Cape Girardeau to alter bike route plan

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - The City of Cape Girardeau announced that it will reduce the number of streets that will be used for bike routes.

The change in plans comes after a contentious public meeting last Thursday in which homeowners voiced their concerns about losing on-street parking options. The bike lanes would eliminate on-street parking on the streets where they would be designated.

Homeowners also argued that bike lanes would decrease property values.

Eleven bike routes were examined at last Thursday’s meeting. Four of the routes are no longer under consideration.

The City of Cape Girardeau was awarded a grant for over $250,000from the Missouri Foundation for Health to develop the bike lanes.

According to a press release from the City of Cape Girardeau, the following routes will no longer be considered:

• Lexington Avenue between Concord and Amblewood
• Perryville Road between city limits and Bertling
• Cape Rock Drive between Kingshighway and Lexington
• Hopper Road between Mount Auburn and Kingshighway

Jacob McCleland, KRCU

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Cape homeowners concerned about proposed bike lanes

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - Citizens voiced their preferences and concerns about Cape Girardeau’s newly proposed bicycle lanes yesterday at a public forum in the Osage Center on Thursday. 

Funding for the bicycle lanes would come from a $253,000 grant received from the Missouri Foundation for Health. These lanes would be located along residential streets as well as in commercial areas.

Bicycle lanes would make travel safer for cyclists and motorists alike. To ensure safety of everyone on the roads, there would be no parking along streets where the proposed bicycle lanes would be located.

Avid cyclist and lifelong Cape Girardeau resident, Steve Girard, believes there is another benefit to these bicycle lanes.

“I think the premise of the bike lanes themselves would be to allow for people that wouldn’t otherwise get out on the roads on their bicycle, would give them a place to ride and feel more comfortable,” Girard says.

Many homeowners and real estate professionals spoke out against the lanes, saying they would decrease property value.

The bicycle lanes would occur along residential streets as well as in commercial areas. Along the streets where the bicycle lanes have been proposed, there would no longer be any parking on either side of the street.

Ralph Hendrickson with ERA Cape Realty feels that this lack of street parking is one of the main concerns with these proposed bike lanes.

“Those folks that live there who have lived there for decades or maybe just bought six months ago, didn’t know this was coming, potentially could be hurt and their property values could be hurt because potential buyers are going to buy somewhere else,” Hendrickson said.

The city staff will take all of the comments and questions they received at the forum and map them out to determine where the most positive feedback for the lanes is located and then make a final recommendation to the city council.

The city staff will take all of the comments and questions they received at the forum and map them out to determine where the most positive feedback for the lanes is located and then make a final recommendation to the city council.

Katie Long, KRCU

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Cape receives $250K for bike lanes

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - The streets of Cape Girardeau will soon become safer for bicycle riders. 

Cape has received a $250,000 Ride the City grant from the Missouri Foundation for Health that will create 40 miles of bike lanes and install 156 bike racks.

Eric Redinger, member of the local Bicycle Advisory Council says this grant will connect schools, parks, and recreational facilities with bike lanes..

"I think it’s just great, I think it’s great for bicycle enthusiasts because you can travel through the city so much easier," Redinger says. "That is also a big benefit for people right now with unsteady gas prices."

Redinger feels this will also benefit children making it safer for them to ride their bikes to school.

The Bicycle Advisory Council will be working with the city to implement the grant over the next few months.

Redinger says the bike lanes should be completed by October of this year.

Matthew Caldwell, KRCU

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