Sharrows Popping Up on Detroit Avenue

The idea behind the “sharrow” is to — wait for it — remind motorists and bicyclists to share the road.

The white-painted outlines, of arrows and bicycles, have begun appearing on Detroit Avenue east of Bunts Road.

During the first few days of the project, there are now 20 in the eastbound lanes, and nine headed west. 

However city officials expect all of Detroit Avenue will have sharrows by the end of the month.

Sharrows are a part of the city’s strategy to make Lakewood the bike-friendliest city in Ohio — if not all of North America.

“Roads aren’t just for cars,” Dru Siley, the city’s director of planning and development, recently told Lakewood Patch. “They’re for bikes, too.”

And there’s more good news for cyclists: Designated bike lanes are coming to Franklin Boulevard. That project is slated to begin in the next couple weeks.

That’s not all. The city is also expanding its Bike Rack for Businesses initiative, providing bike racks to businesses for $100, with the city ordering and installing the blue U-shaped beauties.