Biannual Bike Count Happening Around L.A., Eagle Rock

By City News Service

Hundreds of volunteers, with clipboards in hand, will take to Los Angeles street corners starting Tuesday to conduct a citywide count of bicyclists and pedestrians.

In Eagle Rock, volunteers will be stationed at the corner of Eagle Rock Boulevard and Colorado Boulevard, as well as nearby locations in Highland Park. Construction of bike lanes along Colorado Boulevard  is set to begin this month in Eagle Rock, which will reduce six lanes of auto traffic to four. 

Among the volunteers is Westside Councilman Mike Bonin, who will be stationed Tuesday morning in West Los Angeles, at the corner of Bundy Drive and Idaho Avenue.

Councilman Bob Blumenfield and his staff have volunteered for the count.

While there are plenty of figures about car trips, "very little is known about the rates of people walking or bicycling in Los Angeles," Bonin said.

"For too long, our city's focus has been on cars, and not on communities -- despite the evidence that walking and cycling promote healthy lifestyles and reduce pollution and traffic congestion," he said.

The Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition and L.A. Walks will carry out the biannual count at 120 intersection throughout the city.

According to the 2009 count, bicyclists in Los Angeles numbered 14,000 and there were 62,000 pedestrians. In 2011, 15,000 bicyclists and 75,000 pedestrians were counted.

This year's count begins with sessions from 7-9 a.m. and 4-6 p.m. on Tuesday, and from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday.