Bike Lanes or Bust on Pinehurst Road

Dunedin officials are working fast for added bicycle and pedestrian routes, especially for students.

Officials will likely discuss the possibility of allocating roughly $447,000 in aid toward bike lanes that would stretch along the sides of Pinehurst Road during a workshop Thursday (6 p.m., ).

The city was awarded a Safe Routes to School grant from the Florida Department of Transportation that officials originally wanted to use toward separated, mixed-use bicycle and pedestrian trails along Pinehurst Road (they would have been separated from the road, similar to the Pinellas Trail). The proposed trails would have potentially made teenagers' commutes to less dangerous, but the plan also implied use for golf carts, which rankled some residents.

in July, and now officials want to consider putting the money toward bicycle lanes, which would be painted off to the side of the road before the offer expires Dec. 5. Officials said they want to consider the safety upgrades within the context of the city's new bicycle and pedestrian route master plan, based on citywide surveys and studies. The plan wasn't slated for presentation until February. The looming deadline hustled staff into an early review, set for Thursday.

Officials hope that viewing suggested bicycle and pedestrian routes that came about as a result of the surveys, or  will give them a better idea of how to allocate the grant — or whether they should accept it at all.

The workshop is open to the public.