KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A group in Knoxville is hoping to add "ghost bikes" along some of the city's major roads — memorials to cyclists who died in crashes with cars.
The bikes are meant to memorialize people who died in roadway crashes, and Bike Walk Knoxville is hoping they may also act as ways to remind drivers to share the road with people on bicycles.
"This is a mother, a father, a family members, a friend, a mentor. That's the person that we lost at that collision," said Zoe Scott, from the advocacy group.
Ghost bikes are painted white and can include additions like signs, flowers or other items to personalize it. They are meant to tell the story of a person who may have died in a crash in the area — similar to roadside memorials for people who died in car crashes.
Bike Walk Knoxville said it plans to install ghost bikes at six of Knoxville's most dangerous streets for pedestrians and cyclists. Those streets are listed below.
- Broadway
- Chapman Highway
- Cumberland Avenue
- Kingston Pike
- Magnolia Avenue
- Western Avenue
"It is positioned somewhere where a crash has happened in the life has been lost," said Scott. "It's really making a statement that everyone deserves to be able to get around our community safely."
The Knoxville Police Department said that 45 people died on a Knoxville roadway since 2023. KPD also said 17 of those crashes happened on the city's most dangerous streets.
"It's scary when you're riding a bike, and you see a car pass you too close or pass you at really high speeds, or turn in front of you," said Scott. "We know what streets are not safe, and we know what we need to do to make our streets safer."
Knoxville leaders are working to eliminate traffic deaths on city roads by 2040. Its Vision Zero Action Plan said Cumberland Avenue has the most crashes per mile involving pedestrians and bicyclists, out of any corridor.