Times Observer photo by Josh Cotton A joint project with the City of Warren, Warren County and Route 6 Alliance with funding from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

As the Trails at Jakes Rocks continue to bring thousands to the county, an effort is underway to make several communities in Warren County more bike friendly.

A state Department Conservation and Natural Resources grant through the Route 6 Alliance is covering the cost for bike racks and repair stations in Warren, Tidioute and Youngsville.

“I think it’s a good thing,” County Commissioner Dan Glotz said. “We’re encouraging people to bicycle more.”

Racks have been installed throughout the city. Racks in Tidioute and Youngsville and the repair stations will follow.

It was a project that was initially working independently on multiple tracks.

Warren City Councilman Phil Gilbert said bike racks have been “one of my little side projects I wanted to do for the city” for about the past year.

Rather than just a standard bike rack, he said he wanted something custom with the city logo and “wanted to make sure it was done right.”

He ran into Andy Georgakis with the Warren Cycle Shop, who helped pair him up with a vendor. The cost was estimated at between $5,000 and $6,000.

One possible funding source was the county’s Act 13 (Marcellus shale drilling) funds. One of those “buckets” of funding has to be spent on recreation.

So he got in touch with Glotz, who was aware of the DCNR grant.

Glotz said the Route 6 Alliance’s successful grant aimed at providing funding for racks and repair stations for the four counties that are along US 6 and in the Pennsylvania Wilds – Warren, McKean, Porter and Tioga.

The grant was for $100,000 and each county received $25,000. Act 13 dollars at the county level were used as match dollars.

“Out of that,” Glotz said, “we want to purchase something for each of the communities that have trail systems.”

The amenities come to those municipalities for free outside of installation and ongoing maintenance.

In the city, Gilbert said the racks are “mainly concentrating downtown” and added that “there will be additional ones installed.

“(We) might buy some more depending on feedback from the public,” he said.

Glotz said that three bike repair stations will be coming for Warren. The locations aren’t entirely settled but one is likely to be downtown with another on the northern end of the Bike-Hike Trail.

Repair stations will also be purchased in Youngsville and Tidioute and the rest of the grant dollars will be spent on bike racks.

Glotz said that those communities were also chosen because of their participation in the state Heart & Soul program. He added that Tidioute is considered part of the Route 6 corridor, as well.

“I’m really pleased with how they look,” Gilbert said, calling the project “just a cool way of everything meshing together.”