Boardwalk Bike Ban Is Lifted, Speed Limits Set : Long Beach: Council, reacting to a wave of protests, overturns its 14-month prohibition on bicycling. But cylists must slow to 15 m.p.h. and 5 m.p.h. near pedestrians.

Leisurely pedaling his 12-speed mountain bike along the Alamitos Bay peninsula’s wooden boardwalk in Long Beach, Rick Vargas passes the usual sights: a jogger, a couple walking hand-in-hand, two children with buckets and shovels--and a sign pointing out that cycling is off limits.

Vargas, who has taken many weekend outings to this peaceful community at the southeastern tip of the city, pauses for a moment to sip from his water bottle, admiring the quaint seafront homes on one side, sand and surf on the other.

“I know I’m not exactly supposed to ride here,” said the 20-year-old Cal State Long Beach student. “But no one ever says anything.”

Despite Vargas’ perceptions, bicycle riding on the boardwalk, with its 10-foot-wide planks, has been a subject of debate among residents.

The council banned riding 14 months ago after Councilman Douglas S. Drummond received reports of collisions between cyclists and pedestrians. After the ban triggered a wave of protests, the council opted for a compromise. The ban on two-wheelers will be lifted Monday, but the council imposed a general speed limit of 15 m.p.h. and 5 m.p.h. near pedestrians.

The speed limit also applies to Bayshore Walk, a smaller cement path north of Ocean Boulevard facing Alamitos Bay.

Drummond said that when community representatives approached him last year with the idea for the ban, he was under the impression that they had surveyed the neighborhood. However, he said, they had not.

Drummond called the ban “a mistake that’s been rectified. It’s amazing how many people ride bikes upon the boardwalk,” he said. “The boardwalk is quite wide, so if bicycles are ridden slowly, there is enough room to get around.”

Paul Sahlin, a peninsula resident for 15 years, praised the move, as did several other residents. Bicycling along the 14-block boardwalk is an easy, quick way for many in the tight-knit community to visit one another.

“Bicycles have never been a major problem,” Sahlin said. “But parking is a major problem at the peninsula. You go to visit a friend 10 blocks away and there’s no place to park. Bikes are a good way to get around.”

Sahlin said that many children, including his 8-year-old nephew, who visits every weekend, have had no other place to ride but on Ocean Boulevard, which can be dangerous.

“On Ocean, people tend to speed. There’s parked cars and cars pulling out of side streets,” he said.

But those arguments don’t mean much to Charles A. Berry and other residents who support the ban.

Berry, 64, a Belmont Shore resident, was taking one of his daily strolls along that boardwalk in October, when he was struck from behind and knocked down by a young woman on a bicycle, he said. His shin caught on a rusty nail, requiring a tetanus shot and an overnight hospital stay, he said. Berry said he could not walk for three days.

Berry pointed out that much of one side of the path is bordered by private fences, and the other by a four-foot retaining wall to keep away sand. As a result, he said, walkers have no escape from out-of-control cyclists.

“Humans and bicycles just don’t mix on the boardwalk,” he said.

Drummond said the new speed limit should cut down on possible accidents.

“There’s people roller-skating, jogging, and with all of the mix, occasionally, someone might run into someone else, but not frequently,” Drummond said.

“You can’t prohibit something on the basis of one or two accidents,” he added. “Otherwise we wouldn’t have freeways.”

The speed limit will be enforced, said Long Beach police spokesman Joseph Levy. Several officers who patrol the beach area with four-wheel, all-terrain vehicles will check the boardwalk for speeders, he said.

“Based on their training and experience, the officers can determine how fast a bicycle is going,” Levy said. “If there is a problem, the officers can advise the person to slow down or issue a citation.”