Wednesday, December 27, 2000
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Wednesday, December 27, 2000 |
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Biking enthusiasts pushing for changes By DAVE
HAMRICK Where there are roads, there will be bicycles... and walkers and joggers and skateboarders... The problem is that in Fayette County, they're taking their lives into their hands, according to the Bicycle Users Group, which is pushing for a change in county road planning to allow for more bicycle lanes in the future. "There's a crying need," said Glen Simpson, the group's leader. "The streets here in metro Atlanta ought to be wide enough to accommodate walkers, bicyclists, joggers, broken down vehicles... It would improve the aesthetics of the community and also the value of the community." Understanding that it would be prohibitively expensive to add bicycle lanes on existing roads, Simpson said the BUG group is pushing to have extra width included as the county and local cities widen or otherwise improve roads, or build new ones. The only project currently being worked on in Fayette is a separate bicycle/pedestrian path running parallel to Redwine Road from Fayetteville's center to Kiwanis Park. Later plans call for extending that path on to Ga. Highway 74. But in Simpson's opinion, the separate path is not the way to go. Because the path will be a dozen feet or so away from Redwine, separated by a planted strip, motorists turning off the road onto side roads will be surprised by bicyclists crossing 20 feet or so from the intersection, just as they're starting to accelerate, he said. "What we're calling for is just four feet more pavement on each side, and striping it so the motorist knows it's a separate lane," he said. "People might not feel like that's as safe, but I can show you statistically that it is much more safe." Simpson, who spent some time living in California, said one thing he has learned is that if people feel safer, they take part in bicycling and other activities more. "It's important to the building of a community and the community sense to see people out," he said. And people moving slowly through neighborhoods on foot or on bicycles are a deterrent to crime, he added. Members of BUG addressed the Fayette County Commission on the subject a year ago, and although the response wasn't entirely negative, so far nothing is happening, Simpson said. "Our progress has been very gradual," said Carleton Williams, another BUG member, in a letter to supporters. "Yet we continue to pursue our initial endeavor to create a more friendly atmosphere of coexistence between motor vehicles and bicycles," he said. Williams was struck by a car while bicycling in 1998. Simpson said he commutes to work, about 18 miles, by bicycle, but has to go three miles out of his way to avoid bad road conditions. "I'd like to see something done," he said. For information on BUG and its bike lane campaign, e-mail Simpson at JAGSimpson@prodigy.net, phone 770-716-9968 or visit www.BikingForLife.org.
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