Cycling Around Atlanta's Automotive Infrastructure

 For the holidays this year, I received an e-bike as a gift from my husband, and it has opened up a world of possibility for me given Atlanta's hilly topography. I can focus on riding my regular bike to and from the Decatur Recreation Center pool, and use the e-bike for longer-distance rides.

Cyclist selfie in Candler Park

Cycling the city opens up new perspectives, illuminating the borders between neighborhoods and the funny interstitial spaces at the edges of old industrial zones. Nevertheless, it is clear that Atlanta has a long way to go on its journey toward bike friendliness.

Whenever a truly protected bike lane appears, it makes you feel like a native of the road. You are given permission to zoom along to your heart's content without worrying about cars or pedestrians. But most of the time, these moments are fleeting. More frequently, you must share a common pathway with dog-walkers or ride along the edge of a road with cars just waiting to pass you. 

Still, there is nothing like cycling to chain together spaces that feel otherwise disconnected while preserving the distinctiveness of each community. I felt this on Monday as I road from Decatur to Clarkston on the Stone Mountain PATH trail. I could feel the dips between communities as residential streets gave way to weedy industrial lots and then active commercial buildings. The most hair-raising part of the trail involved crossing I-285 on a metal-encaged overpass bridge, watching vehicles whizz by beneath my wheels. And yet, road crossings were inevitably harrowing, knowing that drivers may or may not pay attention to a cyclist attempting to cross the intersection. 

This morning, I road north and west from my house to Candler Park, passing through Lake Clare (where there is no actual body of water) via the hills of McLendon Road. Luckily, most cars and trucks passing from the east to the west side of Atlanta use DeKalb avenue or Ponce de Leon, so McLendon is relatively quiet and thus designated as a bike route. Inside Candler Park, I was grateful for my e-bike's assist as the grades are quite steep, and I took a moment to rest before turning around and heading home. The Park could mark a point a third of the way along a route to Piedmont Park in the heart of Atlanta's mid-town.  That's next on my list to try, via the Freedom Parkway bike trails and the Beltline. I'll report back once I've completed it.

Emily, my e-bike, in Candler Park

As of now, I've learned an important lesson, though, about e-biking. A first-aid kit is a must. Hilariously, just as I was zooming down the hill on Jefferson Place, I tipped the bike while attempting to make a right turn into my driveway. E-bikes require you to slow down quite a lot before attempting a tight turn, due to their weight.  A couple scraped knees and bruised ego later, I'll know better for next time.