BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Bike lanes, bump outs, and physical barriers along the side of the road, in theory, are supposed to help every pedestrian on the road stay safe.
For GoBike Buffalo, that has been their goal. Now, they're bringing their mission over to Forest Avenue, and it's not sitting well with some of the community.
Buffalo Department of Public Works Commissioner, Michael Finn said GoBike came to them with the idea and wanted to continue their mission of making Buffalo a safer place for all travelers.
"GoBike got a grant to do a pilot project and install a cycle track," Finn said.
With the way that some people are talking about this new addition to Forest Ave., it's not pretty. They're skeptical about the width of the road now that the new bike lanes have taken up more space. They believe this could lead to more accidents or side-swipes.
"They assured me they're going to make some corrections and remedy some of things folks were pointing out as being issues," Finn said.
But it is still a project that is unfinished. Both GoBike Buffalo and the city are aware of this.
"That is a work in progress. It's not totally complete, but some of the parts that were completed need to be adjusted," Finn said.
GoBike said they had sent out over 700 letters in the mail to Forest Ave. residents to let them know this was happening. They even held events to gauge community interest, which is why they pushed forward with the plan. Even with those who aren't happy right now, they'll be listened to.
"It is not inappropriate for residents to be communicating how they feel about this because it's not complete," Finn said.
The project is like a demo of sorts. GoBike will have this plan for the next four months, conduct studies on this street, and then hand results over to the city. Once that is done, the community will get involved once again, and then Buffalo will make final touches on something official before the repaving that's happening next year.
