Academics, Advocates, and Practitioners Converge on Seattle for Bicycle Symposium

The sun came out in Seattle to greet a diverse group of academics, advocates, planners, and engineers at the inaugural Bicycle Urbanism Symposium.

The very existence of this conference symbolizes the importance that bicycling is playing as cities think about their futures. In an enthusiastic key note address, Professor John Pucher updated the audience on the latest innovations and practices from around the country and described both his good experiences biking in Seattle (most places) and the harrowing (2^nd Ave.)

In a session on Bicycle Friendly Universities we were joined by Clint Culpepper of Portland State University, Steve Sanders of the University of Minnesota, and David Amiton of the University of Washington. They talked about providing bicycle accommodations as “customer service” for their students and the surprisingly high rates of bike commuting among faculty. 

My partner on the Advocacy Advance team, Brighid O’Keane, Advocacy and Programs Director for the Alliance for Biking & Walking, and I facilitated an Alliance Winning Campaign Training to help participants win funding for bike projects in their cities.

Overall, the symposium shows the energy bicycling is generating in all sectors of urban thinking across the country.