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According to Bike Pittsburgh (Bike PGH), “Pittsburgh City Council unanimously passed the Bike Parking Ordinance this week.  The ordinance is an amendment to the zoning code that requires all new and “change-in-use” buildings to install bicycle parking, just like they already must do for cars.  There is also an incentive component to the ordinance, whereby a developer can replace up to 30% of their car parking requirement with bicycle parking. Basically, it makes sure that bikes are considered during the planning process, instead of trying to retrofit for them afterward.

Councilman Patrick Dowd connected the dots and discussed how this ordinance is just a piece of the broader concept of what ‘we really have to do’ to turn Pittsburgh into a bicycle-friendly city.  He cited the four-E’s commitment from the city: enforcement, education, economic incentives, and engineering.”

For over two years, BikePGH has been working on this measure, with the planning department and the mayor’s bike/ped coordinator, researching best practices from other cities, getting input from architects and developers in order to get this piece of code written, and encouraging cyclists and other members of the public to participate in the process. This is a big win for BikePGH and a milestone for bicycling in the city of Pittsburgh. 

To view the full ordinance and find out more about BikePGH click here.

The Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia and the Pennsylvania Environmental Council (PEC) worked with six counties and agencies in Pennsylvania and New Jersey to secure $23 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) Discretionary Grant Program.

This multi-jurisdictional project, called Generating Recovery by Enhancing Active Transportation in Pennsylvania and New Jersey (GREAT-PA/NJ), will help complete a network of biking and walking trails throughout the region, focused on connections to urban hubs in Philadelphia and Camden. The Bicycle Coalition and PEC assembled the proposal along with Mayor’s Office of Transportation and Utilities and Mayor Nutter’s Metropolitan Caucus. The proposal received letters of support from more than 52 elected officials, institutions and non-profit organizations, including all four senators and eight members of congress in the region.

For more info visit the BCGP blog.

Check out a combination effort of four Alliance organizations in Pennsylvania, coming together to forge progress for biking and walking across their state. Find more information at http://www.livablestreets.com/projects/pabikewalk/project-home

Bike racks will soon be installed on five Reading, PA buses. BARTA’s (the local transit authority) decision to install bicycle racks is a big step forward, and a welcome development for people who want to ride and use public transportation, said Robert Hospidor, a Walk Bike Berks board member.

“This is a great option for people,” he said.

BARTA is installing bike racks on five of its buses, which will allow riders to store their bikes while traveling. The racks are similar to ones on buses in larger cities such as Philadelphia. Each rack holds two bikes.BARTA is spending $3,200 to buy and install the racks.

To read the full Reading Eagle Article, go to: http://www.readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=107887.