Cumberland pedestrian bridge to open Saturday

Metro Nashville will open the Cumberland River Pedestrian Bridge at 10 a.m. Saturday.

The 700-foot bridge spans the river from Shelby Bottoms to Two Rivers Parkway, joining pieces of the Shelby Bottoms and Stones River greenways.

Anyone wanting to take part should park and meet at nearby Wave Country, 2320 Two Rivers Parkway, to walk, bike or skate across the bridge, according to a Metro Parks announcement.

Do Not Text and Drive!

I can not believe that people are talking on the phone while driving but attempting to text while driving is really unbelievable! I know the cyclist did run a read light but,,,,,,, The judge thought that the driver should have been paying attention and not playing with a phone .

A motorist who was texting on her mobile phone when she hit and killed a cyclist has been sentenced to four years in prison.

Jordan Wickington, 19, died from head injuries when he went through a red light and was struck by Kiera Coultas's car in Southampton in February 2007.

The 25-year-old from Hythe, Hampshire, was driving at 45mph in a 30mph zone.

Miss Coultas had earlier been found guilty at Southampton Crown Court of causing death by dangerous driving.

Judge Jeremy Burford also banned her from driving.

"The serious part of your conduct was that you were sending a text on your mobile phone having just received one," he said.

"It occurred at precisely the worst time because you failed to see the cyclist who was crossing the road, having gone through the red light. Travelling as you were at 45mph you hit him and he suffered injuries from which he later died."

Mr Wickington, of Netley, Hampshire, died in Southampton General Hospital.

Speaking after the ruling his sister, Laura, said: "My life came crashing down before me. Seeing my 19-year-old brother lying dying in a hospital bed was too much to take.

"These moments were the most soul-destroying and traumatic moments of my life," she said.

Sgt Alyson West, of Hampshire Constabulary, said the ruling would hopefully discourage others from using their mobile phones while driving.

"Today's sentence will not bring back Jordan Wickington. However, it will hopefully help to deter drivers who continue to flout the law by using their mobile phones while driving.

"The answer is quite simple - don't use your mobile phone and drive.

"Nothing is so important that it can't wait until you stop or arrive safely at your destination."

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/england/hampshire/7270751.stm

Published: 2008/02/29 13:55:45 GMT

Unbelivable

Spanish driver sues dead crash cyclist for damage

Reuters Published: Friday, January 25, 2008

MADRID -- A Spanish driver who collided with a cyclist is suing the dead youth's family 20,000 euros ($29,300) for the damage the impact of his body did to his luxury car, a Spanish newspaper reported on Friday.

Businessman Tomas Delgado says 17-year-old Enaitz Iriondo caused 14,000 euros ($20,500) of damage to his Audi A8 in the fatal 2004 crash in La Rioja region, the El Pais newspaper reported.

Delgado, who has faced no criminal charges for the incident, wants a further 6,000 euros to cover the cost of hiring another vehicle while his car was being repaired, El Pais said.

The youth had been cycling alone at night without reflective clothing or a helmet, according to a police report cited by El Pais.

His family won 33,000 euros compensation from Delgado's insurance company after the firm acknowledged he had been driving at excessive speed and this could have contributed to the incident, El Pais reported.

"I'm also a victim in all of this, you can't fix the lad's problems, but you can fix mine," Delgado told the newspaper, ahead of a Jan. 30 legal decision on his suit.

The family said they had previously pitied Delgado for the guilt he must feel at killing their son but were now disgusted that his greatest concern appeared to be money.

"This was the final straw, a kick in the teeth," the youth's mother Rosa Trinidad told El Pais.

Officials want input on sidewalks, bikeways

By LEA ANN OVERSTREET • January 24, 2008

Metro Public Works and the Metro Planning Department are preparing to update the county’s strategic plan for sidewalks and bikeways.

A seriesof public meetings will be held to inform the public on the county’s plans and gain input from residents who use the trails.

The first meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 31at Bordeaux Elementary, 1910 South Hamilton Road.

District 1 Councilman Lonnell Matthews said that residents concerned with the “enhancement of their community” should make it a point to attend the meeting.

“Sidewalks and bikeways are important to communities for various safety, health, accessibility and economic reasons. Sidewalks and bikeways aid pedestrians and bikers who otherwise would be forced to battle with vehicle traffic,” Matthews said.

For details about the sidewalks and bikeways plan, visit www.nashville.gov/sidewalks

Pedestrian bridge connects greenways

Trail nears completion

By ANNE PAINE • Staff Writer • January 17, 2008

A new bridge arching across the Cumberland River where it bends near Briley and Two Rivers parkways is hard for drivers to miss. Fifty-foot steel towers that rise 130 feet above the water.

"It's not wide enough to drive a car across," said Nashvillian Steve Bacon, an automotive service writer, who has mulled the bridge's purpose as he's watched it grow. "It's got to be a pedestrian bridge, but what does it go to?"

The $7.5 million structure — about $2.8 million was federal and state funds — is a pivotal piece of Metro's greenway system that officials say should open by March.

The bridge will link almost 22 miles of walking/biking trails from MetroCenter north of downtown to Percy Priest Dam. "The whole system connects parks, schools, recreational facilities … and neighborhoods from suburban areas to downtown," said Shain Dennison, Metro Parks greenways director.

For more information and picture click here.

Rails with Trail.... Cookville to Monterey TN

Rails with Trail planners took a ride up to Monterey from Cookville to see where the trail would be constructed.
Information in this link.

Public input vital as Metro assesses sidewalks, bikeways

This month, the Metro Department of Public Works will hold hearings around Nashville on priorities for the city's nearly 5-year-old sidewalk and bikeway program. But it could be a tight year for those who hope for an expansion of such urban improvements.

Mayor Karl Dean last fall called for a review of the plan begun by the Purcell administration to determine whether priorities should be reset because of city growth patterns and other changing needs.

At the beginning of the sidewalk and bikeway plan in 2003, Nashville had 752 miles of sidewalks, about half that of comparable cities, and few bicycle lanes. Since then, as The Tennessean recently reported, 124 miles of sidewalks have been added or repaired, 94 miles of bike lanes have been added, and 68 miles of bike routes are being built or designed. The program also added 7,203 wheelchair-accessible sidewalk ramps.

The numbers are encouraging, but suggest that Metro government has a long way to go, especially if its leaders are to fulfill expectations of turning Nashville into a people magnet prized for its vibrant quality of life.

Urban planners and municipal officials long ago identified the ability to get around a city without driving as a major factor people take into account when they decide where to live. The neighborhoods that developed rapidly at the height of suburban sprawl failed to consider the aesthetic and practical value attached to safe, convenient walking to shops, restaurants and libraries. Nashville has certainly been guilty of that shortsightedness in the past, but now has begun a turnaround. Neighborhood activists, Metro Council members, school officials, even developers call for more and improved sidewalks in areas of Davidson County where walking has been hazardous, if not impossible.

But this march toward progress may run into a major roadblock this year: the economy.

Even in previous years, the sidewalk program was underfunded. The original 2003 plan called for a $20 million annual budget. But the program never received more than $5 million-$10 million in a year, and the amount has been shrinking. Jim Snyder, Public Works' director of capital projects, told The Tennessean that $5 million will cover only repair and maintenance.

Now, with the national economic picture worsening, so may local programs such as sidewalks. In early December, Dean told Metro department heads to sketch out scenarios for cuts as deep as 15 percent for the 2008-09 budget. With the need to cover school improvements and police and fire protection, not to mention Metro jobs, sidewalk program advocates should not expect an infusion of cash this year.

That does not mean citizens should give up on the program, however. There are ways to continue improvements without extra funds. For example, Public Works is exploring ways to better target areas that most need new sidewalks or repairs, such as schools and parks. The department is also looking for tie-ins to other projects; a new sidewalk or bike lane may be attached to a stormwater project along the same right of way, for example. These approaches are promising, but will be more so if citizens take a hand in making them happen. Who knows better than a resident where sidewalks and bike lanes are needed most?

If you have ever worried about your child's safety in your neighborhood or wished you could conveniently walk or bike to the corner store, you owe it to yourself to take part in the public hearings and the subsequent comment periods on the Public Works findings.

Walk/Bike Nashville holds bike safety session in response to recent death

East Nashville-based organization Walk/Bike Nashville will hold a bike safety clinic Jan. 19 in response to the death of Trenton Watson, who died Monday morning was hit by a car after darting into traffic on his bike.

The organization issued the following statement:
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Walk/Bike Nashville would like to extend condolences to the family of Trenton Watson. We are saddened by the bicycle incident on January 7, 2008 that took such a promising young person from our community. In response, Walk/Bike Nashville, in coordination with the East Nashville community will offer a bicycle safety clinic on Saturday, January 19th. Parents and children are welcome and encouraged to participate. The first 50 children to arrive will receive a free bicycle helmet.

The clinic is from 10am-12Noon at the East Community Center in the auditorium. The clinic is drop-in style, so parents and children may join the clinic throughout the day and enjoy various on-bike modules and other educational opportunities.

For more information, contact director Shannon Hornsby at 585-2014.