Blog Post

Facebook is far and away the most popular social network. And while sharing photos and updating your friends on your lunch choice can be fun, Facebook is an immense resource to build an advocacy network. We’ll be hosting a webinar, “Facebook 101,” tomorrow at 2 p.m. EST to help outline the basics for advocacy organizations looking to boost their online presence and connect with community members. This webinar — the first in a series held by the Alliance for Biking & Walking and the League — will breakdown the basics of using Facebook as an advocacy tool.

The Advocacy Advance team is growing. The dynamic partnership between the League of American Bicyclists and the Alliance for Biking & Walking is seeking a full-time Outreach Coordinator.The Outreach Coordinator, who will be based in our Washington, D.C., office, will work directly with advocacy organzations and agency staff to increase the awareness of funding programs for walking and biking projects and programs to share best practices in securiing and utilizing this funding at the state and local level nationwide.

“San Antonio, Houston, and Fort Worth have all proven that bike share can be successful in Texas at reducing air pollution, improving traffic congestion, contributing to healthier populations, boosting local economies, and attracting tourism. Many different organizations in El Paso have come together and agreed that moving forward with bike share is the best use of CMAQ funds. BikeTexas hopes that TxDOT follows through with serving the needs of the community in this way.”

This guest post comes from Laurie Rescheske, a National Bike Challenge 2013 participant and mom to Brian. Brian is my 19-year-old son, and he has Down Syndrome. Over the years, we have tried many times to teach him how to ride a bicycle, but he could never quite get the hang of it.

It’s pretty simple: Bikes are good for you. Yesterday, we were joined by a trio of women who have research expertise and personal experience related to the health benefits of bicycling, as we continue to delve into our new “Women on a Roll” report. During the live Google Hangout, we talked the research and stats that prove bicycling is an immense tool for any woman to keep in shape, and also the personal stories of those whose lives have changed for the better because they got on a bike.

Earlier this year, the 500th Complete Streets policy was codified in Memphis, Tenn. Yesterday, in Washington, D.C., key stakeholders and Complete Streets advocates gathered to celebrate this achievement, and to discuss the future of the movement. Check out our recap of yesterday’s events…

Updated: This report has been updated to include several key frequently asked questions. If you live in a city or suburb and want to make biking better, you need to know your MPO. Especially under the new federal transportation law, Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) make big behind-the-scenes decisions about how transportation dollars are spent in cities and their surrounding regions.

There is a D.C. bicycle story that few know of. But it’s this story that has inspired groups of cyclists around the country to challenge the notions of who bikes and why. On an Easter weekend in 1928, Marylou Jackson, Velma Jackson, Ethyl Miller, Leolya Nelson and Constance White took a trip from New York to Washington D.C. — but unlike the many who make that journey via bus, train or plane these ‘Five Cyclists’ made the trip on their bikes. Over three days, these five black women made the 250-mile journey between the two cities in what was then a stunning pace.

When we released “The New Majority: Pedaling Toward Equity” report in May, we knew it was just the first step to a much bigger, complex and on-going discussion about bicycling equity in the United States. Anthony Taylor, a member of the League’s Equity Advisory Council and founding member of the Major Taylor Bicycling Club of Minnesota, gives his take on the report this week on the Bike Walk Twin Cities blog. An important and engaging read…