Bicycle Friendly Community
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.
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.
Leah Shahum had a jarring realization in 2013. In the wake of a particularly fatal year for bicyclists and pedestrians in San Francisco, it became clear to her that the slow, piecemeal approach to create safer streets wasn’t moving nearly fast enough. It was time to redraw the lines of the debate, shift the cultural compass for the city, the public and advocates to no longer accept traffic deaths as tragedies out of their control. So, at the start of 2014, the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition launched a Vision Zero campaign, calling for a reduction of all traffic deaths to zero in 10 years.
Seattle is honored to have our Gold Level Bicycle Friendly Community designation renewed. Residents and businesses continue to raise the bar and expect the delivery of first-rate, family friendly bike facilities. We are striving to meet this demand by building a citywide network that attracts people of all ages and abilities; all income levels; and all ethnicities. We are especially pleased that the league acknowledged the importance we place on equity.
It’s official: The League reached 100 visits to communities across the country this year, helping them to create more bicycle friendly places for their residents. I completed 77 of those visits myself, so, as you can image, I have a lot of lessons to share. Here’s some of what I learned.
The City of Milwaukee once again was awarded a Bronze Bicycle Friendly Community award status by the League of American Bicyclists. We know the bar is continually being raised on what it means to be bicycle-friendly. To meet those challenges, City of Milwauke Mayor Tom Barrett has directed Milwaukee’s Department of Public Works Commissioner Ghassan Korban and City Engineer Jeff Polenske to establish a sub-committee of the City’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Task Force to define the path to not only reaching Silver but going for Gold-level status. The City is already making progress on many of the League’s recommended “Steps to Silver.”
The Juneau Police Department has played an important role in educating the community and elementary children on bicycle safety through its annual bicycle rodeos. The Police Chief has also started a new campaign called “Spot the Chief for a 10 spot”. Any member of the public who spots the Chief as he rides through town with a spotted jersey can call into the Police Department and receive ten dollars. This campaign received great media coverage and helps promote bicycle safety and awareness.Trail Mix a non-profit coordinates with the City and maintains trails for mountain bikers.
Today the League of American Bicyclists announced 55 new and renewing Bicycle Friendly Communities (BFC). With this new round, 69 million people live in a Bicycle Friendly Community as the program extends to all 50 states. These new awardees join a leading group of more than 325 communities in all 50 states that are improving health, safety and quality of life in cities and towns nationwide.
This week, my colleague, Steve Clark, wrote about his experience riding with Cherokee Schill and the conditions she faces while biking to work in Kentucky. Her fight for her right to road reflects our society’s decisions about how we create roads, how we create laws for those roads, and the culture of safety we choose to create for our roadways. So what’s the legal background for her fight? And are their signs of hope for Kentucky’s future? Keep reading…
I used to think I was about as fearless and empowered as any cyclist out there. Then I rode with Cherokee Schill. When I was in Lexington, Kentucky recently for a Bicycle Friendly Community visit, I rode with Schill, a woman who’s been ticketed and even jailed for biking to work in the travel lane, rather than the shoulder, of a busy state highway.