COLUMBIA, S.C. —
The City of Columbia is looking for volunteers to help count pedestrians and bicyclists in September.
Volunteers can be anyone, and officials say the project could impact the future of the Capital City.
“The city conducts bicyclist and pedestrian counts once each fall and spring, and the purpose of the counts is to capture key intersections and locations throughout the city,” said Tristan Kercher, Associate Planner, City of Columbia.
Volunteers are asked to count at one location for two hours. Some of the locations targeted are areas where pedestrians and bicyclists have been injured or killed.
“I'm happy they're doing the count because they're actually acknowledging that bike pedestrians are having troubles with the road system," said Rebecca Everling, owner of Cycle Center. "And I love that they're doing the count. I think it's going to be a valuable tool.”
Volunteers will be able to count during as many shifts as they want.
The data collected will allow Columbia leaders to see who uses the streets and sidewalks in the city. Transportation agencies will use the data to make decisions about the city’s landscape.
“We hope that with counts, we can create a more walkable and bikeable city. That is the, that's the primary ambition of conducting counts, improve the safety of bicyclists and pedestrians and make it more friendly to those, to those folks do to get around the city safely and efficiently,” said Kercher.