Regardless of where in Southeast Michigan you call home, there is an excellent chance you’ve noticed or taken advantage of a new trail, pathway, or bikelane. Perhaps it’s a new sidewalk to a neighborhood school or grocery store; a trail connecting to one of the region’s 2,600 parks; or a newly paved bike lane providing an alternative to driving to work. The fact is, there is no better time to travel or recreate by bicycle or on foot than right now in our region. While we still have a ways to go to fill existing gaps in the regional bicycle and pedestrian network, there have been many successes and projects to be proud of.
In 2014, SEMCOG adopted the Bicycle and Pedestrian Travel Plan for Southeast Michigan. It identifies and connects the region’s bicycle and pedestrian facilities into a unified system, focusing on six overarching goals – improving safety, increasing connectivity, enhancing multimodal options, providing education and encouragement, promoting a system that is economically and environmentally sustainable, and evaluating the system. Over the last four years, this network has proven to be a vital component of the region’s health, mobility, and economic success. Today, our bikeways and pathways network boasts more than 3,000 miles. Many of these miles have been added since the regional plan was adopted, including:
- 109 miles of shared-lane markings,
- 105 miles of local bike routes,
- 57 miles of shared-use paths,
- 47 miles of conventional bike lanes, and
- 24 miles of protected bike lanes.
To learn more about these successes and the many implemented projects and improvements, please check out SEMCOG’s recently released video:
An implementation report is also available.
View SEMCOG’s interactive Southeast Michigan Bicycle Network Map. It contains information on the existing network as well as helps plan for future connections by showing the gaps in the system.
As summer quickly changes to fall, there is no better time in Southeast Michigan to get outdoors and enjoy one or several of the region’s bikeways and pathways!
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