Dallas Bike Trails (Plano, Katy, Santa Fe: crime, house, neighborhoods)

[MantaRay]

In coming up with a list of places I would consider retiring to, at the top of my list is the extent of bike trails a city has, especially ones which link the surrounding suburbs TO the city center/downtown area. What do Dallas residents think of the Dallas bike trails and the ease of use? What section of town would I want to think about purchasing a house in (middle class seeker, $200k-$300k range) that would have a close proximity to a major bike trail so that I could just open my garage, jump on my bike, peddle down some sidewalk(s), and hop on the bike trail? I wouldn't care about the schools or the area's vibe (I can drive to where I want to find a vibe- or bike there ) except that it not be trashy, run down, or have persistent crime problems.

Denver would be my example of a GREAT city for bike trails, with many of them and most of them connecting to downtown and most of the neighborhoods having main streets with sidewalks which link to the trails. So how do Dallas natives grade Dallas on bike trails. BTW, will I be biking the trails in the summer? For clarification, I'm speaking in terms of the whole metro area and suburbs, not just Dallas proper. Thanks.

[WillysB]

Dallas has established routes about the city and are marked by signage with route numbers. There's an active bicycle club in Dallas, Greater Dallas Bicyclists with regular bike rides.

Lakewood is near White Rock Lake, maps.google.com, search for Dallas, Texas. You'll see White Rock just north of downtown. The lake is a popular hiking/biking/blading area and has a trail that leads further north. And is an awesome neighborhood.

The Dallas Parks department has an interactive map. And another.

Google 'Dallas bicycle trails' for more.

[Lakewooder]

The East Dallas Veloway/Santa Fe Trail http://www.fosft.org/ from South White Rock Lake to downtown is under construction (about half is paved now) and the Katy Trail http://www.katytraildallas.org/site/PageServer is being extended from Downtown to Highland Park over to North White Rock Lake - should be a couple of years though...

[Lakewooder]

Ridgewood Park -- Dallas, Texas would be good area to look for a home - these are mostly extremely well built ranch homes from the 1950s and 1960s - if you like Craftsman Bungalows and Tudors, check out Junius Heights Home Tour Information (http://www.juniusheights.org/home_tour/ - broken link) - something in that price range will probably require work.

[MantaRay]

Thanks for the info. That info really helps. Dallas keeps moving up on my list, especially with what I've read the plans are for the Trinity River Greenbelt, and the recreational/biking opportunities that will provide.

[MantaRay]

I see there's also a trail going through Plano, west of Colt Rd. (Preston Ride Trail?) stretching from Hwy 121 southward and then eastward from Carpenter Park and then southward again following Big Lake all the way down to Colin Creek Mall. It looks like they plan to connect it with the trail that runs north of White Rock Lake, and with the South White Rock Lake to downtown section being in the works, I'd be able to bike from Plano to downtown if I bought a home there. If they actually did follow through on the Trinity River Corridor plans, I could bike all the way from home down there, spend time downtown, and go back. That's exactly the sort of thing I'm looking to be able to do when I retire. Thanks again for all the info!

[cdelena]

Things may have changed in the last couple of years but I did not find much development in DFW conducive to bike transportation.

The so-called bike routes were exactly that, suggested routes with signs; No dedicated lanes, markings, or surfaces. The vast majority of dedicated trails were really more suited to hiking, and in fact were often so crowded with walkers and families that it was dangerous and frustrating to use for biking.

Bikes are used for regular transit in other parts of the country, with necessary compromises, but certainly supported by much better infrastructure.

[aceplace]

Originally Posted by cdelena

Things may have changed in the last couple of years but I did not find much development in DFW conducive to bike transportation.

The so-called bike routes were exactly that, suggested routes with signs; No dedicated lanes, markings, or surfaces. The vast majority of dedicated trails were really more suited to hiking, and in fact were often so crowded with walkers and families that it was dangerous and frustrating to use for biking.

Bikes are used for regular transit in other parts of the country, with necessary compromises, but certainly supported by much better infrastructure.

The city of Dallas is working on a plan to provide dedicated bike lanes between downtown and Uptown. The lanes are physically separate, and will be isolated from traffic by suitable barriers. Not only that, the portion of the trail that crosses a street will be at the same level, so that the bike rider will not have to go down to street level and then back up to bike lane level.

[MantaRay]

The Plano trail I mentioned earlier looks to be bike/pedestrian only, based on an aerial map view. cdelena, are you familiar with that trail and the White Rock Lake one (north and south)? Actually at first glance, that alone looks a lot better than other cities, like Atlanta for example.

On a side note, I did look at Ft.Worth and it does have a trail which goes from downtown following the Clear Fork Trinity as well as a branch that follows a waterway to Lake Worth. Although living along one of those trails on the west side of Ft. Worth would seem to put me on the outer edge of the metro "activity."

[DaveG99]

there is an offroad mountain bike trail that runs along rowlett creek. I dont knwo the name of it though.