The effort began after the March 10 death of local cyclist Garrett Wonders, who died after being hit by a pickup truck on a two-lane road near Moncks Corner.

Members of the grassroots effort, including the Palmetto Cycling Coalition, Coastal Cyclists and Lowcountry VW Racing Team, hope to present Sanford with the list of signatures Sunday in North Charleston at the end of his cross-state bike ride.

"We are being optimistic," said Saskia Fronabarger, an attorney with Richardson, Patrick, Westbrook, & Brickman who has dedicated time to the effort. "We hope someone will listen if we have enough signatures."

The petition asks those who sign to list the number of days they would park their vehicles, opting to bike or walk to work, if safer facilities were made available.

A community with safe alternatives to vehicular travel tends to improve an area's quality of life, with a cleaner environment and healthier residents, said Christian Hartley, also an attorney with the law firm. He classified existing area roads as "ridiculous safety hazards."

"The problem will only get worse as long as bicyclists and pedestrians have to share the roads with cars," said Hartley, who helped distribute the petition.

His wife and fellow attorney, Danielle Hartley, said the group's first priority is to extend the bicycle and pedestrian lane from the new Cooper River bridge farther into downtown Charleston and Mount Pleasant. Cyclists successfully fought for a pedestrian and bike path for the new $632 million, eight-lane bridge several years ago. But when the bridge ends, so does the path.

"A relatively little bit of money could go a long way," said Christian Hartley. It costs roughly $35,000 to build a 1-mile-long bicycle path.

But finding money can be difficult, especially when bicycle and pedestrian lanes are not given priority over new road construction projects, said Don Sparks, president of the Charleston Bicycle Advocacy Group. Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties receive roughly $1 million to spend on bike paths annually, he said.

"As great as it is to have the governor's support, it is unlikely we will see anything on the ground," Sparks said. "We need more money to see significant improvements."

For more information go to http://www.bikelanes.org/.

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