Lynchburg

Lynchburg is an independent city of 79,000 (2020) in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It lies east of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Central Virginia.

Understand
Lynchburg began in 1757 as a ferry town, fording traffic across the James River. The city is built on centuries of history, boasting strong connections to Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, and other early American patriots. Because of the city's use by the Confederacy as a supply and hospital center, it served as a battlefield in the American Civil War. Lynchburg has been designated a portion of Virginia's Rail Heritage Region. Lynchburg's historic districts contain many beautiful homes from the 19th century.

Lynchburg's name is derived from its founder, John Lynch, who, at the age of 17, began a ferry service across the James River to facilitate travel to and from New London. He would later be responsible for the bridge which would make his ferry service obsolete. Despite common misconceptions, neither John Lynch nor Lynchburg is associated with the origination of term, "lynching," though it may have originated with John's brother, Charles.

Geography and climate
Lynchburg's nickname, the "City of Seven Hills," is very descriptive of the geography of the city. Though it refers most directly to the hills near where the city was founded, these hills extend far beyond the riverfront at the James River. The area includes much of Candlers Mountain.

Spring in Lynchburg is short-lived, often it is simply a period of wide fluctuation between mid-late winter and early-mid summer temperatures. Summers are humid and hot with temperatures generally reaching 90°F. Autumns are mild; temperatures stay somewhere between 40°F and 55°F. Once winter hits, temperatures will top out near freezing until February and, perhaps, beyond. Winters can bring lots of snow to the Lynchburg area: about three one-foot snowstorms each winter.

Generally, storms will pass through over the course of a few hours, but rain systems without lightning and thunder will stick in Lynchburg for days at a time, lending to the nickname "Drenchburg." When there is wind in Lynchburg, it tends to be a very high wind. Unlike nearby areas, the warmest part of the day in this part of Virginia is generally 5PM.

By car
Lynchburg does not have direct interstate access. Instead, you can get to Lynchburg by one of three major U.S. Routes: U.S. 29 North and South, U.S. 460 East and West, and U.S. 501 North and South. U.S. 501, however, is generally only convenient for travel from the immediate northwest and southeast.

U.S. 29 merges with U.S. 460 at a three-way junction. When traveling to Lynchburg via U.S. 29S, a right exit is required to continue along U.S. 29S / U.S. 460W.

After US 29 and US 460 align together, they mostly bypass all of Lynchburg. To really enter Lynchburg from US 460, one can take US 460 Business (Timberlake Rd) and to enter Lynchburg from US 29 one can take US 29 Business (Wards Road).

By train
Lynchburg is a stop on the Northeast Regional offering twice daily service between Roanoke and the Northeast with stops in Washington, D.C., New York City, and Boston. Lynchburg is also a stop on the Crescent offering daily service between New Orleans and New York City. Both of these services are operated by Amtrak. is located at 825 Kemper St, about one mile southwest of downtown.

By bus

 * Greyhound offers bus service to Lynchburg. The buses stop at the Greater Lynchburg Transit Company transfer center adjacent to Kemper Street Station.
 * Megabus services Kemper Street Station and provides service from Danville to the south and from New York City via Washington DC to the north.

By car
Driving is perhaps the most convenient way to get around Lynchburg. Apart from the Downtown area and the area on and around the campus of Liberty University, most of the city is not very friendly to pedestrian traffic.

The Lynchburg Expressway connects most of the major roadways in Lynchburg, intersecting and merging with the business segments of U.S. 29, U.S. 460, and U.S. 501.

While the city limits are very clearly marked, they are drawn in such a way that some places within the city are inaccessible without first traveling outside the city. For instance, the planned community at Wyndhurst can only be accessed via Enterprise Dr, which terminates in two different counties.

Newcomers can find the roads in Lynchburg highly confusing. A few major roads change names with no clear indication as to where these changes take place. For examples, Lakeside Dr becomes Forest Rd, Fort Ave becomes Timberlake Rd, and Memorial Ave becomes Fifth St. Further, the highway alignments can be confusing as there are multiple places where the "Northbound" lanes of one highway are aligned with the "Southbound" lanes of another. Also there are multiple sets of unrelated roads with confusingly similar names. One example is Langhorne Road, Langhorne Lane, Langhorne Avenue which are all totally separate roads in different parts of the city.

Several lots and limited on-street parking are available in Downtown Lynchburg. Two lots, the Midtown and Clay Street Parking Decks, are metered, operating on the mPARK system used in several other cities in the United States and abroad.

During the afternoon rush hour (4:45PM - 5:45PM), Candlers Mountain Rd, Wards Rd, and Timberlake Rd experience significantly increased traffic.

By taxi
Several dispatch taxi services operate in Lynchburg.

By bus
Greater Lynchburg Transit Company (GLTC) offers bus services to the area. Single-segment trips are $2.00, and day and multi-day passes are also available. Most routes run to the central transfer center on Kemper Street and operate on 1 hour schedules. Because of this layout, however, travel from some points in the city to others may take in excess of an hour in spite of being only a few miles away. Liberty University operates an intra-campus bus service as well. This service is free to students, faculty, and visitors.

By bike
While Lynchburg has a number of bike lanes and bike trails, they are disjointed and do not always provide an easy way to get around the city. The Blackwater Creek Trail and the Kemper Station Trail provide bike access from downtown to the Langhorne Rd area and train station/bus transfer center respectively. Bike lanes along (most of) Rivermont Avenue allow cyclists to access Rivermont from downtown. Near the train station/ bus transfer center, there are bike lanes on a few roads but they are connected poorly. There are a few other bike lanes and mixed use walking/biking paths around the city but they do not connect to form a coherent cycling network. All buses by GLTC provide bike racks so cyclists can bring bikes on the buses.

Do
Lynchburg's hills make the city great for hiking and recreational biking. Percival's Island Trail, which connects with the Blackwater Creek Trail, forms a 13.5-mile paved trail that travels through Lynchburg. The trail can be accessed at three major points off Washington St, Jefferson St, and Langhorne Rd. The trail follows both the James River and the Blackwater Creek. Off of the trail there are several hiking and mountain biking opportunities. Liberty University also maintains a system of mountain biking and hiking trails on Candlers Mountain.

Sports
Lynchburg hosts a minor-league professional baseball team as well as several colleges with active athletics departments.

Stay safe
For emergencies occurring on the campus of Liberty University, call the

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