The conflict between the bicycle community and drivers on the road seems to be a never-ending contention — especially when it comes to creating new policies that leave one side upset.
In July, Tempe City Council created bike lanes on McClintock Drive in Tempe. The two lanes span between Broadway and Guadalupe roads.
Drivers who use McClintock to commute are upset with the amount of traffic the new bike lane has caused. The new development caused the removal of one driving lane.
One Tempe resident who lives in southern Tempe, Edward Hooten, said many commuters in the area have experienced significant increases in traffic since the lane was created.
“Ever since the bike lanes have come in, we’ve pretty much been held hostage with the massive traffic backups — especially coming off the Arizona Highway 60 in the evening or going to the 60 in the morning,” Hooten said. “We are not against bike lanes in Tempe. I support it (near ASU). We are against the bike lanes from the 60 North to McClintock High School and the 60 South to the fire station.”
Although traffic may be intensified by the loss of a driving lane, Tempe public officials argue that taking away the bike lanes would be unsafe for local Tempe bikers and drivers. Tempe Councilwoman Lauren Kuby said she felt concerned about these restrictions on public safety.
“Right now, that (bike lane) has become a safety feature of that road, and there’s been a 25 percent reduction in mid-block collisions," Kuby said. "We see that the road is safer, so how can we, as a council, decide to go back and make the road less safe? That makes me really uncomfortable as a public official.”
Hooten also said he and other Tempe residents of this area feel the bike lanes are unnecessary due to their low usage.
“I have not seen hardly any (bikers) out of an afternoon or a morning,” Hooten said. “I go out and sit in the morning for an hour — I’ll see one or two bikes in the bike lane during that hour, and I’ll see six or seven on the sidewalk.”
Bikers may not be using the bike lanes as frequently as Tempe public officials hoped for, though Councilwoman Kuby said it is because these modifications take time to become positively effective.
“We’re not seeing a tremendous amount of people riding in the bike lane because it takes time,” Kuby said. “It may be painful, politically, to have people screaming at you, but I’m not really thinking about right now or next year. ... Previous councils have thought in the long-term, and we’ve developed an amazing bike infrastructure — and it’s because of decisions 20, 30 or 40 years ago that have gotten us to this point.”
Ryan Guzy, the former president of the Tempe Bicycle Action Group, credits the dismay Tempe residents have to the aesthetics of the new bike lane.
“I think part of it is just an image thing,” Guzy said. “They are kind of the most prominent ones that Tempe has ever done — they have a paint buffer, and they also have the candlestick treatment just to keep people from driving in them.”
Perhaps making alterations to the bike lane that ensures safety and efficient traffic flow is what both sides of the argument will agree on, as it seems Tempe City Council is open to revisions.
“If we can make them somewhat narrower and put in concrete buffers — a real division between the street and the bike lane — then we can gain some space and hopefully widen the lane in a couple of places,” Kuby said. “This is where there can be a win-win.”
The issue is set to be brought up again at Tempe City Council’s next Work Study Session. The hearing is scheduled for Dec. 1, 2016 at 4 p.m.
Reach the reporter at vkeys@asu.edu or follow @VKeys1231 on Twitter.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on Twitter.
