Construction is set to begin next week to finally connect the well-used 7th Ave bike lane to the downtown core.
When we last wrote about the planned 7th Ave southbound protected bike lane, we noted that it would end just a few blocks from 2nd Ave. But in the interim, SDOT accelerated planning and construction of new protected bike lanes on Pike and Pine Streets. So instead of being yet another bike lane hanging in a vacuum, the new lane will fill a vital gap in the young downtown bike network.
Construction should be complete in April.
Because bike routes on both Dexter and 9th Avenues N connect to 7th, the relatively low-traffic street has long been a major bike route into downtown from many points north. Construction in recent years has dramatically reduced the street’s usability as a bike route, but that may all change in 2018.