Cyclists led a campaign on social media and by flooding recent meetings asking City Council to support a protected bike lane along the popular dining and shopping destination of King Street that was proposed by the South Carolina Department of Transportation. File/Grace Beahm Alford/Staff The status of a proposed bike lane on King Street is in limbo after cycling advocates and business owner clashed over its necessity.
Cyclists led a campaign on social media and by flooding recent meetings asking City Council to support a protected bike lane along the popular dining and shopping destination proposed by the South Carolina Department of Transportation. But private conversations between business owners and city leaders compelled them to request that the state agency come up with an alternative design for the street without the bike lane. Some of those business owners attended the City Council meeting on Aug. 15.
“We see almost car accidents happening daily already,” said Gary Flynn, owner of M. Dumas & Sons, a men’s specialty retailer at 294 King St. “If you add bikes to that, that really concerns me as well. I don’t feel like King Street is the right place for it.”
Council voted 8-4 to defer any decision on the proposal until a compromise could be reached. Council members Boyd Gregg, Stephen Bowden, Robert Mitchell and Mayor John Tecklenburg voted against the deferral.
Last year, the state DOT proposed $6.3 million worth of safety improvements for three downtown streets.
King, Meeting and Calhoun streets were all identified as among the […]
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