Biking Across Georgia

Georgia has seen an explosion of bike trails in recent years. It’s growing an extensive network of corridors for people seeking exercise and an alternative to driving. Such trails can connect communities that have been divided by road infrastructure, and they can economically benefit nearby communities.

The Silver Comet Trail, a 61.5-mile paved path stretching from Smyrna to the 33-mile Chief Ladiga Trail in Alabama, forms a combined 94.5-mile contiguous path and is estimated to contribute $118 million to the regional economy annually, according to Bike Ride Across Georgia. The nonprofit organizes an annual ride across the state each June, bringing around 1,000 cyclists to dozens of communities en route. In all, the Silver Comet Trail attracts more than 1.9 million users per year, and that’s bound to grow.

Last year, the Silver Comet Connector was extended to the Woodall Rail Trail along Woodall Creek, a tributary to Peachtree Creek. The Woodall Rail Trail’s southernmost point hits the Northwest Trail of the Beltline – close to The Works mixed-use warehouse district. When completed next year, the multiuse Silver Comet Connector will extend through the Upper Westside district toward Cobb County, weaving together neighborhoods such as Blandtown, Bolton and Underwood Hills.

U.S. Bicycle Route 21, which connects to the Silver Comet Trail, is Georgia’s first USBR designation. The route starts in Downtown Atlanta at the Five Points MARTA station, traverses Atlanta on Peachtree Street then deviates north from the Silver Comet in Cedartown. The route is then mainly on two-lane country roads through Northwest Georgia to Chattanooga – a hilly but beautiful ride that stretches some 161 miles across the state.

Atlanta Beltline leaders opened the final link of the Southside Trail this summer from Pittsburgh Yards to Boulevard, connecting nearly 17 miles of continuous mainline trail from the Northwest, West and South trails to the Eastside and Northeast sections, creating a fluid route that links 36 neighborhoods. This milestone happened in June, ahead of the FIFA World Cup and brings Atlanta closer to finishing the 22-mile trail.

On the north end of town, PATH400 is building a continuous trail from Lindbergh Drive in Buckhead to Sandy Springs, with a towering 80-foot bridge in Buckhead. The PATH400 Trail Extension will be a 2.3-mile multiuse path running parallel to Georgia 400 from the Atlanta/Buckhead border to just inside I-285.

The path will be built primarily along Georgia 400 and will connect to proposed multiuse paths on Peachtree Dunwoody Road and Mt. Vernon Highway. It was paid for through federal funding and the Atlanta Regional Commission. All three segments of the 2.3-mile extension of PATH400 are expected to be completed by 2029.

In Downtown Atlanta, the city’s Department of Transportation partnered with the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District to build cycle track and bike lanes that run east to west through the heart of the city and parts of Georgia State University’s campus, providing a safer route to Downtown attractions and the nearby burgeoning SoDo and Centennial Yard districts. Nearby, Georgia Tech and Midtown Alliance completed a cycle track connecting Tech to Midtown.

Municipalities statewide are hopping onto the trail trend.

Meanwhile, the rails-to-trails Whetstone Creek Trail links Marietta Road to Bolton Road, with a spur to Adams Drive near Bolton Academy.

Let’s not forget the Shirley Clarke Franklin Park, a massive 280-acre space surrounding the 35-acre Bellwood Quarry Reservoir with more than 2.5 miles of trails. A soon-to-open bike park, funded in part by the Chestnut Family Foundation, offers an asphalt pump track, jump lines, a bicycle playground and skills course. The foundation also pitched in to help the Georgia Hi-Lo Trail Kids Bike League, which offers camps, classes and ride days for kids in rural counties along the proposed Georgia Hi-Lo Trail Corridor. Georgia has many cross-state bike paths, but this planned 211-mile path from Union Point, just southeast of Athens, to Savannah promises to rival the Silver Comet in scope.

Municipalities statewide are hopping onto the trail trend. ARC is partnering with Clayton County and the cities of College Park, East Point and Hapeville on the Flint River Gateway Trails system, which aims to create a 31-mile, multiuse network that will eventually connect these municipalities to the Atlanta Beltline, thanks to $64.9 million in federal funds. Macon has the 12-mile Ocmulgee Heritage Trail; Augusta has the 9.4-mile Augusta Canal National Heritage Area Trail tracing the Savannah River. Columbus has the 34-mile Dragonfly Trails network – built on abandoned railroad routes – that connects to the Chattahoochee River, and of course our coastal cities are endlessly bikeable. What are your favorite bike paths in Georgia? 

Ben Young is Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of Georgia Trend. |  byoung@georgiatrend.com