Michigan bike path gets citizen push

From the the Observer & Eccentric Newspapers (Northville, MI), 12.06.07:

Group aims to show benefits of bike riding
Dave Duffield has been a bicycle enthusiast for the last 35 years. It was at that time, in Grosse Pointe, that two of his teachers made the conscious decision to offer youngsters an alternative to the run-of-the-mill sporting activities.

Today, as an adult, bike riding remains an important part of Duffield's life, as he routinely opts for the two-wheel form of transportation as he travels to and from work...Duffield takes the I-275 nonmotorized pathway to work as often as Mother Nature will allow.

As a way to promote usage of the path, Duffield, members of the Friends of the I-275 Bike Path group and members of the Michigan Trails & Greenways Alliance (MTGA) hosted an informational session last night on the work underway by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) to plan the renovation of the I-275 Bikeway and new connections to it.

"Having ridden my bike for so many years and coming from a family that believes in giving back to the community, I felt (establishing the group) was something I would not only believe in, but something I used myself to commute to work on," Duffield said.

"It's so important today because the cost of gasoline is not going to go down any time soon and the benefits of more and more people on bicycles for global warming is obvious, not to mention the health benefits from cycling. This might help Michigan get off the list of most overweight states in the nation." (Read more.)

Recreational bike paths inevitably become important travel corridors for bicycling commuters. And, as this article illustrates, these commuters often become the best advocates for path enhancements.

Image: Observer & Eccentric. Bike commuter Dave Duffield.
Visit: Paul Dorn's Bike Commuting Tips