or this code. (3) Unless otherwise specified, violation of any rule of this code is a civil infraction.

We met with Council member Scott Benson this summer to discuss their repeal. The repeal amendment went before the City Council Public Health and Safety Committee today and was moved to tomorrow’s City Council of Whole.

 

Categories
Greenways

Growing city support for greenways in Detroit

2015 Bike Trails and Cocktails bike tour mapSeven years ago our only major biking and trails proponent was packing up his desk at the Detroit Mayor’s office and heading back to a job in the private sector. Our city support was looking bleak.

What a change we’ve seen since then!

We now have supporters throughout most city departments and in the Mayor’s office. Though Detroit has many challenges and priorities, our work is seen as an important quality of life issue from the neighborhoods to downtown.

This summer we’ve gained another supporter with the new Planning and Development Director Maurice Cox. We heard this support firsthand at a recent event on the RiverWalk

With help from the Detroit Food and Fitness Collaborative and Bedrock Management, the inaugural Bike Trails and Cocktails event was held. It began with a guided 8-mile bike tour of nearby greenway projects with assistance from Detroit’s Eastside Riders bike club. This tour included recently completed portions of the Detroit RiverWalk, the Dequindre Cut Extension, the planned Beltline Greenway and Elmwood Connector.

At the ride’s conclusion, the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy provided more updates on their work and answered questions.

Next up was Cox who made a statement by riding to the event. This was not atypical for him though. He bikes to work, to Eastern Market, and all around town. Biking has been his primary means of transportation long before he got to the Motor City and he sees no need to change.

Bike-Trails-and-Cocktrails-by-Khalil-LigonLiving in Lafayette Park, he uses the nearby Dequindre Cut often. He told the attendees that every Detroit neighborhood deserves a great greenway like this — something that’s very much in line with the Detroit Greenways Coalition vision and Food and Fitness Collaborative goals.

One major project that will bring a greenway to many Detroit neighborhoods (as well as Hamtramck, Highland Park and Dearborn) is the 26-mile Inner Circle Greenway. Cox spoke highly of the project and the opportunity to look beyond just the trail. He added that the greenway can be catalyst for development similar to the Atlanta Beltline.

He also stressed the value in having the Coalition in Detroit to help show community support. He told the crowd that he would join the Coalition before the event was over. He also noted that he was heading to Copenhagen the next day as part of a study tour that looks at progressive European transportation and public space designs that are people-focused. We’re looking forward to what ideas he can bring back to Detroit.

What a change from seven years ago!

 

Categories
Complete Streets Newsletter

Coalition Updates – End of Summer 2015

It’s hard to believe but Labor Day is almost here and summer is nearly passed.

As you may well know, much has changed in Detroit this year, especially with respect to biking and trails. We’ve decided to host an inaugural event Bike Trails and Cocktails on Thursday, September 17th to show off some of the work with a easy bike tour and a post-ride gathering. On-line registration is now open.

Inner Circle Greenway proposed routingWe’ll give Coalition updates at the event regarding the Detroit RiverWalk, Inner Circle Greenway, Beltline Greenway, Complete Streets, and more.

If you’re not already a member, you can save $10 on a membership while registering for the event.

Protected Bike Lanes

Sample protected bike lane in ChicagoWe do want to share the exciting news that the East Jefferson protected bike lanes are scheduled for construction from mid-September through mid-November. These will be the first in Metro Detroit, but we believe they will set a standard for future bike lanes throughout Michigan.

While this is only a short example, we are working with Jefferson East Inc., the city of Detroit, and others to extend them from Alter Road to the bridge to Belle Isle.

With so much happening across the city, we hope you can join us at Bike Trails and Cocktails and help celebrate.

Upcoming Events
Bike Woodward
September 12th
A ride to help us get more bike lanes on Woodward
Registration

Bike Trails & Cocktails
September 17th
See and hear updates on trails and biking in Detroit
Registration

Tour de Troit
September 19th
Michigan’s largest ride!
Registration

 
Categories
Greenways

Register now for Inaugural Greenways bike tour

Bike Trails and Cocktails

  Registration is closed for this event
Detroit Greenways Coalition bike tour and gathering

The Detroit Greenways Coalition (DGC) invites you to join us on Thursday, September 17, 2015 for a bike tour to showcase some of our supported projects on Detroit’s Eastside. The Detroit Greenways Coalition strives to make Detroit a world-class city for biking and walking. Our  mission is to create, conserve, and promote greenways and green spaces to connect people, places and nature. We hope this will be the first of many group rides where we explore DGC supported projects in the region, and there is no better time to start than during Detroit Bike Week!

Our route will be a leisurely ride of approximately 8 miles. We will be led by Board members and volunteers of the Detroit Greenways Coalition. Guests will enjoy appetizers before and after the ride, and drink specials will be available.

Tickets are $25 and the first 100 get event T-shirts. You can save $10 by registering and adding a Detroit Greenways Coalition membership. We are a non-profit and your membership is tax-deductible.

Major thanks to our event sponsors Bedrock and the Detroit Food and Fitness Collaborative for making this event possible.

When
September 17th, 2015 from  5:00 PM to  8:00 PM
Location
201 JOSEPH CAMPAU ST
DETROIT, MI 48207-4118
United States
Show large map
Contact
Phone: (313) 649-7249 ext. 
Event Fee(s)
Registration $25.00
Add a DGC membership and save $10!
Adult $25.00
Student/Senior/Limited income $10.00
Family $35.00
Supporter $90.00

 

Categories
Greenways

Detroit’s $10.4 million TIGER request for Inner Circle Greenway

Inner Circle Greenway Phase 1 mapEarlier this month the city of Detroit submitted a $10.4 million federal TIGER grant request to build the first phase of the Inner Circle Greenway. This phase is basically the entire west side of the trail, including new bridges over the Jeffries expressway.

The initial plan was to submit a $25 million TIGER request to build the entire trail at once. However, there was a concern that only a portion of that money would be awarded with the city responsible for the difference. Given the recent financial issues, many weren’t comfortable with that risk.

As you may recall, the Link Detroit project (which includes the Dequindre Cut extension) asked for $15 million in TIGER funding but received $10 million.

The city should know by the end of the year whether the request is funded. It is highly competitive so there are no guarantees, but we’re optimistic.

Also underway right now is additional design work for the trail.

We have updated our Inner Circle Greenway page with the most recent information. We’ve also included a link to the entire TIGER request.

Categories
Greenways Policy

Updates on Belle Isle’s streets and sidewalks

20150416_113940Last Friday the DNR called a meeting to address the concerns we’d outlined in a previous post about the construction and conditions on Belle Isle related to the Grand Prix. The meeting also included MDOT representatives, State Representative Stephanie Chang, and Michele Hodges from both the Belle Isle Conservancy and Belle Isle Advisory Committee.

This meeting was mostly about information gathering. The DNR is hiring a planner soon and will host public listening sessions this summer to discuss these issues further with a much wider audience. We’ll let everyone know when those listening sessions are scheduled.

Three MDOT issues seemed to rise to the top.

  • MDOT took a small portion of the $4 million road funding for project management. The remainder went to the Grand Prix, who designed and built the Belle Isle roads. There were no public meetings and MDOT thought that listening to the DNR was sufficient stakeholder input. We don’t believe this follows their Context Sensitive Solutions or Complete Streets policies.
  • On portions of the new road, they will paint a pedestrian lane. This is not a sidewalk, but a pedestrian lane next to the curb and in the street. A bike lane will be next to this walking lane. An on-street walking lane does not follow AASHTO guidelines even though that was a design requirement. Also per AASHTO, “sidewalks, provided on both sides of a street, are the preferred pedestrian facility.” We learned that the initial Grand Prix design removed more sidewalks, so perhaps this was a compromise. We are waiting to see the road design cross sections from MDOT. However we do know these designs were not reviewed by MDOT’s bike and pedestrian coordinator.
  • On some new sections of road, no sidewalks were installed despite the MDOT Complete Streets policy. MDOT ‘s explanation was that they typically assume local governments will add them,  or in this case, the DNR. While local governments can be asked to contribute to adding sidewalks, MDOT cannot assume others will keep them compliant with their own Complete Streets policy.

One frustrating point that others made was that the sidewalk was in poor condition and that this somehow justified it being removed. However there was no evidence of its poor condition in Google Streetview. We passed around photos showing that. Besides, under this logic, the road was in poor condition. Why wasn’t it removed? That logic has no place under a Complete Streets policy.

Grand Prix impact on other park users

The other major concern discussed was the impact of this year’s Grand Prix event set up on other park users. The DNR inherited this event permit from the city of Detroit and we were told there are some gray areas within in. Seemingly unbeknownst to those at the meeting, the Grand Prix had a different interpretation of the permit requirements and set up earlier than expected.

The DNR will discuss this with the Grand Prix to make improvements for 2016. They plan to update the permit when it expires after next year’s event.

As a means for overseeing all this activity, Michele Hodges will add this entire topic as a standing agenda item to the Belle Isle Advisory Committee meetings.

We look forward to addressing all these issues and keeping Belle Isle as a great place to bike and walk.