Good news, bad news, and an opportunity

I have been traveling for work in China the past couple weeks, so I am a bit behind on bicycle advocacy news. Most of you know by now that the Bicycle Master Plan ordinance passed with a unanimous City Council vote last Monday.  As Scott McCrary pointed out on the Spinners advocacy page, it was a resolution not an ordinance and it alone doesn't address all the issues, but this really is a great step toward the goal of making Greenville a more bike friendly town.  We now have a great plan in place to guide future development here, but it is worth remembering that the Bicycle Master Plan resolution is only the beginning.  Implementation will take time… and a lot of effort from everyone who wants to see safer streets in Greenville.

The subject of safer streets brings up the bad news.  I only heard a few days ago about the death of Pastor Bobby Scott Spencer, who was killed while riding on a road in Spartanburg a couple weeks ago.  That recent tragedy in the upstate, along with a couple others in the lowcountry earlier this year, reminds us that South Carolina remains one of the worst states in the nation for bicycle and pedestrian fatalities per capita. In addition to better infrastructure for bicyclists in the state, we need to address the issues of education and enforcement in order to make our roads safe for everyone.  Reducing the fatality rate should not be the goal. As the website for the Sweden based Vision Zero Initiative points out, "no loss of life is acceptable." Zero fatalities on South Carolina roads should be the goal…and it should be one that everyone in the state works hard to achieve.

Finally, I want to mention the San Souci community's effort to support a road diet on Old Buncombe Road, which is on SCDOT's resurfacing list. As Brian pointed out in an email to the Spinners list:

"The reconfiguration (from 2 narrow lanes in either direction) would help slow traffic and may include bicycle facilities (sharrows) in a wide-outside lane. These changes would support the neighborhood and area businesses while making the street safer for all users."

There was much support in the cycling community for 'share the road' signs on Old Buncombe several years ago, so I hope that many of the same people will support this larger effort now. There's a website with an online petition, where you can get more information and express your support for this project.  Spread the word to your friends as well. As with any advocacy issue, every bit helps.

Update: Read more about the Old Buncombe project at the PCC blog.