OUR VIEW: Bike lanes a no-brainer

Sidewalks are for pedestrians. Roads are for vehicles. These simple rules were laid out for us as early as elementary school, but somewhere in between then and college, these rules seem to have been forgotten.

A sidewalk by definition is a paved area for pedestrians. This does not include bicyclists, yet the sidewalks of USU campus are often traversed by cyclists, creating potential accidents for pedestrians.

While bicycles are a great transportation option for students who have to make it from one end of campus to the other in a short amount of time, they also pose a problem to the majority of students who walk between classes.

Many irresponsible cyclists weave in and out of crowds of pedestrians or fly down the sidewalks at reckless speeds and seem to forget that they do not have the right-of-way. The Utah pedestrian law states that a bicyclist must yield the right-of-way to any pedestrian and shall give audible signal when overtaking a pedestrian.

Even with the law in place, few cyclists actually follow this guideline, and even fewer yield the right-of-way to pedestrians. Yet, cyclists have as much of a right to ride on campus as a pedestrian.

Coming to a compromise shouldn’t be too difficult, though. In Spring semester 2006 a proposition was presented to the ASUSU council to create bicycle lanes on the far side of the sidewalks. Unfortunately this plan was rejected, leaving the conflict between pedestrians and cyclists still alive.

This proposition needs to be revisited. It does not need to involve heavy construction costs, just a painted line. This way pedestrians can walk unhindered and safely between classes and cyclists can maintain their right to ride on campus without the conflict.

An estimated $10.5 million has been allocated for the construction of the new north end zone facility at Romney Stadium. The Merrill-Cazier Library cost $40 million. If millions of dollars can be put toward buildings, surely there is enough money in the school coffers to afford a small amount of paint.

Installation of bicycle lanes might sound like an insignificant thing, but often it is the small things that make a big difference. The simple creation of bike lanes will create a win-win situation for all parties involved.