Biking in Salt Lake City

While cyclists (let’s assume who never drive a car) don’t pay gas tax, this is only a fraction of street maintenance funds. Many major projects between 2019-2026 were funded through the Funding Our Future bond. Other funding sources include sales tax, impact fees, city General and Enterprise funds, and federal/state grants. So while it’s true that someone who doesn’t own a car pays less in taxes (no gas tax), they still significantly contribute to street maintenance. And that seems fair, given bicycles require much less street space. Just look at the 10-ft wide 9 Line Trail and minimal space taken by bike racks vs. 3 10+ft motor vehicle lanes and 2 parking lanes on 900 South.

Let’s flip back through the Utah Driver’s Education Handbook, recalling basic traffic laws like coming to a complete stop behind the stop line at an intersection or crosswalk, and before making a right turn on red. Now go out and observe driver behavior. How many drivers follow those laws? The research is limited on driver vs. cyclists compliance, but findings generally indicate similar compliance. The major difference is that cars weigh thousands of pounds and move much faster, having the potential for violent crashes.

And while cyclists are generally under the same obligations as drivers, following the same rule book doesn’t make much sense, and most streets are not designed well to accommodate cyclists, with some intersections not even triggering a green light. This results in some cyclists breaking laws for self preservation and safety. Fortunately in Utah, we have a “stop-as-yield” law, which essentially means cyclists don’t have to come to a complete stop as long as they yield to those who have the right of way.

That’s what was said when our first protected bike lanes went in on 300 South. Yet, follow-up surveys showed the opposite. When done well, bike lanes can provide more safe options for transportation and provide more buffer space between pedestrians and fast moving vehicle traffic. Trips by bike are also usually local, meaning less likely to just be passing through as drivers usually are, and it’s much easier to spontaneously stop and visit a business while on a bike.

To be clear, simply adding a bike lane won’t create a good outcome alone. The environment needs to be people-oriented, making people want to walk and bike and linger in the space. In any case, study after study finds neutral to positive outcomes comparing before and after bike lane installation.

And you don’t have to take our word for it. Visit 900 South and the 9 Line Trail for yourself. This corridor is booming with new, popular local businesses after the street reconstruction completed at the end of 2023.

Before we get into the numbers, let’s just reset and calibrate our eyes before heading outside. Now, specifically look for parking regardless of your destination. Street parking, multi-story parking garages, lots in front of businesses, lots to the side, lots in the back. Full blocks of parking. Parking is everywhere. But the parking spot directly in front of your destination for that single trip is unlikely to be available. That’s the dilemma. If you have the ability to walk a block, shift towards accepting that short walk. And perhaps we should be reallocating those front row spots for those with accessibility needs, quick drop-offs and pickups, and deliveries.

Now, for the numbers. Looking at off-street parking alone, 29% of the downtown area is parking. Add in 10 ft strips of on-street parking on most every block face. That’s a whole lot of asphalt! So what about these street safety and bike lane projects? The state department of transportation, UDOT, has actually studied this. On projects between 2015-2025, the reduction in on-street parking alone was 6%. On the flip side, we have better safety and transportation choices. Not bad at all!

And the city does consider parking demand when it redesigns its streets. Just look at 900 South. The Central Ninth district had a net gain of 37 on-street parking spots. Ironically, this neighborhood is known for the 9 Line Trail and as a part of the Green Loop (a linear park space), yet most of the area remains paved for driving and parking. And parking complaints remain regardless, because that front row spot is almost never available in this popular neighborhood. For those 1-2 people to leave their car parked for free on extremely valuable land for 2 hours at a time.

Street safety and bike lane projects are not causing the parking issues. The space inefficiency of cars has always been the root of the problem. And we can certainly make better use of the parking we already have.

Put yourself into the shoes of someone who gets around by bike. There’s a safe protected bike lane spaced a mile apart (that’s 8 SLC blocks), but no safe infrastructure between them. How do they get to destinations between the protected bike lanes? Better yet, how do they access them from where they live? The logic doesn’t make sense unless you only bike for sport and drive to a parking lot.

Different streets can prioritize different uses, but there should still be safe options for everyone to get around. Freeways are a different story, but urban streets should prioritize people. When it comes down to it, if it’s safe enough for a child to bike on a street, everyone win in terms of safety. And safe streets are livable streets, ones where people and businesses thrive.