Good things are happening here

I have been too busy to update this blog lately, but I want to take a few minutes to quickly pass along a few links that I have been meaning to share.

Charleston Cycling Attorney Peter Wilborn will be the guest speaker at the next Greenville Spinners club meeting (Monday, April 2, 2012, 6:30 pm at the Caine Halter YMCA). According to the Spinners website, Peter “will speak about the lost art of the group ride and provide an update on legal issues for SC cyclists.” This is one meeting that you won’t want to miss, so mark your calendars and plan to be there one week from today.  

The National Bike Summit took place last week, and eight advocates from South Carolina were there representing our interests as cyclists in the state. You can read a recap post on the Palmetto Cycling Coalition blog and see the Summit leave-behind that the PCC developed along with the Palmetto Conservation Foundation. 

Pamela Wood Browne was the lone representative from Greenville in DC last week, and she shared her thoughts about her first Summit experience at Carolina Cycling News. Of particular interest to me was her mention of the “Finally, the Racing and Advocacy Worlds Collide” session and the discussion of multiple U.S. Cyclocross National Champion Tim Johnson’s Ride on Washington. As someone who has been involved with both racing and advocacy for a long time, I am really glad to hear of real discussion on this topic. In the past, I have witnessed some tension between recreational/racing cyclists and those who ride strictly for transportation (with some valid concerns expressed by both sides). I really hope that we are a point where ALL cyclists can see the benefit of working together toward a common goal of making our roads safer, and kudos to Tim Johnson for raising awareness and spreading that message within the racing community. 

If you haven’t already seen it, be sure to read Spinners advocacy chairperson Frank Mansbach’s March update on the Spinners’ site. Also see his guest post on the PCC blog about Greenville County Transportation Spending, which highlights just how little actually goes toward bike/ped projects currently. Hopefully though, that will change as advocates like Frank help to raise awareness about the need for creating a safer environment for bicycling and walking in the County. 

The City of Greenville’s 2011/2012 Annual Report was released recently, and bicycling is mentioned a few times throughout the report. Links to the Trails and Greenways Master Plan and the Bicycle Master Plan can be found on page 23. The USA Pro Cycling Championships are mentioned on page 31, and Greenville’s National Bike Month events (coming up again in May) are covered on page 34. These are all things that enhance quality of life here in Greenville, so it is good to see them recognized as such in this document. 

Greenville is offering a Bicycle Traffic Skills 101 course at McPherson Park on Sunday, April 29th (scroll down for information and to register online). According to the description, “participants will learn things like bicycle safety checks, fixing a flat, rules of the road, and crash avoidance techniques. On-the-bike training features certified instructors and real-life experience on Greenville streets and bicycle facilities.” It is also worth noting that the Traffic Skills 101 course is a prerequisite for the League Cycling Instructor (LCI) training seminar, which qualifies you to teach the courses in the League of American Bicyclists’ “Smart Cycling” curriculum.

Finally, I want to mention that TTR Bikes was recently recognized as a Platinum level Bicycle Friendly Business by the League of American Bicyclists. They are one of only seven companies in the entire US to be recognized at that highest level, so congratulations to Nathaniel and Scott on the designation and everything it represents!

Update 3/28: I want to add one more “good thing” happening in Greenville that Bo Campbell mentioned yesterday on the Bike Greenville Facebook page.  On April 21^st from 9 to 12, TTR Bikes, the Greenville Spinners Safety Foundation, First Baptist Greenville, and the Nicholtown Neighborhood Association are hosting their 2^nd Annual Youth Bike Safety Rodeo (and helmet fitting) in support of the Nicholtown Bike Share program. 

I have a hard time keeping up with all the bike related events in Greenville these days…and that is definitely a good thing. Feel free to add any more in the comments.

Spinners advocacy and a call to action

Photo credit: Brad Allen

I have mentioned before that I don’t get the chance to update this blog as often as I would like. Part of the reason for that is that I am not as heavily involved in local bicycle advocacy issues as I once was. I am still an active Bikeville member and volunteer, but due to other commitments, I find it harder to keep up with all the bike related issues in the city and county. The good news though, is that there are other great sources for local bike advocacy news. I have mentioned Biking the Upstate and The PCC’s Palmetto Spokesman blog in previous posts, but today I want to point you toward another source of information that I am excited about- the Greenville Spinners Advocacy page. Frank Mansbach, who recently took over the Spinners advocacy chair position for 2012, plans to post monthly updates on the Advocacy page. His first update outlines his goals as the new chair, covers some advocacy news, and provides links to a few good resources. I am looking forward to his monthly updates, and I encourage all of you to keep an eye out for his future posts as well. 

If you are a League of American Bicyclists or Palmetto Cycling Coalition member, you have seen the urgent messages yesterday and today about The American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act, a House bill that threatens to eliminate federal funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects. I wrote it about it on my Bicycle Design blog this morning, so I won’t repeat all of the same points here. Suffice it to say though that as citizens of a state that ranks 49th for bicycling safety, we should be very concerned about this bill. I hope that you will take a minute and contact your Representative about this today.

What can bicycle advocates learn from The NRA?

Yeah, that headline got my attention too. Bike Advocacy from the NRA Playbook is the title of an interesting new post at Commute by Bike written by corporate attorney and bike commuter Tom Bowden. I definitely agree that the various subcultures within the cycling world can sometimes be counterproductive to the goal of getting more people on bikes.  I also believe that bicycle advocates (perhaps myself included) tend to get preachy and somewhat condescending when discussing the virtues of pedal powered transportation. Instead of standing on a soapbox and telling people about the health/environmental/financial benefits of riding a bike, we need to remember to sell them on the fun factor. Almost everyone remembers the joy of riding a bicycle as a kid, so tapping into that feeling is the best way to convince those who haven’t ridden as adults to give it a try. As the article suggest, “don’t paint (cycling) as extreme, radical, hip or too intellectual. Just ride.” If we ever want cycling to truly be a mainstream activity, that’s a basic idea that we need to keep in mind as we communicate with others in our communities. Riding a bike is fun…and all of those other benefits are just a bonus.

Thanks to Richard at Cyclelicious for pointing me to the Commute by Bike post. I recommend that you add both of those blogs to your feed reader if you haven’t already.

Bicycle Master Plan Fact Sheet

As I mentioned in a recent post, Greenville’s City Council will soon vote on a resolution to adopt the Bicycle Master Plan. The first vote will occur on Monday, September 26^th at a Council meeting that I encourage you all to attend (5:30pm in Council Chambers,  10^th floor of City Hall, 206 South Main Street). You can show up a few minutes early and sign up with the City Clerk if you wish to speak in favor of the plan at the meeting.

Before the meeting, I encourage you all to write your City Council representatives and let them know that you support this resolution. I will post a few of the key points that I think are worth mentioning in those  letters soon, but today I want to quickly share a “fact sheet’ about the master plan. If you have not been involved with the development of the Bicycle Master Plan, these points may help you understand what has led up to it, why it makes sense for Greenville, and how the plan fits with other initiatives that the city  has underway.

City of Greenville - Bicycle Master Plan FACT SHEET

1.       City Council is scheduled to vote on adoption of the Bicycle Master Plan on Monday, September 26 and Monday, October 10.  

2.       Anyone wishing to address City Council regarding the plan must sign-up to speak prior to 5:30pm the day of the meeting at the City Clerk’s desk on the 10^th floor of City Hall.  

3.       In 2006, Greenville City Council passed Resolution 2006-32 endorsing the League of American Bicyclists “Action Plan for Bicycle Friendly Community Designation”, which committed the City of Greenville to improve conditions for bicyclists by addressing the 5 E’s: Engineering, Education, Encouragement, Enforcement, and Evaluation.  

4.       In 2008, Greenville City Council adopted a Complete Streets Resolution "to endorse and suport a complete streets policy to provide safe and convenient access for all users of streets”.

5.       The creation of a Bicycle Infrastructure Plan was a specific task of the City’s 2009 Comprehensive Plan’s Implementation Strategy Matrix that identified the need to “Increase Transportation Options”. 

6.       The Plan is consistent with the City of Greenville Comprehensive Plan’s Environmental Theme to improve air quality; the Healthy Living and Pedestrian Friendly Environment Theme by creating safe, walkable spaces and accessible destinations; the Transportation Theme by providing a variety of options and linkages between all transportation options; the Neighborhood and Corridor Identity and Stability Theme by encouraging a wide variety of transportation modes.

7.       During the Comprehensive Plan resident survey, residents were asked to rank Quality of Life issues in Greenville.   Respondents indicated that “being able to get places without using your car” as the worst attribute to Greenville’s Quality of Life.  

8.       The Plan was funded by the Greenville Pickens Area Transportation Study (GPATS), the regional Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) responsible for transportation planning.  Funding was also provided by the City of Greenville.   

9.       In 2009, the City of Greenville was designation by the League of American Bicyclists as a Bronze Bicycle Friendly Community.  

10.   In 2010, the City of Greenville contracted with Alta Planning + Design to develop a city-wide Bicycle Master Plan to provide recommendations to guide the expansion of a network of bike facilities and infrastructure improvements and to promote bicycle safety and education to increase ridership.

11.   The Plan’s development was guided by a multi-disiplinary committee which served as planning advisors throughout the project.  It received input from neighborhood associations, businesses, residents, transportation officials, and the general public.  This allowed stakeholders the opportunity to participate in two community workshops, an interactive website, and a public survey where input and comments were received.

12.   The Plan is the result of more than a year’s worth of research, field work, data analysis, and public input. 

  

13.   The Plan provides a blueprint for the short-term and long-term development of a safe and practical bicycling network. 

14.   The Plan intends to assist in the reversal of South Carolina’s designation as one of the most dangerous states for bicyclists.  Annually SC ranks above the national average in bicycle fatalities.   

15.   By developing a connected and safe bikeway network, Greenville can better meet the current and future demand for physical activity and for transportation choices.

16.   The Plan includes specific recommendations for educational programs that raise awareness of the rights and responsibilities of bicyclists and teach kids, adults, and seniors how to bike safely.

17.   The Bicycle Master Plan provides a method for prioritizing bikeway projects that will guide implementation, development, and funding.

18.   Specific projects recommended in the Bicycle Master Plan will receive additional review by City Council, City staff, the general public, and SCDOT prior to construction.

19.   The two public meetings for the Plan drew close to 400 total attendees, and over 700 individuals participated in the survey.

20.   With adoption of the Plan, the City is not asked to fund and implement the Plan’s recommendations on its own.  Business, community partners, and transportation agencies are encouraged to support this effort with funding, resources, and leadership.  

21.   The Plan can be implemented by leveraging funding opportunities from a variety of local, regional, state, and federal programs.  Possible projects include routine road resurfacing, roadway widening, and linking transit networks.  An emphasis will be placed on cost effective solutions such as including proposed bicycle facilities during street repaving projects.   

   

22.   Now, more than ever, CEO’s, executives, businesses, and young professionals are choosing vibrant, active communities with downtowns and neighborhoods that are bike- and walk-friendly to locate.  Investing in bicycle-friendliness will help Greenville attract those searching for a healthy, inviting, and economically prosperous community. 

23.   In one generation, the percentage of U.S. children who walk or bike to school has dropped by 70%. Childhood obesity has tripled. 

24.   Just three hours of bicycling per week can reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke by 50%.

25.   Bicycling reduces air pollution and improves public health, lowering costs to businesses and taxpayers.

26.   The Plan included a two-day field bike count in October 2010 at 36 locations throughout the City.  Volunteers counted over 1,000 bicyclists in just a four hour count period.  

27.   The Plan is based on a principle of 6 E’s; Engineering, Education, Encouragement, Enforcement, Evaluation, and Equity.  This approach will ensure the Plan’s implementation is comprehensive by balancing the priorities between physical facilities, education programs, policies, and neighborhoods.  

28.   One goal of the plan is that by 2015, every City resident be within ½ mile of the bikeway network. 

29.   Greenville is home to 4 nationally recognized bicycle friendly businesses by the League of American Bicyclist.

a.       TTR Bikes – Platinum Designation

b.      Fluor Corp – Bronze Designation

c.       Upstate Forever – Bronze Designation

d.      Caine Halter Family YMCA – Bronze Designation

30.   In 2005, the City installed it’s first mile of bicycle lane and had 4 miles of Greenways.  In 2011, the City has 15.4 miles of on-street bikeways and over 8 miles of Greenways.  

31.   The public’s investment in bicycling infrastructure over the past 6 years has resulted in a increase in private sector investment via bicycle oriented businesses resulting in local economic development.  Local bicycle retailers were surveyed during the Bicycle Master Plan and produced the following results.  Note that the first bicycle lane in the City was installed in 2005. 

a.       In 2005, Greenville was home to two bike shops, in 2011, there are 8 bicycle retailers.

b.      Over 60% of Greenville’s bike shops see over half a million in annual sales each – with 37.5% seeing $1.5-$2 million.

c.       Since 2005, all stores have increased sales by at least 6%, and 75% increased by more than 20%.

d.      100% of stores attribute the increase in sales to local investment in bicycling infrastructure.

32.   The Plan recommends increasing the bikeway network by 65 miles of bicycle lanes, 7 miles of Greenways, and 51 miles of signed bike routes.

33.   Since 2007, Greenville has hosted the USA Cycling Professional Championships which attracts cycling enthusiasts from around the world to Greenville.  

34.   Greenlink, Greenville’s regional transit authority, has reported that since 2010, passenger utilization of their bus bike racks has increased from a monthly average of 80 to 550.  

35.   Greenville’s bicycle friendliness has been mentioned in recent national publications such as Southern Living, the Washington Post, Men’s Journal, US Airways Magazine, and AARP Magazine. 

Bike lanes on Pelham and Roper Mountain Roads this summer?

When I served as the advocacy chairperson for the Greenville Spinners several years ago, the club worked with the city to develop a small, downtown bike lane plan that was primarily focused on the central business district. That was definitely the right place to start, but at the time I often heard from Spinners members and other local cyclists who wanted to see those facilities expand beyond the city limits into the suburbs and other parts of the county. Since that time, through the work of many people, bike lanes in Greenville have expanded beyond the CBD… and if you attended any of the Bicycle Master Plan community meetings, you know that the plan is to eventually expand those bikeways much further in order to create a viable network for those of us who want a safe way to get around the city (and county) by bike. That is a long-range plan, but in order for that to happen, we NEED to take advantage of key resurfacing opportunities as they arise.

According to a recent Greenville News article (the same one I mentioned here), the South Carolina Department of Transportation is scheduled to resurface portions of Pelham Road (from Haywood Rd. to the Publix near East North) and Roper Mountain Road (from Blacks to Verdae) sometime this summer. I believe that bike lanes on both of those sections of road could provide critical connections from the heavily populated eastside of town to existing bike infrastructure in the city. Along with the new bike lanes and sharrows on East North, bike lanes on Pelham would feed to the current bike lanes in the downtown district and the Swamp Rabbit trail. Roper Mountain is also very important as it provides a route from eastside neighborhoods to the existing bike lanes at ICAR, where many people choose to ride. Personally, I have noticed a significant increase in the number of bicyclists on that currently dangerous section of Roper Mountain in recent years, so I believe the issue of safety for all users needs to be addressed with the resurfacing.

I am not alone in supporting the idea of bike lanes as part of these resurfacing projects. These sections of road are included in the Greenville-Pickens Area Transportation Study’s (GPATS) Long Range Transportation Plan, and Dan McGee, Transportation Planning Manager for the county, has recently publicly expressed support for including bike facilities in the Pelham Road resurfacing project. The Greenville Spinners board has also expressed support for bike lanes on both of these projects by sending a letter to the SCDOT and the Greenville City Manager on behalf of the club’s 800 plus members. I won’t list them all here, but a number of major employers on the eastside of Greenville have also expressed support for bike lanes as part of these resurfacing projects (Update 6/22: Flour, GE, and Hubbell Lighting are just a few of the companies that have already sent letters of support for these bike lanes). When you look at all the supporters who have taken an interest in these projects so far, it is clear that bike lanes on these roads are something that many people want to see.

In addition to the community support, I believe there are a couple of policy documents in place that support the inclusion of bike lanes as part of these resurfacing projects.

Greenville’s Complete Streets Resolution, adopted by City Council in 2008, states that the city endorses a complete streets policy (with accommodations for pedestrians, bicyclists, transit riders, and motorists) when feasible for new transportation projects as well as re-channelization projects and major maintenance. In both of these cases, observed bicycle traffic points to a need for facilities such as bike lanes on these roads.

SCDOT’s “Bicycle Accommodation Policy”, which is similar to the city’s complete streets policy, states that “ bicycling and walking accommodations should be a routine part of the department’s planning, design, construction and operating activities, and will be included in the everyday operations of our transportation system” and that bicycling and pedestrian improvements should be “an integral part of their transportation planning and programming where State or Federal Highway funding is utilized.”

Ultimately, the decision whether or not to include bike lanes as part of these projects will be made by the SCDOT, but certainly community support will be a factor in their decision.  If you agree that bicycle accommodations should be considered with both of these projects, please leave a comment here expressing your support…and feel free to contact me if you wish to get involved further.

Update: It was mentioned in the comments, but I want to reiterate that bike lanes have previously been proposed on both of these sections of road as part of the Greenville Bicycle Master Plan. These are not just random resurfacing projects...both are important components in both the Greenvilly city and GPATS long range plans. See the map on page 58 of the presentation that was given at the March public meeting to see these, and other, identified bike routes.

Bicycle Master Plan workshop tomorrow night

Don’t forget that the 2^nd public workshop for the development of Greenville’s Bicycle Master Plan takes place tomorrow night (Tuesday, March 15^th). Plan to be at the Hughes Main Library at 6:00 pm to learn more about the work that has been done so far by the City of Greenville, Alta Planning, Bikeville, and concerned citizens like you. More importantly, you will get the opportunity to share your input as a local cyclist and shape the future of Greenville as a bike friendly place.

Check out the Greenville Bicycle Master Plan website for more information, or download a pdf flyer for the workshop here. This really is a big deal for all of us who ride in Greenville, so I hope to see many of you at the library tomorrow.

People for Bikes

I assume that many of you are familiar with People for Bikes and have already signed the pledge in support of safer cycling. If you haven't, take a minute to review and sign the pledge now. Once you have signed on, the next step is to send a short email to your Congressperson asking him or her to support ongoing funding for bike projects and programs such as Safe Routes to School. People for Bikes makes that very easy to do by providing talking points and a template email to get you started. 

As I mentioned in a past post, South Carolina is statistically one of the most dangerous states in the U.S. for cycling. With the help of the PCC and concerned bicycle advocates throughout the state, conditions for cycling in SC are improving.  We still have a long way to go though, which is why it is so important that we remind our Representatives that a federal investment in bicycling projects and programs makes sense. Bikes Belong has a great statistics and research page to back up the claim that bicycle infrastructure is a good investment and Inhabitat points to a study which says that bike projects create twice as many jobs per dollar spent than regular road projects. Now it’s up to all of us to make sure those points are shared with our elected officials at the federal, state, and local levels. Let’s work together to make the roads in our state, and the rest of the country, safe for all users.

My last post

I have hinted at ending this blog in the past, but this time it is for real. This will be my last post on Bike Greenville. As some of you may have read on the Spinner’s yahoo group list, I have officially stepped down from the position of Advocacy Chairperson with the Greenville Spinners. Outside of work, I have increasingly become involved with other volunteer commitments centered around my kids. I have been spread pretty thin lately and I feel like I haven’t been able to give bicycle advocacy projects the time that they deserve. Obviously you all know that cycling and bicycle related issues are important to me, but I have come to the realization that there is just not enough time in the day to do as much as I would like. Stepping down from the board was a tough decision, but I do think it was the right one…. which brings me to the really great news that I want to share. Scott McCrary, who many of you know from Tandem, Touring & Recumbent Bikes, will be taking over the position of advocacy chair. Scott has been very active on advocacy issues in the past, and I know he will do a great job leading the effort with the Spinners. Please welcome and support him in the role going forward. Trust me; we couldn’t have asked for a better person to take this job on.

I plan to stay involved with local advocacy issues in a supporting role (including serving on BPAC and the new BFC committee) and I hope that many of you who read this will stay (or get) involved as well. Many good things are happening in Greenville right now; we have a CIP budget for bike lanes that we will start seeing soon, we are getting close to the passage of a strong bicycle parking ordinance, and we are at the beginning of our Bicycle Friendly Community application process just to name a few things. (speaking of the BFC process, check out the City’s brand new webpage for bicycling if you haven’t seen it). Yep, it is a good time to be a cyclist in Greenville and things can get even better if we continue to work together. I encourage all of you to contact Scott if you have specific ideas or would like to help with local bicycle advocacy efforts.

Finally I want to mention that I started this blog after I became the advocacy chair because the Spinners site was in a state of transition. At the time, the Spinners website was infrequently updated, so this blog seemed like the best way to get news out to all of you. That was then, but now board members can post directly to the Spinners site, so you can look for future advocacy updates from Scott and everyone else there. Thanks to all of you who have been reading my thoughts and updates here. I hope that you will all continue over to the Spinners site to keep reading about the progress of advocacy efforts in Greenville. Believe me; good things are on the horizon for cycling here.

“Lights for Life”

Yesterday, I was at the Tour de Georgia team time trial at Road Atlanta. It really was a great stage and I had a lot of fun photographing it. To say that I was excited about the race, and cycling in general, as I drove back to Greenville would be an understatement. To be honest, advocacy was not on my mind as I sorted through and cropped my pictures, but unfortunately it came to the forefront when I checked my email this afternoon. I saw a couple of messages about a tragic cycling fatality that occurred last night in Greenville and the news certainly put a damper on my excitement.

It appears from the news story that a cyclist was killed by an 18-wheeler while riding on White Horse road at around 9:30 pm. I don’t know any details about the accident, and I don’t want to speculate. No matter what the circumstances were, this is a horrible tragedy. If the cyclist was riding at night without lights though, it is all the more reason that we should support the Greenville Spinners new “Lights for Life” project that Michelle James has been putting a lot of effort into lately. Basically, the idea is to give away free rear lights to those who ride for transportation and who really need them. The Spinners are teaming up with the Greenville County Sheriffs Department and the Greenville Police Department to distribute the lights. Charleston cyclist Peter Wilborn, who spoke to the Spinners at a club meeting about bicycle safety and pointed out with statistics how lights can save lives, will supply the lights.

Tim St. Clair sent out a great email about this to the Spinners list, but I want to mention it again for any of you who might not have received it. Next Tuesday, the 29th at 5:30 before the Donaldson ride, Peter and the Spinners will meet with law enforcement and provide them with lights to distribute to those they see riding at night without them. WHFF-TV will be on hand to cover the event, so show up a half hour early for the ride if you can to show support for the “Lights for Life” initiative. Hopefully this effort can save some lives. Thanks to Peter, Michelle and everyone else for making this happen.

More Share the Road news

In a recent post, I mentioned a few places in the City of Greenville where “Share the Road” signs will soon be installed. I just found out about one more road, Chick Springs. It sounds like two signs have been approved for that road and are currently being fabricated by the City. Many local cyclists use Chick Springs as a route from Altamont/ Paris Mountain to downtown, so it will be great to have the signs there to remind motorist of the presence of cyclists. Thanks to the City Staff for getting this done. I hope to see many more STR signs popping up in the City limits as the year progresses

So far, my attempts to get more “Share the Road” signs in the County have not been very successful, but I still consider that to be a major advocacy goal for 2008. I don’t want to blame the County entirely though; part of the problem has probably has been that I have not had the time to spend and have not been talking to all the right people. Any help that all of you can provide with contacts would be greatly appreciated. “Share the Road” signs are a cost effective way to spread the message that cyclists have a right to use the roadways, so there is no reason that we shouldn’t be able to get signs installed on the routes that we most often use.

One thing that all of you can do is use the form that is shown here (click to enlarge) to let the SCDOT know which roads in Greenville County need “Share the Road” signs. I encourage any of you who have a specific route in mind to identify specific locations on that road (with pictures if possible), fill out this form, and send it to the SCDOT (or just send it to me and I will forward it for you). As I mentioned before, Old Buncombe is the highest priority road in my opinion. Let’s work to get signs installed along that road before the US pro races in August.

Some good news

The Palmetto Cycling Coalition recently sent out a press release to announce that South Carolina Bicycle Safety Bill H.3006 passed in the House in January by a vote of 105-0. That is great news and we owe the PCC our thanks for their hard work on this for the past couple years. Those of you who have been following the progress of this bill know that it revises South Carolina bicycle statutes to bring them into greater conformity with the Uniform Vehicle Code. Two of the reforms in the bill that stand out to me are the establishment of a minimum passing distance (five feet) and the elimination of a mandatory sidepath law.

In the PCC press release, Paul Lefrancios, President of the PCC is quoted as saying “We are so excited about the House passage of this bill. South Carolina is 4th in the nation for cycling fatalities. This is unacceptable. And House members agreed.” I have mentioned South Carolina’s terrible record on cycling safety before on this blog, and you can view the 2004 NHTSA statistics on cycling fatalities for yourself right here. Our state’s rate of 5.24 cycling fatalities for every million state residents is well over twice the national average; a fact which, as Mr. Lefrancios stated, is quite unacceptable.

You can read the PCC position paper on the legislation here. The bill will now go on to the State Senate for consideration as S.0354. In the Senate, the PCC is working to improve the bill by removing the Single File amendment, which would require cyclists to ride single file rather than two abreast. As the PCC’s Executive Director Natalie Cappuccio Britt points out, the Single File amendment “would prohibit parents from riding next to their children” and “It is far more difficult and dangerous for a motorist to pass a long line of cyclists riding single file versus two abreast.”

The bill is expected to pass in the Senate this year, but it still needs support from all the cyclists in South Carolina. If you are not already a PCC member, I encourage you to join them in their effort to make our state bicycle friendly.

While I am posting good news, I also want to mention that the Greenville City Council officially adopted the “Trails & Greenways Master Plan” at Monday evening’s City Council meeting. In addition, some good discussion took place at that meeting regarding implementation of additional bike lanes downtown in the near future. A few of you have mentioned that the downtown bicycle plan, which City Council endorsed in 2005, seems to have stalled a bit recently. That may be true, but I am still optimistic that we will see some progress in 2008. Mayor White, the City Council, and many members of the City staff openly support bicycle infrastructure projects, so we just need to continue to communicate our needs and desires to them. I received very positive responses from several City Council members to my comments, and to a follow up email that I sent, about a greater emphasis on bike lanes and “Share the Road” signage in the city of Greenville. As I said before, the City is working on several projects and I think we will see some notable improvements this year. Still, we can’t just wait for things to happen. We need to keep communicating with the City and helping them to pinpoint areas where improvements to make cycling safer are necessary. I don’t have all the ideas, so I am asking all of you to let me know what improvements you would like to see to make Greenville a bike friendly town.