Downtown's Spring Street bike lane, one of the rare protected bike lanes in Los Angeles, has been outfitted for two-way operation. 

According to the office of Councilmember Jose Huizar, the City of Los Angeles restriped the existing southbound bike lane this past weekend to also allow for northbound travel.  The improvements span six blocks between 3rd and 9th Streets.

The upgrades to Spring Street are part of the $2.3-million Main & Spring Forward project, which is billed as a combined effort between Huizar's office, the Department of Transportation, the Bureau of Street Services, and the City's Vision Zero Initiative.  Besides protected bike lanes, the project also includes improvements to several pedestrian crossings.

A similar treatment is also in the works for Main Street, which will also be outfitted for two-way operations.  A first phase of those improvements is expected to be completed by Fall 2019, spanning from Cesar E. Chavez Avenue to 9th Street.  Changes to Main Street will include shifting an existing buffered bike lane from the east side of the street to the west.

“Our bicycle community needs improved access wherever we can implement it and in Downtown these two-way bike lanes will allow for a safer and more convenient experience that we hope leads to more being installed throughout the City,” said Councilmember Huizar in a statement. “We are proud to bring the first two-way bike lanes in the City to Spring and Main in Downtown and I want to thank our partners at LADOT for adding the lanes.”

The Main & Spring Forward project is one of a handful of efforts to improve pedestrian safety in Downtown Los Angeles.  The most visible product of those efforts is MyFigueroa, which brought a similar array of improvements to Figueroa Street between Exposition Park and the Financial District, as well as a short segment of 11th Street in South Park.