The “bike route” through campus according to their “master plan” that got them Bronze status as bike friendly… well, hey, it was only for a year and a half or so that it was closed b/c of a building being constructed there.
Few months later and oh, well, sorry — you get to bob and weave and drive across the grass because they’re doing something with that fountain you would normally have the “pleasure” of riding through. No, it’s not making it a smoother path (there are serious drops from cracks in the sidewalk) and … I wouldn’t be at all surprised if it actually made the path simply impassable by bicycle. It’s that “looked good on paper so we got the award” crap that counts, right?
Hey, maybe I’m wrong… but I have not one shred of evidence to indicate thus.
Still, it’s been fabulous days for riding as fall approaches. TOday was the open house for the MCore project which will improve parts of that route — which is really nice. However, if your route has two blocks’ worth of utter horribility, it’s not the kind of thing that averages out. Like, dudes, at least give us curb cuts!
There are lots and lots of peds and bikes out there, happily….
Urbana-Champaign Cycling Ventures 
Agree, no matter how much improvements are made on certain parts of the route, if there are haphazard areas, it doesn’t make it better. Hope your campus finds ways to make the bike routes safe!
Thanks! More people are gradually getting into positions who actually think about bicycles…