HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-21-20 Public Comment - S. Mathre - Bike lanes needed on Kagy improvement projectFrom:Susie
To:Agenda
Subject:Bike lanes needed on Kagy improvement project
Date:Monday, December 21, 2020 9:31:36 AM
Hello,
As a lifelong and year-round bike commuter, and as someone who grew up in Bozeman, I would like to strongly
encourage the City to consider safe and user friendly bike lanes on the Kagy improvement project as a priority. If
one of the City’s goals is to reduce carbon emissions, then we need to be advocates for increased bike transportation.
I think one of the most common reasons people are hesitant to commute by bike is the potential danger from cars.
Bike lanes that are separated from traffic, and kept clear of gravel and snow are far more user friendly, especially on
a road like Kagy with 35mph speed limits. Concerning the possible roundabout intersection designs; as a driver in a
car, I like the new roundabouts in town, and as a biker, the single lane ones function fairly well - most motorists
yield to bikers and pedestrians at the crosswalks, but I have concerns that a double lane roundabout would be unsafe,
especially with the higher speeds. I’ve had several instances of crossing the two lane one-way streets (Babcock,
Mendenhall) where the near car yields to let me cross, only to have the cars in the far lane speed up because they
can’t see me and can’t understand what the hold up is, leaving me dangerously in the middle.
We, as a community, and as a planet, need to act with some amount of haste if we are to become carbon neutral by
2050, and making car traffic flow faster and more convenient is not something that will entice people to start biking,
so I strongly urge the City to act now.
Thank you for considering my point of view,
Sincerely,
Susie Mathre