Blog
Calling all advocates! It’s legislative season. If your organization is working under a tight timeframe to unlock public dollars to plan, build, maintain, or promote safe walking and biking facilities, we can help. We’re delighted to announced that REI just contributed another $20,000 for Advocacy Advance Rapid Response grants, and that money is available as fast as you need it.
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Last fall we asked League members and others on social media for their thoughts about electric bicycles. We received over 700 responses and learned a lot in the process. In our new report, “Electric Bicycles: Public Perceptions & Policy,” we examine your responses and what they might mean for the League’s position on electric bicycles and the ways in which electric bicycles might impact our mission to create a bicycle friendly America for everyone. Electric bicycles offer an option that allows more people to use bicycles in more situations. Previous research from Portland State University found that 60% of electric bicycle riders surveyed bought an electric bicycle to enable trips in hilly areas and 73% rode to different destinations than with a standard bicycle. 65% of respondents in that survey said replacing car trips was a main reason to get an electric bicycle.
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Did you hear the one about the squirrels that brought every transit system in America to a grinding halt? Or the Tennessee squirrel sanctuary that stopped every sidewalk, crosswalk and bike lane from being built, anywhere in the country? That’s right, my fellow cyclists — we are now on the same level as squirrels in the eyes of 50 influential “think tanks” and lobbying organizations here in Washington DC.
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Kicking bicyclists, pedestrians, and transit users out of federal transportation programs is the solution to an insolvent Highway Trust Fund — according to a coalition of 50 traditionally conservative think-tanks and policy groups. In a sign-on letter issued yesterday, this influential and well-connected group proposed eliminating funding for all non-motorized and transit projects and programs rather than raising the gas tax to bail out the chronically insolvent Highway Trust Fund.
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National Bike Month isn’t just about riding to work. Bike to Work Day is just one event in May — what about those 30 other days? Janet Lafleur seized the opportunity, and teamed up with the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition to organize a Bike to Shop Day in the region during Bike Month in 2014. Her Big Idea, which she’ll be speaking more about at the 2015 National Bike Summit, is to expand Bike To Shop Day. We spoke with Lafleur about how Bike to Shop Day came to be and where she’s set her sights for the future.
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We’re exactly six weeks away from the premier bicycle advocacy event of the year: the 2015 National Bike Summit and National Forum on Women & Bicycling. It’s been months in the making, and we couldn’t be more excited to reveal the full agenda. What’s in it for you? How is this year different than the past? Keep reading…
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The 2015 National Bike Summit is the largest annual gathering of bike advocates — and it’s the time of year when we share our message with congressional leaders and staff. Face-to-face meetings are hugely important, and we know it works. If you’re headed to the Summit and are looking to learn more of the basics, or even a refresher, we’re holding two webinars on “what to know before you go.”
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Pioneered by Northeastern University Professor Peter Furth and others, Level of Traffic Stress (LTS) analysis has brought to the forefront a means to identify barriers to riding for people with a low tolerance for traffic. It’s a Big Idea that’s taking root across the country and we’re excited to hear more on this timely topic from Tim Blagden, Executive Director of the Bike-Walk Alliance of New Hampshire, at the 2015 National Bike Summit in March.
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For many in the bike movement, Portland has an almost mythical status — earning the distinction of being the closest we’ve come in the United States to a major metropolitan cycling uptopia. But Portlandia faces the same challenges as the rest of urban America, including the burgeoning need to bring biking to the suburbs.
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Many people get involved in bike advocacy because they want to promote bicycling and increase safety, yet we all know that not everyone who rides has the time or inclination to become an advocate. Sometimes the people who don’t get involved actually have the most need for better streets in their neighborhoods. How can we ensure that bike advocacy agendas are designed to meet those communities’ needs? Multicultural Communities for Mobility (MCM) in Los Angeles has been experimenting with this question since its early days as a bike light giveaway program housed at the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition in 2008. Today, MCM is leading the nation in innovating ways to transform community-engaged bike advocacy from a good idea into action.
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