Mount Airy officials have taken the first step toward establishing a network of bicycle and pedestrian routes in town.

The city commissioners voted unanimously Thursday night to apply for a bicycle and pedestrian planning grant through a branch of the N.C. Department of Transportation.

Receiving the grant would allow a master plan to be developed for Mount Airy which would help the municipality identify all bicycle or pedestrian needs, priorities and opportunities for improvements.

“I’d like to see more bicycle and pedestrian activity in the area,” Mayor Deborah Cochran said after the commissioners approved seeking the planning grant.

Cochran, who regularly walks and rides a bike for exercise, is among a growing number of local residents who are embracing those forms of transportation for health or economic reasons. However, the presence of dangerous roadways that do not accommodate cyclists or pedestrians is limiting access to various areas of town by those individuals.

The master plan would focus on existing routes, such as greenways, and how they might become intertwined in conjunction with bike and pedestrian routes established in low-traffic areas.

Local supporters say the long-range goal is allowing citizens to reach such locations as shopping areas, the library and movie theater using those alternate forms of transportation.

This would conform to a statewide trend of communities placing more emphasis on facilities for biking or walking. This has led to a need for complete bicycle and pedestrian transportation systems, which require comprehensive planning documents as a guide.

Since 2004 when the state DOT’s grant program began, nearly 100 municipalities in North Carolina have received planning grants. The outcome of the city’s application won't be known until next June.

If awarded, the grant to Mount Airy would fund 80 percent of the estimated $31,500 cost of developing the 25-year plan, with that figure based on the city’s population. The plan, which would cost the locality about $6,300, could be developed by a consultant or through a combination of consultants and municipal staff.

The Northwest Piedmont Council of Governments, an agency headquartered in Winston-Salem that offers planning and administrative assistance to area localities, believes Mount Airy can submit a competitive application, according to Martin Collins, city community-development coordinator.

Collins was on hand Thursday night to answer any questions regarding the proposal.

Also at its meeting, the city council:

- Reappointed Tom Bagnal, a former commissioner, to the Mount Airy Library Board. “He’s a strong advocate for the library,” the mayor said of Bagnal, who was approved for a new three-year term that expires on June 30, 2013.

The commissioners also appointed a new member to the library group, Emily Loftis. She will serve a three-year term, also ending in 2013, as a replacement for Charles Lyle, who elected not to seek reappointment.

- Held a closed session to discuss property acquisition and a personnel matter. No action was taken on either of those issues after that session.

Contact Tom Joyce at tjoyce@mtairynews.com or at 719-1924.