September 26th, 2022
Mode Shift joins local Omaha multimodal organizations and advocates in expressing frustration and disappointment over the removal of the Market-to-Midtown Bikeway after a successful pilot period.
The bikeway pilot was successful and accomplishes multiple city goals; removal wastes philanthropic dollars.
Since the start of the bikeway pilot in July 2021, the bikeway has seen over 50,000 riders amounting to over one hundred cyclists per day. Groups like Bike Walk Nebraska, Heartland Bcycle and others have spent countless hours analyzing data from the pilot, which shows that despite being the only protected bikeway in downtown Omaha (bike infrastructure is more effective when there is a complex network), ridership on the bikway flourished. We highly criticize Mayor Stothert’s statement that “we need to analyze the data we got from our pilot.” The data has been analyzed and shows a need for this infrastructure in our urban core. Additionally, this project is a top-ranked project in the Transportation Element of the Omaha Master Plan of 2011.
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