
In a 5-1 vote (Mayor Terry Bellamy was absent with a sick daughter), Asheville City Council approved a comprehensive bicycle plan for the city.
The plan maps out 181 miles of bike-able routes throughout the city, and was supported at the Feb. 26 meeting by a crowd of helmet-clad cyclists. Though the extensive plan — which weighs in at more than 150 pages — and the yet-unknown expense of implementing it raised comment by some on Council, transportation planners envision implementing the plan in small steps, and City Manager Gary Jackson said it would be considered as part of the Asheville’s capital-improvement campaign.
Council member Carl Mumpower was the only “no” vote. For more on the story, see the March 5 issue of Xpress.
— Brian Postelle, staff writer
photo by Jonathan Welch
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Multimedia articles? Awesome! Way to go to the active community who came out strong to support Asheville’s dedication to a healthy regional, municipal, and citizen environment. This resolution deserved to pass without hesitation. |
Feb 28, 2008 at |
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w00t! The cyclist community has been working so hard to help our city graduate to a place that truly encourages alternative transportation. Kudos to the cyclists and the Council. |
Gordon Smith Feb 28, 2008 |
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Another example of City Council living in the land of make believe. Spending millions on bike paths is asinine. How many people actually ride bicycles into town? Damn few. When was the last time that you did? Oh, never. How many drive motor vehicles in and cannot or have trouble finding a parking space? Hundreds if not thousands everyday. It would be wonderful if we were all fit and active. But reality check… Asheville is a retiree town and tourist destination. Please address the real problems with real answers. |
Feb 28, 2008 |
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Lots of people ride bikes in Asheville, and the numbers will grow as it is made safer, through measures such as these. But don’t worry. I’m sure we’ll get a few more parking decks along the way. |
Feb 28, 2008 |
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this is a great idea…there should be some way to connect all the parts of asheville - weaverville to downtown to south asheville to hendersonville - and east to west it makes sense especially with our economy and the price of gasoline thumbs up! |
Feb 28, 2008 at |
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Paul - |
Feb 28, 2008 at |
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Paul |
Feb 28, 2008 |
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Congrats to all the cyclists who helped make this happen and get the vote done right. Super news, and a great start to what I hope is a decades-long ambitious and well-planned advancement of bike power all around Asheville. Good work. |
Feb 28, 2008 |
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I for one would ride my bike more with some designated lanes. I bought a bike two years ago but was scared as hell from all the traffic blowing by. And with a bicycle related death two weeks ago we need this more than ever. |
Feb 28, 2008 at |
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Congrats to all of Asheville. A few years ago I was able to live in The Hague, The Netherlands for the entire summer. Dutch people of all ages utilized their bike lanes which even had traffic lights in certain intersections. As a result, the roads were less congested, air quality was great, and the majority of the culture was physically fit. This included teens to senior citizens, all of which road bikes through the city. Not only are these new bike lanes good for the current bikers in Asheville, but hopefully, much like The Netherlands, the culture will change and many more people will chose to ride their bike instead of wasting gas. Also, this will reduce parking problems and traffic congestion. This is a win win situation for everyone. Asheville should be proud of this pioneering step which continues to make this place such an amazing place to live. |
Tom B. Feb 29, 2008 |
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Bicycles are a communist plot to keep us from needing to buy healthcare from Keiser. If people actually rode bikes, they would see how incredibly inneficiant they are. You have to pedal them! with your legs!! Helllo? Plus, if we dont continue buying American cars made in Mexico, then how will our economy recover from a Democrat running for office?? |
Mar 01, 2008 at |
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Sammule |
Mar 02, 2008 |