Northampton, Amherst Area? No car, hippies, public space, smart growth, etc? (Boston: 2013, college)

[brubaker]

It riding a bike safe there though?
Do you all have bike lanes and such?

I ask because:
League of American Bicyclists * Bicycle Friendly Community Campaign
Sadly, nothing in Mass.
Not that one organization or list is ever all encompassing or um, whatever the word is, 'definitive'.

[western mass and love it]

As far as bike lanes and such,sadly there is none.But as far as safety goes i would say overall it is safe.People in the hamp area generally follow the traffic laws(which catches some visitors off guard).Also it seems that more and more people are using there bike as a means of transportation in the area.

[teachertype]

Originally Posted by western mass and love it

As far as bike lanes and such,sadly there is none.

You must be joking, right?

There are bike lanes all over the area from downtown Amherst east to Belchertown and Rte 9 west through Hadley to Northampton, or up 5 & 10 north to Greenfield, etc., The entire "rail trail" is bike lanes. It's one of the most highly developed bicycle lane systems I've seen anywhere. The Pioneer Valley can't be beat for bike lanes.

[western mass and love it]

i am pretty sure he was refering to bike lanes that were actually on the road and not a rail trail.

[brubaker]

Yeah, I meant really just the stuff that the League of American Bicyclists mention.
But mainly street lanes, yes.

Maybe the cities in the Pioneer Valley didn't grea$e the right *gears* to get their place on the list!



Ok, sorry.

[western mass and love it]

as far as street lanes go,i am pretty sure that's a no go.

[teachertype]

I'm sitting on a bench in Amherst center right now looking across the main street toward the fire station...and I see...painted on the road...at the lights...guess what? The bicycle lane.

Sometimes people post stupid misinformation like they know what they're talking about when they don't. Just saying.

Try this:
http://www.bikely.com/listpaths/coun.../143/city/8807

Here's the official map of existing on road bike lanes in Amherst:
http://www.amherstma.gov/DocumentView.aspx?DID=1590

[western mass and love it]

and this helps him in Northampton how? IDK must mean i'm stupid.

[brubaker]

(hides in the corner sucking his thumb)

[teachertype]

Originally Posted by western mass and love it

IDK must mean i'm stupid.

City of Northampton: Transportation

This link says:

"Two downtown thoroughfares, South Street and Elm Street, have lined bicycle lanes. The Northampton Bike Path leads from State St. in downtown Northampton to Look Park in Florence, and the Norwottuck Bike Trail is an 8.5 mile path linking Northampton, Hadley, and Amherst. A bike path connecting the Norwottuck Bike Trail and the Northampton Bike Path is proposed as well as a bike path connecting downtown Northampton to Easthampton.

Several active bicycling organizations in the city help maintain current bike paths and propose improvements for increased bike safety."