Ferndale Bike Rack to Make Woodward Avenue History

Ferndale soon will become the first community to install an on-street bike rack along Woodward Avenue.

The Michigan Department of Transportation has signed off on a Ferndale Downtown Development Authority plan to install a bright yellow, 12-bike rack in a former car parking space on the east side of Woodward just north of Nine Mile Road.

The rack will be located in front of Howe's Bayou, the Detroit Free Press reports.

“This is a great asset for Downtown Ferndale and is a huge step in following a Complete Streets policy here locally,” DDA Executive Director Cristina Sheppard-Decius said in a press release. “We are very happy MDOT approved our plan and embraced our willingness to be the first community along Woodward to do this. Our consumers are going to love it.”

MDOT-approved barriers will protect the rack from vehicle traffic that travels that portion of Woodward at 35 miles per hour, the press release says.

Ferndale already has approximately , that are part of a Complete Streets policy to ensure roadway development considers all types of transportation, including pedestrians, bicyclists, people with disabilities and others, as well as trains, buses and automobiles.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held for the new bike rack sometime in late May, according to the DDA.

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