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RALEIGH, N.C. — Should you really feel such as you’ve seen extra individuals biking round Raleigh over the previous few years, you’re proper.
About 1,500 individuals within the metropolis depend on two wheels to get round to work, in keeping with census knowledge. That’s greater than twice what it was 5 years in the past.
Kevin Durso is considered one of them. He started biking when he was a pupil at North Carolina State College.
“I wanted to get to work and sophistication and I did not have a automotive,” Durso mentioned. “I rode throughout downtown Raleigh and campus as my main means of transportation.”
At first, he borrowed a motorcycle from his roommate. Then, he introduced his bike again from dwelling. A yr later, he determined to purchase a highway bike. A decade later, biking continues to be a giant a part of Durso’s life.
“It’s straightforward to get round downtown on a motorcycle,” he mentioned. “It’s enjoyable. It’s a giant a part of my life when it comes to health and athleticism.”
Durso rides recurrently to commute to locations. He works as a motorcycle mechanic at Oak Metropolis Biking and is a part of the racing circuit.
Durso relocated for a couple of years and when he returned, he seen the enhancements to the infrastructure and town starting to embrace bikes extra.
“There’s undoubtedly enhancements to the greenways and locations to journey your bikes across the metropolis over the previous few years,” he mentioned. “It’s cool to see the place we’re going.”
The town has been investing in infrastructure like protected and unprotected bike lanes and greenway techniques. A take a look at the info exhibits that funding is paying off in a giant means, by retaining cyclists safer.
Not solely are there fewer crashes however, when there’s a crash, it’s much less more likely to lead to an damage, in keeping with the info. In 2018, there have been 19 cyclists injured for each 100,000 Raleigh residents. Final yr, it dropped beneath 5 crashes per 100,000 residents — at the same time as town’s inhabitants and curiosity in biking grew.
Durso says there are nonetheless challenges, however small adjustments to the streets are essential.
“There’s an entire checklist of issues that may occur in a group to assist make it a greater place for biking,” he mentioned. “Extra connectivity between the locations we prefer to journey might be a simple factor to do. However it’s troublesome to develop issues for bikes in a world that’s dominated by vehicles.”
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