Eleven Communities Earn BFC Status

League Announces the Latest Bicycle Friendly Community Designations

Washington, D.C.— Today, eleven communities were honored with the League of American Bicyclists prestigious Bicycle Friendly Community designation and eleven communities renewed their designation. “This round brings into focus both the geographic and demographic diversity of designated communities,” League President Andy Clarke said. “These are all cities that are realizing the potential of bicycling to address the challenges of climate change, traffic congestion, rising obesity rates, and soaring fuel prices.”

The Bicycle Friendly Community program is revolutionizing the way communities evaluate their quality of life and transportation network. These new winners bring the total number of current Bicycle Friendly Communities to 84, stretching across 31 states. The League awards this four-year designation to communities that have made impressive, measurable efforts to integrate bicyclists into the community. There are four levels—platinum, gold, silver and bronze—awarded twice each year.

The new Bicycle Friendly Communities are:

Silver
Colorado Springs, Colo.
Durango, Colo.
Minneapolis, Minn.

Bronze
Arcata, Calif.
Bainbridge Island, Wash.
Charlotte, N.C.
Charlottesville, Va.
Coeur d'Alene, Id
Oxford, Miss.
Port Townsend, Wash.
Sitka, AK.

Eleven communities renewed their designation at the same level, with one exceptional standout, Portland, Oregon, which moved up from gold to platinum. These communities are:

Platinum
Portland, Ore.

Gold
Madison, Wis.
Tucson/East Pima Region, Ariz.

Silver
Bellingham, Wash.
Missoula, Mont.

Bronze
Albuquerque, N.M.
Ashland, Ore.
Gilbert, Ariz.
Longmont, Colo.
South Sioux City, Neb.
Sunnyvale, Calif.

This designation is one with real meaning—it is difficult to earn and important to renew. In addition to the winning communities, 16 additional communities applied in this round but did not reach. Since the program’s inception in 2003, 212 communities have applied and 84 current have a bronze or higher designation. Ten communities were given honorable mentions as well.

It is important to recognize communities as they begin to build bicycle friendliness into their network. But a designation only goes to communities with established records in two or more of the five categories which are known as the Five E’s:
Education: Does the community have systems in place to train children and adult cyclists?
Engineering: Are bicyclists included in the city’s transportation plan?
Enforcement: Do police officers understand and enforce bicyclists’ rights and responsibilities?
Encouragement: Does the community participate in Bike Month, offer bike rodeos, host community bike rides, or otherwise encourage cycling?
Evaluation: Does the community have methods in place to ensure their bicyclist programs are making a difference?

The honorable mentions for this round are:

Cleveland, OH
Flint, Mich.
Morgan Hill, Calif.
New Haven, Conn.
New Orleans, La.
Northampton, Mass.
Point Pleasant Beach, N.J.
Roanoke, Va.
Sarasota County, Fla.
Venice, Fla.

About the BFC Program
The BFC program was initiated in 2003 and has received applications from more than 213 communities. Currently 84 cities and counties are designated Bicycle Friendly Communities. The program is generously supported by Trek Bicycles and Bikes Belong. Applicants complete a detailed on-line form with numerous questions in five key areas: engineering, education, encouragement, enforcement, and evaluation/planning. Local cyclists, national experts, and League staff review the applications. For the complete list of Bicycle Friendly Communities and more information on the program click here.

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