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Entries tagged: Bike Walk Alliance Of New Hampshire

In most cases, new transportation infrastructure is christened by cars. But, this month in Manchester, bicyclists were the first vehicles to travel a new bridge.

The primacy of two-wheeling transportation at the November ribbon-cutting ceremony was the result of behind-the-scenes work from advocates at the Bike-Walk Alliance of New Hampshire.

The effort dates back to 2009, when the BWA-NH got wind that a $175 million bridge connecting Bedford and Manchester over the Merrimack River was designed without accommodations for bicyclists on the main roadway. Because the project also serves as an access road to the Manchester airport, that omission was particularly troublesome to Granite State cyclists.

According to BWA-NH: “A side path, not to be illuminated at night, cleared of snow in the winter, or providing a direct connection to local roads, was part of the design but that would not accommodate vehicular cyclists requiring a 24 x 7 x 365 transportation corridor. Mopeds and electric bicycles were also to be prohibited from using the bridge to access local roads where they are commonly used.”

So the advocates got to work. They determined that the Sagamore Bridge, connecting Nashua and Hudson downstream on the Merrimack, had the same restrictions regarding bicyclists and mopeds — restrictions that are in contradiction to federal law. Partnering with the Granite State Wheelmen, BWA-NH held a series of high-level meetings with the New Hampshire DOT and the Federal Highway Administration.

The result? In March 2010, the DOT removed the restrictions from both bridges. On November 10, bicyclists and pedestrians got the chance to savor the victory at the celebration for the completion of the project.

According to BWA-NH: “The public was invited to attend and the first vehicles to cross the bridge were bicycles! Members of BWA-NH and the GSW attended, pedaled the roadways and the sidepath for a comparison, and attended the ceremony. The road was open for general traffic on Veterans Day, Friday, November 11. Again, without the advocacy efforts of BWA-NH and the GSW, the MAAR bridge would just be a link for motorists with vehicular bicyclists and moped users having no way to access the local roads by crossing the new bridge.”

Read more about the campaign and victory on the BWA-NH website.

New laws created last year in New Hampshire requiring motorists to keep a 3-foot distance when passing a bicycle are now in effect. The Bike Walk Alliance of New Hampshire (BWA-NH) has created public service announcements promoting the new law which have aired on 28 New Hampshire radio stations. BWA-NH has also participated in several radio talk shows and are selling T-shirts with “3 Feet Please” printed across the front and back. BWA-NH is also promoting the 3-foot law with the DMV via driver education instructors and is working with the NH Police Academy to ensure all the new bicyclist/motorist interaction laws are covered in their training program.

For more information about BWA-NH’s 3-Foot advocacy efforts, click here…