Originally Posted by sbhikes
Two weeks ago I started a new job so now I have a new commute.
My new commute takes me along surface street bike lanes to the Obern Trail bike path (Atascadero Creek bike path). It's awesome being able to ride this bike path every day. Here's why:
In the morning it's so cold and quiet. The trees along the creek have lost most of their leaves. There are ice crystals in the grass. Other cyclists are pedaling along silently. Kids are going to school on their bikes (not in Lexus SUVs and Hummers like Montecito on my old commute). People are out walking their dogs on the adjacent dirt path (people don't walk on this bike path). The air smells so good. Sometimes you can even smell bacon from the houses backed up to the path.
At night, despite the solar-powered lights, the bike path is really dark and quiet. A lot of cyclists turn off their headlights to enjoy the darkness. I've seen mice and frogs on the bike path at night. It's so quiet you can hear eerie sounds. It's so dark you can see the stars in the sky. You can smell people's fires burning and dinners cooking. When other cyclists pass me they do it so silently they barely raise their voices to say hello so as not to disturb the silence.
I've never seen so many cyclists of so many ages commuting to work and school. The kids sometimes ride with their parents. At night there are more cyclists than I would ever have expected.
I believe that if there were more bike paths like this there would definitely be more cyclists. At my new job (which is only a quarter mile from the Obern Trail) I have seen more bikes parked in offices and locked to the racks than I ever did at my old job.
Being trained to tolerate traffic is not the same as the pure joy of two daily excursions out in quiet nature. Most places have creeks and rivers tucked away out of sight. That's where Santa Barbara has put its bikeways. I think other places could do the same and thus provide more alternatives for people who would like to leave the car at home.
How many of you roll up your window to keep out the noise and pollution when you drive? Riding in the street is like never being able to roll up the window. Riding on the bike path is like never having to roll up your window.
I strongly support
segregated cycle facilities that are bike paths such as the one you describe, for many of the reasons you cite.
I agree with Roody that the bike paths that serve transportational purposes, like the one that you describe, are appropriate to be funded with transportational dollars.
Further, I think it's important that such paths be built to certain standards, including the right of injured cyclists to sue whoever is in charge of maintaining a path for damages caused by maintenance negligence (just as we can sue whoever is in charge of maintaining a road or sidewalk or damages caused by maintenance negligence). I bring this up because, at least in CA, the courts currently are treating paved bike paths like "wilderness paths" for which nobody is held responsible for maintaining.
In other words, if your path collapses underneath you on your ride to work, and the collapse is shown to have been caused by negligent maintenance, you can't sue anyone for your damages and lost time at your new job. This is partially why bike path maintenance probably tends to get less priority than roads and sidewalks.