Four cities in North Carolina were recently ranked as bicycle-friendly communities. Winston-Salem is not on the list. It should be, both for safety's sake for our quality of life in general.
In July, a cyclist was killed near Mocksville and another was killed in King. The toll is unacceptable. And there've been several accidents in recent years in the Winston-Salem area in which cars and bicycles have collided, causing serious injuries for the cyclists.
The League of American Bicyclists designated Charlotte, Greensboro, Carrboro and Davidson as bicycle-friendly communities. Greensboro has dedicated several miles of new greenways, the Journal's Lisa O'Donnell reported.
"We need more safe riding opportunities in Forsyth and around the state, both for recreational cyclists and people using their bikes for transportation," Winston-Salem City Councilman Dan Besse said recently. "We're clearly behind the curve here in getting that done."
Besse has worked on efforts such as expanding the local greenway system.
The city of Winston-Salem has added bike lanes on several roads in the last few years, but more are needed. Winston-Salem has a bike/pedestrian coordinator who will propose a package of bike-lane improvements for funding consideration in the next few months, Besse said.
That can't come soon enough. The number of bikes on the road will multiply in the years to come as more people embrace the health, economic and environmental benefits of bicycling.
Winston-Salem should keep up with other cities by providing more greenways and bike lanes to improve safety and enhance the quality of life.
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