Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Let's repave Central Ave

and not put bicycle lanes there!

I'm sure some of you have noticed that a portion of Central Avenue is being repaved. This new road will not, however, have a bicycle lane. According to Janet Prejeam of the Memphis Public Works Constructions Office, "If [bicycle lanes] weren't there before, they won't be there now."

(It was actually quite a funny conversation. When I asked if there would be bicycle lanes when Central was repaved Mrs. Prejeam replied "Bicycle Lanes?" as if she'd never heard of such a thing!)

I've said before that Central is a prime candidate for bicycle lanes. On this artery through the city there are several major destinations/attractions including Christian Brothers University, Memphis Fairgrounds, Children's Museum of Memphis, Pink Palace Museum and The University of Memphis. Central Avenue also intersects Cooper St. and Highland St. which are major centers for shopping.

1 comment:

myshoeshurt said...

This is a frustrating situation for both cyclists and drivers. People in cars seem to generally prefer cyclists not to be in the street, and most cyclists would prefer not to have to constantly defend themselves against vehicles. However, when repaving main roadways the city makes no effort to slap down a white line to aid the tension between motorists and cyclists. What can we do/ who do we need to contact to fix this seemingly simple problem?! Also, great articles and web site!