Philadelphia Advocates Sue for Protected Bike Lane

As the city continues to make little progress on planned bike lanes, cyclists are turning to the courts for relief.

1 minute read

August 22, 2018, 2:00 PM PDT

By Elana Eden


Neglected Bike Lanes

Another kind of neglect for Philadelphia's bike infrastructure is visible in this image from March 2018. | Phila. Bikes / Flickr

Bike advocates in Philadelphia hope that a private lawsuit could pressure the city to improve bike infrastructureJim Saksa reports for PlanPhilly.

Supported by the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, the suit accuses a hotel contractor of operating a valet service in a bike lane. In hopes of reaching a settlement, the company has agreed to protect the bike lane with plastic posts to prevent further violations—provided they can get a permit from the city.

Before taking office in 2015, Mayor Jim Kenney promised to build 30 miles of protected bike lanes; so far, the city has achieved 3.5. "If this works, cycling advocates may have discovered a way around their long-blocked efforts to improve Philly’s bike infrastructure: litigation," Saksa writes.

Friday, August 17, 2018 in PlanPhilly

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