Category Archives: Local Communities

Infographics: Where is Bike Commuting Growing the Fastest?

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This morning, thousands of Americans will pedal out of their driveways, taking part in National Bike to Work Day. Sponsored by the League, Bike to Work Day is being celebrated in hundreds of communities nationwide, highlighting the health, economic and community benefits of bicycling with local commuter convoys, energizer stations, breakfast rallies and more.

The past decade has seen dramatic growth in biking, with the total number of trips more than doubling from 1.7 billion in 2001 to 4 billion in 2009, according to the National Household Travel Survey.

But where has bike commuting grown the most? In Bicycle Friendly Communities (BFC) that have made smart, strategic investments to make biking better.

From 2000 to 2011, the bicycle commuting rate has risen 80% in the largest Bicycle Friendly Communities — far above the average growth of 47% nationwide and more than double the rate of 32% in the cities not designated as bicycle-friendly.

In some Bicycle Friendly Communities, bicycle commuting rates have skyrocketed by more than 400% since 1990, including cities as diverse as Portland, Ore., and Lexington, Ky. Meanwhile, cities like Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and Denver have more than doubled their bike commuter share since 2000.

Click here to download the infographic as a PDF.

Take it from League President, Andy Clarke: “I see the dramatic increase in ridership on my own daily bike commute, and it’s definitely more pronounced in those communities — like Arlington County and the District of Columbia — that are proactively improving conditions for bicycling and following the Bicycle Friendly Community blueprint.”

Looking for bike commute data for your area?

  • Click here to download 2010 bicycle commuting data for all 375 cities included in the American Community Survey
  • Click here to download bicycle commute data from 1990 to 2011 for the 70 largest U.S. cities, including percentage of bicycle commuters and percent change
  • Click here for 2011 state commute rates, including bicycle commuting by gender

Learn more about Bike to Work Day, find events in your area and statistics about bicycle commuting at www.bikeleague.org/bikemonth. Is your community a BFC? Find out here — and get involved in the program to make biking better in your area!

 

My Signature

Carolyn Szczepanski
Communications Director

Carolyn joined the League in March 2012, after two years at the Alliance for Biking & Walking. In addition to managing the League’s blog, magazine and other communications, Carolyn organized the first National Women’s Bicycling Summit and launched the League’s newest program: Women Bike. Before she crossed over to advocacy, she was a professional journalist for nearly 10 years.

 

Could Albany’s Central Avenue be the Next Hempstead Turnpike?

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Central Ave Colonie

Central Avenue in Colonie, NY.

“Toll: 8 dead, 300 Injured”

That was the headline of a Times Union article last week about pedestrians being struck by vehicles on Central Avenue, a 15.4-mile road that runs through Albany and Colonie. The article has stirred a whirl of debate about how to fix one of the Capital District’s most dangerous roads. It will be the subject of a WAMC/NPR public forum this week, and it has already prompted a renewed focus from the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) on ways to improve safety in the area.  Spurred forward in part by a couple of recent, high-profile deaths on the same road, the City of Albany is also currently considering a Complete Streets ordinance.

However, this much-needed attention on a treacherous road begs an important question: will New York take a reactionary, media-driven approach, or is there a way to enact a more comprehensive policy-driven approach to safety?

“All the ingredients are there: A five-lane road with no median. Long distances between crosswalks. Businesses on both sides of the road that cater to foot traffic. Bus stops. A 40 mph speed limit on its long, suburban stretch. And small motels — situated across the street from a supermarket — that cater to low-income people with no cars.”

The Times Union’s description could be used to describe Hempstead Turnpike on Long Island, for years named the most dangerous  road for pedestrians in downstate New York. NYSDOT is to be commended for their recent attention to Hempstead Turnpike, which was spurred in part by substantial media coverage of the crashes. During a recent discussion about the Times Union’s article, one transportation professional told Tri-State: “We’ve got dozens of Hempstead Turnpikes, all across the state.” The speaker’s concern was that, unfortunately, it seems that only a localized media frenzy drives real change.

At the moment, instead of taking the bull by the horns, NYSDOT could be accused of taking a piecemeal approach. The agency’s modifications on the Hempstead Turnpike will be used as “a model” for other roads in the state, but it’s not clear to the public how or when that effort will manifest. In 2010, they released a pedestrian and bicycle policy, but the more comprehensive draft Pedestrian Safety Action Plan was never adopted by the Department. The state’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Council has been defunct for two years, apparently a victim of the SAGE Commission efforts to streamline government, and the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee is trying to fill the void. The Department said a website and guidance materials are coming this spring in response to the State’s 2012 Complete Streets Law, but in the absence of a fair share for safety policy, those grumbling behind the scenes argue these efforts don’t add up to effective policy or action.

As the Times Union article points out, there’s an inherent equity issue on the table. People who walk and take buses and stay in the small motels along busy roads are more often than not the people who don’t own cars, and the people who don’t vote. In a state where pedestrians and cyclists account for 27 percent of all traffic fatalities, but only two percent of transportation dollars are used to improve safety for vulnerable users, it will take more than an occasional media blitz to overturn systemic policy inequities.

Eyes on the Street: Bike Share Takes Manhattan

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Citi Bike’s first Manhattan installation, at Fulton Street and Cliff Street in the Financial District. Photo: CitibikeNYC/Twitter

Citi Bike station installations began in Bed Stuy about ten days ago, working west through Fort Greene and Downtown Brooklyn. Now, with about 60 stations installed, bike-share has crossed the East River, the Citi Bike Twitter feed informs us that the system’s first Manhattan installation has gone in at Cliff Street and Fulton Street in the Financial District. The system is scheduled to launch next month, and thousands of New Yorkers have subscribed since annual memberships went on sale Monday.

So, after this latest development, will any Manhattan City Council members join their Brooklyn counterpart in signing up for bike share?

Safety Comes in Segments for Brooklyn’s 4th Avenue

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Safety | Photo: NYCDOT

Safety improvements are coming to Brooklyn’s 4th Avenue. | Photo: NYCDOT

Since 2009, the New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT), in partnership with Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz’s 4th Avenue Task Force, has been working to make 4th Avenue in Brooklyn safer for pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists. NYCDOT has split the avenue into three segments – Bay Ridge, Sunset Park and Park Slope – and is working with each neighborhood’s respective community board to develop road design changes that can be implemented in less time than a traditional NYCDOT capital project.

Running from Bay Ridge to Downtown Brooklyn and lined with schools, senior centers, stores, subway stations, homes, religious institutions, restaurants, bars and other neighborhood amenities, parts of 4th Avenue are classified as a local road, while other parts are classified as an urban arterial. The road has two to three travel lanes in each direction (plus two parking lanes), with vehicles traveling much faster than the posted speed limit. Not surprisingly, TSTC found 4th Ave to be among Brooklyn’s Most Dangerous Roads for Pedestrians in 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012.

On Tuesday, NYCDOT unveiled community driven plans for 4th Avenue’s third and final segment in Park Slope (15th Street to Pacific Street). To address the project goals of reducing speeding, making it easier to cross and simplifying turns, NYCDOT proposed establishing left turn bans and adding bike corrals for bike parking as well as planters for beautification. The plan would keep 4th Avenue’s three lanes in each direction northbound from Union Street to Atlantic Avenue, but would put in place traffic calming measures and a wider median in other sections, reducing lanes to two in each direction.

These improvements come from both the online comments submitted by the public as well as the public workshop session held in February. NYCDOT will incorporate comments it received from Tuesday’s Open House and present the updated plans to Community Board 6 and Community Board 2, whose approvals are necessary for the improvements to move forward.

A similar process is occurring concurrently on Bay Ridge’s 4th Avenue section (66th Street to 101st Street) where, after NYCDOT received over 60 online comments and conducted a public workshop in January, the Agency proposed improvements that include high-visibility crosswalks between 91st and 92nd Streets, left turn bays and a sidewalk extension at Bay Ridge Parkway, and a crossing island at 86th Street. (Read more here.)

NYCDOT will incorporate feedback received at the Bay Ridge Open House and present its Bay Ridge proposal to Community Board 10. Improvements will be made pending CB 10’s adoption.

Community Board 7, whose stretch of 4th Avenue runs from 15th to 65th Streets, was the first Board to approve the street improvements. CB 7 adopted the Sunset Park segment improvements last May and improvements started in August. Changes to this segment include a road diet, left turn bans at certain intersections and widening 52 crossing islands, making it easier for pedestrians to get across 4th Avenue. While it remains too early to know definitively whether the changes have met the improved safety goals, at a CB 7 Transportation Committee meeting held earlier this month, NYCDOT representatives said preliminary data is “very promising.”

With improvements steadily moving forward, 4th Avenue’s transformation from one of Brooklyn’s most dangerous roads for walking into “Brooklyn Boulevard” may soon become a reality.

Eyes on the Street: Bike Corrals Protect Ninth Avenue Bike Lane

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A new bike corral on 9th Avenue, between 39th and 40th Streets. Photo: Clarence Eckerson Jr.

Bike parking corrals adjacent to a protected bike lane — a first for New York City, and perhaps the nation — have been installed along Ninth Avenue in Chelsea and Hell’s Kitchen. Check out these pics from Clarence, snapped on Thursday.

First requested by Community Board 4 in fall 2011, and receiving a supportive 11-0 committee vote in February, the corrals provide 18 bike racks along the “floating” parking lane the between the bicycle lane and general traffic lanes.

At the request of the community board, sidewalk bike racks on blocks that are receiving bike corrals will be removed.

A pedestrian island and bike corral on 9th Avenue at 36th Street. Photo: Clarence Eckerson Jr.

Casa di Isacco restaurant is maintaining a four-rack corral between 39th and 40th Streets, Pomodoro restaurant is maintaining a seven-rack corral between 38th and 39th Streets, and Ora Thai Cuisine is maintaining a seven-rack corral by a pedestrian island between 35th and 36th Streets.

In the words of Streetsblog reader Eric McClure: Is there a higher form of bike lane than the bike-parking-protected bike lane?

In addition to the new bike racks, new curb-and-concrete pedestrian refuge islands continue to be installed along Ninth Avenue, most notably for pedestrians at 34th Street.

Asphalt is removed for a pedestrian refuge island on 9th Avenue at 34th Street. Photo: Clarence Eckerson Jr.

Women’s (Bike) History: Ellen Fletcher

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Even at age 83, even suffering from lung cancer, Ellen Fletcher rode her bike to City Hall for a hearing on bicycle improvements this past summer. That was the level of dedication that made Fletcher not just a local hero, but a national inspiration.

As a Gold level Bicycle Friendly Community, Palo Alto remains a model for cities nationwide — and Fletcher was instrumental in pioneering innovative infrastructure and putting the California city on the map.

Ellen

As a mother concerned for the safety of her children; an advocate for clean, sustainable transportation; and an elected official who was intent on creating a better community for all, Fletcher was a leading voice for bikes long before there was a growing chorus of support for active transportation. Her efforts ensured that, when she passed away in November, nearly half of the attendees to her memorial pedaled to the service.

Talk about a legacy.

According to Richard Masoner: “Ellen escaped Berlin as a Jewish child on the Kindertransport trains and spent her teen years as a refugee in World War II London, where she biked to her factory job. She eventually ended up in Palo Alto, California, where she got her start in cycling advocacy as safety chair of the local PTA when she saw that the best way to protect school children from their greatest danger was by reducing auto traffic around schools. She revived the Santa Clara Valley Bicycle Association (which exists today as the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition) in the early 1970s.”

That was just the beginning — Fletcher was also a vanguard for better bicycle infrastructure that would soon be adopted nationwide. As Bob Mack, publisher of Cycle CA! magazine, noted on the SVBC blog: “When the first bike lanes were proposed Ellen was on the front lines. No one knew what a bike lane was or why we needed them. She led the fight and helped create a network of green (yes, pea green) bike lanes to connect schools, parks and neighborhoods in the city. This transformed transportation for those without cars.”

Fletcher also pioneered the first bike boulevard in the U.S. As Naomi Bloom recounted: “In 1973, Ellen Fletcher joined Palo Alto’s fledgling “Citizen’s Technical Advisory Committee” on bicycling. By the next year she was the committee’s chairperson, the guiding light of what was to become the Palo Alto Bicycle Advisory Committee. One of PABAC’s original campaigns was a (then) innovative bikeway concept — a street where automobile access would be limited (but not restricted), offering cyclists a relatively safe alternative to other routes with heavy motor traffic. They dubbed the concept a “bicycle boulevard.” Surprisingly, there was little resistance from the City, which chose Bryant Street for a six-month trial period. Bicycle counts showed a dramatic increase of cyclists on Bryant and a corresponding decrease on the busiest parallel arteries. The first of its kind in the country, the Bryant Street Bicycle Boulevard later expanded north to the Menlo Park border, and has served as a model for similar bike routes across the country. And now it’s been dubbed the “Ellen Fletcher Bicycle Boulevard.”

Fletcher kept her seat on PABAC for nearly 40 years and also served on the city council from 1977 to 1989. As her daughter rightly pointed out at her memorial service, Ellen’s name was “virtually synonymous with Palo Alto’s bicycle improvements,” earning her a number of recognitions, including the League’s Paul Dudley White Award in 1996.

Just last May, Ellen contributed to our “Why I Ride” series. Click here to read about her impact in her own words.

(Photo by Palo Alto Weekly)

 

My Signature

Carolyn Szczepanski
Communications Director

Carolyn joined the League in March 2012, after two years at the Alliance for Biking & Walking. In addition to managing the League’s blog, magazine and other communications, Carolyn organized the first National Women’s Bicycling Summit and launched the League’s newest program: Women Bike. Before she crossed over to advocacy, she was a professional journalist for nearly 10 years.

 

Advocacy Day 2013: Bringing Bicycle and Pedestrian Issues to Albany

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On Wednesday March 13th, the New Yorkers for Active Transportation (NY4AT) coalition sponsored an Advocacy Day at the State’s capitol. The day started with a legislative breakfast at the Fort Orange Club in downtown Albany, which was attended by about thirteen legislators and staff. Featuring presentations by Nick Donohue, Policy Director at Transportation for America and Ron Epstein, Chief Financial Officer at the New York State Department of Transportation, the breakfast drove home the message that it is now more important than ever for our politicians to work to make the most of our transportation dollars under MAP-21.

After the breakfast, a number of NY4AT advocates broke up into three teams that knocked on the doors of legislators at Albany’s Legislative Office Building. During the ensuing conversations, legislators were presented with five agenda considerations:

  1. Fully utilize federal funding available for community infrastructure and trails that encourage safe bicycling and walking.
  2. Institute a “Fair Share for Safety” policy by using more safety funding to reduce pedestrian and cyclist crashes and fatalities.
  3. Increase available funding for local transportation priorities by transferring federal funds from the National Highway Performance Program (NHPP) into the Surface Transportation Program (STP).
  4. Establish performance measures and targets to better track our progress.
  5. Re-establish the State’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Council to help guide the State’s decisions.

These objectives would serve as first steps in correcting a funding imbalance that neglects bicycle and pedestrian safety in favor of traditional highway enhancements. The NY4AT team received a warm reception from most legislators, and hopes to continue to build momentum over the coming months.

Brian Kehoe, NYBC Executive Director offered his thoughts: “Today’s Advocacy Day is a clear demonstration of the growing confidence of the movement for active transportation, and for streets that serve the needs of all users of the road. We had experts from Washington, DC and the New York State Department of Transportation who provided perspectives on the availability of funding for walking, biking and transit. More than a dozen legislators and key staff attended the breakfast. Three teams of skilled advocates visited with twenty legislators in their offices in the afternoon, educating them about their power to fund much-needed roadway safety investments. It was an honor to work with partners from the New Yorkers for Active Transportation coalition.”

However, the push shouldn’t end with Advocacy Day. Call your assemblyperson to reiterate NY4AT’s message that bicycle and pedestrian funding should receive equitable treatment under MAP-21.

Bringing the Joy of Cycling to Brooklyn Schools

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CYCLE Kids Brooklyn Launch Lead

Few encounters are more memorable than those between children and new bikes. The magic was on full view at Wednesday’s launch of the CYCLE Kids program in Brooklyn at Benjamin Franklin Elementary School. Throughout the morning, students handled bicycle tools, spun wheels, peppering volunteers with [...]
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Potential Economic Impact a Driver for Rail-Trail Expansion in New Hampshire

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Rails-to-Trails Conservancy is,
pardon the pun, blazing the trail when it comes to evaluating and promoting the
economic impact that rail-trails can have on the communities they connect to.

When it comes to making the case
for continued investment in trails, nothing is as persuasive as the hard
evidence that destination trails bring trail users who bring dollars and cents
to small communities, many of which are often struggling for sustainable
commercial markets.

RTC’s Manager of Trail
Development in the Northeast, Carl Knoch, is a pioneer in the field of trail
user surveys and capturing information about spending and visitation patterns.
In the late 1990s, his research on trails in York County, Pennsylvania, helped
make the case for investments in the region’s trail network, and he continues
this critical work with similar studies of spending and user data on trails
throughout the Northeast.

Now, as the residents and
businesses of Laconia, New Hampshire, seek to further develop the Winnisquam, Opechee and Winnipesaukee (WOW) Trail,
they have tapped into the experience of Knoch and RTC to generate crucial local
and regional support.

The WOW Trail is a developing
trail that runs within an active railroad corridor in scenic central New
Hampshire. Today, only 1.3 miles of trail are open for public use. However
additional development phases are planned to eventually bring the trail to nine miles
in length, connecting it with an existing trail in nearby Belmont and greatly
expanding the trail’s utility and appeal.

For more information about RTC’s
promotion of trail development in the Northeast, visit: www.railstotrails.org