{"id":479,"date":"2012-02-09T16:30:00","date_gmt":"2012-02-09T16:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wabikes.org\/2012\/02\/09\/biking-and-walking-are-part-of-the-transportation-mix-in-rural-america\/"},"modified":"2013-01-05T21:27:17","modified_gmt":"2013-01-05T21:27:17","slug":"biking-and-walking-are-part-of-the-transportation-mix-in-rural-america","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wabikes.org\/index.php\/2012\/02\/09\/biking-and-walking-are-part-of-the-transportation-mix-in-rural-america\/","title":{"rendered":"Biking and walking are part of the transportation mix in rural America"},"content":{"rendered":"
I\u2019ve lived the majority of my life in an urban environment\u2014but not all of it.<\/span>\u00a0 For about ten years, I lived in Athens, Ohio\u2014a college town with roughly 22,000 residents in the rural southeast corner of the state. <\/span><\/div>\n

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As a college student, I lived on or close to campus and walked or biked to classes.<\/span>\u00a0 The university campus is located adjacent to the uptown business district so I also walked or biked to my part-time job, shops and entertainment.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span><\/div>\n

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After graduation, I moved to a north end residential neighborhood and went to work for a local non-profit agency.<\/span>\u00a0 My job required traveling a three-county region so I seldom biked to work, but I frequently saw my neighbors walking and biking to their jobs at the university or uptown.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Athens residents bike and walk to work in large numbers.<\/span>\u00a0 The city\u2019s 2010 non-motorized transportation plan<\/a> revealed that nearly 3% biked to work and 42% walked.<\/span>\u00a0 That\u2019s astounding!<\/span><\/div>\n

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But guess what?<\/span>\u00a0 Walking and biking are not unusual in small town America.<\/span>\u00a0 While few communities\u2014large or small\u2014have a non-motorized mode split like Athens, a new report reveals that biking and walking count as a significant means of transportation in rural areas.<\/span><\/div>\n

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ActiveTransportation Beyond Urban Centers: Walking and Bicycling in Small Towns and Rural America<\/em><\/a>, produced by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, dispels the commonly held belief that only city folk bike and walk.<\/span>\u00a0 From the report:<\/span><\/div>\n

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Due in large measure to lack of heavy traffic, smaller towns offer viable choices for people of all ages to travel without climbing into a car.<\/span>\u00a0 Parents are more likely to let younger kids bike to school or baseball practice, while seniors feel more comfortable strolling to the library or local caf\u00e9.<\/span>\u00a0 Many small towns and cities developed prior to World War II were originally designed with pedestrians in mind, so taking a walk downtown or riding a bike for exercise feels safe.<\/span><\/div>\n

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Modest investments to improve biking and walking safety, such as building a sidewalk or sidepath, can be beyond the budget for small towns with declining populations and limited economic opportunities.<\/span>\u00a0 The very programs under attack by Congress right now, Transportation Enhancements and Safe Routes to School, can be critical funding resources for rural communities.\u00a0 Download the report<\/a> to learn more about biking and walking in rural America.<\/span><\/div>\n

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