---
title: "Shared-Use Path"
url: "https://commonwaysystem.org/patterns/local-streets/shared-use-path/"
id: "LOC-SUP-13"
description: "An off-street Local Typology physically separated from the roadway, shared by pedestrians and bicyclists under roughly equal priority."
updated: "2026-09-26"
---

# Shared-Use Path

`LOC-SUP-13`

Recommended Local

Shared-Use Path

An off-street path physically separated from the roadway, shared by pedestrians and bicyclists under roughly equal priority, connecting local-scale destinations.

## Related Media

The items below come from outside the Commonway System, external videos, podcasts, and articles related to this page's topic, not part of the guidebook itself.

Aligned

### [The Reason Our Streets Switched to Cul-De-Sacs](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9vDcfH03gs)

City Beautiful

Traces the postwar shift from connected grid networks to tree-shaped cul-de-sac subdivisions, then covers the same shared-use-path connector strategy CS's Network Reconnection retrofit recommends for stitching disconnected cul-de-sacs back into the surrounding network.

Typical at: Suburban Compact Urban Core

Undeveloped and Rural contexts are unlikely to carry a purpose-built shared-use path.

## Modal hierarchy

Modal hierarchy

Pedestrian = Bicycle

Pedestrian and Bicycle share top priority under this pattern's own equal-priority definition, no ranking between the two. Transit, Vehicle, and Freight do not apply off-street; Design Speed & Speed Limits doesn't apply here, since this pattern excludes automobiles entirely.

## Design notes

Width should accommodate two-way pedestrian and bicycle travel without forcing conflict, with connections back to the street network at logical, safe, visible points rather than incidental gaps.[1] Distinct from [Bicycle Boulevard / Neighborhood Greenway](https://commonwaysystem.org/patterns/local-streets/bicycle-boulevard.md) (LOC-BBG-12), which shares an on-street roadway rather than separating off-street, and from [Multi-Use Trail / Greenway](https://commonwaysystem.org/patterns/collectors/multi-use-trail-greenway.md) (COL-MUT-06), which is longer-distance and destination-scale rather than local-connector scale.

## Related patterns

-   [Bicycle Boulevard / Neighborhood Greenway](https://commonwaysystem.org/patterns/local-streets/bicycle-boulevard.md) (LOC-BBG-12)
-   [Multi-Use Trail / Greenway](https://commonwaysystem.org/patterns/collectors/multi-use-trail-greenway.md) (COL-MUT-06)

## Getting there: Retrofit path options

[Barrier-crossing / network reconnection retrofit](https://commonwaysystem.org/retrofits/network/barrier-crossing-network-reconnection-retrofit.md) (RFT-NET-03) commonly takes this form where it crosses a highway, rail line, or disconnected cul-de-sac pattern.

## References

1.  Legal / regulatory [AASHTO, _Guide for the Development of Bicycle Facilities_, 5th Edition, 2024.](https://store.transportation.org/item/collectiondetail/267)