Kosciusko County Convention Recreation and Visitors Commission recently provided a grant to the KCV Cycling Club to purchase Kosciusko County Bikeway signage. The signs will designate 200 miles of roads throughout the county that KCV has identified as routes for cyclists to use, considering such factors as safety, convenience, traffic density, road conditions and scenery. Kosciusko County Highway Department is currently installing the signs at important locations and intersections along the routes. They have completed installation in the southeast, southwest and northwest quadrants of the county, and are currently working in the northeast quadrant. The signs include directional arrows to help cyclists stay on the recommended routes. Fred Helfrich, KCV member, said, “It is our hope that these routes not only will be convenient for cyclists, but will also alert motorists to the presence of cyclists so they will be more aware and expect to see them along the route. Our ultimate objective in all of our efforts is to make the roads safer for everyone.” The routes in Kosciusko County will match up with designated routes in Marshall, St. Joseph and Elkhart counties, as well as with proposed bike routes in Warsaw and Winona Lake. They also are included on a new four-county bike route map recently published by The Michiana Area Council Of Governments. In addition to the map, the Commission has provided an additional grant for the publication a Kosciusko County bike suitability map, which will provide a more detailed view of the routes. These are just signed routes and there are no separate facilities for cyclists.
