With the Foothill Gold Line Azusa extension slated to open on March 5, 2016, the Cities of Duarte and Monrovia are moving quickly to complete and adopt their first Bicycle Master Plans. First out the gate is the City of Duarte, whose planning consultant Fehr and Peers developed the below map of potential Duarte bikeways.

Based upon recommendations from planning and city staff, the results of an online plan survey, and public input received during an Open House event on October 28th, the draft plan outlines a series of improvements for bicycling in the City. Specific examples include the striping of the City's first Class II Bicycle Lanes on Buena Vista, Highland, and Duarte Road; the widening of the City's existing and very popular Class I recreational path along Royal Oaks; and the development of a Class I off-street connection from the existing San Gabriel River trail in neighboring Irwindale to the new Duarte/City of Hope Gold Line station. 

BikeSGV's Analysis

• Class I Bicycle Path connection to the San Gabriel River Trail is excellent. The existing Class I connection by Encanto Park is heavily used by recreational cyclists from across the region, and this second connection should be very useful for people from Duarte and neighboring communities who wish to use a bicycle in conjunction with Metro Rail. 
• Class II Bicycle Lanes on Duarte Rd would be a significant improvement, providing safer access for residents to Metro rail and the City of Hope campus, a major employer in the community. 
• Class II Bicycle Lanes on Encanto Parkway should be heavily used and helpful to recreational cyclists, who frequent this stretch of road via Royal Oaks to access the San Gabriel River trail.  
• Class II Bicycle Lanes on Highland would provide safer north-south access to Metro but should continue to the station at Duarte Road. The current proposal would see a Class II lane change to a Class III route just north of the station. Given the relatively low traffic volumes on this section of roadway, it should be feasible to extend lanes to the station with little to no impact on other road users.
• Bicycle improvements to the City's main business corridor - Huntington Drive - are noticeably absent from the map above. Stretches of Huntington Drive in Duarte have adequate space for bicycle lanes, and possibly even buffered bicycle lanes, and should be accommodated to provide safer access for people on bikes to patronize local businesses.  

Next Steps and Upcoming Meetings

The draft plan will be reviewed by the Duarte City Council on January 12th. BikeSGV encourages people who bike in the community to submit comments and suggestions via email or in person. 

• What: Duarte City Council Meeting (agenda)
• Where: Duarte City Hall, 1600 Huntington Dr, Duarte, CA 91010
• When: Tuesday, January 12th (7 PM)