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Be courteous on the Bike Path this holiday

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November 22, 2023
By Staff Report
The GICIA turtle says SLOW DOWN on the Bike Path

It’s the holiday season, the weather is cooler, friends and family are visiting, and Bike Path usage is increasing. The GICIA’s 33 acres of Bike Path property recently underwent a landscape restoration and are looking better than ever. The five linear miles of Bike Path property create a greenway that is shared by many different users including walkers, runners, people with dogs, people on golf carts, and bikes. With activity on the Bike Path increasing, the GICIA encourages all users to be courteous and mindful of others. 

Here are a few tips:

  • It is okay to slow down and enjoy your time on the path (the path speed limit is 15 MPH). After all, we are all living on “island time.”
  • Don’t forget to acknowledge, even indulge, path users who are moving slower than you. Approach those embracing the slower pace of island life thoughtfully, slow down, and politely, but with volume, warn before passing on the left.
  • Remain alert and watchful for those who may have stopped, sometimes in the path itself, for a chat. Yes, Boca Grande folks are a friendly bunch.
  • Please enjoy the walking/jogging path but ONLY as a pedestrian. The walking path is intended to give pedestrians an alternative to the paved path and is not open to bikes or carts. Yes, it may seem inconvenient to stop at every intersection but doing so will ensure your safety.
  • Never forget that users of the path from 1st Street north DO NOT have the right of way where the path intersects county roads. Remember, while many users of the path are members of the “young at heart” club, a new Florida State Law establishes that anyone operating a golf cart under the age of 18 must have a drivers license or learners permit.
  • Finally, be aware that gas-powered vehicles are prohibited from the GICIA Bike Path, and the use of electric vehicles is limited to golf carts, wheelchairs, and e-bikes with a maximum width (including accessories) to 50 inches.

But just in case the Thanksgiving spirit is not enough to ignite the kind islander spirit of every path user, thanks to a generous grant from the Boca Grande Woman’s Club, local off-duty deputies will patrol the path most days between now and the end of April.