City of Phoenix holds meeting to gather public input on bike-related projects

Visitors to Downtown Phoenix lately may have noticed a makeover of sorts involving bike lanes. It is all part of a "master plan" to make Phoenix more bike-friendly, as well as making streets safer for cyclists.

The latest project involves adding new bicycle lanes near the Arizona State Capitol, in the area of Adams and Jefferson Streets, between 19th and 27th Avenue. On Thursday night, the City of Phoenix held a meeting to get ideas from the public.

The project to add bike lanes in the area, according to officials, will require the removal of one of the existing travel lanes on Adams Street. No such removals will reportedly be needed on Jefferson.

People living in the area support the idea.

"I'm excited that we can actually bike around the neighborhood around those large streets," said Leticia Delavara, who lives off Adams Street. "I'm looking forward to it."

Currently, the Department of Transportation has already started improving the streets near Downtown for bicyclist, by adding green paint to roads like a street off Fillmore. According to Monica Hernandez with the City of Phoenix, the green is meant to alert drivers that they are sharing the road.

"As a motorist, you're driving and you see something green on the street, more than likely you're going to look right and that's what we want for motorist to do. We want motorist to be looking at bike lanes," said Hernandez.

The City is also testing out a bike signal off 12th Street and Campbell, which gives off a light signal that a biker is present.

People at the meeting said everything the city is adding to make riding a bike safer is a step in the right direction.

"It's something for the future, and maybe this is a good start for what's going to happen," said Paul Santana, who lives off Jefferson Street.

In the past few years, there is an average of 450 bike-related incidents in Phoenix, and the city is actively trying tolower that number.