Albuquerque boosts the unique nature of continuously growing with outdoor recreation in mind, specifically biking.
If the city has done something great, then creating biking infrastructure would be one of them.
Anywhere you go, you will see dedicated biking trails.
Biking is one of my favorite things to do in Albuquerque, and more people should do it more often.

Although biking can be a fun activity to do, biking can be dangerous in Albuquerque.

What’s wrong with ABQ biking? Vent time

Albuquerque has been known as a biking city, and the people do not deny their love for biking.
I believe the city has been pressured to create more biking lanes and paths over the years, but has not perfected the craft.
Another blogger named Urban ABQ wrote a post called “APRIL FOOLS TO REALITY – WHY ALBUQUERQUE NEEDS BETTER BIKE LANES.”
https://urbanabq.com/2015/04/06/aprilfoolstobetterbikelanes/
This post goes into more details about the biking lanes in the city.

My discussion will dive similarly to theirs, but talk more about the biking dangers that revolve around the bike lanes.

When I ride my bike in Albuquerque, I do not ride on the bike lanes on the streets.
An example of why: I DON’T WANT TO GET RAN OVER.
I will only use bike lanes/paths that are not on the street, but along arroyos, parks, residential neighborhoods, or nature walks.

One great example of a nature walk would be along the Rio Grande River.
The bike trails goes for miles up and down the Bosque, and has major popularity in the city.
There lies one huge issue with it. Getting to it.
The closest Rio Grande bike trail access to me is the Coors and Montano location.
I can take my car to the small parking lot, but I live less than a mile from the access.
Strapping a bike to a vehicle is not fun and wastes time.
So, I tried riding my bike one time, and it was my last.

Descending the hill on Montano was scary and dangerous. Yet, it makes it worse when you are riding alongside other vehicles who are descending faster than the speed limit.
Bike lanes on streets on frightening and dangerous.
But, why did the city do this? There are sidewalks along the bike lanes.
Nearby, there is an bike trail that shares as a sidewalk. This is located on Unser between Western Trail and Montano. So why didn’t the city replicate this?

Money. The cheapest way to make bike lanes are to draw a line designated for bikers. I honestly do not think casual bikers would even ride on street bike lanes. Plus, drivers are evermore distracted by cell phones and under the influence of alcohol or drugs. These hindrances cause drivers to swerve onto these bike lanes.

A few propositions would be to invest into upgrading bike lanes that are safer.
One idea would be to indent the bike lane lines. Indenting the lanes will make cars rattle and shake if they are driven over. Indents are felt along the A.R.T. lanes.
Another cheap option would be to place poles or a physical barrier between bikers and vehicles.
The solution I would propose would be to extend sidewalks, and coat them with an asphalt coating to mimic the driving lane. This will give bikers and pedestrians to share the path. This would be an expensive project, but smart planning could improvise the costs.
I think the city could propose upgraded biking/pedestrian lane that would create more biking for families.

If you wish to look at some biking trails or places to bike, here are some suggestions
-Rio Grande Trail
-Tramway Trail
-Foothills
-North Valley
-Downtown
This is the City of Albuquerque Link to their biking site
https://www.cabq.gov/parksandrecreation/recreation/bike


Images credited by: City of Albuquerque, freeabqimages.com
Blog credit to: Urban ABQ https://urbanabq.com/