It’s Bike to Work Week and Cross County Connection, a Marlton-based group that partners with planning organizations, local and county governments, the NJDOT and NJTRANSIT — is encouraging people to do just that.
Voorhees Township has worked with members of Cross County Connection on interactive bicycle maps.
Cross County Connection engineer Rick Riccardi has also worked with the Voorhees Township Bicycle and Pedestrian Pathway Committee to get safer routes throughout the township, said Joe Hale, the township’s code enforcement officer.
Hale, Riccardi and Dick Knopf have worked on maps and bicycle infrastructure, as well as looking for grant opportunities to bring more bike lanes to the community.
Hale said the township was about to submit a grant for consideration through the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission to fund a bike path from Eastern Regional High School through Gibbsboro, connecting Old Egg Harbor Road to Victor Boulevard.
Currently, there are 10.5 miles of existing bike paths in Voorhees, including Centennial Boulevard from Old Egg Harbor Road to Evesham Road; Kresson Road from Evesham Road to Route 73; Victor Boulevard from Cooper Road to Haddonfield-Berlin Road; Dutchtown Road through Lions Lake Park; Lucas Lane from Britton Place to White Horse Road and Regency Drive; Laurel Oak Road to Centennial Boulevard near the high school; Cooper Road from Kresson-Gibbsboro Road to the Berlin Township line; and Somerdale Road from Burnt Mill Road to Evesham Road.
The Voorhees Township Bicycle and Pedestrian Pathway Committee met many times when the Virtua campus was looming large, Hale said. And Virtua has installed bike lanes connecting Route 73 to Dutchtown Road and Lions Lake Park.
Mayor Michael Mignogna said the growth of bike lanes in the community is encouraging.
“More and more people are biking. Buses now have bike racks on the front and trains allow riders to bring bikes on board. The Voorhees Township Police Department has a bike patrol that tours the municipality when weather permits,” Mignogna said. “Many thanks to this committee for helping make Voorhees a bicycle-friendly community.”
Hale, too, said Voorhees, as well as surrounding communities, are taking even more of an initiative to connect municipalities through bike lanes.
At the county level, Camden County officials announced last week that they are looking for volunteers to staff a new county bike share program.
The county is collecting and refurbishing bikes that will be made available for county residents to borrow for a small membership fee. The program, officials said, is modeled after other metropolitan bike shares throughout the country, as well as the current bike share in Collingswood.
The county is looking for volunteers with bicycle repair experience, or those willing to be trained. Bicycle mechanics and county distribution points are also being sought out.
If you are interested in volunteering with the bike share or have a bicycle to donate, contact the Camden County Division of Environmental Affairs at 858–5241 or email [email protected].
Anyone interested in getting involved with the township’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Pathway Committee may call the township at 428–5914.
