We are very close to having a REAL BIKE LANE on the lower spillway road connecting Rankin County with Ridgeland and Madison! All that is left is to put the white line down. We have promoted a WHITE LINE ONLY with raised reflective paint that alerts the occasional wandering motorist with a high pitched sound. This safely gets their attention faster than the low pitched, vehicle shaking caused by rumble strips. The shaking associated with rumble strips causes more of a startle reaction than a controlled alert for steering correction, and actually slows down reaction time. Also, we constantly repair flats, broken spokes and wrecks that are caused by cyclists trying to negotiate rumble strips in our area, and most road cyclists fear them, with good reason.
We are asking you to call your contacts today and lobby for a white line only on the low spillway road. We have spoken with a few people to lobby against the rumble strips in this area. Your help is needed, now! Our good customer, Mr. Ralph Barnes with Adcamp is the paving contractor and has done a fantastic job of putting down exceptionally smooth asphalt for the new bike lane. Thank you Ralph! The construction engineer is Neel-Schaffer, we understand. We have put in a call and hope to convince the district to start with a slightly raised white stripe to test the effectiveness. We are convinced this is the best alternative for bike lanes, which are the very best way for cyclists and motorists to safely and efficiently coexist!
As soon as the dividing line is painted, we will plan a grand opening ride to celebrate this important connection. It has been a long time in coming and we thank those who have finally made it happen! It is sure to help cyclists on both sides of the river better enjoy our great roads and trails!
