As reported by StreetsBlogUSA, Houston is taking a particularly interesting route to creating more bike-friendly territory within its city limits. Inspired by an article in Rice University’s Cite Magazine, student Alyson Fletcher decided to write her master’s thesis at the Cornell University landscape architecture program on the untapped possibility of the city's more than 500 miles of high-voltage utility right-of-way, mostly grassy space around and beneath power lines. Her proposal? Turn these linear greenspaces into a “recreational super-highway” that crisscrosses the urban landscape.
In May of 2014, Houston signed an agreement with CenterPoint Energy that provides the city with free access to some 500 miles of right-of-way, of which 140 plots reside beneath high-voltage lines and are well suited for trails.2 Texas state legislators even passed a law resolving liability within these spaces for CenterPoint, though concerns still remain about the appropriateness of tree cover and the potential for riders to be exposed to slight electromagnetic shocks.3
This move coincides with another urban planning trend: revitalization of under-utilized industrial spaces for recreation, tourism and transportation. Houston's right-of-way bikeway joins New York City's High Line and Atlanta's Beltline as part of a long string of creative re-use projects being undertaken around the country. The question is: what could you do with your right-of-way if given the chance?
1. http://www.livestrong.com/article/292096-which-burns-more-calories-walking-or-biking/
3. https://www.biketexas.org/news/advocacy/1687-houston-takes-the-next-step-in-their-bicycle-network