 NCBW Newsroom - Regional and Local ActionsThe National & International Scene | Regional and Local Actions | The Research Beat | Resources | Jobs, Grants & RFPs "ATLANTIC CITIES" ARTICLE TOUTS LONG BEACH (CA) BIKE EFFORTS -> According to a Jan. 26th Atlantic Cities article, "Few cities--and even fewer American cities -- struggle with bike traffic congestion. Rather, what more and more cities find themselves struggling with is a lack of bike traffic. They want more bicyclists on their streets. To get them, cities are finding that when they build more bicycle lanes--and, more broadly, 'bicycle-friendly' environments--more bicyclists emerge. This theory is moving full speed ahead in unlikely Long Beach, Calif., where a focused effort is underway to modify city streets to encourage bicycling to become a viable day-to-day transportation option in and around the city. The transformation has been rapid in this city of 460,000, 20 miles south of downtown Los Angeles. In just a few years, the city has allocated more than $20 million for bike-related projects, adding new bike routes to city streets, building protected bike lanes, painting shared lanes, and installing the signage, signaling and parking that restate non-verbally the city's new motto, now prominently displayed on a wall outside City Hall: 'Long Beach, the most bicycle friendly city in America.'..." Source: http://bit.ly/zyBoac MICHIGAN COMPLETE STREETS ADVISORY COUNCIL RELEASES ANNUAL REPORT -> According to a Jan. 26th Michigan Complete Streets Coalition blog entry, "The Complete Streets Advisory Council met yesterday and announced the release of an annual report detailing progress made since Complete Streets legislation went into effect in Michigan on Aug. 1, 2010." The report (5.3MB pdf) is available online at http://1.usa.gov/w8uXGd [or can be read in the PDF viewer at the source link below]. "The Complete Streets law was enacted to encourage counties, cities, villages and townships to work cooperatively to incorporate policies that ensure that roads and streets take into account the mobility needs of all legal users, including bicyclists, pedestrians and those traveling by assistive devices such as wheelchairs. Public Acts 134 and 135 of 2010 also requires the State Transportation Commission to enact a Complete Streets policy for MDOT by August 2012." "The 18-member council worked together over the last year to develop a vision statement and sample policy language for the State Transportation Commission. The report released yesterday notes that 63 Michigan communities have enacted Complete Streets policies and/or resolutions as of November 2011, putting Michigan ahead of all other states..." Source: http://bit.ly/xZ1aZg NASHVILLE MPO ANNOUNCES $2.5M IN ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS -> According to a Jan. 30th announcement, "The Nashville Area MPO and its Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee announced $2.5 million in project awards in January 2012 under a new Active Transportation Program included in the adopted 2035 Regional Transportation Plan. Shaped by extensive public and stakeholder input, the MPO established a new direction for investments made with MPO-managed grant funds received through the Federal Highway Administration's Surface Transportation Program. The Active Transportation Program targets at least 15 percent of available Urban Surface Transportation Program resources for walking, bicycling, or transit-supportive projects that may not have otherwise received funding through more traditional revenue streams..." Source: http://bit.ly/youBFl BIKING BENEFITS EXCEED $450 MILLION IN IOWA -> In a Jan. 30th Alliance for Biking & Walking blog entry, Carolyn Szczepanski wrote, "As a former Des Moines resident and one-time RAGBRAI rider, I know bicycling is big in the state of Iowa. Now a new study from the Iowa Bicycle Coalition quantifies that enthusiasm and puts a big dollar figure on its impact in the Hawkeye State. Last week, I mentioned recent research from Resource Systems Group and Local Motion on the economic impact of biking in Vermont, which revealed that, in 2009, bicycling and walking created at least 1,400 jobs, $41 million in personal income (wages) and $83 million in revenue. In Iowa, those numbers are even higher." "According to 'Economic and Health Benefits of Bicycling,' the spending of recreational cyclists generates $364.8 million in direct and indirect impacts to the State of Iowa. And that's just the economic aspect. When it comes to health, bicycling saves the state $73.9 million in healthcare costs for those who cycle recreationally, while bicycle commuters cash in on another $13.2 million in health care cost savings..." Source: http://bit.ly/zRdAmY Get a jump start on this news by subscribing to CenterLines. Discuss these news articles with other advocates in the Forum section of the ALRC Commons. |
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