Denver Councilwoman Touts 'No Drive Fridays'
DENVER (CBS4) – Denver has added so many new residents in the last couple of years that it's putting a squeeze on traffic.
"The number one thing that people are upset about is how much longer it takes them to drive places," said Denver councilwoman Kendra Black.
Among the City's solutions is to create an extensive, connected network of bike lanes and pathways. Denver Public Works is constructing 15-miles of bike lanes a year.
"Last year, we got some separated bike lanes on Tamarac and Quebec, when they repaved them,"Black explained.
Her district, in southeast Denver, was developed around the car. There are no street grids, several busy, commercial corridors, and wide neighborhood lanes. While the city works to evolve the infrastructure, Black has started her own movement, No Drive Fridays.
"We had this idea that every Friday, we would encourage people not to drive,"she told CBS4.
Black practices what she preaches. She's been biking to work every Friday since February.
"I actually love it. I wish I could do it more days," she said.
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She arranges her day so that biking to work is feasible, and asks her staff to do the same. She's also encouraging all the residents in the district to participate.
"I would just love it to be a thing for southeast Denver, " Black said.
LINK: Bike to Work Day
Black will ride as part of Bike to Work Day on Wednesday, June 27th, but she'll also continue to promote her No Drive Fridays initiative in southeast Denver.