NEWS 25 - WEHT: Evansville, Henderson, Owensboro-Safety First For New Owensboro Bike Routes

Safety First For New Owensboro Bike Routes

story by Corey Allan

OWENSBORO - Owensboro motorists will soon have more than one lane of traffic to watch out for, bicycle lanes on city streets.

"It's great for the environment, it's great for your pocket book, it's great for your body in terms of exercise, so I think there's a lot of interest in it," said City Manager Bill Parrish.

Two routes will be installed next spring. The first will be going north-south starting at Daviess and Third Streets downtown, running down Daviess to Byers Road. Then east on Byers until it connects with the Greenbelt Trail.

The second will run east-west. Starting at Byers and Daviess heading west on Byers, south on Placid Place, until turning on Tamarack Road heading west till it meets the Greenbelt.

"I kind of view routes as main routes they're almost like interstates for bicycles," said Parrish.

Bike lanes will be painted on the road and will include signs to make riders and drivers aware.

"Placing a designated stencil in the street that reminds motorists this is a shared route. And they see it frequently. Every 250 feet they see that," said Parrish.

Warnings Owensboro police say everyone needs to recognize.

"Every year we end up getting a few people hit by cars, so this lets drivers know to be more aware of the bicycles in that area and also lets the bicyclists know it's a safer route," said Owensboro Police Public Information Officer Marian Cosgrove.

Resident's reaction to the new lanes will determine if additional lanes are on the way.

"Supply and demand. The public drives government. The public will come back and say we have an interest in more," said Parrish.

The local group Bicycle Owensboro will start a public awareness campaign also to let everyone know about the new bike lanes.