From: Wes Gibson
Date: Mon, Jan 22, 2018 at 2:24 PM
Subject: Merrimon Ave Intersection Improvements at Edgewood through WT Weaver Blvd
To: “chood@ncdot.gov” <chood@ncdot.gov>, “kbereis@hntb.com” <kbereis@hntb.com>

Hello everyone,

First off, thanks for taking the time to read my concerns regarding the proposed alterations to Merrimon Ave in Asheville, NC.  We appreciate that your time is valuable, and I hope that you value input from the citizens of Asheville/Buncombe County.  With the rapid growth in the city of Asheville, we want what is best for not only the current citizens of Asheville, but we also want to think of future citizens as well.  As the father of 10 month old twins, I want my girls to grow up in a place where they can be pedestrians and cyclists.  And I want them to feel safe being either.  Please consider revising your plans for Merrimon Avenue.  In Asheville, we’d love to see more complete streets being built to support our cycling and pedestrian community.  These streets allow for an alleviation of the current traffic woes, while also allowing safe passage for cyclists and pedestrians. The City of Asheville has spent time and money working on designs for Merrimon avenue.  All of which conflict with your proposed design.  The City of Asheville Comprehensive Bike plan, which was reviewed and endorsed by the NCDOT, identified needs for Merrimon.  All of these needs seem to be ignored in your proposed changes.  As well, the proposed changes include a 2 foot shared bicycle lane on a road with a 40 mph design.  This does not conform to the AASHTO (American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials) guidelines pertaining to active transportation standards.  We have other streets in Asheville that were built very similar to this proposal.  They don’t allow for pedestrian/cyclist safety.  We don’t want to repeat mistakes on Merrimon Avenue.  Please consider what I’m saying.  Thanks again for your time.

Wes Gibson