Where they Stand : David Pinkleton

Here are my thoughts on Complete streets and bicycles on roadways in general.  I do not have a problem with individuals riding their bikes on roadways for recreational or commuting purposes.  I know that on Bailey Cove Road, near where I live, bike path signs and route numbers have been added recently.  I feel that this is a step in the right direction in bringing awareness to the reality that bicyclists ride on roadways, too.  However, I am concerned about the cost for adopting a Complete streets model.  It seems that an additional 2-3 feet of roadway would have to be added to each direction of traffic in order to make roadways safer for both bicyclists and motorists.  Right now our state does not have the extra revenue needed to expand current roadways or build new roadways to accommodate bicyclists.  I think that the next best step is to mark roadways that bicyclists use with signs and begin an education campaign to alert motorists to the reality of bicyclists on city streets.  Furthermore, most Huntsville residents commute to work via car because our city is spread out and not centralized as some other urban areas of the country.  Thus, I think that most Huntsville residents will not want to use taxpayer money to widen roadways to accommodate bicyclists when a small percentage of Huntsville workers ride their bikes to work.  Your question about bicyclists and Complete Streets is the first of its kind that I have received during my candidacy.  I appreciate your thoughts and I urge you to continue to send me information about bicycle safety, statistics, and education campaigns so I can better understand these needs in the community.  Thanks again for contacting me.

God Bless,

David Pinkleton

Where they Stand : Mitchell Howie

Thank you for your e-mail. I am always happy to hear from my neighbors in the 5th district.

We now know that urban planning has impacts that go far beyond aesthetics all the way to public health. I agree that Huntsville pedestrians and bicyclists are unnecessarily exposed to risk on our streets and Alabama as a whole is ranked 50th in this category. As a member of Congress, I will support the effort to encourage cities and communities to adopt Complete Streets to improve safety, public health, and the general welfare.

Thank you again for contacting me and I hope you will contact me in the future with any questions, concerns, or comments.

Mitchell Howie

Respectfully,

Mitchell J. Howie for Congress Campaign

Where they Stand : Ron Sparks

Thanks for the info, I certainly will have my staff look into this issue and do what I can to help the city officals in Huntsville. 

Where they Stand : Jonathan Hitt

Thank you for the information.  I have been a firm believer that bikers and pedestrians should have equal rights as other commuters; however, that information is new to me - thank you for providing it.  I will look into the Complete Streets link and would be very interested in learning more about other potential solutions.  Feel free to contact me again by email or at

Thanks,
Candidate, Huntsville City Council District 3
Jonathan Hitt

Where they Stand : James Lomax

Thanks for the concern and sending this email. I as well use my bicycle quite a bit and have already been looking into ways to solve this issue.

I'm sometimes even afraid just to ride my bike around town and my college's campus. I see the main problem being awareness. People just do not pay enough attention to bicyclists and pedestrians. I have already looked into the Ride On national campaign to create a very comprehensive advertising campaign for pedestrian awareness. It has to be very "in your face" if we are to raise the awareness of citizens. While this will do much good, you have brought up another issue.

The streets themselves are an issue. If you have been downtown recently you will notice a lot of roadwork near the courthouse, but no bicycle lanes or expansion of sidewalks. This is the core problem. Complete streets makes sense to me, and I don't see why we couldn't expand our streets just a bit to allow room for bicyclists and pedestrians to safely get around. It would add a sense of community to the downtown area where as now it is just a feeling of commuting. Bicycle lanes shouldn't just be on green-ways, they should be on roadways as well!

At a council meeting I attended this issue was brought up and the council said that they all agree, but it wasn't worth the funding and we simply can't afford it. This offended me. As a city councilman, and a bicyclist, I would see it very much worth my time to have a presence in Montgomery, and make sure we get the funds we need to run this advertising campaign and fix our streets to accommodate pedestrians. Since this is a public safety and transportation issue, it is one that is worth taking to Montgomery for funds.

I hope I answered some of your concerns. Feel free to message back as I'd love to hear what you have to say. This is an issue that really gets me fired up as well!

Sincerely,
James Lomax
Candidate, Huntsville City Council District 3