Pinellas County's Bike Your City highlights miles of trails available for all

OLDSMAR, Fla. - About 100 people started Friday morning off with a bike ride through Oldsmar as part of Forward Pinellas’ seventh annual Bike Your City event. Pinellas County sheriff’s deputies escorted the group as they rode the six and a half miles.

"It’s kind of a hidden gem that most people don’t know about in Pinellas County," Jarrod Buchman, Vice Mayor of the City of Oldsmar, said about his city.

The director of Oldsmar Leisure Services highlighted parts of the city’s 10 miles of trails and parks; 37% of the land in the city is also dedicated to parks and preserves, Buchman said.

"It’s really nice that you see the trails that give you alternate routes," Mary Frances Grimmel, who participated in the ride, said. "I use my bike for transportation, so knowing a bike trail, it makes it easy to get from one place to the other without having to deal with the traffic," she said.

Bicyclists also learned about roadway safety on the ride, and safer areas to bike if they don’t want to ride on the road.

"Everyone has their own comfort level with how comfortable they are biking in traffic or not, so the Pinellas Trail is really a gem and it’s one of the longest urban trails that spans the whole county north to south basically," Kyle Simpson, an active transportation planner with Forward Pinellas, said.

According to Forward Pinellas, last year, 13 bicyclists and 37 pedestrians were killed in Pinellas County.

"I just think that we all need to be more cautious," Grimmel said.

Participants and organizers said it’s up to everyone to keep both bicyclists and drivers safe on the roads.

"At the end of the day, we all are just trying to get home to our families and loved ones, so having patience and courtesy whether you’re walking biking or driving is key. I know that people make mistakes and are vulnerable and so, just look out for one another and be kind," Simpson said.

According to Simpson, Forward Pinellas is also working on several projects for bicyclists and pedestrians, like completing the Pinellas Trail Loop. It will be 75 miles when it’s done, he said. Right now, 65 of the 75 miles are complete, and workers will start construction on another three to four miles in the next year or so, Simpson said.

You can find where the trails are located across Pinellas County on Forward Pinellas’ website, or the county’s website. Bike Your City is an annual event in early March. Simpson said they haven’t picked a city for 2024 yet.