Ventura County Public Works Agency completes 5.8-Mile Santa Ana Road Bike Path

VENTURA, Calif. - Nov. 15, 2017 - PRLog -- The Ventura County Public Works Agency's Transportation Department (VCPWA TD) recently completed a 5.8-mile bike lane construction project along Santa Ana Road in western Ventura County. The new bike lanes are on both sides of Santa Ana Road, are four feet wide, and improve safety to bicyclists along a route that was already in use. The new construction begins near Foster Park, and ends at the entrance to Lake Casitas.

The $3 million bike path project, which took seven months to build, was necessary to close an important gap in Ventura County's regional bicycle routes, and was called for by the Ventura County Transportation Commission in its Bicycle Wayfinding Plan. The project was funded by a combination of state, federal, and local funding, most of which came from a federal grant which was received in 2016.

The new bike lane was constructed in three phases, each bid and constructed separately. These sections were each about two miles long and took approximately two months to build. Dividing it into three phases enabled construction crews to minimize traffic delays and lane closures. The northern and middle phases were constructed by Toro Enterprises, and the southern phase was constructed by J&H Construction. Design of the bike path was done by MNS Consultants, a local consulting firm, with oversight by VCPWA TD Deputy Director Chris Hooke. During the entire process, county staff were on hand to provide engineering and construction inspection.

To minimize the construction's impact on the environment, special steps were taken, such as scheduling necessary removal of vegetation before the bird nesting season, and shifting the road's center line to avoid removing valuable oak trees along the roadside.

This is a popular route among bicyclists, who have been requesting safe bike lanes for more than 15 years, and since its completion, the path has been in constant use.