Response to a letter to the editor:

This letter is in response to Maia E. Butler’s letter to the editor that was published on February 10th, 2009 in the Baton Rouge Advocate.

My understanding of the Capital Heights lanes is that they were temporarily striped to gauge interest and survey usage. As they were a roaring success, they have very recently been re-striped with bicycle lanes in both directions. While your claim that cars do not necessarily look in both directions for bicycles is correct, cars should be looking both ways for pedestrians. By looking for pedestrians, they should also see any cyclists traveling on that side of the road.

Maia- I encourage you, and all who are interested in bicycle and pedestrian issues in this city and parish, to attend the monthly BRASS meetings. We meet the 4th Thursday of each month at the Terrace Ave. Branch of the EBR Public Library System at 6:30 PM. Speaking of meetings, the Baton Rouge Bike/Ped Committee meets the 2nd Thursday of each month at 5:30 at the CRPC building on 19th and Florida. I also encourage you to write your council-person, senator, and representative and voice your concerns and ideas. If you don’t tell them, they don’t hear you!