5th/6th Street Livability & Circulation Study
Bicycle Features
The CCAG included bike lanes in their vision for 5th/6th Street, but the issue of including bike facilities on 5th/6th Street had been debated. Some people felt that given the right-of-way limitations along 5th/ 6th Street, the existing 3rd Street Bikeway should be sufficient for bicycle travel within the corridor.
The Tucson-Pima Bicycle Advisory Committee (T-PBAC) pointed out that while 3rd Street adequately serves children on short rides and the casual rider, its circuitous routing and frequent stops reduces its ability to serve cyclists who want to travel directly through the corridor. In fact, there is no direct east-west bicycle route serving central Tucson. Further, unsignalized crossings at major intersecting streets are problematic for all users. The T-PBAC’s proposal was to add bike lanes to 5th/6th Street. In addition, the Project Team investigated the feasibility of establishing an east-west bikeway on local streets south of 5th/6th Street.
Most CCAG members agreed with the T-PBAC that 5th/6th Street is an excellent prospect for bicycle facilities. Bike lanes on 5th/6th Street can provide functional support for the “Education Corridor” theme that emerged through this process, which is discussed in detail later.
