West Cameron Avenue Bicycle Improvements

Spring 2026 Update - Preferred Alternative Selected!

The Town has selected a preferred alternative for the W Cameron Ave Bicycle Improvement Project. Alternative 2: a 10’ wide protected two-way cycle track on the south side of W Cameron Ave (pictured below) rose to the top after a thorough analysis of all the options and their trade-offs as well as a robust community and stakeholder engagement process. Read more here! Staff is looking forward to working with our consultant to advance the design of Alternative 2 towards anticipated construction (including street resurfacing) starting summer 2027.

In response to community interests, the Town has secured federal funding for the design and construction of protected bike infrastructure on West Cameron Avenue from Merritt Mill Road to North Columbia Street. “Protected” means that the bike lanes will be physically separated from the vehicle travel lanes by a raised concrete buffer or something that offers similar protection.

West Cameron Avenue is a main route for people on bikes traveling to and from UNC-Chapel Hill's campus. The Town wants to work with partners to make this route safer for everyone, especially the most vulnerable road users. This project follows a 2023 OWASA waterline replacement and will be installed at the same time as a much-needed street resurfacing.

The Town has hired the firm McAdams to lead the design and engineering phase of this project, which is expected to take 12-18 months. Our hope is to begin construction in Summer of 2027.

Spring 2026 Update - Preferred Alternative Selected!

The Town has hired the firm McAdams to lead the design and engineering phase of this project, which is expected to take 12-18 months. Our hope is to begin construction in Summer of 2027.

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Moving Forward - Selected Option

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Thanks again to everyone who provided feedback on this project. That feedback, along with many other factors, led us to select our preferred option to move towards construction in 2027.

The West Cameron Ave bicycle improvements will be on the south side of the street in the form of a 10 foot wide cycle-track (pictured below) that covers about 0.6 miles from Merritt Mill Rd to S Columbia Street. This project will provide a safe and convenient connection to and from the Libba Cotten Bikeway in Carrboro and UNC-CH's main campus. It will also include a resurfacing of the entire street.

This will be Chapel Hill’s first cycle-track. It can be thought of as an in-street greenway where everyone on bikes will be consolidated to one side of the street and can travel in both directions. Cyclists will still operate as vehicles and follow appropriate pavement markings, signage, and traffic lights. The project will also have the Town’s first bicycle traffic lights.

This option addresses shared Town and community interests, including safety, accessibility, connectivity, and a high-quality user experience.

Here’s some more about the shared interests reflected in the chosen option:

Safety. This option provides concrete separation from cars, has the fewest driveway conflicts, and creates safe transitions through intersections.

Connectivity. This will create a direct connection to the Libba Cotten Bikeway and the S Merritt Mill Rd bike lanes. It will also provide a convenient connections to UNC-CH's south campus.

Maintenance. The 10’ wide track can be maintained by existing equipment (paving, sweeping, and drain cleaning) and will be easier to resurface in the long term.

Cost and Efficiency. This is the cheapest option and the most simple to construct. It also uses the least total space while still providing room for faster cyclists (including those using e-bikes) to pass slower cyclists, and maintains on-street parking on the north side.

Next Steps:

Begin detailed design work - this means figuring out the exact specifications of what the infrastructure will look like and how it will get constructed.

Continue to coordinate closely with project stakeholders like NCDOT, UNC-CH, Town of Carrboro, utility companies, Historic District Commission, property owners, Town departments, etc

Proceed to detailed design and engineering to have the project ready to bid for construction by spring of 2027.
Thanks again to everyone who provided feedback on this project. That feedback, along with many other factors, led us to select our preferred option to move towards construction in 2027.

The West Cameron Ave bicycle improvements will be on the south side of the street in the form of a 10 foot wide cycle-track (pictured below) that covers about 0.6 miles from Merritt Mill Rd to S Columbia Street. This project will provide a safe and convenient connection to and from the Libba Cotten Bikeway in Carrboro and UNC-CH's main campus. It will also include a resurfacing of the entire street.

This will be Chapel Hill’s first cycle-track. It can be thought of as an in-street greenway where everyone on bikes will be consolidated to one side of the street and can travel in both directions. Cyclists will still operate as vehicles and follow appropriate pavement markings, signage, and traffic lights. The project will also have the Town’s first bicycle traffic lights.

This option addresses shared Town and community interests, including safety, accessibility, connectivity, and a high-quality user experience.

Here’s some more about the shared interests reflected in the chosen option:

Safety. This option provides concrete separation from cars, has the fewest driveway conflicts, and creates safe transitions through intersections.

Connectivity. This will create a direct connection to the Libba Cotten Bikeway and the S Merritt Mill Rd bike lanes. It will also provide a convenient connections to UNC-CH's south campus.

Maintenance. The 10’ wide track can be maintained by existing equipment (paving, sweeping, and drain cleaning) and will be easier to resurface in the long term.

Cost and Efficiency. This is the cheapest option and the most simple to construct. It also uses the least total space while still providing room for faster cyclists (including those using e-bikes) to pass slower cyclists, and maintains on-street parking on the north side.

Next Steps:

Begin detailed design work - this means figuring out the exact specifications of what the infrastructure will look like and how it will get constructed.

Continue to coordinate closely with project stakeholders like NCDOT, UNC-CH, Town of Carrboro, utility companies, Historic District Commission, property owners, Town departments, etc

Proceed to detailed design and engineering to have the project ready to bid for construction by spring of 2027.
Summary of Engagement

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Thanks to everyone who shared their perspectives on the West Cameron Avenue Bicycle Improvements. A summary report of the engagement process can be found here.

Last spring we held multiple opportunities for public participation, including an open house, pop-ups, and a project website with an online community survey. Over the past year we have also been engaging with other project stakeholders including North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), UNC, Town of Carrboro, Orange County, Norfolk Southern Railroad, and property owners along the corridor. There were some complex details we needed to sort out with NCDOT before this project could move forward which has caused the project to be delayed. While the delay is frustrating, working through these issues up front will result in a better outcome for everyone. We appreciate your patience!

Community feedback is one of several factors that go into the decision about how to design a project like this. We also consider safety and user experience, accessibility, cost, construction and maintenance considerations, and overall network connectivity.

Based on consideration of all the above factors, Town staff expect to recommend a preferred alternative to the Town Manager in the next few weeks. After that, our engineering and design firm will continue to design the preferred alternative.
Thanks to everyone who shared their perspectives on the West Cameron Avenue Bicycle Improvements. A summary report of the engagement process can be found here.

Last spring we held multiple opportunities for public participation, including an open house, pop-ups, and a project website with an online community survey. Over the past year we have also been engaging with other project stakeholders including North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), UNC, Town of Carrboro, Orange County, Norfolk Southern Railroad, and property owners along the corridor. There were some complex details we needed to sort out with NCDOT before this project could move forward which has caused the project to be delayed. While the delay is frustrating, working through these issues up front will result in a better outcome for everyone. We appreciate your patience!

Community feedback is one of several factors that go into the decision about how to design a project like this. We also consider safety and user experience, accessibility, cost, construction and maintenance considerations, and overall network connectivity.

Based on consideration of all the above factors, Town staff expect to recommend a preferred alternative to the Town Manager in the next few weeks. After that, our engineering and design firm will continue to design the preferred alternative.
Fall 2025 Update

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The Town submitted the preferred option, based on community input, safety, feasibility, and potential cost. We have been working through the traffic analysis with NCDOT for the past few months. Once the Town gets NCDOT approval on the traffic analysis, we can release the selected option and move forward with the approved design.
The Town submitted the preferred option, based on community input, safety, feasibility, and potential cost. We have been working through the traffic analysis with NCDOT for the past few months. Once the Town gets NCDOT approval on the traffic analysis, we can release the selected option and move forward with the approved design.
Spring 2025 Update

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View the draft designs: OPTION 1 I OPTION 2 I OPTION 3 I Comparison Table
View the draft designs: OPTION 1 I OPTION 2 I OPTION 3 I Comparison Table
W. Cameron Ave Open House - April 10th from 6-8pm at Chapel Hill Town Hall

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JOIN US! On April 10, 2025, from 6pm-8pm on the first floor of the Chapel Hill Town Hall, Town staff and the project consultant will hold an open house for anyone who wants to learn about the West Cameron Avenue Bike Improvements Project. We will have maps, pictures, and information about the different options for the project. It will be a great opportunity to learn about the project, ask questions, and share your opinions on the different designs. Click here for more information.
Can't make it? No worries take our survey and look out for other opportunities to get involved on this site soon.

JOIN US! On April 10, 2025, from 6pm-8pm on the first floor of the Chapel Hill Town Hall, Town staff and the project consultant will hold an open house for anyone who wants to learn about the West Cameron Avenue Bike Improvements Project. We will have maps, pictures, and information about the different options for the project. It will be a great opportunity to learn about the project, ask questions, and share your opinions on the different designs. Click here for more information.
Can't make it? No worries take our survey and look out for other opportunities to get involved on this site soon.
New Materials Posted and Survey is Live!

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We are excited to share our first set of plans, maps, and pictures for the proposed bicycle infrastructure the Town is designing for West Cameron Avenue. Please check out the materials in the "Documents" section of this page and then head over to our online survey and let us know what you think! While you're at it, sign up to receive project updates on the right hand side of the page. We will have some great opportunities to participate over the next month!

We are excited to share our first set of plans, maps, and pictures for the proposed bicycle infrastructure the Town is designing for West Cameron Avenue. Please check out the materials in the "Documents" section of this page and then head over to our online survey and let us know what you think! While you're at it, sign up to receive project updates on the right hand side of the page. We will have some great opportunities to participate over the next month!
Community Engagement Kickoff

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The design of protected bicycle infrastructure on West Cameron Avenue is underway and we have some initial plans that we want to share with the community and hear your feedback on! This webpage is the place to go for all project information. Please explore the designs and other materials that have been posted and take our survey to let us know what you think.

Community and stakeholder feedback is one of several factors that go into the decision about how to design this project – or any of the Town's projects. We also consider user experience, NCDOT requirements, accessibility, design standards, environmental impacts, cost, safety, utilities, construction and maintenance considerations, and overall network connectivity.

We've got lots of great events and ways to get involved planned over the next few weeks. We expect community engagement will happen from March 31st through April 25th. We look forward to hearing from you!

The design of protected bicycle infrastructure on West Cameron Avenue is underway and we have some initial plans that we want to share with the community and hear your feedback on! This webpage is the place to go for all project information. Please explore the designs and other materials that have been posted and take our survey to let us know what you think.

Community and stakeholder feedback is one of several factors that go into the decision about how to design this project – or any of the Town's projects. We also consider user experience, NCDOT requirements, accessibility, design standards, environmental impacts, cost, safety, utilities, construction and maintenance considerations, and overall network connectivity.

We've got lots of great events and ways to get involved planned over the next few weeks. We expect community engagement will happen from March 31st through April 25th. We look forward to hearing from you!