THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, October 1, 1994 TAG: 9410010258
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PAUL SOUTH, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: AVON LENGTH: Medium: 92 lines
After a decade of talk, a multi-use bike path the length of Hatteras Island is slowly but surely pedaling toward reality.
Supporters are hoping that work can start in spring on the 29-mile path that they contend is badly needed because of increasing traffic on narrow North Carolina Route 12.
One of those who worries about the safety of joggers, strollers and bikers who now use the highway is Bob Wroe.
``It's not safe,'' he said when he saw hikers walking along the road. ``I know the path is going to happen, so it will be safe to walk.''
Working with the Department of the Interior, the National Park Service, the North Carolina Department of Transportation and Dare County, the Hatteras Island Business Association is trying to raise money and public support for the proposed path.
Wroe, a local real estate agent who is coordinating public relations for the push, said increasing traffic on the island is a major reason the path should be built.
``I'm a volunteer firefighter in Avon, so we hear all about the accidents that happen. We've had three major accidents down here this year. In the most recent one, a bicyclist was accidentally hit by a car's side-view mirror as it passed. I have two little girls. We need a place down here that's safe for people to ride or rollerblade or whatever.''
The current campaign began three months ago, but the idea has been discussed for a decade.
The National Park Service identified the need for a separate bike path on Hatteras Island in 1984, as part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore General Management Plan.
In a letter last month to the business association, Cape Hatteras National Seashore Superintendent Thomas L. Hartman expressed full support for the path. The projected cost of the project is $2.3 million, with most of the money coming from the state.
``As visitation increases,'' Hartman wrote, ``the need to provide a paved recreational path safely separated from N.C. 12 becomes more and more critical. The traffic volume, the number of oversized vehicles, and sandy shoulders on the main thoroughfare make bicycling very dangerous. I fully support this project. . . ''
Wroe said the project also has the support of Dare County Commissioner Mac Midgett, the Department of Transportation and U.S. Rep. Martin Lancaster.
``It's been amazing,'' Wroe said. ``We've done all this in the last three months. The reaction we get from everyone down here is, `Wow, I can't believe this is going to happen.' ''
The major issues facing supporters are pinning down the funding and getting a commitment on beginning construction. Organizers are holding raffles, putting placards in local businesses and building a grass-roots core of support.
``The money is there,'' Wroe said. ``We are working now to try to get that funding and to raise community awareness.''
He said he does not see any problem in getting state money for the project because of the widespread support it has generated.
``Our slogan has been `If we build it, they'll come,' '' Wroe said. ``The people are already here. Now it's up to us to build it.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by DREW C. WILSON
Cape Hatteras School students Stefan, 8, left, and Lacey Schartz, 7,
cross N.C. 12 in Buxton Thursday. Proponents say a bike path is
badly needed because of increasing traffic on the narrow road.
BUILDING THE PATH
Here is a look at the proposed phases of construction for the
Hatteras Multi-use Bicycle Path. For more information on the effort
to build the path, call the Hatteras Island Business Association at
919-995-4799 or 919-995-5500.
PHASE I: 3.8 miles between Buxton and Avon. Projected cost:
$338,300. Projected start date: March.
PHASE II: 1.6 miles between Frisco and Hatteras. Projected cost:
$168,000. Projected start date: March.
PHASE III: 11.5 miles from Salvo to Avon. Projected cost: $1.206
million Projected start date: March 1996.
PHASE IV: 12.1 miles between Rodanthe and Oregon Inlet. Projected
cost: $605,000 for work widening the Bonner Bridge. The business
association is currently lobbying the North Carolina Department of
Transportation to include provisions for a path in the Bonner Bridge
project.
by CNB