The lengths of Oglethorpe Street, Tatnall Street and Monroe Street began to fill with pedestrians and residents of nearby neighborhoods around 2 p.m. on Sept. 28, some biking, some setting up tents. All were uninterrupted by the bustle of cars and trucks. Open Streets Macon had arrived in Macon, just a block from Mercer's campus.
"Open Streets Macon is a free community program that temporarily closes streets to car traffic and invites Maconites to reimagine their streets as places for people," the program's website says. Events like it are put on periodically by Bike Walk Macon in coordination with the Macon-Bibb County government. Open Streets collaborated with over 30 different partner businesses to set up group activities, giveaways and performances, all of which were able to take advantage of the vehicle-free expanse of asphalt.
The events are free to the public and include multiple groups of streets shut down to car traffic. The resulting shared spaces are then transformed into neighborhood meeting places complete with tents put up by local businesses, DJ sets and government agencies tabling in their community.
"Initiatives like Open Streets Macon show what’s possible when we temporarily reimagine our streets as public spaces that connect us rather than just move cars," said Rachel Hollar Umana, executive director at Bike Walk Macon. "We hope that by participating, more people will join our movement to advocate for better street design and dedicated funding for multimodal streets in the future."
Hollar Umana has personal experience with Macon streets, as she graduated from Mercer in 2012. In 2015, she applied for a grant from the Emerging City Champions Fellowship, part of a Toronto-based initiative called "8 80 Cities" that sought to "create healthier, more equitable and sustainable cities for all people," per their website.
After winning a $5,000 grant, she created Bike Walk Macon, first as a volunteer organization which eventually turned into a 501c3 non-profit. "I’ve learned that transportation connects to almost every social issue, whether it’s our local economy or accessibility or how to reduce our carbon footprint," Hollar Umana told The Den. "My long-term goal is that anyone can get anywhere they need to go in Macon through any mode of transportation."
The program has enjoyed legislative success in recent years. In 2021, Bike Walk Macon celebrated its role in the passing of the "Macon-Bibb County Complete Streets Policy," a city-wide government mandate that requires all new roads to accommodate alternative forms of transportation, including walking and biking.
"It is the policy of Macon-Bibb County that its Complete Streets shall be beautiful, interesting and comfortable places for all people," reads the legislation. "The design of cities begins with the design of streets as community places where people want to be."
Today, Hollar Umana says it is important for students to get involved in the initiative. "The area around Mercer is actually one of the most walkable parts of our city, so students can easily make shifts toward walking, biking or taking transit instead of driving," said Umana. "The more students we have commuting by these options, the stronger our voice becomes for safer, more connected streets."
Open Streets' next event will take place from 2-5 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 7, on Houston Avenue, extending from Newberg Ave to Rocky Creek Road. Volunteers support the majority of the work done in the event, and the program is always looking for new students to take part. Future events, talks and opportunities with Bike Walk can be found on the group's social media, as well as their newsletter.
Jacob Hossler '28 is an English and Law and Public Policy double major at Mercer University. While not serving as the Sports Editor at The Cluster, he enjoys running, writing and photography.
