Passaic envisions extensive bike path system. Here's what it could include

PASSAIC — While the city's Bicycle Master Plan is still in its design stage, officials say they may be near the end of the beginning.

The goal is to create a network that's safe, convenient, and accessible and to encourage residents of all ages and abilities to use bicycles for recreation, exercise, commuting, errands or just getting around, Mayor Hector Lora said.

"Our object is to get people moving and create a more active city," Lora said.

Initiated in December 2022, the plan has been a collaborative effort between the city and the New Jersey Local Planning Services agency with assistance from Passaic County and EZ Ride, officials said.

It coincides with the Bike Passaic County Bicycle Master Plan, which proposes a 311-mile network featuring a mix of on-street and off-street facilities.

Following this plan, the county restriped portions of Central, Gregory and Lexington avenues with dedicated bicycle lanes.

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Regarding the city's plan, lanes will run along streets including Broadway, Lexington and others to provide safer biking routes. Bikers will have safer routes to parklands, transportation hubs and shopping.

When complete, among the approximately 70 miles of city streets, there will be 19.44 miles of dedicated bicycle lanes with 8.25 miles of bicycle boulevards, 2.4 miles of shared-use paths, 2.47 miles of shared lane/road signs and 1.89 miles of buffered lanes and two-way cycle tracks.

Bicycle boulevards are streets with low motorized traffic volume and speed, designated and designed to prioritize bicycle travel, according to the National Association of City Transportation Officials.

Shared-use paths are essentially wide sidewalks of 10 feet or more. Buffered bike lanes have designated buffer space separating the bicycle lane from the adjacent motor vehicle travel lane and two-way cycle tracks have protected bike lanes, separated bikeways, and on-street bike paths, according to NACTO.

Bike lanes were prioritized on high-crash corridors and areas with high pedestrian activity, Lora said, adding that key details remain to be completed.

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"There is no estimated cost or timeline," the mayor said. "This Master Plan is to serve as a guide and bike lanes will be implemented on a project-by-project basis."

Passaic County Planning Director Andras Holzmann said the county appreciates when cities like Passaic and Paterson buy into these projects. The goal, after all, is to create connectivity and enhance bicycle safety.

"It can't only be county roads," he said.

The county received $300,000 from the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority and with a 25% match, the county had $375,000 to begin planning for the pathways. It has completed some projects like the old New York and Greenwood Lake rail bed and portions of the Morris Canal.

There's still a ways to go and the county keeps applying for state grants. Ultimately the goal is not just to connect with individual towns.

"We aren't stopping at county lines," Holzmann said.

A good example is the 4.8-mile path that will link Pequannock to the Mountain View Train Station.

Overall the work has been a bit haphazard and not only because funding comes in dribs and drabs. There are a myriad of factors, dealing with multiple jurisdictions and rights of way both from public entities and private.

Still, the county has been endeavoring when it does a repaving or reconstruction project to add bike lanes, Holzmann said. The county wants to create more than 300 miles of bike paths and only completed a fraction of that amount. "It's going take awhile," Holzmann said.

Lora agrees. The city has a lot of balls in the air, he said.

Coinciding with the bike plan, the city is also looking to add a city bike-type program to add an electric bike-sharing system in the city. These will connect various parts of the city including the up-in-the-works redesign of Main Avenue and the addition of a new bus depot.

Out of the 19 miles for the city's bike paths, less than a mile has been completed.