{"id":2698,"date":"2016-08-10T01:26:32","date_gmt":"2016-08-10T05:26:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shorebeat.com\/lavallette-seaside\/?p=2698"},"modified":"2016-08-10T01:26:32","modified_gmt":"2016-08-10T05:26:32","slug":"after-tie-vote-expanded-bicycle-hours-on-lavallette-boardwalk-defeated","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shorebeat.com\/lavallette-seaside\/2016\/08\/after-tie-vote-expanded-bicycle-hours-on-lavallette-boardwalk-defeated\/","title":{"rendered":"After Tie Vote, Expanded Bicycle Hours on Lavallette Boardwalk Defeated"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Lavallette<\/a>

Lavallette Boardwalk (Photo: Daniel Nee)<\/p><\/div>\n

A proposal to expand the hours bicycles are allowed on the Lavallette boardwalk garnered support from half of the borough council this week, though not enough to convince Mayor Walter LaCicero that the idea was worth trying.<\/p>\n

The council voted 3-3 to allow bicycles on the boardwalk after 6 p.m. on a trial basis, which necessitated LaCicero to vote as a tie-breaker. He voted against the idea.<\/p>\n

The vote came after a lengthy discussion on the issue, spurred by a request from\u00a0Brooklyn Avenue resident Kris Scuorzo. During the debate, a poll question on a previous Shorebeat story<\/a> was referenced, in which 536 respondents voted. Forty-six percent of respondents voted to allow bicycles on the boardwalk during the evening hours.<\/p>\n

Council President Anita Zalom argued in favor of expanding bicycle hours, saying the safety concerns \u2013 that bicycles could crash into pedestrians \u2013 is, ironically, made worse by the current policy of limiting bicycles to the hours of 5 a.m. to 10 a.m.<\/p>\n

‘It\u2019s just too dangerous up there in the morning between the bikers, the walkers and the joggers,” she said, adding that there would be fewer bicyclists on the boardwalk in the morning if there were expanded opportunities for them to ride.<\/p>\n

“I think we have an opportunity here to try something different,” said Councilman James Borowski, who ultimately made the motion to undertake the trial run of expanded hours.<\/p>\n

\"Lavallette<\/a>

Lavallette Boardwalk (Photo: Daniel Nee)<\/p><\/div>\n

Councilwoman Joanne Filippone led the charge against expanding bicycle hours, brushing aside the possibility of an increased police presence on the boardwalk to monitor the situation and enforce safety rules.<\/p>\n

“I have seen police officers on their bikes and in their cars who absolutely ignore adults and children riding the wrong way, riding on the sidewalk and riding without helmets,” Filippone said. “What makes anyone think that on a 10-foot-wide boardwalk, we\u2019re going to do anything about it?”<\/p>\n

Filippone also said the width of the boardwalk \u2013 smaller than Asbury Park and Seaside Heights \u2013 increased the possibility\u00a0of collisions.<\/p>\n

Residents in the audience for the council meeting were split on the issue, though many argued that the boardwalk should be utilized by bicycles for safety reasons. The bike lane on Route 35, they said, is dangerous since it runs along a busy roadway where cars are constantly back in and out of downtown parking spaces.<\/p>\n

“People are concerned about people getting hit by bikes,” said\u00a0Scuorzo. “I\u2019m concerned about people being hit by cars. Bicycles are moving to the sidewalks now because Route 35 is dangerous.”<\/p>\n

The issue is not a new one, said both LaCicero and Councilman Robert Lamb, who both previously served as borough police officers.<\/p>\n

“It\u2019s always been unsafe to ride a bike in Lavallette in July or August,” said Lamb.<\/p>\n

LaCicero said safety concerns were behind his tie-breaking ‘no’ vote.<\/p>\n

“The conflicts between cars and bicyclists, and cars and people, have always been present,” LaCicero said. “I\u2019m afraid of what could occur up there. I know the nature of people and they\u2019re going to take advantage of the situation.”<\/p>\n

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Did Lavallette make the right call against expanding bicycles hours to the evening?<\/strong><\/p>