Old Chapel Hill Road · New Hope Creek · Durham, NC

Finish the bridge.

The sidewalks and bike lanes on Old Chapel Hill Road stop protecting people at exactly one spot: the New Hope Creek bridge. We're asking the City of Durham to carry the bike lanes across with flexible posts.

Add your name Email the City Council

We've already paid for this route, except the bridge

State and local governments have invested more than $2 million in sidewalks and bike lanes along Old Chapel Hill Road. But the bike lanes end at the New Hope Creek bridge and pick back up on the other side. On a two-lane bridge with no shoulder, anyone on a bike has to merge into traffic. It's the one spot that makes families near Githens Middle School say, "I'll just drive."

The New Hope Creek bridge on Old Chapel Hill Road, where the bike lanes stop.
$2M+already invested in sidewalks and bike lanes on this corridor
14,500vehicles a day cross the bridge
Top 16%of Durham road segments for crash severity, on the City's High Injury Network

Why it's a priority

Durham's Vision Zero plan aims to end traffic deaths and serious injuries, and it focuses on the High Injury Network: about 10 percent of the city's streets, where about three-quarters of serious and fatal crashes happen. This stretch of Old Chapel Hill Road is on that network, and it's a walking and biking route to Githens Middle School. A high-injury road on a route to school is exactly where Vision Zero says to act first.

Is your street on the High Injury Network? See the City's map and find the nearest one to you.

Check your street

The fix is small and proven

We're asking for flexible delineator posts to carry the bike lanes across, the same kind of protection Durham is installing on MLK Parkway and West Main Street. West Main is a state road too, so the bridge being NCDOT's isn't a barrier.

Federal Highway Administration research found that adding flexible posts to painted bike lanes cut bicycle–vehicle crashes by about half.

Where it stands

  1. June 2026NCDOT, which owns the bridge, said it would likely have no objections if the City installs and maintains flexible posts.
  2. July 2026City staff said they plan to consider the bridge for the FY28 capital budget request, after an NCDOT structural review.
  3. Fall–winter 2026City staff prepare budget requests and the City Manager ranks them. This is where small projects can quietly drop out.
  4. Spring 2027Council sets budget priorities; the City Manager presents the proposed budget in May.
  5. June 2027City Council adopts the FY28 budget.
  6. July 1, 2027Funding becomes available.

Add your name

We'll use the count to show the City how many people want this, and we'll let you know when it's time to speak up. Your name and email are never published.

Email the City Council

One sentence in your own words matters more than a long letter. This opens a draft in your email app, addressed to all seven council members.

Open in my email

Heads up: under North Carolina law, email to City Council and City staff about City business is a public record, including your name and email address.

Where it is

Old Chapel Hill Road over New Hope Creek, near Githens Middle School (NCDOT bridge 310215).

View larger map