A recent article in the NG suggests that the City of Urbana will be pursuing large grants for the installation of bike paths in East Urbana. This is a great idea, far superior to the woefully inept Tram notion that has been floated for the last few years. Some conservatives seems to reject this idea as a spread of federal power. That might be true, but what would this power look like? A gravel trail instead of pavement? Cedar railings instead of pine? Hmmm.

Here's an idea: Let's run the bike path along the rails that feed the Emulsicoat factory. If you don't know what Emulsicoat is, just give a sniff at Schnucks or any road in that area on a hot summer day. Smell that tar in the air? That's Emulsicoat. Polluting the air in Urbana for a profit. Gotta love 'em.

Wouldn't we all rather have a way to safely bike from East Urbana to campus, or even across town to Champaign rather than a tar factory spewing stench into the air? Call me a loony liberal, but I'd take the bike path any day.