Sanibel Bicycle Club Position re: Segways on Shared-use Path System

Special City Council Meeting

January 22, 2007

Since the inception of the Sanibel Bicycle Club, we have been advocates for the improvement of the safety and infrastructure of Sanibel’s shared use path system.  Path safety has always been our first priority, as evident in the comments and recommendations we bring to you in our annual report to City Council and in our regular appearances at Council meetings.  Our position regarding Segways is based on this same concern for path safety.

Our comments are directed to two situations:  1)  Broad and unrestricted use of Segways on the path system; and 2) Limited and restricted use of Segways for tours, as enabled by the current 18-month special use permit.

Comments regarding broad and unrestricted use of Segways on the path system:

Briefly stated, we believe Sanibel’s path system was not designed for the level of usage or the types of activities our paths are currently handling.  The Club has issued two previous statements on the Segway issue (January 2005 and June 2005), and has reiterated those statements at various Council and Planning Commission meetings over the past year.

Our position is that the current path system is unsafe and adding any new types of traffic to the existing system will increase the danger.  We would oppose any action by the Council that would further compromise the safety of the path system, including adding powered vehicles such as Segways to the path traffic. 

Our safety concerns have many components.  They include:

• The narrowness of our paths compared to State and Federal standards. 

(Only 6% of our paths are 10 feet wide—the State & Federal standard.)

• The close proximity of path users and road traffic, particularly in the Periwinkle corridor.

• Maintenance and repair issues that impact the condition of the paths.

• The high levels of traffic on the paths, especially during season.

• The wide range of users already on the paths, which include a heavy proportion of children, seniors, vacationers who are not familiar with their equipment, and island visitors not familiar with our traffic patterns.

• Finally, the many different types of activities and equipment already on our paths….including walkers, runners, skaters, wheelchairs, strollers, pets on leashes, and a wide variety of pedal powered vehicles.

Until the safety of the overall path system is greatly improved, the City should not allow  new types of users on the path.  The Council has tasked the City’s consultant to develop a Comprehensive Shared Use Path Plan that identifies opportunities for improving path safety.  This Master Plan, once approved by the Council, should guide any future decisions on adding or removing uses for the path.  We believe that the Council should stay focused on its 2006-2007 goal of “completing the Shared Use Path Master Plan and developing and implementation schedule for the plan”.

Comments regarding limited and restricted use of Segways for tours, as allowed by the current 18-month special use permit:

While the Sanibel Bicycle Club is opposed to allowing broad-scale use of Segways on the path system due to our concerns about the condition of the path and path safety, we have not opposed, for now, the special use permit that allows small tour groups to operate under tight supervision on limited sections of the path system.  That might change in the future if we become convinced that those tours are becoming a safety problem, but for now we are not opposing them.