Visitors to the Old City will find an interesting new addition to the streetscape on Central Street: Knoxville's first "bike corral," which converts an on-street parking space into parking for bicycles.
Bike corrals are used in areas that have narrow sidewalks where racks can't fit, or when there is a high demand for bike parking.
Six bike racks have been installed in a parking spot in front of Old City Java.
Racks have also been added on the sidewalk in front of new businesses on the 400 block of Union Avenue, and more racks are going in on the south end of Market Square.
This is to accommodate the increase in the number of people riding bicycles to shop, eat, work and enjoy themselves downtown. More bike racks mean people can lock their bikes safely and conveniently without damaging property or landscaping.
The racks were provided through a grant from the Knoxville Regional Transportation Planning Organization, and installation work was done by the City of Knoxville.