Carlsbad Village gets more bike-friendly
July 13, 2012
The City of Carlsbad has long been a favorite destination for bicyclists, and it just got friendlier after the city installed 20 custom bike racks throughout the downtown Village this week.
The racks were the result of a joint effort by the City of Carlsbad Transportation Department, Urban Place Consulting Group, which the city hired to continue the Village's revitalization effort, and the
Carlsbad Village Association.
“Creating more parking for cyclists expands the customer base for merchants and eases traffic congestion by encouraging visitors to ride their bikes to the Village instead of driving,” said Ashley Westman, project manager for Urban Place.
Carlsbad Deputy Transportation Director Bryan Jones said traffic engineers teamed with Urban Place and downtown merchants to identify the best places to locate the 20 racks, each of which can accommodate two bicycles.
“We have thousands of bike riders in the Village on a daily basis and even more riding through the village that have no place to lock up their bikes and patronize the many great businesses here,” Jones said. “We’ve installed the racks on sidewalks within the public right-of-way where we've seen bikes locked up to streetlights, trees, fountains and fences.”
The 20 racks are a demonstration program that the city hopes to expand throughout northwest Carlsbad, the city’s most urbanized sector. The city is teaming with Urban Place to apply for a grant from the San Diego Association of Governments to add 80 racks and six bike corrals to the ones just installed. That would put more than 200 additional bicycle parking places in an area encircled by the Pacific Ocean, Buena Vista Lagoon, Interstate 5 and Tamarack Avenue, which encompasses the entire Carlsbad Village, the Barrio and more.
Urban Place designed the custom bike rack, an inverted U that has a cutout image of a bicycle and the slogan, “Bike the Village.” Each rack supports not just a bicycle wheel, but the entire frame, making it more secure. Manufactured by DERO, the racks cost $250 each and were installed by city street maintenance crews. Urban Place bought them with funds supplied by the City of Carlsbad.
Justin Jachura, a member of the Carlsbad Village Association board and founder and managing partner of Señor Grubby's on Carlsbad Village Drive, said the racks are a positive step.
And Teri Chalfant, assistant general manager of Lola's 7 Up Market & Deli on Roosevelt Street, said the racks are already getting a workout. “There's a bike hooked up to it right now, and people were using it this morning,” she said. “The customers are really happy about it.”
“Biking and businesses are a great combination, and we look forward to creating many more opportunities to encourage and welcome bike riders to our Village,” Jones said.
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