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Bike Path Proposed Between Downtown And Eastside Lansing

Lansing Bike Party photo
Katie Cook
/
WKAR
Jeff Potter and the Lansing Bike Party wait at a light on a group ride. The new path would give cyclists and pedestrians an easier route to downtown Lansing from the Frandor Shopping Center.

The City of Lansing is proposing a bike path from Grand Avenue in downtown Lansing to the east side of the Frandor area. WKAR’s Katie Cook reports.

 

The project, which is being called the Eastside Connector, would consist of a combination of bike lanes, pathways, and a signed bike route to benefit cyclists and pedestrians.

Lansing’s Public Service Director Andy Kilpatrick says the idea was part of the non-motorized plan the city put together in 2011.

“Right now the only direct bike facility to downtown is along Kalamazoo Street. So we thought that it would be good to have a second route, and this also will connect the neighborhood to the school, so through several school properties as well.”

The City is still seeking approval from the Lansing School District to construct the remainder of the pathway on District property. If approved, it would be done in conjunction with the work planned for the Eastern High School fields, and the future location of Eastern High at Pattengill.

 

Jeff Potter is a Williamston resident who leads bike rides with the local club Lansing Bike Party. He says biking from East Lansing to Lansing can be tricky, and this path will likely make it safer and encourage more people to bike.

“I think bike use, once they mark all this up, might increase. And if they improve the safety of the crossings, it may go up five or tenfold along those routes just from them making it more explicit for bikes.”

The path would be constructed in 2019 and possibly into 2020, according to Kilpatrick. Close to $500,000 in federal funds has been approved for construction of this project, which is 80% of the cost. The remainder would be paid for by the city.

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