It should come as no great surprise that Colorado has three cities in the upper echelon of the in America, as recently named by Bicycling Magazine.
Boulder came in sixth, Fort Collins was ninth and Denver 12th.
The magazine’s biennial rankings frequently recognize Colorado’s avid cyclists and the efforts of cities to make themselves more easily traversed by bicycles.
Colorado is a great place for cycling. But you knew that. The state’s fabulous recreational opportunities are among the reasons so many of us have chosen to live in this beautiful state.
But as we also know too well, it’s not nirvana.
There is still too much between cyclists and drivers. There is clearly a need for cyclists to more uniformly heed traffic laws and drivers to respect a two-wheeler’s right to a piece of the asphalt.
And far too many roads, even some marked as bike lanes, do not provide the safe margins for drivers and cyclists to co-exist.
These rankings, as welcome as they may be, should serve as a reminder of how far we need to go in reaching a peaceful co-existence between cyclists and drivers.
