Our project consists of the construction of a new field house on the campus of an existing private school located in a rural area. The project team believes that bicycle lanes are not required on this project to achieve this credit for the following reasons: 1. As staff and students all live on campus, there is little motorized vehicle traffic. Walking and cycling are the primary modes of transportation. 2. Staff and students have been using their bicycles on campus for more than 75 years, and there has never been a collision between a motorized vehicle and a cyclist. 3. Students are not allowed to have cars on-site. 4. The speed limit on campus is 18 miles per hour. 5. There is existing signage warning drivers that children and dogs are playing. Additional signage will be added to indicate to drivers that cyclists have the right of way. 6. The campus is located in a rural area. There are no bicycle lanes along the public roads. The motorists and cyclists are accustomed to sharing all roads. The campus has always had a culture of cycling. In fact, there are bike racks outside each campus building and there are no existing designated bike lanes on campus. We would like to be able to continue the existing precedent of bike use with our new building.
The project team is wondering if the requirement that the dedicated bicycle lanes be provided to the school boundary can be waived given the particular conditions of this project and campus. Although the points noted in the CIR narrative indicate that bicycling is an integrated and accepted component of the campus structure and culture, conditions are present where bicycles and motor vehicles share common roadways within the campus. In campus settings where no student vehicles are allowed onsite, this credit can be achieved by providing dedicated bike lanes that extend from the project building to at least two existing academic buildings (in two or more separate directions). The requirement for dedicated bike lanes could only be waived for this project if bicycles and motor vehicles were prohibited from sharing the same road within the LEED project boundary. Applicable Internationally.