Dennis Flanagan's goals were both admirable and relatable. After turning 49 years old and being diagnosed with high blood pressure, he decided it was time to get back in shape.

So when he received a bicycle as a gift over the summer, he wasted no time. Soon he was riding up to 10 miles each day, often going from his home in McKees Rocks to the city of Pittsburgh and back again.

But on Aug. 30, while on his way home from the South Side docks, Flanagan was hit by an SUV on a stretch of road recently overhauled by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT). He was rushed to a nearby hospital in critical condition and died a short time later.

His death has prompted a slew of memorials and tributes, and a crosstown ride in his honor exactly one week later.

It has also reignited a familiar debate about whether enough is being done to ensure the safety of cyclists like him on the streets of America.

Within that backlash is renewed criticism over Pennsylvania's approach in particular.

The state has seen some of the largest growth in bicycle traffic in the nation in the last decade, much of it in cities such as Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. But advocates say outside of those cities, Pennsylvania's approach to road design and bike lane policy remains firmly rooted in the past.

Examples include West Carson Street in Pittsburgh, where Flanagan was killed one week ago, and where a recent PennDOT overhaul failed to include the addition of a bike lane. The project was completed and the road re-opened just 9 days before Flanagan's death, Scott Bricker of the "Bike Pittsburgh" advocacy group explained.

"We're here to say, 'We demand that you start to design your roads for all modes of transportation,'" Bricker added at an event honoring Flanagan on Tuesday.

"Maybe not (Interstate) 376, maybe not 279 and roads like that, but definitely roads that connect multiple urban neighborhoods to downtown Pittsburgh and the Southside. That shouldn't just be for cars."

'Enough is enough'

Simply put, there are more bikes sharing Pennsylvania's roadways than ever before.

For example, Philadelphia is currently home to the highest percentage of residents biking to work of any major U.S. city. This as the number of commuters using bicycles to get to work jumped by as much as 60 percent nationwide between 2004 and 2014. Pennsylvania's share of that increase was also among the highest of any state.

Such data is often touted by city and state administrators keen to note the potential benefits for the environment, individual health and gridlock.

But whether they're doing enough to accommodate those cyclists and keep them safe remains open for debate.

According to PennDOT, the total number of fatal bicycle crashes statewide stood at 21 in 2010, 11 in 2011, 16 in 2012, 11 in 2013, 19 in 2014 and 15 in 2015, meaning a slight decrease for the year.

Dedicated bike lanes on Hanover and High streets in Carlisle are part of the borough's road diet which restricts vehicle traffic to one lane in those areas. This bike lane is on West High Street.

Non-fatal accidents are also down, but far more frequent, reaching more than 1,000 statewide annually between 2010 and 2015. They peaked in that time at 1,483 in 2010 and fell to a six-year low of 1,272 in 2015.

However, nationwide, traffic deaths involving bicycles rose by 13 percent in 2015.

Depending on who you ask, these numbers are either laudable or cringe-worthy. Some may argue that the steadiness shown amid record-setting bicycle use speaks to the efficacy of the safety measures already in place.

Critics, though, would likely point to Flanagan's case and argue that the addition of more bike lanes, the same credited in at least one study with a 90 percent drop in the risk of injury, could be doing so much more.

"That road was just redone. Why wasn't there a bike lane put in it with as many people as ride bikes up and down that road?" said Flanagan's ex-wife, Rebecca Flanagan, who is the mother of one of his surviving children. She was referring to West Carson Street where Dennis was hit and killed and where PennDOT's one-year, $38.99-million reconstruction project was completed not long before his death.

"There's enough room. They widened the lanes. They made it just a two-lane highway with a crossing lane in the middle. They could have used some of that space to make a bike route for them."

In 2012, PennDOT said it was willing to consider using other pavement markings on West Carson Street if a safer alternative was suggested that could "also be accommodated with our current [project] template." The Department maintained that there was no record of bicycle or pedestrian accidents within that corridor at the time.

But Bricker says his Bike Pittsburgh group has for years warned PennDOT that nothing less than a bike lane on West Carson Street would do, ultimately to no avail.

"And this is the worst case scenario," he said of Flanagan's death on Tuesday.

"Enough is enough."

Too aggressive?

As a matter of perspective, it is important to note that Bricker's push for more bike space on U.S. roadways is far from universally embraced. This despite the massive strides in bike participation and growing support for the two-wheeled movement.

Pittsburgh mayor Bill Peduto recently called Bricker's group "too aggressive" in its advocacy, Flanagan's brother Sean pointed out Tuesday, and some members of the automotive class are almost certainly writhing in their seats as they read this article, believing it is the cyclists who too often flout the rules of the road, endangering themselves and others.

For the record: Studies have shown that drivers are more often the cause of bike-versus-car collisions, but not by much.

But while the causes may be evenly split between the two groups, the resulting injuries are not. For this reason, cyclists say their safety requires added consideration.

This bicyclist takes the bike path in Riverfront Park in Harrisburg in September 2014. Mark Pynes | mpynes@pennlive.com

As Christopher Beam opined in a 2009 column for Slate: "Everything about our road system, from the lanes to the signs to the traffic lights, is designed for the car, often at the expense of the bike."

That is beginning to change in cities like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, where some 300 combined miles of bike lanes exist. But beyond those municipalities, bike lanes remain exceedingly rare across the rest of Pennsylvania.

The reason for this disparity? Advocates say it's an obscure PennDOT provision that discourages the installation of bike lanes in smaller cities and towns by making them a liability.

According to the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, PennDOT's "Bicycle Occupancy Permit" restricts the installation of bike lanes on any state road unless the municipality is willing to sign a Bicycle Occupancy Permit and accept "full legal liability and maintenance requirements."

The Coalition says while this hasn't mattered in cities like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, "which are considered big enough to not need to sign a permit to accept liability," it has prevented the addition of bike lanes on state roads in many suburban municipalities.

According to PennDOT, 95 percent of the deaths of bicyclists occurred on state roads in 2014, while 56 percent of the injuries occurred on non-state roads. By comparison, 63 percent of cyclist deaths occurred on state roads in 2015, while 55 percent of the injuries occurred on non-state roads that year.

In response to calls for a policy revision, state officials have reviewed and reevaluated the existing Bicycle Occupancy Permit requirements. And while that process reportedly continues, as of today, the rules remain the same.

This raises concerns for some, with data indicating growth not just in the number of people using bikes to get to work, but also those using them recreationally. The number of trips made by bicycle in the U.S. more than doubled from 1.7 billion in 2001 to 4 billion in 2009, The National Household Travel Survey showed.

Another study found that while 34 percent of Americans age three or older rode a bike at least once in 2014, 52 percent of U.S. adults worry about being hit by a car while riding.

Cycling advocates say the perception of ill-equipped roadways hasn't helped.

And while the adoption of a "safe passing" law by Governor Tom Corbett in 2012 -- one requiring that drivers give cyclists 4-feet while passing or get ticketed -- was seen as a victory by cycling proponents, the law remains spottily enforced at best, reports indicate.

In Pennsylvania, the resulting frustration has been channeled into a silent ride on the Capitol in May, as well as calls for speed cameras to be installed at red lights in Philadelphia after a spate of cyclist deaths there.

There have been piecemeal gains, advocates note, including the addition of bike lanes in places like Harrisburg and Carlisle.

But it is the absence of those lanes in most towns that continues to draw criticism and calls for change.

'A real danger'

At the ride event honoring Flanagan on Tuesday, attendees held signs including one reading "PennDOT killed Dennis F." The members of Flanagan's family on-hand said they were overwhelmed by the turnout and surprised at how suddenly his death became a rallying cry for a movement.

"I'm absolutely blown away,' Flanagan's brother Sean said.

"Trust me, he's smiling right now to know that there are this many people who cared about him."

Sean said before his death, Dennis likely gave little thought to bike safety, and Sean admits, neither did he.

"As kids we rode on the streets of Pittsburgh and California, and we thought we were invincible," Sean said.

"I don't think he ever thought about it [bike safety]. It's not really something you think about until something happens close to you."

He said his brother was on West Carson Street, a road without a bike lane, because it was the only feasible route between his home and the city, the other being a major highway. Sean blamed this on the project's planners and a wrong-headed approach to the business of integrating bikes with existing infrastructure.

Then he addressed the crowd, thanking them for coming out and helping to honor his brother, who was killed while trying to get in shape in time for his 16-year-old daughter's graduation.

"Mayor [Bill] Peduto says Bike Pittsburgh is being too aggressive. But I don't think you can be too aggressive in saving lives," Sean Flanagan said.

"I think it's great what these people are doing, letting everybody know it is a real danger."