U.S. Bike Route 15 to Extend Through Bonita Springs
Council has approved adopting a resolution to continue a bike route system created by the U.S. Bicycle Route System (USBRS) through the Bonita Springs area. The USBRS is a developing national network of bicycle routes to facilitate bicycle travel on appropriate roads, paths, and highways and to provide connectivity between rural and urban communities. The USBRS currently encompasses 14,000 miles in 31 states and will be over 50,000 miles upon completion.
Adventure Cycling Association is currently proposing to extend U.S. Bike Route 15 by 496 miles from Madison, Florida, through Southwest Florida (Polk, Hardee, DeSoto, Charlotte, Lee, and Collier Counties) and continuing into Miami. The section of the proposed alignment that is under the City’s jurisdiction consists of a one-mile segment of Imperial Parkway from East Terry Street to Bonita Beach Road.
The proposed alignment of USBR 15 has received local input from City staff, the City of Bonita Springs Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Advisory Committee, and the Lee County MPO Bicycle Pedestrian Coordinating Committee (BPCC), all of whom agree that the proposed alignment is safest and allows visiting cyclists a means of existing access to and through the city. The proposed route to extend USBR 15 through Bonita Springs will provide a benefit to the City’s residents and businesses with no associated costs to the city.