Master Plan For Pittsfield Bike Facilities Will Have Final Design

The master plan for a bicycle network on 107 segments and 90 miles of Pittsfield should be completed by May. IBerkshires.com reports that Bike Facilities Master Plan members on Wednesday gave an update on the project that will transform the city into a bike-friendly community.

Back in October 2020, The City administered a survey to collect information on how residents, visitors, and employees are using the bicycle facilities in Pittsfield. The survey sought to understand where the community felt there are gaps in the network and what facilities would be appropriate in the future. The following attachment provides a summary of the survey responses.

The first public meeting was hosted on October 21, 2020 using Zoom. The meeting was broadcasted on the Pittsfield Community Television (PCTV) City Link channel and the City of Pittsfield's Facebook page.

City Of Pittsfield

The goal of planning and designing a low-stress bicycle facility network is to serve people of all ages and abilities to feel safe and comfortable riding bicycles throughout the city. Bicycle LTS analysis was conducted to identify existing low-stress and high-stress streets for bicycle riders in the City of Pittsfield.

As per these surveys, most people fall into the 'interested but concerned' group, representing people who want to ride bicycles regularly but feel unsafe doing so due to a lack of comfortable bicycle infrastructure and lack of safe riding conditions. This group of individuals has a lower tolerance for stressful riding situations than the 'highly confident' group of people biking.

Bicycle Survey City Of Pittsfield

The four categories are summarized below:

Non-bicycle: People who have no interest in riding a bicycle, no matter the bicycle infrastructure or traffic conditions.

Interested but Concerned: People who prefer off-street or separated bicycle facilities or quiet residential streets. People who may not bike at all if bicycle facilities do not meet needs for perceived safety and comfort.

Somewhat Confident: People who generally prefer more separated facilities, but are comfortable riding in bicycle lanes or paved shoulders if need be.

Highly Confident: People who are comfortable riding alongside traffic and will bike on roads without bike lanes.

To target the goal of increasing overall bicycle ridership, a bicycle network needs to be planned and designed with facilities that are comfortable for the 'interested but concerned' group of riders.

What do you think about the new bike facilities?

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