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LA’s Best Bicycle Plan

Backbone Bikeway Network : Wayfinding and Signage

One great benefit of using a bicycle for transportation in Los Angeles is that you become highly aware of the topography and composition of the city. With unencumbered perception atop two wheels it becomes increasingly easy to navigate from one way point to the next. Listen, or follow a more experienced cyclist and you can learn even more tricks to plot your way or notice more landmarks to visit. Human infrastructure like this is priceless — especially when it results in increased safety and knowledge of all cyclists in general.

image (c) LA Bike Working Group

Unfortunately we’ve come to a time where this human infrastructure is just not enough to guarantee safety out there. We have to admit that the streets are mostly designed to exclude the bicycle and that there isn’t enough actual infrastructure right now to make a difference for cyclists, pedestrians or motorists. By focusing so much of our resources on the needs and wants of the car the people of Los Angeles have suffered a great loss when it comes to the quality of life. The Backbone Bikeway Network is dedicated to improving the streets and communities across the city: opening the streets to where people need to go and where they already commonly travel. While various forms of streetworks like bike lanes, sharrows and bike boxes will provide a safe environment for everyone to travel it would be worthless without a system of signage and wayfinding to navigate the Backbone.

Once the Backbone is in place it is essential for people to be able to use it in a very practical and almost effortless way. Signs informing cyclists of Backbone Bikeway Network direction changes and to confirm distance, direction, and destination allows cyclists and pedestrians (and even motorists) to know their location if they are not already familiar with the area. Wayfinding signage would encourage more people to use the Backbone and make bicycling integral to our daily life. It would bring together the neighborhoods that are left so disconnected today.

Q: I need to get from NELA to the beach.
A: Take the Fig Backbone and follow the directional signs.

Q: How far it is from the Harbor to the Valley?
Find and read the Backbone sign that indicates the distance.

Q: I’m on vacation and trying to find Hollywood.
A: Follow the Backbone signs pointing to the Hollywood Neighborhood Network.

Q: I’m in Hollywood and need to go to Venice.
A: Just follow the Backbone signs to the Venice Neighborhood Network.

Many cities have a strong wayfinding and signage program.
[ref. image : City of Oakland, CA]

Providing a Backbone Bikeway Network complete with wayfinding signage would benefit the City of Los Angeles in many more ways than just safety and ease of access. It would provide an alternate choice for people that have trouble with traffic congestion, inconsiderate drivers, and parking limitations. More people would find it easier to travel within and outside their immediate communities without the troubled use of a car. There are many people who are willing to use a bike in place of a car; yet, they have a valid excuse that it is “scary to ride” and there is “no clear space for bicycles”. The difficulty of choosing a route without knowing the streets would be solved by having a few well marked Backbone Bikeways to choose from. The danger of “trial and error” bike commuting would be eliminated for all but the most hardcore cyclist.

Many cities around the country have existing wayfinding and signage programs in place with their bicycling infrastructure: Oakland, San Francisco, Portland, and DC for example. The signage in these cities make them so much easier to experience than my own hometown of LA. Five years ago, when I was living Downtown, Los Angeles introduced a small wayfinding and signage program to assist navigation in the most dense and busy area of the city. Councilwoman Jan Perry spoke about the program that brought together the Downtown districts,

“This icon driven system will have the effect of transforming Downtown into a user-friendly series of neighborhoods. This will help both visitors and residents fully enjoy all that Downtown has to offer. The program’s success is the direct result of incredible teamwork from many different government and business organizations. Together, we are crystallizing the position that Downtown LA holds as the major business, tourist and residential destination in the U.S.”

The Backbone Bikeway Network and it’s supporting signage will be trans-formative to the whole city and reflect that all the neighborhoods are an important part of Los Angeles as a major international destination. It would give priority back to the people. It would finally make streets that work.

Next article: The Vision of the Backbone Bikeway Network
Previous Article: LA’s Best Bike Plan – The plan with a Backbone

The LA Bike Working Group was hard at work over the last few months working on what will be the Best Bicycle Plan. Not content with just spinning their wheels all over the city this group of cyclists decided to take steps in improving it as well. The Backbone Bikeway Network is the result of many public meetings, discussions and charrettes with a wide range of City staff, consultants, citizens, advocacy groups and bicycling experts. I attended nine out of the ten public meetings; coming back from those meetings I could recognize a few common notions people had about the LA Bike Plan:

1. There needs to be an easier way to get from one side of the city to the other using bike lanes.
2. There needs to be more road markings and signage to inform everyone.
3. Bicycle lanes and routes should connect to all places of commerce, education, recreation, etc.

Taking a hint from our past transportation history in Los Angeles, a “freeway” system similar to that used by cars should be implemented for bicycles to facilitate longer trips. While motorists are presented with an easy to use and efficient route for longer distances, cyclists have had to deal with a zig-zag, mish-mash of dead-end bike lanes, inadequate lane markings and poor signage. The LA Bike Working Group is not asking for multimillion dollar, specially elevated platform for riding — only improvement of road facilities and maintenance along specific bicycling arterials that are already commonly used.

The Backbone Bikeway Network was created by analyzing the current roadway situation and common bicycle routing solutions in conjunction with the proposed LA Bike Plan maps. There were many opinions on what streets should be classed as primary, secondary and tertiary. There was some debate about what streets were nearly ‘un-ride-able’ and were in most need of improvement. The goal was to find what streets could be used to facilitate the longest route of travel while also proving safe connections to popular destinations. Establishing these destinations as ‘hubs’, these were linked in a way to form a broader connective web across the many future neighborhood level networks of Los Angeles.

While the existing / proposed Bike Plan is myopic and presents development on a mile by mile basis, The Backbone gives cyclists a clear and recognizable route across the city. Gone will be the days of contemplating what string of streets to take while navigating nasty road and traffic conditions. One would simply be able to point to a sign and say “take the Backbone that direction” and enjoy their right to ride along a safe and well maintained bikeway. This is a big step in improving road safety that will increase ridership and eventually lead to health, environment and economic progress. A top level plan like this needs to be implemented along with a carefully planned and neighborhood approved plan — by focusing on the wide picture it will make it far easier to provide lower level bikeways that connect to The Backbone in a meaningful way.

Graphic courtesy of Mihai Peteu, L.A. Bike Working Group

The advantage of a powerful system such as this is that it provides transportation improvements for all level of road users. Sure, it will enhance the bicyclist’s experience; but, it will also mitigate the difficulty of sharing the road with motorists and pedestrians resulting in a safer road atmosphere for everyone. We all pay taxes. Why shouldn’t we all enjoy the benefit?

LAist – “Map: The Backbone Bikeway Network, Get Everywhere You Need to be in the City”

LA Times – “LA Activists Float Idea of Freeway System for Bikes”

I encourage you to offer your comments and criticism of this Bicycle Backbone Network.
To view the Central Backbone -click here-
Stay tuned for more information about this and other LA Bike Working Group tasks.

-UPDATE-
02.08.2010 – LABWG – release – Harbor Gateway map
02.05.2010 – LABWG – map revision – Reseda Bl corrected
02.04.2010 – LABWG – map revision – Cahuenga Bl corrected

02.02.2010 – Re: Draft Bike Plan, Feb 2010 BAC report
“Due to a lack of funding remaining in the Alta contract, the Final Draft is being revised by staff.”
– M. Mowery, Sr. Bicycle Coordinator, City of Los Angeles

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