Archive for the 'Speaking Up' Category

The League of American Bicyclists would like take this opportunity to thank Secretary Ray LaHood for his vision for a national transportation system that includes biking and walking as a key ingredient of developing livable and sustainable communities.  It is unfortunate that there are still many in Congress such as Mr. Coburn and Mr. McCain who do not grasp that more and more Americans want the option to be able to ride and walk safely within their communities.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the percentage of bicycle commuters has grown 43 percent since 2000, truly an indication that the number of Americans that have found bicycling to be a healthy and efficient way of getting to work is on the rise.  The League of American Bicyclists also reports that in communities with greater bicycling infrastructure investments, bicycling commuting went up 69 percent.

Clearly, we have seen that increased bicycling helps communities thrive. Case in point, between 1991 and 2008, Portland, Ore. invested $57 million to create a 300- mile bikeway network – roughly the same cost of one mile of urban highway.  In that period, bicycling increased significantly, at an annual rate of 10 percent. Since 2006, there has been a 38 percent increase in the value of bicycle-related industry sector, with total economic activity close to $90 million. In addition, Portlanders have saved $12 million in fuel and $10 million in healthcare costs by bicycling.

We also want to thank the Secretary and his Department for working hard to get the America Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding out to states quickly. Under ARRA, states were required to spend 3 percent of their highway transportation funding on Transportation Enhancements (TE). Transportation Enhancements are federally funded, community-based projects that expand travel choices.  Under ARRA, states were also required to obligate 50 percent of their highway transportation funding, including transportation enhancements, by June 30, 2009.  Research conducted, by America Bikes, found that, by the June 30the deadline, States had awarded over 64 percent of the funding provided under ARRA.  These projects provided much-needed jobs to local communities.

Funding bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure a waste? We think not, we must agree with Secretary LaHood, this is progress.

~Walter Finch
Director of Advocacy, League of American Bicyclists

USA Today’s Drive On Blog recently had a provocative piece asking whether motorists have let cyclists rights go too far – apparently missing the irony that it was cyclists in the 1880s that literally paved the way for motor vehicles, while simultaneously laboring under the misunderstanding that people’s right to use the public right of way is held at the whim of motorists.

While no doubt hoping to stir a lively debate, the author rehashed the tired – and false – notion that motorists and cyclists are at war and cannot coexist peacefully. The overwhelming majority of cyclists has absolutely no intention or desire to deliberately obstruct motorists. A tiny minority of riders may be oblivious and thoughtless about what’s going on behind them – and very, very occasionally a critical mass ride or equivalent will deliberately fill up a street or intersection for a few minutes, once a month, in a handful of cities across the country. Not exactly apocalyptic stuff.

To be honest, drivers are very much more effective at clogging up city streets, twice a day, every work day, 52 weeks of the year, all by themselves without any help from cyclists. Seriously, if a few more people walked, took transit or biked instead…?!

In one case highlighted in the article, a driver – apparently already notorious among the Los Angeles bicycling community for similar prior behavior – passed a group of cyclists heading down a canyon road and deliberately slammed on the brakes in front of them, with fairly obvious consequences. He was mad at having to wait behind them.

By chance, my son and I were in the LA area the week after this happened. As we drove down some of the amazing canyon roads, at the speed limit, we were illegally passed by impatient motorists who crossed the solid yellow center lines on blind corners and as we approached intersections – not just once or twice, but enough times that it became something of a standing joke between us. Except that it isn’t funny when people get hurt.

The other case involved a Maryland driver who hit and killed a cyclist in front of her that she “didn’t see”. The USA Today article, local media and even early statements from the Maryland Highway Patrol suggested that if the rider had been in the right portion of the lane instead of the middle, the crash might have been prevented – a little hard to fathom, given that the motorist didn’t see the cyclist when he was straight in front of her. Surely we should expect drivers to be aware of what is going on right in front of them – and surely the news media and police should bolster that expectation, not excuse careless, dangerous or inattentive driving.

The author contacted the League for a “little perspective”. He used a “little” of what Jeff Peel had to say in response. He actually managed to single out phrases that had both cyclists and motorists irritated with us at the same time, which is no small feat!

Our Smart Cycling program teach that there are times when cyclists do need to take the lane, even on streets with bike lanes: when the bike lane or right hand side of the travel lane is blocked, or has a dangerous drainage grate or pothole, or has broken glass, piles of snow or leaves – all things which can cause a cyclist to crash. It’s really no different for motorists encountering delivery trucks, wheel-swallowing potholes, broken down vehicles, illegally parked cars, etc. You don’t just drive over them if you can help it.

There may be times when the travel lane is simply too narrow to share side by side with a car, and rather than ride in the gutter or on the sidewalk (surprising to many, sidewalks are among THE most likely places for everyday cyclists to get in a crash with a car) it is safer for the bicyclist and the motorist for the cyclist to ride in the center of the lane. Not to get in the way; and not on the interstate. A cyclist is more visible, and frankly more predictable, where you can see them and see their intentions.

There are times when a cyclist may be going straight ahead and there’s a right turn only lane – to the motorist, it may appear that the cyclist is “in the middle of the road”; to the cyclist, they are just trying to get where they are going without having someone turn right in front of them. The same is true if a cyclist is making a left turn – they should usually be making it from the left side of the lane or left-turn lane.

Truthfully, this whole debate isn’t really just about bicyclists and bicycling versus motorists and cars – even though that makes for better copy and more strident discussion. It’s about civility and safety on our streets, for which we all share responsibility. There are rogue cyclists and rogue drivers; and failure to comply with traffic laws – be they stop signs for cyclists or speed limits for motorists – is sadly endemic in our culture, and we tolerate it at our individual and collective peril every time we hit the road.

And don’t even get me started on cell phone use and texting while driving…or cycling.

Andy Clarke
President, League of American Bicyclists

Transportation Enhancements are the largest federal source of bicycle and pedestrian funding and they are under attack.

We need your help – TODAY!

Senator Coburn (R-OK) is offering two amendments to the FY10 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) appropriations bill that will strike funding for transportation enhancements.  The two amendments are S. Amendment 2370 and S. Amendment 2371. Find out what transportation enhancement projects are in your state here.

The Transportation Enhancement program has provided between one half and three-quarters of all Federal funding invested in bicycling and walking improvements in the last 20 years. More than $250 million is at stake in fiscal year 2010 – if Coburn’s amendment is successful it will affect hundreds of trail projects, sidewalks, bicyclist education programs, bike rack on bus programs, and roadway improvements for bicyclists.

S. Amendment 2370 prohibits funding for transportation enhancements if the Highway Trust Fund does not contain amounts sufficient to cover unfunded highway authorizations.

S. Amendment 2371 allows states to opt out of the 10 percent set aside rule that require states to spend at least 10 percent of their surface transportation funding on transportation enhancements.

We expect the amendments to be offered and voted on during Senate floor debate tomorrow, Wednesday, September 16.

Please call your Senator immediately and urge them to vote NO on S. Amendment 2370 and S. Amendment 2371 to the FY10 transportation appropriations bill.

Coming on the heels of the national Safe Routes to Schools Conference, the Safe Routes to Schools National Partnership is collecting letters to Congress from supporters expressing in personal terms why it is important for children to be able to walk and bicycle to school. They will bundle the letters and send them to Congress.

To show your support for Safe Routes to Schools, follow the instructions below and go to the National Partnership’s Dear Congress Campaign page for more information.

(more…)

Google is asking for suggestions to improve their Maps feature. One of the things you can suggest with the click of  a button  is “bike trail information and biking directions.” It is very easy.

Go to http://maps.google.com/support/bin/static.py?page=suggestions.cs, scroll down to Route Information and click “Suggest it” next to “Add bike trail information and biking directions.”

When you think of recess, you may think of kids playing on school playgrounds. But that’s because you’re not a Member of Congress – unless you are, in which case, welcome. For Members of Congress, recess is an opportunity to return to their home districts and hear from constituents on the issues that are important to them. It looks something like this:

Town Hall meetings are in the headlines now for their role in the healthcare debate, but it is important that Congress also hears from bicycling advocates on issues such as the next transportation bill and climate change legislation.

Both the house and senate are on recess until Tuesday, September 8. This is an opportunity to find out when your Member of Congress will meet with the public and to ask them to support the America Bikes platform. As our Advocacy Tips page says, this is particularly important if they sit on a key committee: Transportation & Infrastructure, Energy and Commerce, and Ways and Means in the house, or Environment and Public Works, Finance, and Commerce, Science and Transportation in the Senate. Before you go, refer to our advocacy tips on how to have an impact and see if your representative is on the Congressional Bike Caucus.

If you get the ear of an elected official, offer to take them for a bike ride in your district. There’s no better way to get them on board with our platform than to get them on a bike with us. Please let us know how your meetings go. Email us at Bikeleague@bikeleague.org.

After a long hiatus, the League of American Bicyclists’ blog is back. As before, the blog will feature contributions from the whole staff. Unlike before, the League now has two policy analysts to keep the blog up to date on the lasted national and notable regional bicycle news, policy and politics.

In fact, now is a good time to re-introduce the blog to the world since we’ve been busy responding to a report by Senators Tom Coburn and John McCain criticizing non-highway and -bridge projects in the transportation bill. First, we posted an update to the Trash Talking page of our website. Our position was then reported in an article in the subscription-only online publication, GreenWire:

Biking advocates say the senators’ accusations that bike and pedestrian projects have depleted the fund are baseless, considering how little the government has spent on them over the years.

Flusche said data from the same GAO study show that the government has spent less on bicycle and pedestrian projects over the past 18 years than the $7 billion Congress approved last week to patch up the highway fund.

“These modes of transportation are actually underfunded in proportion to how we use them,” Flusche said, suggesting that lawmakers look for better ways to finance the fund.

The story was picked up by BikePortland.

As the debate over the re-authorization of the transportation bill continues, we are likely to hear more spurious attacks on bicycle and pedestrian funding. We will cover them and the arguments in favor in this space, as well as many other topics.

The bicycle industry lost one of its true leaders with the passing earlier this week of Dick Burke, founder of Trek Bicycles, Inc. Burke’s and Trek’s story within the industry is well documented; in the space of 30 years, Trek has become a household name because of their bikes, their sponsorship of Lance and various outstanding teams and riders over the years. I remember Dick as an enthusiastic and engaged board member of the Rails to Trails Conservancy (RTC) when I was on staff there, and perhaps most significantly as the “eminence gris” behind getting bike industry advocacy efforts started that led to the creation of Bikes Belong. During the pivotal industry trade show where the League, RTC and Bicycle Federation of America (as it then was) were trying to raise an unheard of $360,000 for the Bikes Belong campaign, Dick quietly pointed us to the right people at the right companies to make it happen. Our thoughts and prayers are with Dick’s family and the extended Trek family as they celebrate the life of an industry champion.

prices of marble countertops test

On Tuesday came the moment we’ve all been waiting for. The report of the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission…well, maybe not everyone was on tenterhooks but it’s actually a pretty significant document that outlines how $225 billion should be spent EVERY Year for the next 50 years on transportation and infrastructure in this country.

The size of the report itself is equally impressive at several hundred pages, 125 MBS complete with minority statements, addenda and the whole nine yards. The main recommendations appear in the 54-page Volume 1, and that’s where I’m going to direct my few cheap shots. The Commission took 20 months to listen to input (and yes, we did submit comments) and weigh options for creating a bold new transportation future – and in the 54 pages the word “highway” appears 128 times. Rail comes in second with 106 mentions, freight weighs in at 96, with transit a distant fourth on 57. The words bicycle, bicyclist, bike, pedal cycle, and pedal cyclist combined are mentioned just one time, on page 24, in the same sentence as the only mention of pedestrians, walking and other foot-based derivatives. Is it fair to judge a monumental report on such a trivial word search…maybe not, but it kinda tells you something nonetheless.

I looked up the various policy issues in play. “Climate change” warranted three mentions along with nine “greenhouse gas” references. “Environment” got 55 plays…although at least a dozen were in reference to the need to speed up project delivery by reducing environmental reviews. Congestion was a big issue (54) along with safety (47) energy (44) and the economy (13). Health issues, just 8 mentions. Obesity, not a peep. Mobility (transport as an end in itself) was addressed almost twice as often as Access (transport as a means to an end; the ability to actually get somewhere).

You can see where I’m going with this. The transportation future envisaged by this panel does not appear to include bicycling, nor is it yet ready to hold the transportation sector accountable to other national policy imperatives. States, and our beloved state DOT’s, were addressed ten times as often as “city” or “cities”.

The final superficial count I made: the pictures. What do the photos tell us about the direction of the report? Funny you should ask. There are 137 pictures in the 54-page report. Just 22 have any people visible in them, and of those eight are people sitting in cars and five show emergency services personnel at a crash scene, or researchers in lab coats. There is just one bona fide picture of people walking in the street; there’s one deer; one duck; and not a single person on a bicycle. Maybe you can’t read a lot into the photo count, but when bicyclists don’t even rise to the level of attention given to ducks and deer, it sure tells you something.

I really do love this time of year. Although often contrived I find it hard to not feel excitement and encouragement at the idea of a new beginning. This New Years I found a new type of encouragement in my home town. While visiting my family in New York City I went to check out the new seven block “Street of the Future” on 9th Avenue. This innovative design, where parked cars separate the bike lane from the road, is the first physically-separated bike path ever installed in the city’s urban nucleus.

I grew up in the heart of New York City where even going outside alone before the age of ten was pretty impossible. I can’t relate to the often-mentioned freedom that bicycles offer children or the youthful memories that cycling supposedly digs up. What I do remember is being very intrigued by the idea that kids in other parts of the country could bike to school. When I got my first bike in seventh grade I would often walk with it well out of the way to school so I could get to an avenue with low pedestrian traffic. I would cycle on the sidewalk for as long as I could, and then walk the remainder of the way. On the weekends when the loop road in the park was closed to vehicles I would trek there with my bike to get in a few miles of solid riding. It wasn’t until I moved to Maine for college that I could bike regularly, and I haven’t looked back since…nor have I moved back to New York.

This winter, however, I felt a new sort of connection with the city I sometimes forget is my real home. I hope this is the first of many new projects the New York’s transportation commissioner will explore to make the streets and the city a more livable place for cyclists and pedestrians in the future