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The new bicycle racks in “The District” in downtown Columbia, Missouri has caused a little controversy.
I think its great. The more bicycle parking the better, but that’s not what the controversy is about. Everyone seems to agree that more bike parking is a good thing.
The issue is that some people are mad that the the parking meter next to the on street bicycle parking rack, pictured above, was left in place. They are not charging to use the spot. Instead they are using the meter to collect donations for future bicycle improvements as part of the “Get About Columbia” program.
In think this is an excellent idea and I’ll be sure to drop some change in there from time to time even if I am just walking by because dropping some change in this meter does more than just help fund bicycle projects. Its also a vote for cycling in Columbia. See, the more money that meter generates, the more the powers that be see how much support their is for it.
The issue people have with the funding is that Columbia got a large grant of $22 million a few years ago and a lot of people think they shouldn’t be asking the public to fund these projects.
The problem with that thinking is that the grant money will eventually run out. It will take continued funding to pay for maintenance of the existing infrastructure and to do new projects.
I for one just like to see that more and more is being done to improve cycling in Missouri. I think everyone should be happy with what they have and do what they can to help make things better. These bike racks are a step in the right direction for sure.
As cities and towns across the state work to become more bike friendly, their efforts will trickle down to other towns as well. So take note Sedalia, the Pearl River Bicycle Club is working to do a similar parking project in the Sedalia Historic District.
You can see a couple more articles about this over at KansasCyclist.com and at the Columbia Missourian
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