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Pat Clements doesn’t know where the days went. “Time goes by fast when you’re very busy or having fun,” the Nashville resident marvels. “It seems like last week that the Alliance came to Tennessee to help organize a group of highly motivated and enthusiastic individuals into a cohesive team.”

Believe it or not, Bike Walk Tennessee is already blowing out the candle on its first birthday. But, even in their infancy, the organization has plenty to celebrate.

“We’ve tested our capacity on a variety of issues, started establishing relationships with influentials and built our base membership,” says Clements, the group’s president. “We’ve laid the groundwork for an organization that is well positioned to unite the state and promote walking and biking to a new level for Tennesseans.”

This week, Bike Walk Tennessee released its first annual report, packed with highlights like:

- The application of safety rumble strips to roads is an extremely hot item for bicyclists. With Tom Evans’ leadership we have worked constructively with TDOT to advance one of the most bicycle-friendly specifications in the country. Although many miles of bike-able road shoulder have been compromised by rumbling, we shouldn’t see seemingly arbitrary or irresponsible rumbling on any stretch of Tennessee highway going forward.

- Jonell Johnson, Mark Hicks, and others have spent countless hours examining traffic accident reports in order to identify ways injury to bicyclists could have been avoided. When necessary, they have provided local District Attorneys with information regarding traffic and bicycle laws to insure justice for victims.

- This year, the General Assembly passed the “stop light bill.” After initiation by State Senator Jamie Woodson of Knoxville, Bike Walk Tennessee promoted the bill and encouraged other legislators to co-sponsor it. The bill allows bicyclists to proceed though traffic signals with automatic detection after they have stopped and determined the signal has not recognized them.

To share their successes and strategize for the next 365, Bike Walk Tennessee leaders came up with an interesting means of engaging their members. Instead of holing up behind closed doors, the board will webstream its annual meeting next month.

Already, Clements has plenty of people to thank: a visionary group of founders, an engaged board of directors and a growing base of members across the states. “It is a tough but rewarding undertaking,” Clements says. “Organizing an effective grass roots organization seems like a near impossible task. It is indeed fraught with challenges, but we had plenty of help.”

Read more about Bike Walk Tennessee on their blog.