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Right Direction: Bike Path Part Of Busway

Hartford Courant Editorial

May 22, 2012

One of the least publicized aspects of CTfastrak, the project formerly known as the New Britain-Hartford busway, is that the 4.4-mile section between downtown New Britain and Newington will have a multiuse trail.

At least somewhere in Greater Hartford, the state is adding bikeways and getting in tune with much of the world. Bicycling, said to be the most common form of wheeled transportation in the world, is booming in this country. National Bike to Work Day last week was a big success all over the state, the advocacy group Bike Walk CT reports.

Cities across the country are responding by providing bike paths and lanes. Where there were once only a handful of bike-friendly cities, such as Portland and Washington, D.C., there are now scores of them. Chicago has created more than 100 miles of new bike lanes and installed 10,000 bike racks. In the past four years, New York has added more than 250 miles of bike lanes.

Greater Hartford is not keeping up. Yes, there's the wonderful Farmington Canal trail, and some substantial trails east of the Connecticut River. But hardy bike commuters still have to fight traffic as they enter the city from most directions.

Planners have been trying to get a dedicated east-west path through the city, as well as north-south paths along the riverfront. The state should help make this happen.