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Moshe Cohen begins his day with a treacherous trip.
He travels to class along Highland Road from his off-campus apartment outside the University's South Gates - on his bike.
"There isn't enough room on the road for bikers to travel safely," said Cohen, mathematics graduate student.
Metro Councilman Mickey Skyring, who represents the area between Brightside Lane and campus, is spearheading a proposal for a bike path that could make the commute more hospitable to students and faculty members taking advantage of alternative forms of transportation.
Skyring, who lives off Highland Road, said concern for the safety of bicyclists and pedestrians prompted his push for the path.
"I live in Kenilworth subdivision, and I drive to and from work everyday," Skyring said. "And the number of young people I see that have to get on and off the street for their own safety is just upsetting. I can't believe there hasn't been an injury already. It's a tragedy waiting to happen."
If approved, the proposed path would run along Highland Road between W. Lee Drive and the South Gates of campus.
Skyring has passed the project idea to the Department of Public Works, the entity that oversees the design and construction of city building plans, and the department is working to determine the feasibility of putting in a path along Highland Road.
Peter Newkirk, the department's director, said construction of the path depends on the city's ability to acquire the right of way from landowners along the street.
But councilmen have acknowledged that acquiring that right of way would be a costly endeavor.
"Highland Road, at one time, was sort of like a path," Newkirk said. "Some of those properties are so old that they own half the street. When you expropriate land, you have to pay for every square foot of property. We would have to price it out and see whether or not we could afford that."
Past efforts to build sidewalks and bike paths have failed because of this financial stumbling block, but Skyring said he is "looking at this very positively" and will persevere to make the bike path a reality.
"It is an issue that comes up and dies down, but we can't let it die down," Skyring said. "We've got to keep it in front of people."
The Highland path is finding support among locals.
Rising gas prices and heavy traffic brought on by the post-Katrina population surge have compelled some area commuters to seek alternatives to car travel.
Organized groups have cropped up to serve as a voice for the emerging biking community.
On campus, the Ecological Conservation Organization has been promoting biking as a convenient, environmentally friendly transportation option. The group has collected signatures on petitions requesting councilmen support the Highland bike path initiative. Lauren Stuart, ECO president, said shortcomings in the University transportation system and a lack of sufficient on-campus parking makes biking a necessary alternative. "A lot of students live around the Highland Road area," Stuart said. "There is a big problem with buses being full and buses being late. It is necessary for students to have alternatives, such as biking, and for those alternatives to be safe and convenient."
Cyclists outside the University have joined together at the urging of a University staff member.
Mark Martin, assistant curator for image resources at Hill Memorial Library, has launched Baton Rouge Advocates for Safer Streets, or BRASS, an organization that supports biker-friendly projects implemented in the city.
Martin, who cycles from his mid-city home to the library each morning, said he thinks, with encouragement, city citizens will see the benefits of biking.
"It'll take a combination of things," Martin said. "One is actually seeing people riding their bikes in a safe manner. People will find that it doesn't take long, it's fun and it's healthy; and that will get around by word of mouth."
Contact Caroline Alexander at
calexander@lsureveille.com
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