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East Coast Greenway NYT article



 
 
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  #1  
Old June 4th 04, 01:09 PM
Tim Arnold
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default East Coast Greenway NYT article


http://travel2.nytimes.com/2004/06/0...es/04GREE.html
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----

June 4, 2004
Building an `Emerald Necklace,' Link by Link
By DENNY LEE

THE bike trail is roughly eight feet wide. It is paved in black asphalt and
hemmed in by a wooden split-rail fence. And when the sun comes out, as it
did the other weekend, the Baltimore & Annapolis Trail in Maryland springs
to life with cyclists, in-line skaters and wild rabbits. But no one on the
trail, not even the spandex-wearing weekend warriors, could pinpoint where
the path begins or ends.

"It starts in Annapolis," said Debbie Doering, 42, a cyclist from that town,
who was riding a purple Bianchi road bike. A few miles up the path, Ron
Coombs was unpacking a mountain bike from his station wagon. "It goes up to
the B.W.I.," he said, referring to Baltimore-Washington International
Airport. In other words, according to these bikers, the greenway would be
about 13 miles long.

They were off by only 2,600 miles or so.

The B.& A. Trail, it turns out, is merely a tiny dash along a much longer
ribbon of asphalt and dirt roads known as the East Coast Greenway. The
greenway, a cyclist's version of the Appalachian Trail, begins near the
Canadian border in Calais, Me., and ends at a beach in Key West, Fla. In
between, it snakes through 15 states and the District of Columbia, hundreds
of towns and countless neighborhoods, forming a seamless route — free of
traffic lights and exhaust-spewing cars — for people who want to travel the
East Coast on their own power.

At least it does on paper.

So far, only 20 percent of the East Coast Greenway has been built and
designated; in some places, the greenway is as navigable as the North Korean
border. But enough of the trail has been plotted and temporary routes
labeled that the greenway's pathfinders held a coming-out party in
Washington last June to declare the trail officially open.

Though nobody has yet ridden the trail end to end. (A fit person, going at a
solid pace of 70 miles a day, would need 37 days to complete it — and that's
without a day of rest.) Even its staunchest advocates predict that only a
handful of people will ever pedal the entire route. "Sure, but very few
people have done the Appalachian Trail," said Ty Symroski, a city planner in
Key West and a volunteer with the East Coast Greenway Alliance, the
nonprofit group that is spearheading the trail. "If only three people did
it, but 300 million dream about it, that would be worth it."

"Think about it," he added. "It would be an awesome ride."

But first, people have to know it exists. On a recent Saturday afternoon, on
the Key West portion of the trail, wild chickens took refuge under shady
palms, and the concrete path was filled with cyclists of all ages, from
children on tricycles to elderly couples on tandems. Among them was Georgina
Acuna, 31, a human resources consultant visiting from Miami, who was riding
a rickety single-speed bike along the final, 2.3-mile leg of the greenway,
hugging the shore, slicing past mangrove marshes, beachside homes and the
emerald waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

Like most users of the greenway, Ms. Acuna saw only a local bike path. "This
trail goes to the other side of Key West, right?" she said, as she stood at
the very foot of the trail, just before it spills into Higgs Beach. A few
feet away was a granite marker the size of a wastebasket, designating the
spot as the "southern gateway" of the East Coast Greenway.

"No one is contesting that most people will use the greenway to travel short
distances, or only on weekends," said Karen M. Votava, the executive
director of the Greenway Alliance, based in Wakefield, R.I. She, too,
invoked the Appalachian Trail as a model. "Only 400 or so people go the
whole length of the Appalachian Trail every year. But if you look closer,
over four million use it in short pieces."

Chances are, even in its infancy the greenway has already surpassed that
figure. Unlike the Appalachian Trail, which ambles through backwoods and
national parks, the greenway does not avoid urban areas. (Its slogan is, "A
trail connecting cities.") The idea for the long biking trail was born in
the early 1990's as cities throughout the country, especially in the
Northeast, began laying down bicycle paths. It was a movement fueled by an
aging baby-boom population seeking to trim its waist line, and by
environmentalists who embraced cycling as a clean alternative to cars.

The biggest boost came in 1991 when Congress, under heavy lobbying by
environmental groups, authorized the Intermodal Surface Transportation
Efficiency Act, known as Istea (pronounced ice tea). In addition to
expanding the nation's highway system, the act set aside $1.5 billion for
building bicycle and pedestrian paths. Local governments contributed an
additional 20 percent in matching financing.

"Istea was the pivotal moment," said Andy Clarke, executive director of the
League of American Bicyclists in Washington. The program grew to $2 billion
in 1998 under the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, and is up
for renewal this year.

Cities as divergent as New York and Portland, Me., began using the money to
build minigreenways, though the total number of bike paths is hard to pin
down. Many used old railroad rights of way, and by 1998 there were 198
converted rail-trails in the country, totaling 359 miles. That number has
climbed to 1,250 rail-trails today, with a combined 12,585 miles, according
to the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, a nonprofit group in Washington.

The East Coast Greenway Alliance was formed in 1991 to stitch together the
new trails. The idea was to create an "emerald necklace" connecting every
city along the coast, as well as the suburbs, exurbs and rural areas in
between. To date, 61 segments totaling 650 miles are complete, half on
former rail beds. Organizers are also working on lining up existing
campsites so cyclists can sleep along the trail.

One of the most popular segments is the B.& A. Trail, which goes over an
abandoned railroad spur. An estimated two million people use the trail every
year, including Steven George, 46, a warehouse worker from Glen Burnie, Md.,
whose front door faces the greenway. "I bike down to my mom's house in
Annapolis," he said.

The B.& A. Trail skips over six-lane highways, trickling ravines and traffic
lights. It is an idyllic 13.3-mile ride out of the Baltimore area — until
you hit a stop sign near a road called Boulters Way. To continue south
toward Washington, on the Washington, Baltimore & Annapolis Trail, cyclists
have to swerve onto Route 2, share the road with 50-m.p.h. traffic, cross a
bridge into Annapolis, and zigzag through 10 miles of tricky local streets
to the nearby town of Odenton.

There, at the corner of Odenton Road and Route 170, near a 7-Eleven and the
Crab Galley seafood carry out, a new asphalt trail materializes out of
nowhere. But the trail, nearly completed, runs for only 2.3 miles before it
dead-ends at a housing development. To reach the next leg of the greenway,
cyclists have to traverse another six miles of sidewalks, local streets and
unmarked intersections.

And Maryland is one of the more complete states.

Neither Delaware nor Georgia claims an inch of existing greenway. New
Hampshire has a single temporary route: along the shoulder of coastal Route
1A. And South Carolina is still poring over maps. "The biggest obstacle is
money," said Ms. Votava of the Greenway Alliance. To date, $600 million has
been allocated for the trail. Another $1.5 billion, she estimated, is needed
to complete it by 2010.

Each mile costs roughly $1 million to build, but some are much costlier. No
bikes, for example, are allowed over the bridges that span the Susquehanna
River in Maryland, and it is less than certain that the state will erect a
1.4-mile bridge just for cyclists and pedestrians — so far $2 million of the
estimated $8 million needed for the bridge has been raised. (Cyclists
currently have to arrange to transport their bikes by car.)

And then there is the Nimby factor. The greenway has sparked occasional
protests from homeowners who fear that it will invite criminals into their
backyards. "People raise the specter of crime, but it's shown to have no
validity," said Mr. Clarke of the bicyclists' league, referring to several
surveys that examined the neighborhood impact of such greenways. "Bicycle
users typically don't carry large television sets on their backs." Still,
places like Greenwich, Conn., and Providence, R.I., have kept the trail from
going through their communities.

To publicize and raise money for the trail, about a dozen cyclists are
planning to pedal the entire 2,600-mile route this fall, or at least the
outlines of it. The inaugural tour is scheduled to depart from Calais, Me.,
on Sept. 12, and end in Key West 53 days later, though many routes — and
permission to ride over highway bridges — are still being worked out.

But Jack Kurrle, 74, a retired tool-and-die engineer from Sun City West,
Ariz., is already in training. "It's the same reason why people climb Mount
Everest," said Mr. Kurrle, an avid cyclist who rides a recumbent bike. "It's
a chance to be the first one to ride the trail."



Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company | Home | Privacy Policy | Search |
Corrections | Help | Back to Top


Ads
  #2  
Old June 4th 04, 02:48 PM
NYRides
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default East Coast Greenway NYT article

My favorite line:

"If only three people did (ride) it, but 300 million dream about it, that
would be worth it."

Unfortunately, being 41 and bogged down by a tight work schedule and an
aging back, I'm probably one of the 300 million. But man, do I love
dreaming about it!

"Tim Arnold" wrote in message
...

http://travel2.nytimes.com/2004/06/0...es/04GREE.html
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--
----

June 4, 2004
Building an `Emerald Necklace,' Link by Link
By DENNY LEE

THE bike trail is roughly eight feet wide. It is paved in black asphalt

and
hemmed in by a wooden split-rail fence. And when the sun comes out, as it
did the other weekend, the Baltimore & Annapolis Trail in Maryland springs
to life with cyclists, in-line skaters and wild rabbits. But no one on the
trail, not even the spandex-wearing weekend warriors, could pinpoint where
the path begins or ends.

"It starts in Annapolis," said Debbie Doering, 42, a cyclist from that

town,
who was riding a purple Bianchi road bike. A few miles up the path, Ron
Coombs was unpacking a mountain bike from his station wagon. "It goes up

to
the B.W.I.," he said, referring to Baltimore-Washington International
Airport. In other words, according to these bikers, the greenway would be
about 13 miles long.

They were off by only 2,600 miles or so.

The B.& A. Trail, it turns out, is merely a tiny dash along a much longer
ribbon of asphalt and dirt roads known as the East Coast Greenway. The
greenway, a cyclist's version of the Appalachian Trail, begins near the
Canadian border in Calais, Me., and ends at a beach in Key West, Fla. In
between, it snakes through 15 states and the District of Columbia,

hundreds
of towns and countless neighborhoods, forming a seamless route - free of
traffic lights and exhaust-spewing cars - for people who want to travel

the
East Coast on their own power.

At least it does on paper.

So far, only 20 percent of the East Coast Greenway has been built and
designated; in some places, the greenway is as navigable as the North

Korean
border. But enough of the trail has been plotted and temporary routes
labeled that the greenway's pathfinders held a coming-out party in
Washington last June to declare the trail officially open.

Though nobody has yet ridden the trail end to end. (A fit person, going at

a
solid pace of 70 miles a day, would need 37 days to complete it - and

that's
without a day of rest.) Even its staunchest advocates predict that only a
handful of people will ever pedal the entire route. "Sure, but very few
people have done the Appalachian Trail," said Ty Symroski, a city planner

in
Key West and a volunteer with the East Coast Greenway Alliance, the
nonprofit group that is spearheading the trail. "If only three people did
it, but 300 million dream about it, that would be worth it."

"Think about it," he added. "It would be an awesome ride."

But first, people have to know it exists. On a recent Saturday afternoon,

on
the Key West portion of the trail, wild chickens took refuge under shady
palms, and the concrete path was filled with cyclists of all ages, from
children on tricycles to elderly couples on tandems. Among them was

Georgina
Acuna, 31, a human resources consultant visiting from Miami, who was

riding
a rickety single-speed bike along the final, 2.3-mile leg of the greenway,
hugging the shore, slicing past mangrove marshes, beachside homes and the
emerald waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

Like most users of the greenway, Ms. Acuna saw only a local bike path.

"This
trail goes to the other side of Key West, right?" she said, as she stood

at
the very foot of the trail, just before it spills into Higgs Beach. A few
feet away was a granite marker the size of a wastebasket, designating the
spot as the "southern gateway" of the East Coast Greenway.

"No one is contesting that most people will use the greenway to travel

short
distances, or only on weekends," said Karen M. Votava, the executive
director of the Greenway Alliance, based in Wakefield, R.I. She, too,
invoked the Appalachian Trail as a model. "Only 400 or so people go the
whole length of the Appalachian Trail every year. But if you look closer,
over four million use it in short pieces."

Chances are, even in its infancy the greenway has already surpassed that
figure. Unlike the Appalachian Trail, which ambles through backwoods and
national parks, the greenway does not avoid urban areas. (Its slogan is,

"A
trail connecting cities.") The idea for the long biking trail was born in
the early 1990's as cities throughout the country, especially in the
Northeast, began laying down bicycle paths. It was a movement fueled by an
aging baby-boom population seeking to trim its waist line, and by
environmentalists who embraced cycling as a clean alternative to cars.

The biggest boost came in 1991 when Congress, under heavy lobbying by
environmental groups, authorized the Intermodal Surface Transportation
Efficiency Act, known as Istea (pronounced ice tea). In addition to
expanding the nation's highway system, the act set aside $1.5 billion for
building bicycle and pedestrian paths. Local governments contributed an
additional 20 percent in matching financing.

"Istea was the pivotal moment," said Andy Clarke, executive director of

the
League of American Bicyclists in Washington. The program grew to $2

billion
in 1998 under the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, and is

up
for renewal this year.

Cities as divergent as New York and Portland, Me., began using the money

to
build minigreenways, though the total number of bike paths is hard to pin
down. Many used old railroad rights of way, and by 1998 there were 198
converted rail-trails in the country, totaling 359 miles. That number has
climbed to 1,250 rail-trails today, with a combined 12,585 miles,

according
to the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, a nonprofit group in Washington.

The East Coast Greenway Alliance was formed in 1991 to stitch together the
new trails. The idea was to create an "emerald necklace" connecting every
city along the coast, as well as the suburbs, exurbs and rural areas in
between. To date, 61 segments totaling 650 miles are complete, half on
former rail beds. Organizers are also working on lining up existing
campsites so cyclists can sleep along the trail.

One of the most popular segments is the B.& A. Trail, which goes over an
abandoned railroad spur. An estimated two million people use the trail

every
year, including Steven George, 46, a warehouse worker from Glen Burnie,

Md.,
whose front door faces the greenway. "I bike down to my mom's house in
Annapolis," he said.

The B.& A. Trail skips over six-lane highways, trickling ravines and

traffic
lights. It is an idyllic 13.3-mile ride out of the Baltimore area - until
you hit a stop sign near a road called Boulters Way. To continue south
toward Washington, on the Washington, Baltimore & Annapolis Trail,

cyclists
have to swerve onto Route 2, share the road with 50-m.p.h. traffic, cross

a
bridge into Annapolis, and zigzag through 10 miles of tricky local streets
to the nearby town of Odenton.

There, at the corner of Odenton Road and Route 170, near a 7-Eleven and

the
Crab Galley seafood carry out, a new asphalt trail materializes out of
nowhere. But the trail, nearly completed, runs for only 2.3 miles before

it
dead-ends at a housing development. To reach the next leg of the greenway,
cyclists have to traverse another six miles of sidewalks, local streets

and
unmarked intersections.

And Maryland is one of the more complete states.

Neither Delaware nor Georgia claims an inch of existing greenway. New
Hampshire has a single temporary route: along the shoulder of coastal

Route
1A. And South Carolina is still poring over maps. "The biggest obstacle is
money," said Ms. Votava of the Greenway Alliance. To date, $600 million

has
been allocated for the trail. Another $1.5 billion, she estimated, is

needed
to complete it by 2010.

Each mile costs roughly $1 million to build, but some are much costlier.

No
bikes, for example, are allowed over the bridges that span the Susquehanna
River in Maryland, and it is less than certain that the state will erect a
1.4-mile bridge just for cyclists and pedestrians - so far $2 million of

the
estimated $8 million needed for the bridge has been raised. (Cyclists
currently have to arrange to transport their bikes by car.)

And then there is the Nimby factor. The greenway has sparked occasional
protests from homeowners who fear that it will invite criminals into their
backyards. "People raise the specter of crime, but it's shown to have no
validity," said Mr. Clarke of the bicyclists' league, referring to several
surveys that examined the neighborhood impact of such greenways. "Bicycle
users typically don't carry large television sets on their backs." Still,
places like Greenwich, Conn., and Providence, R.I., have kept the trail

from
going through their communities.

To publicize and raise money for the trail, about a dozen cyclists are
planning to pedal the entire 2,600-mile route this fall, or at least the
outlines of it. The inaugural tour is scheduled to depart from Calais,

Me.,
on Sept. 12, and end in Key West 53 days later, though many routes - and
permission to ride over highway bridges - are still being worked out.

But Jack Kurrle, 74, a retired tool-and-die engineer from Sun City West,
Ariz., is already in training. "It's the same reason why people climb

Mount
Everest," said Mr. Kurrle, an avid cyclist who rides a recumbent bike.

"It's
a chance to be the first one to ride the trail."



Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company | Home | Privacy Policy | Search

|
Corrections | Help | Back to Top




  #3  
Old June 7th 04, 05:16 AM
Ron Wallenfang
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default East Coast Greenway NYT article

I intend to bike from Madawaska, ME to Key West, and started this year with
a trip from Philadelphia north and back (actually further than the top of
Maine - I went to Ste. Anne de Beaupre and back, 1964 miles of riding in
all). I hope to be posting a trip report in the next couple weeks. Before
leaving, I scanned the Greenway site and got no useful nformation for this
segment.

I used the Adventure Cycling route, at least in part , from Philadelphia to
Windsor Locks, CT on the northbound portion of my ride. There were problems
with it, including a closed road on the NJ side north of Delaware Water Gap.
Also at its best, it's a very hilly ride. I went on north to Canada mostly
via Rte. 5 along the Ct. River, but without successfully avoiding a lot of
hills.

After 500+ miles of riding in Quebec not relevant to this thread, I
returned via Madawaska, ME and US 1 to Houlton, then mostly 2 and 202 to NH,
125 through NH, 125, 28 and eventually 1 through MA and RI (where that route
becomes indecipherable), 44 to CT, CT rtes 169, 82, 81 and 80 to New Haven,
then 1 across SW CT and Westchester to the Bronx, local parkways to the GW
bridge, 46 and 57 across NJ, and 611 back to Phila.

There is much to recommend against both of the routes I used. I have no
idea what better route there is. The northeast will be a challenge for any
planner, I think.


"Tim Arnold" wrote in message
...

http://travel2.nytimes.com/2004/06/0...es/04GREE.html
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

--
----

June 4, 2004
Building an `Emerald Necklace,' Link by Link
By DENNY LEE

THE bike trail is roughly eight feet wide. It is paved in black asphalt

and
hemmed in by a wooden split-rail fence. And when the sun comes out, as it
did the other weekend, the Baltimore & Annapolis Trail in Maryland springs
to life with cyclists, in-line skaters and wild rabbits. But no one on the
trail, not even the spandex-wearing weekend warriors, could pinpoint where
the path begins or ends.

"It starts in Annapolis," said Debbie Doering, 42, a cyclist from that

town,
who was riding a purple Bianchi road bike. A few miles up the path, Ron
Coombs was unpacking a mountain bike from his station wagon. "It goes up

to
the B.W.I.," he said, referring to Baltimore-Washington International
Airport. In other words, according to these bikers, the greenway would be
about 13 miles long.

They were off by only 2,600 miles or so.

The B.& A. Trail, it turns out, is merely a tiny dash along a much longer
ribbon of asphalt and dirt roads known as the East Coast Greenway. The
greenway, a cyclist's version of the Appalachian Trail, begins near the
Canadian border in Calais, Me., and ends at a beach in Key West, Fla. In
between, it snakes through 15 states and the District of Columbia,

hundreds
of towns and countless neighborhoods, forming a seamless route - free of
traffic lights and exhaust-spewing cars - for people who want to travel

the
East Coast on their own power.

At least it does on paper.

So far, only 20 percent of the East Coast Greenway has been built and
designated; in some places, the greenway is as navigable as the North

Korean
border. But enough of the trail has been plotted and temporary routes
labeled that the greenway's pathfinders held a coming-out party in
Washington last June to declare the trail officially open.

Though nobody has yet ridden the trail end to end. (A fit person, going at

a
solid pace of 70 miles a day, would need 37 days to complete it - and

that's
without a day of rest.) Even its staunchest advocates predict that only a
handful of people will ever pedal the entire route. "Sure, but very few
people have done the Appalachian Trail," said Ty Symroski, a city planner

in
Key West and a volunteer with the East Coast Greenway Alliance, the
nonprofit group that is spearheading the trail. "If only three people did
it, but 300 million dream about it, that would be worth it."

"Think about it," he added. "It would be an awesome ride."

But first, people have to know it exists. On a recent Saturday afternoon,

on
the Key West portion of the trail, wild chickens took refuge under shady
palms, and the concrete path was filled with cyclists of all ages, from
children on tricycles to elderly couples on tandems. Among them was

Georgina
Acuna, 31, a human resources consultant visiting from Miami, who was

riding
a rickety single-speed bike along the final, 2.3-mile leg of the greenway,
hugging the shore, slicing past mangrove marshes, beachside homes and the
emerald waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

Like most users of the greenway, Ms. Acuna saw only a local bike path.

"This
trail goes to the other side of Key West, right?" she said, as she stood

at
the very foot of the trail, just before it spills into Higgs Beach. A few
feet away was a granite marker the size of a wastebasket, designating the
spot as the "southern gateway" of the East Coast Greenway.

"No one is contesting that most people will use the greenway to travel

short
distances, or only on weekends," said Karen M. Votava, the executive
director of the Greenway Alliance, based in Wakefield, R.I. She, too,
invoked the Appalachian Trail as a model. "Only 400 or so people go the
whole length of the Appalachian Trail every year. But if you look closer,
over four million use it in short pieces."

Chances are, even in its infancy the greenway has already surpassed that
figure. Unlike the Appalachian Trail, which ambles through backwoods and
national parks, the greenway does not avoid urban areas. (Its slogan is,

"A
trail connecting cities.") The idea for the long biking trail was born in
the early 1990's as cities throughout the country, especially in the
Northeast, began laying down bicycle paths. It was a movement fueled by an
aging baby-boom population seeking to trim its waist line, and by
environmentalists who embraced cycling as a clean alternative to cars.

The biggest boost came in 1991 when Congress, under heavy lobbying by
environmental groups, authorized the Intermodal Surface Transportation
Efficiency Act, known as Istea (pronounced ice tea). In addition to
expanding the nation's highway system, the act set aside $1.5 billion for
building bicycle and pedestrian paths. Local governments contributed an
additional 20 percent in matching financing.

"Istea was the pivotal moment," said Andy Clarke, executive director of

the
League of American Bicyclists in Washington. The program grew to $2

billion
in 1998 under the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, and is

up
for renewal this year.

Cities as divergent as New York and Portland, Me., began using the money

to
build minigreenways, though the total number of bike paths is hard to pin
down. Many used old railroad rights of way, and by 1998 there were 198
converted rail-trails in the country, totaling 359 miles. That number has
climbed to 1,250 rail-trails today, with a combined 12,585 miles,

according
to the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, a nonprofit group in Washington.

The East Coast Greenway Alliance was formed in 1991 to stitch together the
new trails. The idea was to create an "emerald necklace" connecting every
city along the coast, as well as the suburbs, exurbs and rural areas in
between. To date, 61 segments totaling 650 miles are complete, half on
former rail beds. Organizers are also working on lining up existing
campsites so cyclists can sleep along the trail.

One of the most popular segments is the B.& A. Trail, which goes over an
abandoned railroad spur. An estimated two million people use the trail

every
year, including Steven George, 46, a warehouse worker from Glen Burnie,

Md.,
whose front door faces the greenway. "I bike down to my mom's house in
Annapolis," he said.

The B.& A. Trail skips over six-lane highways, trickling ravines and

traffic
lights. It is an idyllic 13.3-mile ride out of the Baltimore area - until
you hit a stop sign near a road called Boulters Way. To continue south
toward Washington, on the Washington, Baltimore & Annapolis Trail,

cyclists
have to swerve onto Route 2, share the road with 50-m.p.h. traffic, cross

a
bridge into Annapolis, and zigzag through 10 miles of tricky local streets
to the nearby town of Odenton.

There, at the corner of Odenton Road and Route 170, near a 7-Eleven and

the
Crab Galley seafood carry out, a new asphalt trail materializes out of
nowhere. But the trail, nearly completed, runs for only 2.3 miles before

it
dead-ends at a housing development. To reach the next leg of the greenway,
cyclists have to traverse another six miles of sidewalks, local streets

and
unmarked intersections.

And Maryland is one of the more complete states.

Neither Delaware nor Georgia claims an inch of existing greenway. New
Hampshire has a single temporary route: along the shoulder of coastal

Route
1A. And South Carolina is still poring over maps. "The biggest obstacle is
money," said Ms. Votava of the Greenway Alliance. To date, $600 million

has
been allocated for the trail. Another $1.5 billion, she estimated, is

needed
to complete it by 2010.

Each mile costs roughly $1 million to build, but some are much costlier.

No
bikes, for example, are allowed over the bridges that span the Susquehanna
River in Maryland, and it is less than certain that the state will erect a
1.4-mile bridge just for cyclists and pedestrians - so far $2 million of

the
estimated $8 million needed for the bridge has been raised. (Cyclists
currently have to arrange to transport their bikes by car.)

And then there is the Nimby factor. The greenway has sparked occasional
protests from homeowners who fear that it will invite criminals into their
backyards. "People raise the specter of crime, but it's shown to have no
validity," said Mr. Clarke of the bicyclists' league, referring to several
surveys that examined the neighborhood impact of such greenways. "Bicycle
users typically don't carry large television sets on their backs." Still,
places like Greenwich, Conn., and Providence, R.I., have kept the trail

from
going through their communities.

To publicize and raise money for the trail, about a dozen cyclists are
planning to pedal the entire 2,600-mile route this fall, or at least the
outlines of it. The inaugural tour is scheduled to depart from Calais,

Me.,
on Sept. 12, and end in Key West 53 days later, though many routes - and
permission to ride over highway bridges - are still being worked out.

But Jack Kurrle, 74, a retired tool-and-die engineer from Sun City West,
Ariz., is already in training. "It's the same reason why people climb

Mount
Everest," said Mr. Kurrle, an avid cyclist who rides a recumbent bike.

"It's
a chance to be the first one to ride the trail."



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  #4  
Old June 7th 04, 05:41 PM
Curtis L. Russell
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Default East Coast Greenway NYT article

On Fri, 4 Jun 2004 08:09:06 -0400, "Tim Arnold"
wrote:

The B.& A. Trail skips over six-lane highways, trickling ravines and traffic
lights. It is an idyllic 13.3-mile ride out of the Baltimore area — until
you hit a stop sign near a road called Boulters Way. To continue south
toward Washington, on the Washington, Baltimore & Annapolis Trail, cyclists
have to swerve onto Route 2, share the road with 50-m.p.h. traffic, cross a
bridge into Annapolis, and zigzag through 10 miles of tricky local streets
to the nearby town of Odenton.


That would be a pretty dumb way to do it. There are at least four
viable routes from the WBA Trail to Odenton - route 2 would not be one
of them.

The easiest and more scenic for the less experienced would be from
Airport spur down the back roads. Riding through Severna Park and
taking the old route through Gambrills, MD has several variations. all
of them enjoyable enough to have been part of various club century
rides.

There, at the corner of Odenton Road and Route 170, near a 7-Eleven and the
Crab Galley seafood carry out, a new asphalt trail materializes out of
nowhere. But the trail, nearly completed, runs for only 2.3 miles before it
dead-ends at a housing development. To reach the next leg of the greenway,
cyclists have to traverse another six miles of sidewalks, local streets and
unmarked intersections.


The above is simply wrong. The trail actually starts at near the
traffic circle where Odenton Road and Maryland 175 come together,
although certainly they will not want any credit for the portion that
goes from there to the intersection of Odenton Road and 170/Piney
Orchard Parkway. Andonce it ends in the Piney Orchard developement,
there is no way to get to the next section in any logical way, but it
would at this time require you to go to Maryland 3 and ride to Bowie,
MD via this road. Not a bad route, but not 'sidewalks, local streets
and unmarked intersections'.

The trail through Odenton shows the problem with the National
Greenway. They were so determined to make it a trail that they created
a section that does not conform to AASHTO standards and includes a
section with two way travel on a downhill separated from the travel
lanes by a six-inch concrete riser. This is a 'design' that is
specifically discussed as being not recommended and unsafe in AASHTO
documents. This downhill is also blind, thanks to a wooden fence to
protect cyclists from the 30 foot drop-off. This section ends in what
appears to be a 'without design' design where you basically dismount
and walk your bike across a busy intersection.

I have pictures on my web site, but I'm moving them over to a web site
for bicycling only this week, so I'll give links next week. Some of
the photos have been used (or at least taken to be used) in two
presentations about the poor design of trails.

And it was all unnecessary. If they had simply widened and upgraded
the road and let the cyclists ride on the road, there would be no
issue. Now we have a trail that takes kids on a curving downhill, with
traffic to the right, separated by a six-inch curb. If they hit their
brakes, they go over the curb into oncoming traffic. Just to have a
trail.

BTW, when I pointed out that most of the trail in Odenton along
Odenton Road was clearly not AASHTO compliant, the Anne Arundel County
parks person said, "We have no requirement to be compliant." Great
attitude.

Curtis L. Russell
Odenton, MD (USA)
Just someone on two wheels...

  #5  
Old June 7th 04, 10:55 PM
Ken Roberts
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Default East Coast Greenway NYT article

Ron Wallenfang wrote
I have no idea what better route there is.


The chances of happy riding are much better in the Hudson River valley --
see
http://roberts-1.com/bikehudson/r/m/long_distance
for some ideas about planning a route, and
http://roberts-1.com/bikehudson/r/nyc_albany
for a detailed route from NYC to Albany which offers lots of pretty
alternatives to the obvious major roads.

For ideas for riding north from Albany along the Hudson River, see these
reports:
http://roberts-1.com/bikehudson/v/no.../river/reports
and check the link to hannah's report about her Montreal-to-NYC tour.

The amazing Amit has _skated_ all the way from NYC to Lake George. I have
skated about half of that so far, and enjoyed it a lot. Sharon and I keep
going back and riding the off-the-main routes along the Hudson River again
and again, we enjoy them so much.

at its best, it's a very hilly ride.

Yes, if you go east-west between the major river valleys of the northeastern
U.S., like between the Hudson River and the Connecticut River. If you take
the Delaware River to the Wallkill River valley northeast to the Hudson
River and keep going north, the hills not so bad (though surely not absent).

Ken


  #6  
Old June 8th 04, 04:22 AM
Ron Wallenfang
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Posts: n/a
Default East Coast Greenway NYT article

Good information, probably. I have an ultimate goal of riding in all 50
states. (I have 42 right now.) For the just completed trip, I needed to
pick up Vermont and Maine, and did the former while northbound and the
latter while southbound. With that focus, I didn't seriously look at the
possibiity of the Hudson Valley, but can see your point. You are certainly
correct that east-west routes in the northeastern US are almost always
hilly. That was the case with every one that I rode this year.



"Ken Roberts" wrote in message
...
Ron Wallenfang wrote
I have no idea what better route there is.


The chances of happy riding are much better in the Hudson River valley --
see
http://roberts-1.com/bikehudson/r/m/long_distance
for some ideas about planning a route, and
http://roberts-1.com/bikehudson/r/nyc_albany
for a detailed route from NYC to Albany which offers lots of pretty
alternatives to the obvious major roads.

For ideas for riding north from Albany along the Hudson River, see these
reports:
http://roberts-1.com/bikehudson/v/no.../river/reports
and check the link to hannah's report about her Montreal-to-NYC tour.

The amazing Amit has _skated_ all the way from NYC to Lake George. I have
skated about half of that so far, and enjoyed it a lot. Sharon and I keep
going back and riding the off-the-main routes along the Hudson River again
and again, we enjoy them so much.

at its best, it's a very hilly ride.

Yes, if you go east-west between the major river valleys of the

northeastern
U.S., like between the Hudson River and the Connecticut River. If you

take
the Delaware River to the Wallkill River valley northeast to the Hudson
River and keep going north, the hills not so bad (though surely not

absent).

Ken




  #7  
Old June 8th 04, 11:18 AM
Ken Roberts
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Posts: n/a
Default East Coast Greenway NYT article

Ron Wallenfang wrote
I have an ultimate goal of riding in all 50 states.


And the states in the northeast US are much smaller than most other regions,
so visiting all of them puts much more constraints on your route selection,
so you're more likely to get stuck riding in roads and towns you don't
enjoy.

Also the road network in the northeast is more dense and more "irrational"
and "old-fashioned" -- because it's pre-motor-vehicle and older and there's
more little hills and more consistent water to support living.

So there's lots more choices about bicycling routes, and local knowledge is
more important in selecting them.

Also the roads in New York state generally are more favorable for cycling
than many other states, and the Hudson River valley is just prettier than
lots of other places. It's unfair.

Ken


 




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