* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
From everyone here at the National Center for
Bicycling and Walking, please have a happy and safe
holiday season; we look forward to delivering more
news you can use in the new year.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
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CDC Physical Activity Initiatives Get Boost
More California Safe Routes To School
TRB: Ped Accessibility Guidelines
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Can't Build Way Out Of Congestion
Chinese, Now Taking Buses, Export Bikes
Opening Of Phoenix's Guadelupe Bridge
Funds In Place For Akron Trails
Pennsylvania Helmet Law For Scooters?
Main Street: Back To The Corner Store
Europeans Push For Sustainable Tourism
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CDC PHYSICAL ACTIVITY INITIATIVES GET BIG BOOST
"The long-awaited Fiscal Year 2001 Health and Human
Services appropriations bring good news for the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) -- a 150% increase
over FY00 funding for the CDC's nutrition and physical
activity initiatives. The bill, which is expected to go to
vote next week, contains $16.2 million to support state
programs in awareness, education and intervention programs
to improve nutrition behaviors and increase physical
activity.
The conference report states: "Within the total provided
for nutrition/physical activity, the conferees expect CDC
to address overweight, obesity, nutrition and sedentary
lifestyles by supporting state-based programs, by training
health professionals to recognize the signs of obesity and
recommend prevention activities, by educating the public
concerning overweight or obesity through public education
campaigns, and by developing strategies for use at
worksites and in community health and other community
settings."
"This investment will improve the health of millions of
Americans, lay the foundation for a national public health
program on physical activity and nutrition, and help
contain rising health care costs for years to come," said
Margo Wootan, the coordinator of the National Alliance for
Nutrition and Activity (NANA), a coalition of consumer,
health, and physical activity organizations. NANA members,
which include the NCBW, Bikes Belong, the League of
American Bicyclists, and the Rails to Trails Conservancy,
work to create a healthier America through healthy eating
and physical activity.
MORE CALIFORNIA SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL
According to Chris Morfas of the California Bicycle
Coalition, "Lots going on in CA on Safe Routes to School:
"You've heard plenty about Marin County, but did you hear
that the CA Dep't of Health Services gave away NINE $25,000
Safe Routes to School planning grants, including four to
bike advocacy-led efforts in Santa Barbara, Berkeley,
Sacramento and Marin?
"Plus, California Bicycle Coalition and Surface
Transportation Policy Project are gearing up to re-enact
state legislation to provide funds for traffic calming and
bike and ped projects near schools. The first round of
applications this past year proved to be enormously
popular, with over $130 million in applications for the
$20million available."
A PDF version of the CA Safe Routes to School Bill can be
seen at
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/99-00/bill/asm/ab_1451-1500/ab_1475_bill_19991010_chaptered.pdf
According to James McKay (<MackaJD@ci.denver.co.us>),
Denver's Bike/Ped Coordinator, the bike section of the new
Millennium edition of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control
Devices is " the same 1988 content with a new date..." We
plan to cover it in more detail soon but for now, you can
check the MUTCD website and download chapters for yourself:
http://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/kno-millennium.htm
NEW PED ACCESSIBILITY GUIDELINES TO BE PRESENTED AT TRB
According to a recent news release from the U.S. Access
Board, "On Wednesday, January 10, 2001, members of the U.S.
Access Board's Public Rights-of-Way Access Advisory
Committee will formally present their recommendations for
new sidewalk and street crossing accessibility guidelines
in a two-part session at the annual meeting of the
Transportation Research Board...
"The Committee's work will provide the consensus document -
harmonized with the proposed AASHTO Pedestrian Guide
advancing on a similar schedule - that transportation
practitioners need to implement the ADA and the
accessibility policies articulated by the Department of
Transportation. The Access Board will publish a notice of
proposed rulemaking to take public comment on the new
provisions the Committee has recommended before a final
rule is adopted..."
For more information, visit: http://www.access-board.gov or
e-mail Lois Thibault at thibault@access-board.gov
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OHIO DOT OFFICIAL: WE CAN'T BUILD OUR WAY OUT OF CONGESTION
According to a Dec. 12th article in the Columbus (OH)
Dispatch, "The north Outerbelt expansion is complete, and
eight lanes of traffic finally can move smoothly. But as is
the case when any belt is loosened a few notches, growth
may soon catch up. Officials from the Ohio Department of
Transportation, three cities and the Mid-Ohio Regional
Planning Commission warned in two separate forums yesterday
that central Ohio highways may not be able to keep up with
the pace of growth.
"'A growing economy has an evil twin -- and it's called
congestion,' said Jack Marchbanks, ODOT District 6 deputy
director. 'We can't build our way out of congestion,'
Marchbanks told the Downtown Rotary Club at the Hyatt
Regency.
Meanwhile, officials from Columbus, Dublin and Westerville
announced an agreement to study growth and congestion. They
want to lay the groundwork for a regional forum that would
identify problems and share solutions in northern Franklin
and southern Delaware counties. 'We know none of the
individual communities involved can handle the problem
alone,' council member Maryellen O'Shaughnessy said during
a briefing at City Hall. "Regional collaboration offers the
only way to manage the issue.''
Marchbanks as well as O'Shaughnessy and others at the
briefing said the region needs to consider public
transportation, bikeways and more- efficient development
patterns as strategies to reduce the demand for highway
dollars..."
For the rest of the story:
http://www.dispatch.com:80/news/newsfea00/dec00/527747.html
CHINESE, NOW TAKING BUSES, EXPORT BIKES
According to a Dec. 15th Philadelphia Inquirer story,
"...Strangely absent from the morning's commute are the
apparitions that have been a central feature of Chinese
urban life for half a century: bicycles. Along with the
Great Wall, the looming red crenellated parapets of the
Forbidden City and chopsticks, in the Western imagination,
the tens of millions of black bicycles have been emblematic
of what is China.
"But now, in a land that has twice as many two-wheelers as
the United States has people, the bicycle is beginning to
fade, gradually but inexorably, from the streets of urban
China, marking a small, although not insignificant,
transformation of Chinese life..."
For the rest of the story, go to:
http://inq.philly.com:80/content/inquirer/2000/12/15/national/BICYCLE15.htm
OPENING OF PHOENIX'S GUADELUPE BRIDGE NEARS
According to a Dec. 18th article in the Arizona
Republic, "Construction on the Guadelupe bridge across
Interstate 10 is set to wind up today, with it opening to
traffic Wednesday. On Wednesday, the community will have
one more connection to the rest of the Valley when the new
Guadalupe Road bridge opens over Interstate 10. The road
has been cut off to traffic since May so the Arizona
Department of Transportation could build a longer bridge,
alleviating pinch points on I-10 that were created when the
freeway was widened a few years ago.
"...The $1.4 million bridge...remains only two lanes, but
it has bike lanes in each direction and a pedestrian
sidewalk on the north side..."
For the rest of the story:
http://www.azcentral.com:80/news/1218bridge18.html
FUNDS IN PLACE FOR AKRON TRAILS
According to a Dec. 18th story in the Akron (OH)
Beacon-Journal, "The first money has been lined up to run
the still-growing Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail into
downtown Akron, under a railroad line in Stark County and
over Interstate 77 in northern Tuscarawas County.
"The trail won a key $500,000 private grant and $939,000 in
federal highway money to deal with the three big problems,
said Dan Rice, executive director of the Akron-based Ohio &
Erie Canal Corridor Coalition, a grass-roots group. A
$500,000 grant from the Florida-based John S. and James L.
Knight Foundation will be used to design, plan and start
construction of the trail from the historic Mustill Store
off West North Street heading south into downtown Akron,
one of the toughest sections to put in the trail...."
For the rest of the story:
http://www.ohio.com:80/bj/news/docs/000071.htm
PENNSYLVANIA TO CONSIDER HELMET LAW FOR SCOOTERS
According to a Dec. 15th story in the Philadelphia
Inquirer, "Last holiday season, a razor was a shaving
device, a ho-hum stocking stuffer. This year, "Razor" means
a scooter - one brand of the sleek, chrome-and-aluminum,
kick-powered riding machines that are topping children's
gift lists everywhere. But with this latest mania comes a
caution: These toys can be dangerous. Scooter accidents
have accounted for 30,000 emergency-room visits already
this year, according to federal statistics. Pennsylvania Rep.
David Mayernik (D., Pittsburgh) believes that children
under 12 riding scooters should wear helmets, just like
bicyclists, and he said yesterday that he would introduce
such a bill when the General Assembly returns next month.
"Pennsylvania would be among the first states to consider a
scooter helmet law. Similar bills have been introduced in
the New Jersey and New York legislatures but not voted
on...."
For the rest of the story, go to:
http://inq.philly.com:80/content/inquirer/2000/12/15/front_page/SHELMET15.htm
According to a recent note from PSRC's Becca Aue, "The
Puget Sound Regional Council (the MPO for the greater
Seattle region) recently partnered with the Cascade Bicycle
Club and King County Department of Parks to conduct a trail
users' survey and user counts along the popular
Burke-Gilman and Lake Sammammish Trails. This survey/count
has been conducted every five years since 1980. Using the
data, I recently did an article regarding trail user
trends. The most interesting trend is that many more people
are now using the trail for utilitarian purposes such as
commuting and shopping than in the past."
See http://www.psrc.org/datapubs/pubs/trends/index.htm and
go to Trends issue T14 for more information.
MAIN STREET USA: BACK TO THE CORNER STORE
According to a Dec. 17th story in the Washington Post,
"MAIN STREET. Isn't that an antiquated notion? It's been a
persistent retail concept since merchants first laid their
wares on the ground by the well, as they still do in the
parts of the world where 97 varieties of shampoo aren't yet
available.
"In his book 'The New Geography: How the Digital Revolution
Is Reshaping the American Landscape', futurist Joel Kotkin
traces the tradition back to early Mesopotamian and
Egyptian cities, where the stuff drew the people, who drew
the priests to wander around, campaigning for an ancient
approximation of electoral votes. Greek poet Eupolis, in
the fifth century B.C., dutifully recorded: 'You will find
everything sold together in the same place in Athens: figs,
witnesses to summons, bunches of grapes, turnips, pears,
apples, givers of evidence, roses, medlars, porridge,
honeycombs, chickpeas, lawsuits, allotment machines,
irises, lamps, water clocks, laws, indictments.'..."
For the rest of the story, go to:
http://washingtonpost.com:80/wp-dyn/articles/A6609-2000Dec14.html
According to a Dec. 18th article in the Kansas City
Star, "Every child needs to move, but not every child likes
sports. Some don't welcome yet another rules-dominated,
adult-run activity. Some lack athletic talent. Some have
parents who can't afford the fees or can't chauffeur them
to practice. But sports or no sports, every child still
needs to move -- and it's a need our world conspires to
deny. From schools with shrinking recess times to streets
without sidewalks to homes filled with mesmerizing screens,
today's environment encourages immobility.
"And the results are devastating: Childhood obesity is at
an all-time high, setting children up for a lifetime of
health problems. Children need exercise to build their
muscles and bones, to sleep well, and possibly even to do
their best at school. But, says Carol Garber, an exercise
physiologist: 'There currently is a real lack of activities
for kids who don't want to participate in team sports, and
particularly for those kids who are approaching
adolescence, where team sports have gotten to be very
competitive and very rule-oriented.' Some schools are
bucking the trend with activities such as walking clubs,
in which youngsters log their mileage walking around
the track at recess, chatting and giggling the whole
way..." For the rest of the story:
http://www.kcstar.com:80/item/pages/printer.pat,fyi/3774fd10.c15,.html
EUROPEANS PUSH FOR SUSTAINABLE TOURISM
According to an Oct. 9th news release from the European
Cyclists' Federation, "The World Tourism Organisation
estimates that the number of arrivals in Europe will double
from 360 to 720 million by 2020. Unless a common,
sustainable tourism policy is put in place without further
delay, this trend will impact negatively on Europe's
environment and population and will, in the medium term,
constitute a risk even to Europe's tourism destinations.
"Even now, the percentage share of tourism and leisure
transport and traffic in Europe's overall traffic volume is
approximately 50%. The intolerable traffic congestion
during the past holiday season have once again demonstrated
the urgent need for a common European tourism strategy.
Apart from the fact that popular tourism destinations along
the coasts or in the Alps are choked with traffic, people
living along Europe's traffic arteries suffer from the
noxious emissions from motor vehicles..."
For the rest of the release:
http://www.ecf.com/html/newnews.html#Anchor-First-6366
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"RIDES' BIKE RESOURCE GUIDE"
"The first part of this guide provides practical
information about bicycle commuting in the [San Francisco]
Bay Area. The second part is a directory of local, state,
and national resources. The appendix provides information
about RIDES' bicycle programs. As the regional commute
services organization, RIDES serves as a resource
clearinghouse for anyone who seeks bike-related
information. This guide intends to serve a variety of
users, including individuals, employers, public agencies,
and bike organizations..."
Source:
http://www.rides.org/lv2options/lv4options/lv4bkres/intro.html
"TRONDHEIM AS A BICYCLE CITY"
According to this article on the Velo Borealis 98 website,
"Trondheim has installed the world's first bicycle lift -
and the only one so far. The lift has been the subject of
heated debate. Some felt that it was madness to spend more
than 1 million NOK to remove the need for cyclists to
exercise. We thought exactly the opposite. It is motorists
that we want to encourage to use a more healthy means of
transport - we just had to try, and we have succeeded.
During its four seasons, the lift has carried more than
120,000 cyclists up the hill at Brubakken. We have so far
received enquiries from almost 60 cities all over the world
interested in cycle lift projects. Will someone soon be as
daring and foresighted as Trondheim?..."
Source: http://hotell.nextel.no/velo-borealis/Trondheim.html
"DELFT: PROMOTING THE USE OF BICYCLE BY SYSTEMATIC TOWN
PLANNING"
According to this European Academy of the Urban Environment
paper, "The promotion of bicycle use has a long tradition
as nearly 12 million of the Dutch population of 14 million
own a bicycle. Throughout the 1980s the national Ministry
of Transport, Public Works and Water Management provided
substantial financial resources for a city-wide bicycle
project. Delft was one of the model locations which should
implement a systematic network of bicycle paths. This case
of good practice has made impacts for the following
reasons: bicycle use has increasingly become a viable
option for the inhabitants; the environmentally compatible
mode has been integrated into the overall town planning;
infrastructure improvements systematically contribute to
the positive image of cycling; in contrast to the national
trend there had been no increase in growth in
car-kilometres; cycling comfort and safety standards have
been improved..."
Source: http://www.eaue.de/winuwd/78.htm
"TRANSFER NEWSLETTER - SPECIAL ELECTION ISSUE"
The Dec. 18th issue of STPP's Transfer newsletter has an
extensive analysis of this Fall's election results and what
they mean for alt trans folks. To subscribe, send your full
mailing address and organization name, phone and fax
numbers to transfer@transact.org.
For more information about STPP visit their web site at
http://www.transact.org
"ENVIRONMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS OF SMART GROWTH
NEIGHBORHOODS"
"This October 2000 study conducted for the Natural
Resources Defense Council, in cooperation with the United
States Environmental Protection Agency, suggests that the
environmental benefits of smart growth are real and can be
measured. The study focuses on the Metro Square
neighborhood in Sacramento, California, and is one of the
first to examine a fully completed and occupied
development."
Source:
http://www.nrdc.org/cities/smartGrowth/char/charinx.asp
Here are two British sources for bicycle-compatible traffic
counters...
"GOLDEN RIVER MARKSMAN 410"
"Bicycle count and classification in normal traffic streams
are additional options available in the Marksman 410. This
new capacity is a substantial advance. Previously it was
not possible to distinguish between bicycles and other
vehicles, so only limited information was available,
derived from expensive manual counts.
"Marksman 410 measures tyre contact width and can thus
distinguish between bicycles and other traffic - even
motorbikes. The machines are renowned for their accuracy
over one or two lanes of traffic. There is European
language support and European class schemes too. The
Showman Lite software, provided free with the Marksman 410,
enables easy production of tables and graphs from data
gathered."
Source: http://www.goldenriver.com/m410.html
"BICYCLE RECORDER"
"The Counters & Accessories Ltd. 'Bicycle Recorder' data
collection device is a two channel unit designed to record
the flow of either bicycles only in two directions or
bicycles in one direction and other vehicles in one
direction. The unit operates from a specially designed
inductive loop configuration. The technology in the
recorder, a profiling detector, is capable of detecting two
bicycles simultaneously on the loop and not counting other
metallic objects such as supermarket trolleys and buggies.
"The 'Bicycle Recorder' is a low cost unit in a IP65
casting with a user friendly menu for ease of operation.
Data retrieval & set-up is via a PC, laptop or Palm Pilot.
The count period is variable and data can be processed by
VDA. The unit can be housed in a Haldo pillar for security
and ease of use."
Source: http://www.c-a.co.uk/prod03.htm
And now for something completely different...
"ATLANTA'S HEAT ISLAND FROM 1972 TO 1993"
"Landsat satellite data shows the Atlanta, Georgia, urban
heat island to be up to 12 degrees Fahrenheit (6.6¯ C)
hotter than the surrounding countryside," according to
Patrick Downey, RRC, CDT president of Merik, Inc. and
steering committee member of Atlanta Cool Communities. This
urban heat island condition is caused by reductions in the
amount of natural tree canopy that provides shade, as well
as dark, heat absorbing materials on buildings, parking
lots, roads and general development throughout most urban
areas," according to Dr. Hashim Akbari of Lawrence Berkeley
Laboratory."
Source:
http://www.jpselastomerics.com/roofing/heatisland.html
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January 7-11, 2001: 80th Annual Meeting of the
Transportation Research Board, Washington, DC. Info: TRB,
2101 Constitution Ave, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20418, voice:
(202) 334-2934 fax: (202) 334-2003
website: http://www4.nationalacademies.org/trb/annual.nsf
January 19-20, 2001: Redefining Community: A Smart Growth
Approach to Street and Neighborhood Design, Crime
Prevention, and Public Health and Safety conference, San
Diego, CA. Info: Michele Kelso, Local Government
Commission, 1414 K St, Ste 250, Sacramento, CA 95814,
voice: (916) 448-1198, e-mail: <mkelso@lgc.org>
website:
http://www.outreach.psu.edu/C&I/RedefiningCommunity/
February 20-22, 2001: Australia: Walking the 21st Century:
An International Walking Conference, Perth, Western
Australia. Info: John Seaton, Metropolitan Div., Dept. of
Transport, PO Box 7272 Cloisters Square, Perth, W.
Australia - 6850, voice: +61 8 9313 8680 fax: +61 8 9320
9497 e-mail: jseaton@transport.wa.gov.au
website:
http://www.transport.wa.gov.au/conferences/walking/index.html
March 28-30, 2001: National Bike Summit 2001, Washington,
DC. Info: Paul Weiss, League of American Bicyclists, 1612 K
Street NW, Suite 401, Washington, DC 20006-2082 voice:
(202) 822-1333 fax: (202) 822-1334 email:
paul@bikeleague.org
website: http://www.bikeleague.org
March 25-28, 2001,17th Annual ITE Spring Conference:
Improving Transportation Performance and Productivity,
Monterey, CA. Info: ITE, 525 School Street, SW, Suite 410,
Washington, DC 20024 USA , voice: (202) 554-8050 fax:
(202) 863-5486, email: ite_staff@ite.org
website: https://www.ite.org/conference2001/sixdays.asp
July 3-6, 2001,Environmental Design Research Association
(EDRA) Annual Meeting, Edinburgh, Scotland. Info: EDRA,
P.O. Box 7146, Edmond, OK 73083-7146, voice: (405)330-4863
fax: (405)330-4150, email: edra@telepath.com
website: http://www.telepath.com/edra/home.html
August 3-5, 2001, Bikefest 2001 - LAB's National Rally,
Altoona, PA. Info: League of American Bicyclists, voice:
(202) 822-1333, email: bikeleague@bikeleague.org
website: http://www.bikeleague.org/rallies/rallies.html
September 17-21, 2001, Velo-city 2001, Edinburgh/Glasgow,
Scotland. Info: Meeting Makers Ltd, Jordanhill Campus, 76
Southbrae Drive, Glasgow G13 1PP, Scotland, voice: 0141 434
1500 fax: 434 1519, e-mail: Velo_city@meetingmakers.co.uk
website: http://velo-city2001.org/
September 26-29, 2001, TrailLink 2001: the 3rd International
Trails and Greenways Conference, St. Louis, MO. Info: RTC,
voice: (202) 974-5152, email: rtcconf@transact.org
website: http://www.railtrails.org
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JOB > BICYCLE COLORADO OFFICE ASSISTANT
Bicycle Colorado will hire a half time office assistant as
of January 1st. Mostly routine office duties, including
lots of database management. Starting pay is modest, but
there is opportunity for advancement. The job is based in
the BC office in Salida. Send a resume to Bicycle Colorado,
PO Box 698, Salida CO 81201) postmarked by December 6th.
E-mail John Waitman: John@bicyclecolo.org for a job
description.
JOB > FLORIDA BICYCLE COALITION EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
The Florida Bicycle Association (FBA) is looking for a
dynamic leader to fill the position of executive director.
This full-time position will be primarily responsible for
the development and implementation of FBA's bicycle-related
programs in addition to administrative functions. For more
information, visit their website at
http://www.floridabicycle.org. or e-mail Carol Wilson at
carol@floridabicycle.org
Deadline for Applications: January 3, 2001
GRANT > TCSP 2002 GRANT PROPOSALS DUE JAN. 31, 2001
The purpose of the Transportation and Community and System
Preservation Pilot Program (TCSP) is to fund grants and
research to investigate and address the relationship
between transportation and community and system
preservation. States, local governments, MPOs, tribal
governments, and other
local and regional public agencies are eligible for
discretionary grants for planning and implementation.
Applications for Fiscal Year 2002 grants and research
recommendations are due at your FHWA Division Office by
close of business on Jan. 31, 2001. For more information on
the program, visit:
http://tcsp-fhwa.volpe.dot.gov/index.html
RFP > BIKE SAFETY CURRICULUM/BOOKLET
The Bicycle Coalition of the Delaware Valley and the School
District of Philadelphia are seeking bicycle professional(s) to work
with local staff to write and prepare a bike safety
curriculum and develop a bike safety and encouragement
booklet for middle and high school students. Both
curriculum and booklet should be directed to children
living in a dense, urban environment. For more information, contact Sue
McNamara, Bicycle Coalition of the Delaware Valley, 252
S.11th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107, Fax 215-829-4188,
e-mail: sue@bcdv.org
------------------------------------------------------------
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------------------------------------------------------------
Contributors: Bill Wilkinson, Peter Moe
Editor: John Williams Send news items to: john@montana.com
Director: Bill Wilkinson
------------------------------------------------------------
National Center for Bicycling & Walking 1506 21st St NW,
Suite 200, Washington D.C. 20036 Voice: (202) 463-6622
Fax: (202) 463-6625
Email: info@bikewalk.org
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