By Ana Gomez Salcido
Friday May 20th is Bike to Work Day in San Diego, this Friday. This year, participation is expected to establish a new participation record.
“Last year, more than 9,000 people registered through iCommute San Diego,” said SANDAG’s Borders Program Manager, Hector Vanegas. “We want to break that record this year, and every year we do this.”
Bike to Work Day is a nationally recognized event celebrated annually on the third Friday in May. The Sandag iCommute program in conjunction with local jurisdictions, businesses, and other partners organized the event.
A total of 101 pit stops were open from 6 to 9 a.m. in San Diego, and one of them was located near the San Ysidro Transit Center.
The pit stop in San Ysidro, like the other 100 locations, offered free snacks, beverages, t-shirts and maps of the cyclist routes in San Diego for the participating cyclists in the Bike to Work Day.
“The weather was perfect this year,” said Vanegas. “Last year, we had to postpone the Bike to Work Day because of the rain, and the previous year we had wildfires.”
Executive Director of the San Ysidro Chamber of Commerce, Jason Wells participated at the pit stop in San Ysidro, like he does every year, and mentioned that there was a lower participation on Bike to Work Day 2016, comparing to last year, at this specific pit stop.
Robdians Lee, A participant in this year’s Bike to Work Day, said that he used to cross from Tijuana to San Diego through the cyclist lane a few years ago, but that the lane was exploited by commerce which lead to the lane being shut down.
“We are trying to push for a cyclist special lane in PedWest,” said Wells.
PedWest is the new pedestrian crossing that is planned to open its doors next July, near Las Americas Plaza in San Ysidro.
Vanegas explained that there is a project already approved and funded that would connect Tijuana cyclists from the border to the existing Bayshore Bikeway.