Cyclists, Rejoice. The East Coast Is Building A Maine-To-Florida Bike Path
The Northwest seems to get most of the credit as far as bike-loving residents are concerned - ahem, Portland - but if you love to pedal to your heart's delight, the East Coast may actually soon be the place for you.
The non-profit organization East Coast Greenway Alliance (ECGA) is building a 3,000-mile bike path that will stretch from Calais, Maine to Key West, Florida, giving cyclists the chance to see 15 states and 450 communities via two wheels.
Sound impossible? Don't doubt the power of cyclists: The trail is actually coming along quite nicely. About 850 miles have already been created, and another 200 miles will be added by 2020, according to Curbed.
"It's about seeing America at the right speed, where you can take in all of the culture around you," ECGA executive director Dennis Markatos-Soriano told CityLab. "And you don't have a windshield between yourself and the community."
(And beyond the handy health benefits of biking, just imagine the airfare you could save on.)
The ECGA has been working on the project since 1991, creating segments of the trail throughout the East Coast to eventually link together. Though the organization cannot predict exactly when it'll be completed (the project relies on local volunteers to bring path segments up to code), its goal is to have a 95 percent traffic-free route by 2030.
Since the path is intended to eventually be completely off-road and traffic-free, any on-road sections of the trail are considered "interim."
The Greenway runs alongside the rivers and train tracks that connect the East Coast's cities. Currently, the trail experiences 11 million visits per year and has 40,000 supporters and volunteers, according to the ECGA.
Check out the video below to see the most recent work on the trail.
h/t: Curbed
