The lead story at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday on WTVD (ABC11) focused on a new report on bike lane spending from Julie Tisdale, John Locke Foundation city and county policy analyst.
RALEIGH — Census data show that new and converted bicycle lanes represent a “poor use” of limited state and local N.C. transportation dollars. That’s a key finding from a new John Locke Foundation Spotlight report.
“Leaders at the N.C. Department of Transportation and in North Carolina’s cities should rely on demonstrated widespread demand for bike infrastructure before spending tax dollars on these projects,” said report author Julie Tisdale, JLF City and County Policy Analyst. “And they should weigh that demand against the negative impact on the vast majority of employees, business owners, and consumers who choose to travel by car.”
Tisdale urges policymakers to rely on transportation data, not rhetoric. Raleigh’s bicycle plan serves as an example with statewide implications. Raleigh spent $4.62 million on on-road bikeways in 2015. The city increased its bikeway infrastructure from 73 miles to 179 miles from 2009 to 2015.
“What becomes apparent very quickly when reading Raleigh’s plan is that low ridership numbers don’t really matter to planners,” Tisdale said. “They might like numbers to be higher, but the language in the plan offers a mix of aspiration, moral superiority, and social engineering.”