~ from the Office of Neighborhoods

The weather is warming up, why not dust off your bicycle and enjoy the sunshine! To help show bikeable and walkable routes, explore City projects, and give an opportunity to get to know your local policy makers, Bike Walk Knoxville hosts Tours with Elected Officials.

You are invited to join City Council Members, County Commissioners, and the Mayor to explore the new-and-improved Cumberland Avenue on Tuesday, April 13, at 6 p.m. for the Spring Bike Tour. Bring your bike, helmet, and water bottle to Tyson Park at 6 p.m. and ride the 5-mile loop from Tyson Park through Fort Sanders and World’s Fair Park to Market Square, back to Tyson Park through World’s Fair Park and on Cumberland Avenue.

The top-to-bottom $25 million Cumberland Avenue reconstruction project four years ago helped leverage more than $200 million in private investment. It also eliminated traffic snarls by adding turn lanes and better traffic light signalization, and it built wide sidewalks and added trees and landscaping.

But likely of interest to Bike Walk Knoxville: The upgrades made the corridor safer. The average annual number of crashes involving people walking or bicycling fell 78 percent. Traffic crashes of all types fell 44 percent.

All community members are welcome to join the April 13 bike ride! Please plan to wear appropriate shoes and clothing for the ride.

In addition to the tour, Bike Walk Knoxville is also seeking input on the Cumberland Avenue Streetscape project. Do your personal experiences coincide with or differ from the traffic safety statistics? What can or should be done to make the Cumberland Avenue corridor more pedestrian and bike friendly? Let the Council Members and Mayor know by filling out a brief survey.

For more on the upcoming Spring Bike Tour with Elected Officials, visit Bike Walk Knoxville’s website.