Name: No One Will Tell Us Why LA's Beach Bike Paths Are Closed
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No One Will Tell Us Why LA's Beach Bike Paths Are Closed

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Support for LAist comes fromWe Explain L.A.Stay ConnectedLAist is part of Southern California Public Radio (SCPR), a member-supported public media network. Hear our news on-air at our partner site:Our top stories delivered weeknightsShare ThisThis is an archival story that predates current editorial management.This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click.Stories like these are only possible with your help!You have the power to keep local news strong for the coming months. Your financial support today keeps our reporters ready to meet the needs of our city. Thank you for investing in your community.Sign up for How To LA, delivered weekday mornings.By Leo Duran and Gina PollackOur news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: . To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.L.A. County's beaches for visitors on Wednesday for "active use." Walking, running and swimming are all on the list of acceptable activities. But biking is on both the county's and city's , if we're going by the information that the county and mayor posted on .The L.A. County Beaches website says "bike paths (on the sand)" are closed. Does that mean bike paths not on the sand are open? And why are walking and running allowed but not biking? Should be a pretty simple question to answer, right?Support for LAist comes fromLA County beaches are now open w/ restrictions to keep everyone safe. ACTIVE RECREATION only. Face coverings required when outside the water AND around others, &amp; 6+ feet physical distancing. See rules @ . Pls follow the rules so the beaches can remain open. — LA Beaches &amp; Harbors (@lacdbh)The bike path question is especially confusing, given that some are allowing biking, while others aren't, even though the same bike path passes through several of them. Plus, if L.A. County officials say biking isn't allowed, why are the bike paths in Long Beach, which is a part of L.A. County, Then there's the Strand in Manhattan Beach (also in L.A. County), which merges into a beach-front path for both pedestrians and bicyclists close to the pier. It's still closed for bicyclists, but has .LAist's resident bike expert looked into this conundrum on Thursday, which proved to be a more difficult task than anticipated."The answer on biking is getting complicated ... and weird," he wrote on Friday, after a spokesperson at the Los Angeles Public Health Department sent him this response to the question of whether or not the beach bike paths are open right now and why biking isn't allowed: "Public Health is worried about congestion.""The real answer is that the beach bike paths are closed," Leo wrote in our Slack conversation Friday, "so not sure why they can't just say that."Two other L.A. County officials did not respond to Leo's emails.After multiple follow-up requests, we received this fairly vague statement attributed to L.A. County Public Health Director, Dr. Barbara Ferrer. Note: it doesn't include the words "bike" or "beaches." And it still didn't really answer our question..."We are being guided by science and data that will safely move us forward along the road to recovery in a measured way--one that allows us to ensure that effective distancing and infection control measures are in place. We're counting on the public's continued compliance with the orders to enable us to relax restrictions, and we are committed to making sure that L.A. County is in the best position to provide its 10 million residents with the highest levelof wellness possible as we progressively get back to normal."The lack of clarity on the bike issue is confusing not only to us, but to cyclists all over L.A.We learned that prolonged exposure to coronavirus is more likely to cause infection, which is why sunbathing on the beach is not allowed, as opposed to walking and running, which only exposes people for a few seconds, in passing, and is therefore low risk. Shouldn't biking then, also be a low risk activity?Support for LAist comes from"Bikes are moving, too. It's not like people are just going to be crowding on the bike path," Ted Rogers, who runs , told Leo. "I've reached out to try and get clarification on this stuff and never gotten a response."This is just the latest frustration for cyclists who, weeks into stay-at-home orders, are still struggling to figure out which paths are open or closed to them."I tell people to check before you go, but who do you check with?" Rogers said. "I keep seeing notices that the bike paths are closed, and I see [posts] from somebody else that [they] rode it an hour ago."READ MORE ABOUT BIKING IN LA:

Support for LAist comes fromWe Explain L.A.Stay ConnectedLAist is part of Southern California Public Radio (SCPR), a member-supported public media network. Hear our news on-air at our partner site:Our top stories delivered weeknightsShare ThisThis is an archival story that predates current editorial management.This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial...

No One Will Tell Us Why LA's Beach Bike Paths Are Closed

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