On the way to becoming a cycling destination
Most who use hike-and-bike trails in San Antonio say in survey that they back idea of adding lights for after-dark recreation
SAN ANTONIO — More than half the people who travel the hikeand-bike trails meandering along this city’s creeks support the idea of adding lighting for use after dark.
The greenway system should at some point expand its operating hours to accommodate night riding, the chairman of the local linear creeks committee says. The trails are currently open from sunrise to sunset.
The survey results come as San Antonio is positioning itself to be a destination for cyclists from across the nation, particularly once a 1.8-mile link between the Leon Creek Greenway to the west and the Salado Creek Greenway to the east is completed, offering more than 40 continuous miles of paved trail, said Greg Hammer, chairman of the city’s Linear Creekway Parks Advisory Board.
“A lot of cyclists want to ride long miles when they get on,” he said. “It begins to make us a destination for adventurers.”
Overall, feedback to the city Parks and Recreation Department’s online survey, conducted from mid-November to mid-January, praised the construction of about 70 miles of trails since 2000.
Some people asked for more trails and connections to neighborhoods, as well as amenities such as shade structures, wayfinder signs, benches and tree plantings. But others were concerned about safety and crowding on the paths.
When it came to adding lighting for commuter uses and night and early morning recreation, 36 percent of more than 3,600 respondents said they were very interested in the concept; 28 percent somewhat interested; and 35 percent not interested.
Hammer said he would like the city to extend its bicycle ordinance, which requires cyclists to have a headlight and taillight when riding at night on city streets, to include the greenways. That way, cyclists could see and be seen by others.
“I hope that we can someday find a safe, comfortable way to expand the hours into dark-hour usage,” Hammer said.
Among survey participants, about half said they primarily use the trails for cycling, 25 percent for walking, 18 percent for running, 5 percent for dog-walking and 2 percent for other uses. Weekend mornings and afternoons, followed by weekday afternoons and evenings, were the most popular times for trail use.
Nearly 70 percent said they get to the trails by car, compared with 19 percent on bicycle and 8 percent by walking. But Hammer noted a majority of cyclists found the trails a safer alternative to riding on city streets, “legitimizing the greenway system as an alternative transportation amenity.”
A dedicated funding stream for the trails, in the form of a 1/8-cent sales tax, is set to run out in mid-2022, even as the trails have at times been the only public recreation amenities open during the pandemic. Using digital counters at multiple spots, parks officials estimated use of trails doubled from just over 23,000 users in May 2019 to nearly 57,000 in May 2020.
Bexar County commissioners have said they might fund up to eight connecting trail projects totaling $83.5 million as proposed by the San Antonio River Authority.
City Parks Director Homer Garcia said the new survey findings will provide guidance for city budget requests, a future bond issue and remaining sales tax funds designated for the greenway system.
“As we’ve seen San Antonio expand, it’s important we understand how people are using it and the expectations,” Garcia told the parks board.
In regard to safety, survey participants rated the trail system as pretty safe, at a 4 on average, on a 1-5 scale.
Hammer described each section of greenway as an engineering masterpiece, designed to complement drainage patterns and natural topography, supported by hydrology assessments and cultural and natural resources surveys that consider many variables, including potential effects on endangered species and archaeological assets.
“They are very complex projects that aren’t fully appreciated by the vast majority of the users,” Hammer said. “Because that’s the intent, to get you into these natural areas where you can safely recreate, and not think about all the complexities of life — and of the greenways.”