US Bike Route 35

The Adventure Cycling Association has proposed a network of bicycle routes across the United States. USBR 35 is a north-south bicycle corridor that will eventually go from Sault Ste Marie to Mississippi. In Michigan the proposed route will parallel Lake Michigan then cut through Traverse City.



For more on the Michigan section see: Meet Paul VandenBosch: Developing USBR 35 Along Lake Michigan

More Trail Economics

In Michigan, hunters spend $916 million. Snowmobilers have a $245 million impact. Anglers and bird watchers are estimated to inject $1.6 billion each. But no one knows how much non-motorized trails are worth.

See Mlive: State leaders miss mark by ignoring economic impact of non-motorized trail recreation

For comparison, a recent study in Wisconsin showed bicycling had a $1.5 billion economic impact plus possibly millions of dollars more in health care costs due to a healthy biking population.

See TheNorthWestern.com: UW study: Bicycling has huge economic impact

The Benefits Of Trails Extend Beyond The Trail

Some information regarding the economic benefit of trails:

Via the Adventure Cycling Association: The Economic Benefit Of Bike Travel

Via the Dayton Daily News: Bike trail users spend millions of dollars locally, says survey

The trails in these studies are long distance urban to urban trails. More like a Traverse City to Cadillac or Petoskey trail than the Leelanau trail.

But this is what I want to see. Long distance city-to-city trails originating from Traverse City. I'd like to see Traverse City as the hub of a regional trail system as the experiences of other communities demonstrates that these trails can be worth millions of dollars per year to the local economy.

These Are Related

R-E: County won't pay for Boardman trail studies

TheAtlantic: The Geography of Obesity

25% of Michiganders are obese and some Grand Traverse County Commissioners voted against studying an expansion of the Boardman Lake trail because "Many of my constituents have never seen this trail and probably never will in their lifetime".

Well, Commissioner, maybe if they did see the trail they wouldn't be so fat.

This reminds me of a comment overheard this past weekend while taking the shuttle from the Detroit airport to the parking lot across the street "My feet are killing me. That [the walk from the terminal to luggage claim] was the farthest I have walked since the last time we were at the airport".

Making Bicycle Touring A Bigger Draw

The Traverse City area is a great biking area and hosts some well known events such as the Iceman Cometh Challenge; Twin Bays Cyclocross races; the Cherry-Roubaix Old Town Criterium; the Tour de Leelanau (which had to be canceled in 2009 due to the economy).

Races are one thing - what about the big city tourist looking for a weekend ride on quiet roads? Go to the nationally advertised tourist booking first stop, michigan.org, and search for Traverse City bike tours and you just get a list of places to bike.

The same search at Traverse City's Visitor's and Convention web site gives similar results.

A google search leads you to the Cherry Capital Cycling Club - but it is for locals.

Has no one thought of establishing European style bicycle tours of the northern Michigan wineries? Has no one thought of turning the city owned ski hill Hickory Hills and the surrounding park area into a summer freeriding destination?

Like so many other recreational opportunities, Traverse City can look at a similar Colorado town for guidance. See: Efforts in motion to promote Steamboat as cycling destination

A study by the Western Canada Mountain Bike Tourism Association found that the economic impact of mountain biking in southern British Columbia is substantial. The study found that visitors to Whistler Mountain Bike Park spent nearly $16.5 million in summer 2006 and supported an estimated 384 jobs paying $12.8 million in wages and salaries.

The Lure Of Michigan's Trails

Michigan's developing trail network is a great asset for the state, and it is surprising that there are people who still oppose them despite the great economic advantage they bring to the cities served.

MLive has a recent article on the topic: Michigan's trails a great draw for communities

Bike Friendly

Via TART: Traverse City recognized as a Bicycle Friendly Community

Cross Country Skiing

MyNorth.com has a nice article about all the wonderful skiing opportunities in northern Michigan: Cross-Country Skiing Through Traverse City's Coastal Forests

Water Trails

Many communities across America are considering and organizing water trails for canoers and kayakers. American Rivers calls them "Blue Trails" and have launched a web site to help communities get started.

See: Blue Trails Guide

Welcome to The Blue Trails Guide

The Blue Trails Guide by American Rivers provides step-by-step instructions for developing thriving blue trails, the water equivalent to hiking trails, in your community.

To have a successful blue trail you need to have a healthy river, which is why this guide focuses on river conservation. You will find practical advice on planning, building, and managing for conservation and case studies from experts across the country.

This guide will help your community protect and restore your rivers and landscapes through recreation.

Trail Contributes More Than $8 million To Local Virginia Economy

The Virginia Birding and Wildlife Trail is much larger than Traverse City's TART system, but the lesson I see is that by encouraging more trails we can have a tremendous economic impact.

See: Assessment of the Virginia Birding and Wildlife Trail

Trails Bring Goodness

Via American Trails is a link-page featuring many studies correlating non-motorized trails to economic growth. See: Economic impacts of trails and greenways.