Greetings from Pedestrian and Cycle Manitou (PaCMan)! We’d like to take a moment to thank the Pikes Peak Bulletin for sharing these important perspectives with the community. We also thank community members who have stepped forward to share their active transportation stories this year and beyond. We cannot create safe, accessible, and convenient walking and rolling experiences in our community without your help. We’d now like to introduce Bruce Barron, who is currently the president of the Pikes Peak Road Runners, a former Regional Transportation Planner in the Pittsburgh area, and uses a bicycle to visit Manitou Springs. Bruce strongly understands that building more lanes/roads will not solve traffic congestion. Instead, he encourages everyone to utilize shuttles in Manitou and to use modalities other than cars. We hope his story inspires you.
How long have you been working in and visiting Manitou Springs as a volunteer and working with the Pikes Peak Road Runners?
I have been on the board of the Pikes Peak Road Runners, the main running organization for the Colorado Springs area for four years. My wife and I have been full-time residents here for five years, but we began spending summers in Colorado Springs in 2013. I have been a frequent cyclist in Manitou Springs throughout that time. We greatly appreciate Manitou Springs’ status as a superior running race destination. The Pikes Peak Road Runners provide volunteer recruitment assistance to Pikes Peak Marathon, Inc., the nonprofit that manages the Barr Trail Mountain Race in July and the Pikes Peak Ascent and marathon in September.
How often do you work in and visit Manitou by bicycle?
I live near the Garden of the Gods, and my second car is a bike. So nearly every trip I make into Manitou Springs—occasionally for meetings, but mostly for workouts on the Intemann Trail, Barr Trail, Ute Trail, or Manitou Incline—is by bicycle. Typically, I’m on a bike in Manitou Springs once or twice per week, except in winter since I have learned the hard way not to do running workouts on ice.
What are the pros/cons of cycling to and getting around Manitou?
Biking in Manitou is a pleasure for several reasons. Bicycles still get free parking. I can put my bike on the free shuttle bus when traveling to the Barr Trail or Incline and have it waiting for me when I come down. On busy summer days, I can carefully squeeze between moving and parked traffic and usually travel down Manitou Avenue faster than the cars. The main drawback is the lack of reserved lane space for bicycles in the downtown area and on Ruxton Avenue, but the traffic is generally slow enough not to pose a problem. I can remember when Colorado Avenue leaving Manitou was four lanes of fast-moving vehicle traffic with no bike lanes, so I’m not complaining.
What infrastructure and/or esthetic improvement would have the most positive impact on your cycling and shuttle experiences in Manitou?
The main improvement I’d like to see is an escalator for uphill bikes on Ruxton. Since that’s not feasible, I’ll suggest something much less expensive. I think that improved signage showing bicyclists the pathway from Fields Park toward downtown Manitou (between Manitou Avenue and El Paso Boulevard), along with “shared roadway” or “watch for bikes” signs in the downtown area, might make the city more attractive to bicyclists.
What do you think would increase more active transportation use in Manitou?
I can only guess because I don’t have survey data. But perhaps greater awareness of how hard it is to drive or park a car on busy days, combined with a well-promoted and highly visible rent-a-bike (or e-bike) station on the edge of town, dedicated bike parking areas, and a perceived safe bike route into downtown, could persuade significant numbers of people to exchange their car for a bike. Manitou will never feel as bikeable as Vancouver, because the streets are too few and too crowded, but it’s possible to make biking into and out of town feel like an enjoyable experience.
What other form(s) of transportation do you use and what has that experience been like?
Although I can still bike up Ruxton without ruining my day, I am grateful for Manitou Springs’ support of the #33 shuttle bus that enables me to begin a tough running workout with slightly fresher legs.