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Entries tagged: Cycle Track

Last month, Livable Memphis, a recipient of a Fall 2010 Advocacy Advance Grant, completed its “Overton-Broad Connector” Innovation Grant proposal. The advocates used their $25,000 award to introduce two model innovations to the Memphis community.

The New Face for an Old Broad event in November 2010 took the Better Blocks concept to a new level by temporarily reprogramming a street to show how bicycle and pedestrian facilities can encourage economic development. Three blocks of the Broad Avenue commercial district were turned into a DIY weekend festival. Local schools painted crosswalks, vacant storefronts were cleaned out and turned into pop-up shops and cafes, local artists created murals. The temporary redesign of the streetscape, including painted protected bike lines, have remained untouched for more than a year because they follow code standards and the local community has been pleased with the increase of business.

The grant also supported Livable Memphis’s advocacy efforts to complete the Overton-Broad Connector. The park trail segment will serve as the only pedestrian entrance to Overton Park from the east and increase access to mixed-income communities. Livable Memphis completed the design concept and is working to raise additional funds needed to complete the cycle track.

Going above and beyond the matching grant requirement, Livable Memphis raised more than $100,000 in sponsorships, donations, grants, event proceeds, and membership dues for its efforts. The advocates’ work has received additional financial support from Bikes Belong, Tennessee Recreational Trails Program, and HUS Sustainable Communities grant program.

In addition, Livable Memphis introduced updates to Memphis pedestrian ordinances regarding ADA access and crosswalk right-of-ways, which passed City Council, and developed a new “fines and fees” ordinance that will bring violation charges regarding bicycles and pedestrians up to the standard of their peer cities.

We’ve added added materials to our Online Resource Library that Livable Memphis used in its advocacy and feel would be useful for other Alliance member organizations:

• Sample Request for Proposal for Professional Design Services and instructions for submitting a Letter of Interest
• Traffic Volume Count Study Methods

Livable Memphis joins the more than two dozen other organizations that have used Advocacy Advance grant funding to spur development and carry out successful bicycle and pedestrian campaigns. Check back in coming weeks for information about next year’s funding cycle.

Contributed by Alliance intern Adam Levine

On June 15, the city of Vancouver celebrated the opening of its first two-way cycle track through downtown. Separated from pedestrians and traffic by planters, paint, and concrete dividers, the new bike lanes offer riders a safe, comfortable way to get around the city.

After years of advocacy, the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition was excited to participate in the opening ceremonies for the new cycle tracks. For the inaugural ride, the Mayor, along with over a hundred cyclists and advocates, took to the streets to highlight the ease and convenience of the new lanes.

Hear more from the mayor and check out the lanes for yourself in the video.

On Tuesday November 17th, the City of San Jose adopted its first comprehensive bike plan with the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition (SVBC) playing a strong role in its release.

SVBC, the Department of Transportation, various community organizations, and the general public have long been anticipating the plan which includes a Cal Train bike share program, a cycle track, a doubling of existing bike lanes, new safety signals, bike lockers, and an overall increase in bicycle ridership and safety. The City ultimately hopes to achieve a five percent increase in cycling and a Gold-level Bicycle Friendly ranking from the League of American Bicyclists by 2020.

Corinne Winter, executive director of SVBC said, “We need to ensure that hard commitments and funding streams follow. To turn this plan into a reality, the City will have to put dollars behind developing these bike facilities.” 

SVBC has been an active voice in the planning process and continues to strongly support the plan. They will continue to be persistent in urging financing as well as the implementation of any experimental suggestions in order to expedite the plan in an efficient manner.  To find out more about SVBC’s involvement and track the plan’s progress, visit bikesiliconvalley.org and/or sanjoseca.gov

Portland‘s Bicycle Transportation Alliance (BTA) is celebrating the unveiling of the city’s first cycle track on August 31st.

The new cycle track runs on Broadway, from southwest Clay to southwest Jackson, and separates cyclists from parked cars by a 3-foot striped buffer zone. This seven-block section has always had heavy bike traffic and few right turns for cars, which makes it the perfect location to test this innovative concept.

In addition to the bicycle-friendly lanes, the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) has painted green markings throughout the track to facilitate left-hand turns for bikers. Known as “Copenhagen lefts,” they are the first of their kind being used in North America.

The BTA helped in getting this project started by creating the proposal and presenting it to the city staff.

This cycle track is the latest development in an extremely successful summer for Portland after finishing three Sunday Parkways, a new uphill bike lane on North Mississippi, and buffered bike lanes on several main streets. The PBOT believes that this track will prove safer and more comfortable for bikers and drivers alike. They plan for similar projects throughout Portland in the future.

For more information, go to http://bikeportland.org/2009/08/31/first-look-at-portlands-inaugural-cycle-track/