City of Asheville Seeks Volunteers for Bike & Pedestrian Data Collection

Asheville -- August 19, 2024: Press Release: City of Asheville The City's Transportation Department is gearing up

for its annual bike and pedestrian data collection. Each year, the bike and pedestrian data collection is held the week after Labor Day. The data collected helps staff identify bike/ped trends and also helps in implementation of the recently adopted GAP Plan. This year there are two different ways to volunteer, the bike and pedestrian count and the greenway user survey collection. 

Bike and Pedestrian Count Volunteers

Bike and Pedestrian Count Volunteers will count non-motorized users of our streets at a number of specific locations on the following dates: 

Tuesday, September 10th
Wednesday, September 11th
Thursday, September 12th
Saturday, September 14th (*a.m. only)

Weekdays counts will occur from 5 p.m. - 7 p.m. There will also be a few sites available from 7 a.m. - 9 a.m. on the above weekdays. Saturday counts will occur from 9 a.m. - 11 a.m. No special skills or previous experience is required for this volunteer opportunity. 

Greenway User Survey Collection Volunteers

During the same week of the bicycle and pedestrian counts, the City is also seeking volunteers to help conduct Greenway User Surveys on the Wilma Dykeman Greenway and Reed Creek Greenway. These surveys capture information about user behavior and the economic impact of greenways. 

Volunteers will stop greenway users to ask them survey questions on the following dates and times:

Tuesday, September 10th, 8 a.m. - 10 a.m.*
Tuesday, September 10th, 5 p.m. - 7 p.m.*
Saturday, September 14th, 8 a.m. - 10 a.m.
Saturday, September 14th, 3 p.m. - 5 p.m.

*In the case of rain, surveys will take place on Thursday, September 12 instead of Tuesday.

How to sign up

Sign up to volunteer for either opportunity a couple of different ways:

Click directly on the registration link, or
Text 2024count to number 73224 

Staff will try to assign volunteers based on their location preferences but ask for some flexibility. There is no deadline to sign-up, though staff hope to have all sites assigned by early September. After signing up, City staff will reach out within several days with a confirmation email and next steps. If you have any questions, feel free to email Anna Sexton at asexton@ashevillenc.gov.