Bicyclists traveling between suburbs and city have something to look forward to this summer as plans for four miles of new bike lanes have been finalized. Through a mix of private and public funding, the bike lanes will connect Detroit with the communities of Warren and Center Line.

The planned bike lanes will mostly run along Van Dyke Ave, from Stephens Rd in the suburbs to Outer Drive in the city. The lanes will then run along Outer Drive and connect to the Conner Creek Greenway, which runs all the way to Maheras Gentry Park on the Detroit River.

The connection to the Conner Creek Greenway is an important one, linking up with a route that has been in various phases of construction since 2006. The Conner Creek Greenway is a combination of paved lanes and off-road trails that was started to beautify the area around Coleman A. Young International Airport, which was receiving a lot of traffic on account of Detroit hosting the Super Bowl that year. While a large majority of the greenway is complete, small sections remain.

Todd Scott, Detroit Greenways Coordinator for the Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance, has been working on securing the new bike lanes along with a number of community groups. The Detroit Eastside Community Collaborative, Eight Mile Boulevard Association, Scott's Detroit Greenways Coalition, and the city of Warren were all instrumental in planning the bike lanes. It was the city of Warren, in fact, that initiated the bike lanes, wishing to better connect the neighboring communities.

"It's exciting," says Scott. "The city of Warren seems genuinely enthused with all that we have going on in Detroit."

Scott also says that he's in discussions with the cities of Ferndale and Dearborn about similar connections.

Source: Todd Scott, Detroit Greenways Coordinator for the Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance
Writer: MJ Galbraith

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