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A bicycling award? For Greensboro?

The news this week that auto-addicted Greensboro is among cities honored for its friendliness to bicyclists was greeted with disbelief, if not outright ridicule, by some folks.

"Does anyone else think this is hysterical?" one commenter to our news story said.

"I'm terrified to ride my bike in any of our bike lanes as most drivers just think they are for passing on the right while cars wait to turn left."

Wrote another: "this has got to be a joke. this city is INCREDIBLY dangerous for bikers and people are very unfriendly to bicyclists.

But it was no joke.

The League of American Bicyclists has designated the city a bronze-level “Bicycle Friendly Community” for the steps it has taken to increase bike safety.

And somebody who ought to know agrees.

UNCG professor Mark Schulz, a cycling advocate who was nearly killed while riding his bike last year when he was struck by a text­ing motorist, said Greensboro has made significant strides.

“Greensboro is getting better, definitely,” he said iin ain interview on Sept. 30, weeks before the award was announced. “In some ways, I would say that Greensboro is better than suburban Orange County.”

Schulz added: “In fact, the only city I would say is better (in North Carolina) is Carrboro.”

Greensboro won the award on the basis of its greenway plans, bike safety Web site, expanded bike lanes and other initiatives.

There’s still room for improvement, certainly, but it hardly sounds like a fluke to me.