Bike lane critics, you have a political ally in high places


There has been a steady criticism of the city’s new bike lane in the area of Jos. Campau and Goodson where a few businesses lost customer parking. City officials say there is little the city can do to alter the route.

By Charles Sercombe
Critics of Hamtramck’s bike lane, you are not alone.
U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah) also has strong words against them, saying they are “the height of stupidity.”
In this case, Romney was talking about proposals that would support e-bike sales.
One of the most vocal bike lane critics in Hamtramck is Bill Meyer, who has said the bike lane in the southend, specifically at Jos. Campau and Goodson, has hurt businesses because they have lost customer parking.
“Parking is primary, not bicycles,” Meyer said at a recent city council meeting.
He further went on to disparage the bike lane, saying: “What the heck are we … going to wipe out all the parking spaces, and let people park in Highland Park?”
Meyer heads up a non-profit group called OneHamtramck that describes itself as “an independent non-governmental progressive organization dedicated to bringing communities together in the diverse city of Hamtramck.”
The bike lane in question is part of a multi-city project called the Joe Louis Greenway, which is a 27-mile bike/walking path that connects Hamtramck to Detroit, Dearborn and Highland Park.
This is mostly a federally-funded multi-million dollar project that is expected to take a few years to complete.
Hamtramck is still finalizing its plan for the path. As of now, it comes down Jos. Campau, on the west side, from Carpenter to Caniff, where it is proposed to jog over to the west Jos. Campau alley down to Holbrook, and then jog back onto the west side of Jos. Campau.
And that’s where the issue begins. Once you get past the shopping center, there are a few small businesses that have lost customer parking in front of their stores.
There is a counter-proposal to have the path go down Lumpkin, but Greenway proponents say it defeats the purpose to bring more people into the downtown business section.
It’s not clear if Hamtramck really has that much say in the course of the bike lane/path.
Jos. Campau is actually a Wayne County-owned road, and Hamtramck has had to get the county’s approval for any street redesigning, such as when bumpouts at some corners were installed between Caniff and Holbrook.
Furthermore, since there are federal funds involved, there might not be much wiggle room in saying where the bike lane can go.
City Manager Max Garbarino told The Review that, if the city were to alter the lane at the southend of Jos. Campau, there’s a chance the city would have to pay back $400,000.
“We can do anything we want,” Garbarino said. “It just will cost money, and may mean having to pay back the grant as well. It’s not advisable to change the route. We are exploring multiple options to help the businesses with parking.”
Posted April 28, 2023

2 Responses to Bike lane critics, you have a political ally in high places

  1. Leslie

    May 4, 2023 at 8:27 am

    I love the bike paths and I can’t wait for the green way to complete so we can get downtown. I wish the city would ticket all the cars parked there so the bikes can safely use the path.

    Bikes are an obvious easy solution for a more functional city to operate – especially a small one like Hamtramck. With all intercity destinations being less than a ten minute bike ride away, we can promote a safer, cheaper (six times cheaper than cars!), less space consuming, and less polluting way for people to move around.

    With more bike traffic, the businesses on that stretch will see an increase in customers.

  2. Nasr Hussain

    May 4, 2023 at 2:45 pm

    Can be easily moved to Lumpkin, much safer for bikers and better for business.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *