Tag / Walking

by Leo Suarez

The DT Raleigh Walking Tour Gets a Reboot

Sidewalks of Fayetteville Street

Long time readers may remember when I wrote up a walking tour on downtown Raleigh. I took that down last year because lack of maintenance and neglect basically made it fall apart. Well, I’ve freshened up the tour and am now ready to relaunch it.

WALK.dtraleigh.com

The tour is simple and has ten stops up and down Fayetteville Street and between Moore and Nash Square. Visitors and new residents to Raleigh may enjoy the tour to “get their feet wet” with downtown as well as see some other spots for later visits.

The tour’s website is mobile ready so if you have a smartphone, there’s no need to print it out and no need to download an app. Just load the page and start walking.

Enjoy!

Related walking tours in Raleigh:

by Leo Suarez

The Raleigh Comprehensive Pedestrian Plan, A Connoisseur’s Overview

Sidewalk along Peace Street.

The city’s newest plan for improving the pedestrian experience in Raleigh was posted on the city’s website a few weeks ago and public comments are being taken on it until this Friday. Whether you realize it or not, the sidewalks are a significant transportation system and are important for multi-modal trips around Raleigh.

Last year, voters approved a $40 million transportation bond with $4.75 million going towards sidewalk related improvements. The comprehensive plan lists out some of those projects as well as moving Raleigh to a new system of prioritization for future projects.

I found the plan thorough and easy to read. It goes into the design of new sidewalks and intersections, best practices, and uses technical language to explain things but not to a point that confuses a reader. This plan can really empower a neighborhood that’s looking to make changes and allow them to “speak the language” when researching the option to petition for improvements.

Here is my chapter to chapter summary for those preferring an even lighter read.

Continue reading →

by Leo Suarez

Municipography, Walking, Union Station, and Commuter Trains

Municipography is a summary of current issues going through the Raleigh City Council and other municipal departments in the city. The point is to try to deliver any video, photos, and text associated with the discussions happening at City Hall or elsewhere. Since this is a downtown Raleigh blog, the focus is on the center of the city.

Walk Raleigh


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Matt Tomasulo and his Walk Raleigh signs have been accepted as a gift to the city. The signs brought international attention to Raleigh and after some time had to be taken down because of the lack of a permit. Still, the signs made their statement and some will be put back up for a 90 day pilot program.

The council unanimously approved.

Union Station Financials


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Last month, city staff was authorized to apply for a Transportation Investment Generating Economic
Recovery (“TIGER”) grant for a component of Union Station. The NCDOT and Triangle Transit are helping with the application too and have come up with this financial breakdown:

  • Station development: 80% federal, 10% state, 10% city
  • Rail/track/platform improvements: 80% federal, 20% state
  • Street improvements: 80% federal, 20% city

This puts the city’s cost at $7 million. Remember, that last year $3 million was approved by voters in the Transportation Bond. So the remaining $4 million will have to be worked into next year’s budget cycle. This move helps the grant application.

John Odom voted against this stating concerns about the cost while the rest of the council approved.

Commuter Rail Station Locations


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The city’s Passenger Rail Task Force stopped by to endorse the locations of the commuter rail stations in Raleigh. Those four being at:

  • Southeast Raleigh at Hammond and Rush Streets
  • Downtown Raleigh at the Warehouse District
  • NC State near Dan Allen Drive
  • West Raleigh near Corporate Center Drive

You can read about more about this as well as light rail and buses at the Transit tag link but for the best wrap up of the commuter rail plans jump to, “Transit, Commuter Rail, and More, We Dive Into The Docs.”

The council approved this unanimously.