Karen Heining (Detroit Derby Girls) with Mayor Cockrel

Early Friday morning, Council President Ken Cockrel Jr. became Detroit’s new mayor.

As many have said, this opens a new and exciting chapter in this city’s history.  And while this is certainly true in many ways, it’s especially true for biking in Detroit.

Mayor Cockrel and his staff were instrumental in getting  Detroit’s Non-Motorized Transportation Master Plan moving through city council and approved just last Tuesday.  And with walking and biking being the greenest transportation, it certainly fits with the Mayor’s green agenda, which he mentioned in his inauguration speech.

But also, Mayor Cockrel is a Detroit cyclist.  He rides a few times a week, often before the start of his work day.  Even during these transitional times, he’s still finding some time to ride.

However, he said he was planning to put the bike away soon due to the lack of morning daylight.  We promised to get him information on bike lighting options so he can continue riding.

Just a little over a month ago we lamented Al Fields leaving Mayor Kilpatrick’s office.  He was cyclists’ main if not only advocate in the mayor’s office.  Al had gotten a lot done for Detroit biking, so his leaving left behind a huge vacancy.

We can safely say that that vacancy has been filled.

Last Tuesday, the full Detroit City Council approved two resolutions relating to the Non-Motorized Transportation Master Plan.

Why a Master Plan?

Municipalities develop non-motorized master plans to look at their entire area and creates a vision for improved biking and walking facilities based on public input and various data sources.  Typically the plan calls for modifying existing road right-of-ways to better and more safely accommodate bicyclists and pedestrians.  It would also consider non-motorized trails needs as well as related amenities, such as bike racks.

And of course, a good plan would make recommendations on how to change city policies in order to make the planning vision a reality.

Having a good non-motorized plan helps municipalities implement them as road construction projects are planned.  Similarly, it obligates other road agencies (e.g. MDOT) to implement the plan on roads they own within the municipality.

And finally, having system-wide plans such as these improves the chances for grant funding to help implement the plan.

Detroit’s Plan

MDOT funded a non-motorized plan for Detroit.  Giffels-Webster along with other firms and the City of Detroit developed the plan.   The plan calls for various improvements for walking and biking in Detroit, including nearly 400 miles of bike lanes.

Link to Detroit Non-motorized Transportation Master Plan

City Council Resolutions

The plan was first presented to Council President Ken Cockrel Jr.’s Green Task Force.  We received a very favorable response and Mr. Cockrel got this on a council committee agenda.  With a solid showing of public support, the committee created resolutions to approve it.

Both resolutions are shown below: (more…)

Photo by Marvin Shaouni

Tom Woiwode knows greenways. ?He’s been at the forefront of the movement in Metro Detroit since 2001 when he led development of the GreenWays Initiative.

At the end of August, Tom wrote a series of guest blogs covering topics from the Dequindre Cut to the Riverwalk to other trails and greenways in Metro Detroit. ?The resulting blog entries are some of the best you’ll read on trails and what they mean to the people and communities that build and use them.

Thanks to Metromode and Model D for putting these on-line. ?The photo was taken by Marvin Shaouni.

Crain’s Detroit Business has reported that the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan (CFSEM) awarded over $4 million in grants to help revitalize Detroit neighborhoods from the riverfront to the near east side.

Two of these grants are of special interest to those following trail development in Detroit.

The first is a $500,000 grant to the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy to help create recreational, fitness, cultural and educational programming.  This programming will be developed by working with local community groups, churches, schools and businesses.  It will likely be located or involve the Riverwalk and Dequindre Cut, both of which are managed by the Conservancy.

The second grant is $100,000 for the City of Detroit to begin planning a connection for “direct and safe” pedestrian access between the Dequindre Cut and Eastern Market.

SMART bus with a two-bike rack

DDOT has listened to our requests.

DDOT has announced that the Russell bus line will include bus bike racks.  They are doing this on a trial basis.  Eventually we may see all  DDOT buses with bike racks similar to what SMART has done.

DDOT is calling this Bikes On Buses or B.O.B.

There are B.O.B. details on-line along with a B.O.B. user guide.  Or you can call DDOT customer service at 313.933.1300.

Special thanks to DDOT and the Transportation Riders United (TRU) for helping push this project forward.  This is a great complement to the bus network, but also a great benefit for Detroit cyclists wanting to get to cycling destinations across the city (e.g. Belle Isle, Riverwalk.)