As a regular cyclist using joint-use paths to get around town, I write this with great trepidation. There is a reason we have sidewalks. Pedestrians and motor vehicles cannot safely share the same space.

The two recent letters addressing the effect of e-bikes on user safety on joint-use recreation paths both argue for that same conclusion. One blames e-bikes, the other blames pedestrians. But the real problem is that pedestrians and e-bikes don’t safely share the same space. Pedestrian use of a recreational path is not really possible while having to constantly be alert to dodge speeding vehicles. And a path with toddlers wandering around does not allow someone to safely travel at a constant 20 mph on a bike.

That is not a new problem. It’s the reason we have created bike lanes instead of having bikes use the sidewalk. Unfortunately, some cyclists treat recreation paths as if they are dedicated bike lanes.

Serious cyclists with somewhere to go in a hurry belong on the street, mixing with other speeding traffic, not zooming past toddlers and people out for a stroll, expecting them to get out of the way.

There have always been people who ride too fast. What the e-bike revolution has done is turn that unusual situation into a constant stream of high-speed traffic. You can notice the results as parents with toddlers have disappeared from what used to be a shared space. 

Ross Williams
Springfield