Village to keep bikes, scooters off sidewalks

By MARTIN WILBUR

Concern over pedestrian safety has prompted the Mount Kisco Village Board to prohibit bicycles and scooters from being ridden on sidewalks by anyone at least 18 years old.

The board voted to approve the change to Chapter 93 of the Village Code at its Sept. 2 meeting by a 4-1 vote, which also bans the use of all motorized bikes and scooters operated by people of any age. Battery-operated or motorized scooters for mobility assistance are exempt.

Discussion over how to introduce the change to keep cyclists, pedestrians and motorists safe and whether the village should integrate bike lanes in key areas of the downtown before it enacted the revision didn’t prevent most of the board from agreeing to move ahead.

“The conflict between pedestrians and bicyclists on sidewalks is real,” Mayor J. Michael Cindrich said. “I don’t think there’s a resolution to create bike lanes on Lexington Avenue in the near future. We had trouble even talking about getting a crosswalk on Lexington Avenue installed by the county, and that went on over two years.”

For Deputy Mayor Theresa Flora, pedestrians must be the priority on sidewalks. Other municipalities have passed similar restrictions, which have worked well, she said. Additionally, creating bike lanes takes time and money, and she argued that bicycles are safer in the roadway with the flow of traffic.

“Sidewalks are for pedestrians. How do we protect the sidewalks for pedestrians?” Flora asked. “That was really the intent of this local law, and I’m certainly not waiting for bike lanes because we may never get them. Just because we applied for the grant doesn’t mean we’re going to get the grant.”

The village has applied for various grants through its Complete Streets Study, which explored how to keep motorists, cyclists and pedestrians safe.

Trustee Tom Luzio, who cast the dissenting vote, questioned why the board would amend the code without further exploring the possibility of installing bike lanes as well as other issues, such as parents, who might also be on their bicycle, teaching young children how to ride. Luzio pointed out how several communities in Westchester with a nearly identical law, including Greenburgh, New Rochelle and Rye, along with the upstate communities of Ithaca and Elmira, all have developed bike lanes.

While pedestrians should be given priority on sidewalks there are other issues that have to be taken into consideration, such as enforcement, he said.

“So just because it’s a challenge doesn’t mean we should exclude one group at this moment,” said Luzio, an avid biker. “My position is we should pass the motorized scooters and bicycles and get them off the sidewalks now and immediately move to make it safe for folks to get around, because some cyclists once pushed into the road as their only choice, there’s another law that has to be enforced, and that’s vehicles need to give them 3 feet.”

He also cited the death of a person who was riding a bicycle who was struck in July by a vehicle in Yorktown Heights as an example of the dangers that cyclists face on busy roads.

However, even if bike lanes could be developed, there were concerns raised by the board majority that it would likely reduce on-street parking spaces on most streets, which could be a hardship for merchants and shoppers.

Furthermore, with most of the major thoroughfares in the village being state or county roads, those levels of government could be approached about installing bike lanes, Trustee Karen Schleimer said. 

There has been talk of having bike lanes from the heart of the downtown business district to Leonard Park but Main Street is a state road while Lexington Avenue is under the jurisdiction of the county.

“The question is, is there any way to do it and not disadvantage the stores, the merchants who need parking, the drivers of motor vehicles so that they can proceed safely, and maybe there’s a group of cyclists that went to get together and come up with a proposal for us to look at,” Schleimer said. “But right now, I think putting bike lanes in the roadways that we have is exceedingly difficult.”

Village Manager Edward Brancati said the village could look to enlarge the shoulders or reduce the width of the travel lane where appropriate, but the question is where.

“It is something we continue to work on to try and find the route, the path that has the least impact, but try and find that safe way that does not eliminate parking or substantially eliminate parking,” he said.

One street that would likely be wide enough for bike lanes is Kisco Avenue, Cindrich said. However, other meaningful places to install them would be difficult to find.

“I cannot see how we can construct bicycle lanes on the most traveled areas that I travel on,” Cindrich said. “Where I see the most amount of bicycles is Lexington Avenue. Now, convince me: How do we create bicycle lanes?”