Citrus County is becoming a haven for bicyclists.

At the center is the Withlacoochee Trail, which consists of more than 40 miles of paved path for bike riders. 

Until now those cyclists found it difficult to ride from the trail in Inverness. That was before the city completed its new Bicycle Boulevard. Based on a similar project in Orlando, city officials have made improvements to North Apopka Avenue, allowing for much better access by cyclists. 

The goal is simple: increased business for downtown Merchants.

Riders like Craig Woodacre are glad to see the changes.

"By the time we get down here from starting out at Citrus Springs or even if we're ending a ride here, we're generally looking for a place to eat or get something to drink," he said. "And it will be a lot safer with the Bike Boulevard to be able to do that."

The improvements include widening of North Apopka Avenue, new landscaping, more bike racks and even sensors on the trail to alert drivers of approaching bikes.

Downtown business owners like Alfredo Cali of the Little Italy Deli are counting on increased business thanks to the new addition.

"It's beautifying the downtown areas in a wonderful way," he said. "It was a little bit of a pain to go through the construction there, but everything is down and it looks beautiful."

Developers say the goal was to beautify, increase business and slow down traffic.  The entire project is expected to wrap up in the next week.