Cyclists Getting 2 Miles of Lanes Next to Freeway

Hoping to make it easier for commuters to pedal to work and school, Caltrans has installed bike lanes along a two-mile stretch of the Moorpark Freeway between Thousand Oaks and Moorpark.

The $110,000 project was launched after bicyclists complained that there was no safe bike route between the two cities.

On Friday, Caltrans will officially open the lanes, which run along both sides of the freeway between Olsen Road in Thousand Oaks and Tierra Rejada Road in Moorpark.

Before the lanes were completed, cyclists pedaled up a steep, winding section of Moorpark Road called the Norwegian Grade. Blind curves make the trek especially dangerous for bicyclists.

“This is going to be a big improvement,” said Al Bandel, a member of Rancho Simi Trail Blazers, a volunteer group that helps maintain bike and horse trails in Simi Valley. “We’re always looking for new and safer places to ride, and this will definitely be safer than that treacherous grade.”

Some cyclists, however, said they would not feel any safer riding along the freeway.

“I know the grade is a problem,” said Paul Biderman, who owns a bike shop in Moorpark. “But I think riding on the freeway you have a greater risk of getting hit.”

Simi Valley resident Larry Hainline agreed. “Traffic is just going too fast,” he said. “I would not consider it safe at all.”

Caltrans engineer Gary Ethier said the project meets Caltrans’ safety requirements.

“We’ve done everything in accordance with Caltrans safety standards,” Ethier said. “We’ve made the lanes as safe as possible.”

Bright yellow paint marks the eight-foot-wide bike lanes, which run alongside the vehicle lanes on the road shoulders.

As part of the project, Ethier and his crew replaced several dozen storm drain grates with specially designed covers to prevent bike tires from getting stuck.

Caltrans decided not to install guardrails because they wanted to keep the shoulders open for vehicles that have to pull over in emergencies, Ethier said.

“Unlike bike paths, bike lanes are designed to be used by both bikes and motorized vehicles,” Ethier said. “As long as everyone pays attention and drives cautiously, there shouldn’t be any problem.”

Traffic officials and residents have questioned the safety of a similar bike lane along the Ventura Freeway near La Conchita where a cyclist was struck by a car and killed last year.

Ron Blakemore, administrator of a proposed countywide 200-mile bike path system, said he hopes only experienced cyclists will venture onto the freeway bike lanes.

“For someone who’s not an expert cyclist, riding along the freeway is extremely hazardous,” Blakemore said. “It puts a slow-moving object along with a lot of fast-moving objects, and if there’s a collision, we all know who’s going to lose.”

If the countywide bike path proposal is approved by the Board of Supervisors, it could eventually offer a safer alternative for cyclists traveling between all the county’s cities.

“The bike path system could be a long-term solution,” Blakemore said. “But these freeway bike lanes are the best that can be done in the short term.”

FYI

Caltrans will officially open the Moorpark Freeway bicycle lanes Friday during a brief ceremony at 10:30 a.m. near the freeway’s southbound Tierra Rejada Road on-ramp.