Reader: Broadway Is So Busy, Driving Your Car on It Is Crazy!

Our story recapping recent action on Broadway, particularly regarding bicycles on Broadway and the city's pilot bike-lane project, has readers on a roll. Last weekend we shared a few of their comments, including this: "Broadway is so busy, giving that lane to bikes is crazy." And that got bike-lane supporters going. Says Nick:

Retitle this article to "Broadway is so busy, driving your car on it is crazy." If Denver drivers would respect pedestrians and cyclists, I would maybe feel more sympathy for them. They don't. They dodge and weave through traffic. They speed. They pay more attention to their phone than they do the road. They drive through red lights. They cut off pedestrians in crosswalks. Thousands of pedestrian and cyclists are hit by cars in the Denver area every year.

Adds Katie: 

Heavy car traffic means its time for new solutions — time to give people the option to get out of their car and ride a bike or walk. This is the perfect time to make it safer to ride a bike on Broadway!

And Transit Alliance, BikeDenver, Bicycle Colorado, WalkDenver, Transportation Solutions Foundation, Walk2Connect Cooperative and Bikes Together sent this joint response to our question, "What do you think of the bike lane on Broadway?"

Denver is growing at an alarming rate, and the city is taking the necessary steps to increase choices for people to get around safely without needing a car. It's the only option left on the table for a city that has seen its population increase by 45,000 in the past four years.

Today’s challenge is to get better use out of our public spaces, including Broadway, which currently serves as a one-way racetrack out of town at 5 p.m. We know local businesses and neighborhoods
are the big winners, because the addition of safe bike lanes and dedicated space for buses on Broadway connects our neighborhoods, enhances the experience of walking by separating sidewalks from bikes and cars, and improves bus service since far fewer people now ride bikes in the bus lane. It’s well worth the improved safety and connectivity for people biking, walking, and riding transit, and early results show that average travel times during peak hours for cars were only impacted by nine seconds.

We applaud Denver’s innovative and comprehensive approach, and support extending the lane to downtown and making this lane a permanent segment of Denver’s transportation network.

Read more comments on Broadway's bike lane here, and then watch our video of the Bike-ification of Broadway.