For any Goldenite who’s felt like they were playing Frogger when walking across the street or who’s held their breath while biking through a traffic circle, there are ways to ensure Golden becomes a safer and more convenient place to walk and bike.

This winter, advocacy group Bike Walk Golden is hosting a membership drive to encourage anyone who walks or bikes in and around the city to join.

Also, separately, the City of Golden is updating its Bike and Pedestrian Master Plan, which will provide guidance on policies, programs and projects the city should implement long-term.

Officials plan to start another round of public input in January, including public meetings, a survey and more. The planning department intends to complete on the updated plan early this summer and bring it to City Council for approval.

Bike Walk Golden members formed the group about a year ago, and have been providing input on the master plan update and other items related to pedestrian and cyclist safety. Overall, they wanted Bike Walk Golden to be a bridge between residents and local government on these issues.

“The intention is to truly make it safer and more convenient to leave the car at home, to use more active transportation,” member Andrea DeFrates said. “There are a lot of opportunities that opens up for the community as a whole.”

Bike Walk Golden’s membership drive

The idea for the group started when residents in three historic neighborhoods wanted to get together, but didn’t want to use their cars to do so. Thus, they started examining biking and walking connectivity throughout Golden.

DeFrates gave Golden’s walkability and bikeability an A- or B+ grade, saying the city benefits from its valley geography and lack of sprawl.

She said the city and county have both invested a lot in various paths and intersections, so there’s a solid foundation. However, she wanted to see better connectivity between those really good pieces.

Fellow member Matthew Burde said he’d give Golden a C grade. The traffic circles on South Golden Road are especially egregious for cyclist safety.

Beth Bidwell, the group’s chair, somewhat agreed with Burde. While she’d give the city an A for recreational cycling, “for day-to-day activities, there’s room for improvement,” she said.

These are exactly the things the group wants to continue working on, with Bidwell stating members have provided input on national surveys, worked with the city’s Mobility & Transportation Advisory Board, and attended the Golden Bicycle Cruise. The members also hope to participate in Bike to Work Day this summer.

Regarding the Bike and Pedestrian Master Plan update, the group felt the city was off to a good start. Burde appreciated how the city “seems to be going in the direction of equitability and taking care of those who are typically underrepresented.”

Two specific spots the members wanted to see addressed were Ford Street between 14th Street and CoorsTek, saying it’s very busy with tubers and restaurant customers; and South Golden Road, which forces cyclists to navigate several traffic circles.

“You have to have your eyes in all directions because drivers are going a minimum of 35 mph,” DeFrates said. “ … If we had a structure in place, it’d be very viable for people to bike from South Golden Road into downtown. But, we have an urban highway of sorts cutting them off from that.”

Bidwell noted that both Ford Street and South Golden Road are the main routes for people to access Golden’s grocery stores. So, there need to be improvements so it's safer and more convenient for people to walk or bike to get groceries.

Overall, the members stressed that Bike Walk Golden isn’t “anti-car” but merely advocating for cyclists' and pedestrians' safety. The group offers a variety of volunteer opportunities and is open to anyone in the Golden area.

For more information about joining, visit bikewalkgolden.org or email bikewalkgolden@gmail.com.

Revising the master plan

It’s been 20 years since the city first adopted a bike master plan and almost 15 years since it launched bikeability and walkability task forces. So, Principal Planner Matt Wempe stated, it’s high time for an update.

Since August, the planning department been working on this 2023 master plan update. It hosted a survey, community meeting, Safe Routes to School assessments, a Walking and Biking Ideas Map and more.

While all those options are now closed, Wempe said the city intends to start another round of public engagement next month.

The next big step internally will be compiling recommended policies, programs and capital projects based on residents’ input and other data, he described.

“What will move the needle for us as a city?” Wempe continued. “How can we really be the most targeted to achieve the vision that the community set out?”

Wempe said his team will be doing a lot of internal work over the next month, but will be posting more documents on GuidingGolden.com in January. He hoped the public would provide feedback on those.

In the interim, he invited anyone with feedback on the master plan update to email him at mwempe@cityofgolden.net.