New councilman says city's 1st 'sharrow' is coming
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- Created on Friday, 08 April 2011 23:25
- Written by Dena Rosenberry
By R. Scott Rappold, The Gazette
“Share the road” may become more than just a concept along one major artery in Colorado Springs.
Tim Leigh, an avid cyclist who was elected to the Colorado Springs City Council this week, is raising money to create the city’s first “shareway." Shareways are street lanes marked for “shared use travel” that serve to remind drivers to move to the left lane when passing cyclists.
He calls the pavement markings “sharrows,” and he has raised from cyclists about half the $21,000 it will cost to have the symbols painted on Pikes Peak Avenue and Colorado Avenue from Union Boulevard at Memorial Park to Manitou Springs.
(NOTE: Colorado Springs Young Professionals will have a Sharrows fundraiser 3:30-7:30 p.m. Sunday at McCabe's, 520 S. Tejon St. 10% of McCabe's sales will go to the effort.)
The markings will be painted every 250 feet in the right, or outside, lane of the road, he said, and the city of Colorado Springs has agreed to donate the cost of installation. The lanes should be marked within the next two months, he said.
“What’s one of the most common destinations for cyclists? That would be Manitou Springs,” said Leigh. “If there is a pack of three to five to 19 to 30 cyclists on the outside lane of the road … then people should get used to knowing they need to go to the inside lane to pass the cyclists.”
Such sharing lanes are common in many cities, and Leigh sees them as a way of encouraging less driving and a culture that will attract a “young creative class” to live here.
“Cities who have a vibrant young creative class are cities that naturally attract employers to come into their marketplace,” he said.
For now, these lanes would not have the force of law. There is a state law requiring drivers to give cyclists 3 feet of space, but many cyclists say drivers ignore or aren’t aware of it.
Leigh said he would consider making sharing in the “shareway” legally required if drivers aren’t moving over.
“Right now it’s a courtesy thing, but if I had to I would advocate to police that we put an ordinance in place,” he said.
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