Having been approved by the Boulder County Board of Commissioners for preliminary design funding, it’s time for C4C to be precise in its language about the proposed work on US 36 North Foothills Highway between Boulder and Lyons.
Safety for all users including autos, cyclists, pedestrians, and even wildlife.
The separated bikeway is just one part of what is an emerging standard for Boulder County consisting of a complete vision for safety for all users. Specifically, that means roadway safety improvements. For example, if the project can be built from the City of Boulder to Lefthand Canyon Drive, that would fix the most used and dangerous part of the roadway including the current intersection at Lefthand Canyon. Design improvements at that intersection will save lives.
There is bus service on the roadway but the current stops consist of a post in the ground and rudimentary sign. Improvements will bring things like bus stop shelters. That matters because people along the route could ride their bike to a bus stop, take the bus to Boulder, and then connect onward by transit–eventually including rail–to destinations region-wide.
The bikeway would separate the existing 70,000-90,000 bike trips a year from auto traffic resulting in effectively zero auto-on-bike serious injuries and fatalities. It would also open the travel area to the other 80% of cyclists who currently avoid the roadway due to objective safety hazards.
The plan includes wildlife over- or underpasses to accommodate the documented elk herd and other wildlife in the area.
The Red Hill Elk Herd has been documented in the area between Nelson Road and Highway 66 for decades.
The US 36 North Foothills Corridor Safety Improvement Project is a complete vision for comfort, safety, and mobility for all users. It’s exactly what C4C supports.