What is Asheville’s greenway plan?

The City of Asheville’s greenway planning process, called the “Close the GAP” project, combines 3 plans: the City’s Greenway Plan (G), its ADA Transition Plan (A), and its Pedestrian Plan (P). The main goal of Close the GAP is to better understand who uses our community’s greenways & sidewalks and why in order to update & expand our pedestrian network. 

Why do we need your help?

Greenways and sidewalks are integral to a community’s connectivity, health, equity, and overall livability. In order to help City officials enhance Asheville’s pedestrian network, it’s important that residents are given the opportunity to provide their input. To do this, we need your help surveying Asheville’s greenway users. 

What does this volunteer position entail?

As a volunteer, you will help conduct greenway user interviews at the Wilma Dykeman Greenway in Asheville’s River Arts District and at the Reed Creek Greenway near UNC Asheville’s Botanical Gardens on August 10 and 14. In the event of bad weather, our makeup dates are August 17 and 21. You can help out by volunteering for a 2-hour shift on one or both of these days at either location. 

As a volunteer, you agree to:

• Encourage greenway users to complete the survey.
• Dress in comfortable clothes and bring the water & snacks you may need.
• Wear a mask if asked to do so. We will provide disposable masks.

How do I sign up to volunteer?

To learn more and sign up for a volunteer slot, visit https://bit.ly/GreenwayInterview or contact Linda Giltz at lindagiltz@gmail.com.

Please share this volunteer opportunity and information about Close the GAP with your friends, organizations, and others. Thank you for being a valued community member and greenway supporter!

The post Call for Volunteers—Help Update Asheville’s Greenway Plan! appeared first on Asheville On Bikes.

Re: Merrimon Avenue Project #5782-US 25 Merrimon AV and W.T. Weaver Blvd

Dear Mr. Clark:
Connect Buncombe exists to advocate for the implementation of Buncombe County’s Master Plan for Greenways and Trails, a trail system that meets the needs for safe routes for bicyclists and pedestrians.

Recently NCDOT has publicly released a proposal for Project #5782 that includes modifications to the intersection of US 25 Merrimon AV and W.T. Weaver Blvd. This proposal does nothing to improve the connection of Glenn’s Creek Greenway east of Merrimon to the greenway west of Merrimon. As presented the proposal requires pedestrians and bicyclists to cross a road that would be about a third wider with higher vehicular movements and speeds without meeting stipulated design guidelines. We ask that you study this intersection better and present an improved design.

The City of Asheville (COA) has indicated their opposition to the proposal as submitted. Connect Buncombe supports the City Council’s concerns. We ask that NCDOT Division 13 incorporate state and local design guidelines for the Merrimon AV (and all future Buncombe County) street improvements. NCDOT should plan these street modifications in partnership with the City of Asheville’s Transportation Department and incorporate the following:

NCDOT’s 2009 Complete Streets policy states:

• “The North Carolina Department of Transportation, in its role as stewards over the transportation infrastructure, is committed to: …working in partnership with local government agencies, interest groups, and the public to plan, fund, design, construct, and manage complete street networks that sustain mobility while accommodating walking, biking, and transit opportunities safely.”
• “Providing an efficient multi-modal transportation network in North Carolina such that the access, mobility, and safety needs of motorists, transit users, bicyclists, and pedestrians of all ages and abilities are safely accommodated.”

AASHTO Guidelines for the Development of Bicycle Facilities:

• Adopted via NCDOT’s own Bicycle Policy as the accepted guidance. NCDOT’s Bicycle Policy states: “All bicycle transportation facilities approved by the Board of Transportation shall conform with the adopted “Design Guidelines for Bicycle Facilities” on state-funded projects.”

NCDOT’s Community Characteristics Report, US 25 (Merrimon Ave) King Street to Maney Avenue: Operational Improvements City of Asheville, Buncombe County (CCR), originally developed in 2009:

• The report includes several recommendations, including the notation of a need for specialized trail crossings at W.T. Weaver Blvd to facilitate multi-use path. (p.11)

Asheville in Motion

• Merrimon Ave is recognized in the Bicycle Framework Plan as a route “that serve(s) as a support system for primary routes.” (Asheville in Motion Plan, p.76)

Asheville City 2025 Plan

• The need for a bicycle and pedestrian network is identified in the 2025 plan’s Transportation Vision. It states, “Vision: The City of Asheville will have a network of bicycle and pedestrian routes which are safe and provide reasonable transportation choice for its residents as outlined in the Asheville Greenway Master Plan and the City’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan.” Buncombe County’s Master Plan for Greenways and Trails incorporates COA plans that develop a county-wide bike and pedestrian transportation system.

Connect Buncombe requests that NCDOT delay consideration of the Project; that the comment period be extended; that NCDOT consider input from Asheville elected officials; and that NCDOT host neighborhood meetings in order to hear from the public. We request alternatives to the Project that would fulfill connections of our existing greenways, and provide for the safety needs of all street users…automotive, transit, bicyclists, and pedestrians of all ages and abilities.

Respectfully,
Robbie Sweetser, President Connect Buncombe
Friends of Connect Buncombe, Inc.
P.O. Box 16100
Asheville, NC 28816

The post Connect Buncombe: This proposal does nothing to improve the connection of Glenn’s Creek Greenway appeared first on Asheville On Bikes.

I am writing as a longtime North Asheville resident and homeowner, and for years have frequented the locations along Merrimon Avenue on a daily basis.

The current proposal to widen Merrimon appears to make it easier for cars to travel faster along this road, while impeding ability to safely access businesses along this corridor. To increase speeds along this road makes no sense to me. People who travel the road and frequent its businesses value a lower speed limit so that they can access businesses safely. I know of no one who wants Merrimon Avenue to have any more lanes than it has, nor do they want cars using this road to travel faster.

Broadway is an underutilized 4-lane road that is capable of handing traffic traveling at a faster rate of speed. I-26 was built in order to accommodate traffic going to Weaverville.

Merrimon Avenue is a business corridor surrounded by apartments and neighborhoods full of residents who use those businesses. Residents living along or near Merrimon Ave deserve safe access to its businesses by any means they choose, whether it be car, bike, or on foot. Traffic along Merrimon Avenue can be minimized through a Complete Streets approach, as outlined in https://smartgrowthamerica.org/program/national-complete-streets-coalition/.

The current plan is discriminatory in that it reduces safety for pedestrians and bicyclists. Everyone should have equal, unimpeded access to businesses. That right should not be limited to those who own autos. The government is responsible for the overall safety of all citizens, not just a few. The health and wellbeing of the public is served when people are able to access the outdoors. A road should not restrict a natural means of accessing resources, or shared, community spaces such as parks and greenways.

Any changes to Merrimon Avenue should rightfully be reviewed by those who will be impacted by those changes, i.e. the community at large. I encourage you to engage with neighborhood groups, the City of Asheville, and the public at large before committing to making any changes to Merrimon Avenue, in order to ensure that the interests of everyone are served by the outcome.

All the best,
Amy Kemp

The post Amy: To increase speeds along this road makes no sense to me appeared first on Asheville On Bikes.

Love greenways, do you? Ask and ye shall receive.

You show, we grow! Fresh from the bike-loving camaraderie of today’s Bike of the Irish ride, head on over to this drop-in event tomorrow from 4-6 pm.

“Buncombe County, N.C. Department of Transportation (NCDOT), and HNTB (a consultant for the NCDOT) will host a drop-in public meeting regarding potential options for the possible addition of a greenway in the vicinity of I-26, Brevard Road and Long Shoals Road in Buncombe County. The meeting will be held from 4pm to 6pm on Monday, March 23, 2015 in the auditorium of the N.C. Arboretum, 100 Frederick Law Olmsted Way, Asheville, North Carolina.”

(Not that you need ANY other reason to attend, but can you IMAGINE how spectacular the arboretum is this time of year?)

Here’s the event RSVP.

The post Arboretum Hosts Greenway Drop-in Tomorrow appeared first on Asheville On Bikes.