The City of Spokane this month will install a new kind of bike lane that will complete the downtown bike network. Nearly 12 complete blocks along Main and Spokane Falls Boulevard will get the new lanes, creating a mile-and-a-half loop of dedicated lanes circling the city’s core.
The new lanes will be “buffered,” a conventional bike lane with a 3-foot buffer of empty space between cyclists and the traffic lane. Buffered lanes provide a safer experience for riders, allow cyclists to pass each other without entering traffic and give riders space outside the zone where drivers open doors on parked cars.
The $77,000 worth of work is being funded through the federal Congestion Management and Air Quality program, which is distributed through SRTC.
The Spokesman-Review has more on the bike network and other changes happening along with it on Main Street.