TAMPA — The effort to open the elevated lanes of the Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway to bicyclists hit a barricade today.
A barricade of about $130,000. The biggest expense would be rental and set-up fees for temporary barriers on the 8.56-mile route, Waggoner reported at a board meeting. Current barriers are 32 inches high. The bicycle railings needed to buy insurance must be 54 inches. The barricades would be set in one lane from the current railing to prevent bicyclists from riding on drainage holes along the edges, Waggoner said. Costs would be incurred each time the route was equipped for bicyclists. Alan Snel, director of the South West Florida Bicycle United Dealers, asked the board to consider closing the upper deck of the expresssway for two or three hours on select Sunday mornings. Snell says the precations are overkill. He rode the route in 2006 for a charity event , with orange cones directing riders instead of barriers. He suggests riders simply sign a waiver. Board members plan to further discuss the options.
— Elisabeth Parker, Times staff writer