A protected bicycle lane will be constructed in 2018 along six blocks of South Street and one block of 27th Street, city officials said Wednesday.
The project will build off of the painted bike lane already in place on South Street from 21st Street to 27th Street at the base of the South Street bridge. It will then turn north for a block on 27th Street between South and Lombard streets.
The project is expected to be completed by the middle of next year, Mayor Jim Kenney's office said in a release.
"This announcement follows months of community outreach, during which hundreds of residents and community groups voiced their views," Deputy Managing Director for Transportation and Infrastructure Michael Carroll said. "While consideration of Lombard Street continues, we believe it is important to move forward with this limited project on South and 27th Streets to improve safety for hundreds of bicyclists riding to or from the bridge."
Officials pointed out that South Street bridge has the most pedestrian and bike traffic of any bridge in Pennsylvania.
About 1,000 people a day in each direction use the bridge to bike across the Schuylkill River, according to the most recent counts done in 2015. The bridge is also an access point to the Schuylkill River Trail.
