Bike Lanes Public Hearing Wednesday

Both supporters and opponents of proposed bicycle lanes on North Figueroa Street and Colorado Boulevard will have an opportunity to tonight (Wednesday, Feb. 13) make their feelings known during a public hearing hosted by the planning department at the Los Angeles River Center and Gardens at 570 West Avenue 26 from 6-8:30 p.m.

The forum is one of four to be hosted by the planning department as part of the environmental review process for the city's 2010 master bicycle plan and comes on the heels of the an Environmental Impact Report/traffic and safety impact
assessment released by the city last month.

The EIR predicts that the installation of the bike lanes would lead to increased delays at intersections along North Figueroa Street and Colorado Boulevard.

Click here to see a breakdown of the predicted traffic delays

Comments submitted at Wednesday's meeting will be included in the final EIR.

Business owners and bike lane advocates are split on what those traffic delays would mean for Highland Park.

John Neese, owner of Galco's Soda Pop Stop, who recently wrote about his opposition to bike lanes on York Boulevard, took a different stance from Risemberg. He said bike lanes have been "very bad" for business on York.

"The bike lanes on York Boulevard are causing problems for business because when people see traffic backed up, they just drive on to Meridian Street to bypass it," he said.

On the contrary, Richard Risemberg, a Los Angeles based cycling advocate and the proprietor of Bicycle Fixation, said that slower traffic would be good business and safety.

"Residents and business usually want traffic to go slower on their streets," Risemberg said. "It creates less noise, it creates less pollution unless it's stop and go. It allows for more possibility to see something interesting and pull over."

Correction: The original version of this story read: Both supporters and opponents of proposed bicycle lanes on North Figueroa Street and Colorado Boulevard will have an opportunity to tonight (Thursday, Feb. 13) ... It was changed to reflect that Feb. 13 is a Wednesday.