Wheelmen, as bicyclists were known in the 1800s, have been at home in Colorado Springs since its founding.That interpretation of the city’s culture was presented Saturday by Claire Swinford, Downtown Colorado Springs’s director of urban engagement, at a lecture at the Pioneers Museum titled A Celebration of Bicycling from Past to Present in an attempt to reset the tone of the city’s bitter public debate over bike lanes.“Gen. (William Jackson) Palmer was interested in creating a place founded on egalitarianism. ... Egalitarianism is his mantra for everything.” said Swinford. And bicycling is an “egalitarian activity accessible to all.”The city’s split over the new bike lanes was apparent at a recent debate co-hosted by The Gazette and KKTV 11 News.Advocates applauded the city’s decision to narrow some streets to one lane to incorporate bike lanes, encouraging more people to ride bicycles, a healthier and environmentally friendly … [Read more...] about Lecture on Colorado Springs’ love affair with bicycles seeks to change tone of city debate
Paved bike trails colorado springs
Trail Talk: Scootin’ along stirs controversy across country
Depending on whom you ask, e-scooters are either the coolest thing to come along in years or another nuisance/fad that threatens to clog our sidewalks and streets.Users of dockless e-scooters (electric scooters) can rent them via smartphones and drop them off wherever when they’re done. E-scooters are not allowed in Fort Collins as city leaders study the issue. The scooters are controversial in Denver and are under discussion here in Colorado Springs.Do they belong on streets or on sidewalks? Sidewalks in and around our downtown are for pedestrians only, so should that law be changed? Should they be allowed on our paved trails where e-bikes are allowed?Proponents argue that e-scooters are an affordable (and fun) form of transportation for short trips. They say they take vehicles off streets and appeal to tourists and millennials. Opponents point to the resulting mess in cities such as San Francisco and Austin, Texas, where companies dumped scooters by the hundreds before … [Read more...] about Trail Talk: Scootin’ along stirs controversy across country