Ride your bike all over downtown and from trail to trail once this new bike bridge opens.
Photo Credit: Mark Baratelli, The Daily City
The installation of a huge steel truss that now crosses West Colonial in downtown Orlando as part of the new Colonial Pedestrian Overpass took place overnight Saturday, July 14 10pm-6am. During this time West Colonial Drive had to be closed between Orange Avenue and Garland Avenue.
During the closure, the truss was assembled using a dolly system and several cranes. The the installation process included rolling the steel truss and cranes into position and lifting the truss into place.
The Colonial Pedestrian Overpass will be located east of I-4, west of N. Orange Avenue, and crosses W. Colonial Drive until touch down approximately 340 feet south of Colonial.
Once the entire project is complete later in early 2019, this new $9,024,000 quarter-mile bridge will help provide a safe connection from the Downtown core to the north, providing critical links between the Orlando Urban Trail and Gertrude’s Walk, SunRail and LYNX Central Station.
There's been a focus by the City on completing the trail located in the Central Business District. due to the addition of the bike share program, increased residential density, burgeoning sports and entertainment complexes, and new and expanding bus and rail transit options.
The Orlando Bicycle Beltway is one of 10 neighborhood infrastructure improvements coming to Orlando. It's an 8.25 mile loop that will circle through the Central Business District all the way to Fashion Square/Colonial area and back once completed. It will ultimately connect Downtown to the region’s trail system. This beltway will utilize the existing Orlando Urban Trail, Cady Way Trail, and Lake Underhill Path.
The City's bicycle system currently consists of over forty (40) miles of urban bike trails within the City of Orlando, located in three major network areas: (1) southeast, (2) southwest, and (3) northeast.
The city is currently a bronze-level Bicycle Friendly Community, based on the League of American Bicyclists` 5 Es for a Bicycle Friendly Community.
Photo Credit: Mark Baratelli, The Daily City