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This month, the Mill Valley School District passed a new Safe Routes to School policy, initiated by the Marin County Bicycle Coalition (MCBC) that would encourage students in the district to walk, bike, or carpool to school each day. The policy gives support for safety education at school, as well as support for the Mill Valley Safe Routes to School Program.

The goal of the policy is to ensure that students in the district have access to safety education and support for walking and biking to school regardless of any changes in staff or elected officials. The foresighted advocates at MCBC recognized that, without that assurance in writing, progresses in programming could be walked back with a new superintendent or principal.

MCBC began the process by working with a city council member, a school board member, and the superintendent to draft the policy. They based their draft on the California School Board Association’s sample board policy and then adapted it to their specific needs. From there, they took the policy to the school board, where it passed unanimously.

Wendi Kallins, the program director for Safe Routes to School at the MCBC, credits the smooth passage of the new policy to the collaboration with school board members and the school district system. Now MCBC has a local example of how this policy (and the process to get there) can work — and take similar policies to other school districts.

“Don’t overreach but don’t compromise on your basic goal of institutionalizing Safe Routes to Schools,” Kallins says of crafting a similar policy for your community. “You might have to change the policy to say ‘may’ instead of ‘shall,’ but include the elements that are essential: education, encouragement, task force participation for engineering and enforcement, and evaluation.”

Click here to download the model policy from the Alliance Resource Library.

Just in time for the long weekend, we’ve uploaded a number of new videos to the Alliance Resource Library this week. But that’s not all…

• Before you press play and kick back with YouTube, make sure you delve into two important reports that came out this week:
  • Dangerous By Design 2011 was released by Transportation for America on Tuesday, casting the spotlight on the epidemic of preventable pedestrian deaths across the U.S.

  • The Advocacy Advance team released a new/updated report on “Getting a Fair Share for Safety from the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP): Bicycle and Pedestrian Advocacy Case Studies,” examining the states that have successfully dedicated federal safety funds to reduce bicycle and pedestrian fatalities and crashes.

• As for the videos…

  • A beautiful two minutes of inspiration from our friends at Planet Bike

  • Four great, new PSAs from the just-launched Safe Streets Save Lives campaign in South Carolina

  • An impressive “Active and Green Transportation” video produced by high school students in Marin County, CA

  • A video from Transportation Alternatives, highlighting the work of Bronx residents — and students — in improving safety at a dangerous intersection

  • A video from the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition featuring three residents talking about their desire for bike lanes on 7th Street — in three different languages

  • A clip from “Beauty and the Bike” — a movie documenting an effort to get more girls riding in Darlington, UK (a resource that came up in our Mutual Aid Call on Bringing More Women into the Movement earlier this week!)

  • And, last but not least, some informative and humorous PSAs from the New York City Department of Transportation telling cyclists “Don’t be a Jerk” and obey traffic laws (don’t miss Commissioner Jannette Sadik-Khan calling John Leguizamo a jerk!)

Enjoy — and have a great long weekend!

Looking out at an excited crowd of more than 300 cyclists and pedestrians, Deb Hubsmith, advocacy director for the Marin County Bicycle Coalition, couldn’t have smiled any wider. “This is one of the happiest days of my life,” she said, as video cameras rolled and flashbulbs popped.

The happy and high-profile occasion was the December opening of the $27-million Cal Park Hill Tunnel, a world-class facility that will connect Larkspur and San Rafael, California, reducing the travel time for as many as 800,000 bike commuters every year.

The big-ticket project has been a major campaign for the Marin County Bicycle Coalition since its inception in 1998. But the vision for a bike-ped pathway through the former rail corridor far pre-dates the MCBC. According to the Coalition: “The Cal Park Tunnel was originally constructed in 1884 with significant renovations taking place in the mid-portion of last century. Originally designed to haul lumber and freight, and then later passengers, the tunnel was sealed in 1978 after a series of fires and structural collapses made it unsafe.”

When the tunnel was closed, local resident Jean Starkweather initiated the bold proposal to repurpose the facility for bicycle and pedestrian access — and kept the idea alive for more than two decades. In the late 90s, she handed off the torch to Hubsmith, who, in her own words, doesn’t take no for an answer.  “A lot of agencies came together and there were some fights along the way,” Hubsmith told a reporter from Streetfilms. “We had to stop a parking lot from being built at one side of the tunnel.”

But, Kim Baenisch, MCBC’s executive director, explained that the result was well worth the marathon effort. “We’ve been working on this for 12 years now, so it’s amazing to see it finally come,” she told Streetfilms. “It’s 1.2 miles tip to tip of paved path, including the stretch of tunnel, which is 1,100 feet long. This is a state-of-the-art facility with lighting and cell phone access and security cameras and beautiful smooth pavement and a ventilation system. I mean, what else could you ask for? And it’s for bikes and peds!”

It wasn’t just local residents celebrating, either. Tim Blumenthal, executive director of the Bikes Belong Coalition, was there for the ribbon cutting, too. His organization gave MCBC a $10,000 grant to work on the project back in 2002. Blumenthal called the tunnel’s completion a major development. “This is a classic example of a tunnel replacing a round-about way,” Blumenthal said. “When you make bicycling faster than any other way to travel from Point A to Point B, you really win.”

Watch the Streetfilm video here or read more about the project from the Marin County Bicycle Coalition.

Photo credit: Marin County Bicycle Coalition

For more than a decade, Mark Birnbaum’s daily commute was edged with anxiety. The Novato, California, resident and member of the Marin County Bicycle Coalition (pictured) biked 16 miles to his job in San Rafael and, every day, braved a narrow stretch on Alameda del Prado.

“It became apparent the first day I ever commuted on my bike in 2000 that it was totally unsafe there,” Birnbaum told the Marin Independent Journal earlier this year. “It was just a matter of time before somebody got killed by an impatient driver. I’ve had a couple of close calls myself.”

Last week, advocates celebrated new bike lanes that will help ease the anxiety of riders like Birnbaum. “I wish Mark were here today,” Judy Arnold, Marin County Board President, said, as she cut the ribbon on the new bicycle facilities.

Birnbaum was traveling out of the country, but more than three dozen advocates showed up to christen the 4-foot bike lanes stretching along both sides of Alameda del Prado. Not only do the new facilities make a dicey stretch more passable for cyclists, but they also connect the existing bicycle lanes on Ignacio Boulevard to the Pacheco Pathway, closing a key one-mile gap in the North/South Bikeway.

According to the Marin County Bicycle Coalition, Birnbaum would be proud. “The completed project includes narrowed landscaped medians, underground utilities and a smooth surface to roll along,” the organization notes in its latest newsletter. “Check out the new bikes lanes the next time you’re traveling north. They’re very nice!”

Read more about the Marin County Bicycle Coalition here.

MCBC’s goal of steadily improving biking and walking facilities within Marin County is gaining momentum with a newly completed multi-use pathway in the city of Larkspur connecting neighborhoods to local schools and parks.

The new ADA-compliant pathway replaces what used to be a dirt path that was primarily being used by local schoolchildren. Measure A Safe Routes to School funded the new multi-use trail which also included 54 trees planted along the pathway, a soon-to-be installed bench with a great view of Mount Tamalpais, and a fence to delineate the pathway from the High School property.

The path is increasing the amount of children walking and biking to school and is attracting many other members of the community to walk or bike along the path. MCBC will continue to support the city of Larkspur for their continued commitment to improving the non-motorized transportation system within the City.

Visit www.marinbike.org/Index.shtml for more information.

According to the Marin County Bicycle Coalition, “Marin County Safe Routes to Schools (SR2S) is pleased to announce its new Green Ways to School campaign to combat global warming, funded by a $175,000 grant from the Marin Community Foundation’s Climate Change Initiative. The Green Ways to School campaign will feature the new SchoolPool on-line trip sharing program, new contests, and cash incentives for the schools that show the greatest increase in green trips to school by walking, biking, carpooling or taking the bus.

Building on the success of Marin’s nationally recognized SR2S program, the Green Ways campaign will employ a classroom competition within schools, and challenges between schools with cash awards. Parents will be able to use the on-line SchoolPool program to build a network of friends to share the journey to school modeled after employee ridesharing programs; SchoolPool will provide parents with match-lists of schoolmates who live along their route to school. They can then form a carpool, walk or bike together, or find bus buddies for their children. Walking or bicycling in groups provides safety in numbers and provides socializing time as well as exercise on the way to school, for both the children and the parents. The program will be unveiled on January 21, 2010 at 4 p.m. “

For more information visit www.marinbike.org

On November 13th, the Marin County Bicycle Coalition(MCBC) will be honored for its years of improving biking and walking infrastructure with the Marin Economic Commission award.

MCBC has been fighting to ensure that bicycling be recognized as a legitimate form of transportation and over the past eleven years has shown incredible leadership and service, as well as raised over $183 billion for their cause. The funds have, and will continue, to go directly to local City and County projects as well as supporting various agency staff, contractors, and other important players in the design and implementation of biking and walking facilities. MCBC’s incredible feat has been acknowledged by the Marin Economic Commission leading to its recognition and well deserved award.

To find out more about MCBC and how bicycling can be “environmentally, fiscally and physically responsible-while being fun” visit http://www.marinbike.org/Index.shtml

Marin County Bicycle Coalition is excited about the recent progress made with the Cal Park Hill Tunnel, part of the North-South Greenway in California. The tunnel has been opened at both ends, which will allow cyclists to ride from San Rafael to Larkspur in five minutes versus more than 20. A second “tunnel within a tunnel” will safely separate bicyclists and pedestrians from the SMART train. Reopening the tunnel has been one of MCBC’s top priorities since it’s inception in 1998.

For more information, click here…

MCBC is well on its way to reaching its goal of 2,009 members by the end of the year. MCBC hit the 1,500 member mark by recruiting a whopping 97 people in 15 days to help increase membership. Such growth enables MCBC to take strides toward pushing the completion of the North/South Greenway, as well as the completion of the SMART bike path. Congratulations on this tremendous achievement!

For more information, click here…