Howard County’s Bicycle Master Plan, “BikeHoward,” is going to be updated with the help of the public’s input, a decade after the original plan was launched.
Howard County Executive Calvin Ball announced the launch of the update to the master plan, which gives guidance for improvements to transportation and recreational bicycling, both on-street and off-street.
The county’s Office of Transportation is asking for the public’s feedback as it begins BikeHoward’s update. The department plans to review the original plan, analyze related data, and gather public feedback to adapt the county’s bicycle infrastructure to meet the needs of residents in the coming decade.
“BikeHoward has helped guide us in the development of our county’s bicycle network and programs,” Ball said in a statement. “Through our historic investments in the plan, we’ve been able to drastically expand the number of bike lanes and multimodal facilities throughout our community, improving the interconnectivity amongst our residents. We have been able to accomplish a lot these past 10 years and are excited to see what the future holds. With your feedback and guidance, this update will allow our Office of Transportation to ensure our bicycle master plan is continuing to meet the needs of all our residents and community members.”
As part of the update process, the Office of Transportation will host four public workshops between Feb. 23 and March 10. They will discuss BikeHoward, answer questions, and collect the public’s comments. Transportation staff and project consultants will be there for each event, and the workshops will not include a formal presentation. The dates and locations of each public workshop are:
- Monday, Feb. 23 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Howard County Library System’s (HCLS) Elkridge branch
- Tuesday, March 3 from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at HCLS’s Miller branch
- Part of Transportation’s Transportation Open House event
- Thursday, March 5 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the County’s Department of Recreation & Parks’ North Laurel Community Center
- Tuesday, March 10 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at HCLS’s Central branch
People who cannot attend any of the public workshops will be able to see the meeting materials on Transportation’s BikeHoward website starting on Feb. 23. That is also the page on which community members can find the public survey to share their feedback with Transportation, also starting on Feb. 23. The survey will be available through March 31.
Transportation estimates that the update process will last through the summer, with the hope the Howard County Council will adopt the updated plan by the end of summer 2026.
The Howard County Council adopted BikeHoward ten years ago, in April 2016. The Office of Transportation spearheaded the planning process, taking community input into serious consideration along with related agencies like the Departments of Planning and Zoning, Public Works, and Recreation and Parks.
Anyone with questions about the BikeHoward update and workshops may contact Chris Eatough, Transportation’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator, at 410-313-0567. He can also be reached via email at ceatough@howardcountymd.gov. An interpreter will be available at the workshops for people who are deaf or hard or hearing if requested seven working days in advance. Please email Mr. Eatough with those requests.
