Skip to main content

The Power of Greenways

Diagram showing Chattanooga city limits and surrounding state boundary lines, Tennessee River, and streams. Overlay shows outlines of local greenways, including the Tennessee Riverline, South Chickamauga Greenway, Proposed ChickChatt NMP Greenway, Propose

Greenways have transformed Chattanooga. First, the Riverwalk, which stretches 16 miles from Chickamauga Dam through Downtown and the Southside to St. Elmo. Then the South Chickamauga Greenway, extending 13 miles eastward from the Riverwalk to Camp Jordan. The proposed ChickChatt Greenway would connect the south end of the Riverwalk to the South Chick Greenway, creating a 55-mile loop passing around the southern end of the Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park. And the newest greenways, now underway the Alton Park Connector and proposed Clifton Hills Connector, will connect the city's southside neighborhoods to the Riverwalk spine.

A missing connection–
and why there’s urgency

There’s a part of Chattanooga that lacks safe walking and cycling connections to the rest of the city: Lookout Valley. There’s not even a public transit option. If you want to travel to or from Lookout Valley, you drive. Period.

A protected pedestrian and cycling connection
between the Riverwalk and Lookout Valley would change that.

A greenway connector option would provide safe non-vehicular access for Chattanoogans and visitors to historic sites including National Park Service properties like Cummings Bottom, the staging point for the Battle Above the Clouds, and to Reflection Riding Arboretum & Nature Center, one of the region’s most beloved outdoor destinations, with more than 120,000 visitors per year.

Eventually, coupled with a bikeway system within Lookout Valley, the connectors would also allow access to mountain biking and hiking trails at Raccoon Mountain and Black Creek/Aetna. Or continued access down Lookout Creek to Trenton or even into the Tennessee River Gorge for the best views of that scenic treasure.

With new developments like the Bend and the new Stadium, and with increased commercial and residential development in Lookout Valley, trips between Lookout Valley and the rest of Chattanooga are only going to grow for commuters, shoppers, event-goers, and those who simply want to skip car travel. The need for safe non-vehicular travel options is increasingly crucial.

References

Read more about the information mentioned on this site.