SoBoBlog: News, rumors and oddments by and for the people of South Baltimore

by Colleen Wolfe
soboblog@baltimoreguide.com

A neighbor was asking me last weekend how I felt about having a child and living in the city. Since she asked me this question last Saturday, the answer came even easier than usual. I told her, that while my friends in the suburbs were most likely mowing their lawns and doing other yard chores, I took my daughter to the Flower Mart, where we caught the pet parade and made sculptures at the Clayworks booth and then made tree stump art at the Department of Public Works booth. We took in some music at the foot of the monument and treated ourselves to some funnel cake. As a bonus, on the way over to the event we caught some of AVAM’s Kinetic Sculpture Race.
That was just this weekend. The Farmers’ Market under the Jones Falls also opened on Sunday and the third phase of the Jones Falls bike trail opened on Saturday morning. With all of the great things to do in the city, I have absolutely no qualms about raising a child here.
The opening of the Jones Falls trail kicks off National Bike Month in Baltimore. In recent years, the city has been striving to become more bike-friendly, but with Mayor Sheila Dixon in office, it seems the city’s bikers have an ally on their side. It’s no secret that Mayor Dixon is a fitness enthusiast. But it may surprise people that she also likes to bike to help keep her in shape. Frequently she joins other city employees and bike riders and bikes to work on Fridays as often as she can. She has been a big asset to the biking community in helping to implement the city’s Bicycle Master Plan. Did you even know that Baltimore had a Bicycle Master Plan and a Bicycle Advisory Committee to go along with it?
I didn’t know it either, but it does. I was chatting with Penny Troutner, owner of Light Street Cycles in Federal Hill and she had a wealth of information for me about National Bike Month and what’s going on in Baltimore where bikes and cyclists are concerned.
Biking is a great way to see the city—it’s a clean mode of transportation that doesn’t clog our streets with excessive traffic and take up parking spaces. It’s a great way to make us more physically fit. And more people getting out and riding their bikes can translate into safer streets.
But biking in Baltimore can be hazardous. Navigating the traffic along streets with no bike lanes can be like taking your life into your hands. Many of the storm drain grates are a danger because the wide spacing in the grates makes it too easy for a cyclist to get a tire caught. And there just aren’t enough places to secure your bike around town.
The Committee is trying to change all of that. And some successes have already been seen. The inner Harbor has been opened up to bike traffic Monday through Saturday until 10 p.m. and until 1 a.m. on Sunday. Riding a bike through the Inner Harbor wasn’t allowed at all until Mayor Dixon came into office. That was one of her first changes. Greg Hinchcliffe, the chairmen of the Mayor’s Bicycle Advisory Committee, said “If they can do it on the boardwalk in Ocean City at the height of summer, then why not the Inner Harbor?” Hinchcliffe said that that they would like to open up the Inner Harbor to bikes full time, but that is something that will take a of planning.
There are other initiatives that have taken place recently. Take the opening of phase three of the Jones Falls trail. The newest addition to the trail adds another 2.75 miles of paved road that winds through Druid Hill Park, parts of which had been closed off to the public for years. The trail, which starts at Penn Station, now continues to the Woodberry Light Rail Station, but it’s not completed yet. Eventually, the entire trail will extend 12 miles from the Mount Washington Light Rail station to the Inner Harbor.
The Jones Falls Trail isn’t the only bike trail in the city. We also have the Gwynns Falls Trail that winds through 2,000 acres of land, including one of the largest woodland parks on the east coast, the Gwynns Falls and Leakin parks. The entire Gwynns Falls Trail is about 15 miles and goes all the way out to the I-70 Park and Ride lot.
Both of these trails are the gems of our outdoor spaces. Riding through the Gwynns Falls is like strolling through your own green oasis in the city. And now that the Jones Falls encompasses Druid Hill Park, we have a new way to explore and enjoy our city’s green spaces.
Exploring the two great bike trails we have here isn’t the only way we can celebrate National Bike Month. The City is also participating in Bike to Work Day on May 16. Between 7:00 and 8:30 a.m. on May 16, bicycle commuters in Baltimore will converge at War Memorial Plaza, 100 N. Holliday St., across from City Hall.
The first 225 registrants will receive a free T-shirt and musette bag. The first 500 registrants will receive a Free T-shirt. All participants will also receive an on-the-go snack with coffee and the chance to win bike accessories or the grand prize: a bicycle tour for two on the C&O Canal/Great Allegheny Passage. If you want to register or find out more about Bike to Work Day, go to www.baltometro.org/content/view/258/230/. Register by May 9.
I’d like to say that I’ll be participating in Bike to Work Day, but since I work from home, my commute is just a short stairway ride down to my home office. The next event being held this month is definitely one I have done on occasion: Bike to the Ballpark Day on Sunday, May 18. The Os are playing Washington that day at 1:35 p.m. It’s also Little League Day at Camden Yards. May is a beautiful month to watch an afternoon game, and it’s a beautiful month to get out on your bike as well. Why not combine the two past times into one great afternoon?
My husband and I have biked from our home in Locust Point to the ballpark and it’s a great time. We get in some exercise, a great ride on our bikes, and we don’t have to waste gas or pay for parking. We can sit and enjoy the entire game without having to worry if we should leave early so we can beat the traffic out of the parking lot. Riding a bike to the stadium is hassle-free and enjoyable. There are bike racks right by the Eutaw Street entrance at the north end of the Warehouse next to the ticket windows. And on your way back home you can stop for a bite or a beer without also trying to find a parking spot.
I love what the city is trying to do to make Baltimore a bike-friendly city. My husband and I love riding our bikes, and we ride every chance we get. If you’d like to read the entire Bicycle Master Plan, go to http://www.liveearnplaylearn.com, choose “Publications” from the yellow menu bar and select “bicycle master plan” from the pull-down menu.
Now that spring is in full swing and summer will be here soon, this is a great time to get out and ride. If you are in the market for a bike you should stop by Light Street Cycles, 1015 Light Street, and talk to Penny or anyone on her staff about a good bike for you. If you already have a bike, but it’s a cobweb collector, now would be a good time to take it to Penny for a tune up before getting out on the open road.