On July 22, Bike Easy and the New Orleans Complete Streets Coalition gave a presentation before the New Orleans City Council Transportation Committee on their campaign for Safer St. Claude. The presentation came only 10 days after a cyclist named Michael Milam was killed in a hit and run on St. Claude and Alvar Street. Though the part of St. Claude that stretches from Elysian Fields to the Industrial Canal is a heavily-utilized bike corridor—one study counted an average 341 cyclists each day—the bike lane is just two lines painted on the ground, and people frequently drive and park in it. The same stretch of road is a designated state highway, used by 18-wheeler trucks carrying freight, as well as a heavy pedestrian corridor with several schools. Bike Easy recommended installing a protected bike lane, with a physical barrier between cyclists and the roadway, which could mean moving the bike lane between parked cars and the sidewalk. Of the five councilmembers on the committee, only Councilmember Eugene Green bothered to attend (Councilmembers Helena Moreno, Lesli Harris, Joe Giarrusso, and Freddie King III were all absent). Days later, Department Of Transportation and Development (DOTD) representatives pledged $500,000 to perform a traffic study on St. Claude. A 2023 Axios New Orleans article named New Orleans the deadliest city for cyclists of any major U.S. city, with a fatality rate of over three times the national average, though New Orleans also has one of the highest rates of bike commuters in the country. Two days after the meeting, another cyclist was slain at the intersection of St. Claude and Franklin Avenue; one New Orleans resident commented to the Committee that St. Claude is “an abattoir.” The following is an excerpt of online public comments. They have been lightly edited for clarity and length.
I bike and walk on St. Claude frequently, and it is terrifying. I have been in an accident when a car opened its door into the bike lane, and I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve almost been hit unintentionally or intentionally, especially at the intersection of Elysian Fields and St. Claude, where cars always go flying around the corner without looking. You can also find cars parked in the bike lane in front of Robert’s at any time of day, which causes bikes to have to veer into traffic or stop in the bike lane, both of which are very dangerous.1Tiffany F.
So many of our citizens are service workers who ride bikes to and from work. Car insurance rates have become unaffordable for many, and police presence monitoring drunk and reckless drivers appears to be nonexistent. We all know the factors that are fueling our completely out-of control, hit-and-run culture, and we need change, NOW. The data is there, and this is truly a life-or-death situation.2Sarah K.
We need a safer St Claude. I stopped riding bikes when I moved to New Orleans because it is not a bike safe city. I used to commute via bike in NYC to work. St. Claude is an active pedestrian and biking corridor with bars, restaurants, homes, and shops along it. It needs to have wider sidewalks, narrower streets, and a protected bike lane. I know the St. Claude bridge is owned by the state but it needs a protected bike lane as well. I live in the lower ninth and two of my roommates bike over it regularly which is very unsafe. No one should feel terrified to ride their bike or walk on St. Claude. Please do better to protect the everyday people of this beautiful city and do your part in preventing us from experiencing another senseless and tragic loss of life.3Kerry H.
I’ve lived, worked, and bicycled in cities for the past 20 years: Chicago (Illinois), Austin (Texas), Silver Spring (Maryland), Baton Rouge (Louisiana), and now New Orleans. After just three weeks here, I can already unequivocally declare, New Orleans is the most dangerous city in which I’ve ridden my bicycle. The busted, cracked, pothole-riddled streets scattered with construction debris are bad enough. Malfunctioning streetlights, missing street signs, and the dearth of bike lanes increase the danger. But it’s the reckless drivers—whose disregard for anyone else on the road but themselves—that truly frightens me. I wear my helmet and bright clothes, use hand signals, stop at streetlights, and use front and rear bike lights at night, but they won’t be enough to protect me when a speeding, weaving, distracted driver runs me down. Bicyclists need separated, protected lanes, and city officials need to prepare a thorough and sustained public awareness campaign, because this is a public safety crisis. Bicyclists and pedestrians have the right to use our streets, just like motorists. Support and create safer streets!4Eric C.
On June 13, 2023, our son Dustin Strom was killed at St. Claude and Marigny Streets while on a Blue Bike by a motorist traveling at a high rate of speed under the influence of drugs. Upon impact Dustin’s body and the bike traveled a great distance. At the time he was killed, Dustin was on a dream trip around the United States. Dustin loved to travel, enjoyed delicious food, meeting people, and loved good music which he found in abundance in New Orleans. He had a profound respect for all people and offered those around him absolute compassion. Dustin is profoundly missed by his parents, Barry and Ellen Strom, and his sister Jessica Strom, family that live near and far, and Dustin’s many dear friends. Our only son’s life was cut short in an instant on June 13, 2023. Dustin will never have the privilege to be a husband or a father, or continue his love of meeting wonderful people, or seeing all the beauty of this world while traveling or pursuing whatever dreams he had. He will never have the opportunity to grow old. We will never hear his voice again or feel his great hugs. I urge you to please make the streets safer for all bicyclists so no one else has to lose a loved one. No one should have to bury a child.5Barry, Ellen, and Jessica S.
I have personally witnessed two cyclists killed on St. Claude Ave. One was at the corner of Pauline, and I never learned his name. The other was two years ago. I saw Dustin Strom hit at the corner of Marigny by a speeding pickup truck. His body was thrown half a block. He died in front of me, and I had the horrible task of describing his death in detail to his father a few days later. I have had many, many close calls myself over the past 14 years, often when I was riding in a bike lane and nearly run over by a driver using it to pass. More than 6 years ago, after nine cyclists were run down in the Esplanade bike lane and two died, the city supposedly raised the fine for parking in a bike lane to $300, yet this law is almost never enforced. Parking in a bike lane has, on paper, been a towable offense since 2017, yet I have never once seen this happen. I have reported cars parked in bike lanes nearly every day for the past 10 years. I’d estimate I report about 50 per week… calculating just for the 6 years since the fine was raised, that would mean I’ve reported nearly $5 million worth of bike lane parking violations. As far as I know, not a single one of these tickets has ever been written, or a single car towed. On the 2200 block of St. Claude, where Dustin was killed, the bike lane is full of parked cars day and night. I called Public Works the other night, as I often do, to report 7 cars parked in the bike lane, and the operator told me that they don’t ticket for bike lane parking between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. as a matter of policy. So, at by far the most dangerous time of day for cyclists, it is de facto legal to park in a bike lane in New Orleans.6David S.
To follow up on this issue, you can email your City councilmembers. To submit a public comment, follow instructions at council.nola.gov. Interested in reading all comments after a meeting? You can email your councilmember or file a public records request.
illustration by Sadie Wiese
