Updated 7/28: The Beverly Hills City Council may have just "pounded the final nail into the bike lanes coffin" on Santa Monica Boulevard with a three-person majority agreeing that, while the section of SMB through the city could definitely accommodate bike lanes, they're not in any rush to have them installed, says Better Bike. Some of the city's riders have been holding onto the hope that a $25-million revamp of part of the major artery would include lane-striping for bikes, but the city council is continuing to punt on the issue. It's not dead yet, though, as previously written—the city will continue to evaluate and study the matter as they go ahead with a street-widening, according to an email from its public information manager. One councilmember spoke against the lanes because she doesn't want people riding on Santa Monica; she thinks it's too dangerous to be biked on. Oh, if only there were some way that the street could be made less dangerous for people on bikes ...
A committee of community members who had been tasked with hearing public input on bike lanes recommended striping the streets; the council, though, rejected their recommendation on a 3-2 split, with the majority (the mayor and two councilmembers) voting against the lanes. The council did vote to widen Santa Monica Boulevard, but want to mull the whole bike lanes thing for a while more. (The Bev Hills bike lanes watchers at Better Bike are not at all optimistic.)
There doesn't seem to be strong support for any alternative east-west routes nearby, and so it seems like the bike lanes probably won't be going anywhere, which probably could have been expected. Bike lanes on Santa Monica have been a hot-button issue for years in Beverly Hills; residents came out against them in full force, saying they'd take away valuable park space (thin strips of grass next to the street) and be mostly used by non-residents, who obviously don't deserve a damn thing.
· Say Goodbye to Santa Monica Boulevard Bike Lanes [BB]
· 10 Insane Reasons Beverly Hills Homeowners Are Opposing Bike Lanes on Santa Monica Boulevard [Curbed LA]