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Two years ago, Jackie Green claimed a small victory in his battle against bigger highways.

As executive director of the Coalition for the Advancement of Regional Transportation, Green was instrumental in delaying Kentucky's plan to widen Interstate 71 in Jefferson County. Green persuaded federal officials to order an environmental assessment of the expansion plan and to study mass transit as an alternative. The actions likely would delay the planned 2007 start of construction by at least two years and possibly derail it.

WHAT'S NEW

Green felt he "had to step back for a while" and resigned as executive director of CART soon after that victory.

People giving their time is all that can deter transportation officials and road builders from an outdated vision for more and larger roads, Green said in an interview last month. "People can give their time for only so long until they burn out," he said.

WHAT'S NEXT

Having changed gears, Green is in the midst of planning a sort of bicycle super center, The Bike Depot, at 107 W. Market St. downtown.

The plan includes relocating the bicycle-courier business he started in 2002, CBD Courier Service, to the new location from its current office on South First Street.

The Bike Depot will also include Cafe Bicicleta — a coffee shop and lunch venue — and a retail bicycle shop with parts and accessories and self- and full-service bike maintenance.

Also planned are commuter services, such as indoor rack storage for those bicycling to work.

He hopes to gain enough influence to persuade people to park their cars on the less crowded outskirts of downtown and bike in for events like Thunder Over Louisville April 17.

His master plan for The Bike Depot is outlined on the Web site www.bikedepot.org.