Earlier this year the City of Asheville changed their development rules to make it easier to build large apartment buildings on main roads like Merrimon Avenue and Hendersonville Road. This was a significant step in the right direction in addressing our pre-existing housing shortage. It was also a strategic response to Helene that helps us build homes where infrastructure and resources — like public transit — are already accessible.

Building housing on major roads with frequent bus service is great both for the environment and for traffic congestion. However, the success of this housing strategy hinges on the success of our transit system. Is Asheville Rides Transit effective enough for this strategy to succeed?

Currently, most of the city only sees a bus come near them every 30 or 45 mi

See Full Page