CLEVELAND — The United States Bicycle Route System is growing in Ohio.
The state now has more bicycle route miles than any other state. In 2021, 1,177 miles were added, making the total 1,523 miles.
Jacob VanSickle, executive director of Bike Cleveland, was traveling on the newly designated route that starts at Edgewater Park in Cleveland.
“The recent designation of the U.S. Bicycle System is just proof that we are finding ways to connect despaired sections of bike lanes and trails to try to create a network of bicycle facilities that people can use to tour across the state,” said VanSickle.
Running 366 miles, U.S. Bicycle Route 21 follows the Ohio to Erie trail through Akron and Columbus to Cincinnati, then continues along the Ohio River to Aberdeen.
Jennifer Hamelman with Adventure Cycling tracks bicycle routes all over the county. She said Ohio could play a big part in future routes.
“Ohio has a very great cycling culture as a state. You have dedicated resources to creating paths and trails all over the state,” said Hamelman.
As the leader in the country for bicycle routes, Ohio is poised to be a trailblazer for the U.S. Bicycle Route System.
“The goal of the U.S. bicycle route system is to reach at least 50,000 miles of connected routes all across the United States and I see Ohio playing a great role in that process. I understand they have some more designations that they’re interested in doing in the in the short term and hopefully they continue to grow and it will inspire the adjacent states around Ohio to also engage in the USBRS, and it will expand the reach of the folks that wanna be riding these routes,” said Hamelman.
As for VanSickle, he hopes the routes here make a difference for the environment.
“Bicycling it’s a great tool — one, to combat climate change in terms of not emitting pollution into the air as you’re transporting yourself from place to place. It’s also a great form of physical activity. Cleveland specifically suffers very poor health and bicycling and physical activity can really help curb some of those issues, and it’s also just a great way to experience your city and experience your state,” said VanSickle.
