Bicycle Master Plan Workshop

Along with Bikeville and the Greenville Pickens Area Transportation Study (GPATS), the City of Greenville has been working on a Bicycle Master Plan for a while now. The City has contracted with Alta Planning + Design to develop the Master Plan. If you are not already familiar with Alta, I can tell you that they are probably the best known firm in the U.S. for bicycle and pedestrian planning and design.

As part of the process, the City will host the first of two community workshops on Tuesday, November 16 at 5:30 p.m. at the Hughes Main Library.  Unfortunately, I will be traveling for work and will not be able to attend this first workshop. I really hope that many of you can be there though. At this stage, input from those of us who ride in Greenville is really important.

Read more at the Hincapie Sportwear blog and be sure to mark your calendars for this first workshop. This really is a great opportunity to shape the future of cycling in Greenville.

Vote for the Swamp Rabbit Trail

When I stepped down from the advocacy chairperson position with the Greenville Spinners in 2008, I quit writing this blog. I needed time to focus on family, work, cycling, and my Bicycle Design blog, so I decided to end this one. Since that time though, I have continued to be active in local bicycle advocacy issues. During the past few years, Greenville has continued to make strides toward becoming a bike friendly place, and we were even designated as a Bicycle Friendly Community by the League of American Bicyclists. So after a 2+ year hiatus, I have decided to resurrect this blog…well, sort of. New posts here will likely be few and far between (it’s an occasional blog as the header says). Even if it is not frequently updated though, I want to have a place to share some of the bike advocacy related news that affects us all as cyclists in Greenville. I hope that you will subscribe to the feed and follow along.

Right now, the GHS Swamp Rabbit Trail is in the running for $250,000 from the Pepsi Refresh Project. On the Swamp Rabbit Pepsi Refresh page, they outline how the money will be used if it is awarded:

• $ 175,000-Safe crossing devices at the 22 road crossings and 1 rail crossing
• $ 50,000-advance warning lights on roads
• $ 25,000- Construction of "Tree Roundabouts"

If you have ridden on the Swamp Rabbit, especially with kids, you know that those safe crossing devices are something that the trail really needs. Click here and vote today, and everyday until November 30^th, to push the “Create transportation equality” grant up into one of the top two positions. Pepsi will be giving the money to someone, and it would be great to have it here in Greenville to make our trail safer for all users. It is worth a shot, so vote early and often.

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.

Bikes in the news and other updates

I have just a few things to quickly pass along today, mostly national level news. The House Congressional Resolution 305 (H.CON.RES. 305) sponsored by Representative Earl Blumenauer of Oregon is scheduled to be considered by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation today. The National Bike Bill as it is know passed the House in May and you can follow its status right here. I am late in passing this news along, but you can still contact your Senator to let him know that this is something you support.

I want to mention the feature story on CBS News Sunday Morning this week about bicycling. It is great to see this kind of attention to cycling as a form of transportation. As fuel prices rise and more people turn to bicycles, I expect that we will see more stories like this one. I guess it is kind of pointing out the obvious, but I want to say that with new riders taking to the streets in the coming months and years, the need to educate drivers and cyclist about safety and sharing the road will continue to become more important. I would say more than infrastructure, education should be the primary focus of bike advocacy groups right now.

Finally, I want to pass along a recent email that Natalie sent to the PCC membership about commenting on revisions to the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices. I am in too big a hurry to paraphrase, so see her entire message below:

It looks like the deadline will be extended for comments, but please share with anyone that might be interested. This is an opportunity to provide feedback on bike design and the rules that guide engineers in best practices. I realize this is technical but I know some of you might be interested in viewing the proposed changes and learning more on what is happening in regards to new bike infrastructure, signaling etc.

Members (or anyone) wishing to make comments regarding the proposed revised Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices have until Thursday to do so.

Apbp member Richard Moeur has placed much of the needed information on his website at http://www.trafficsign.us/npa.html . Richard chairs the Bicycle Technical Committee of the National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (NCUTCD). Here one can view the proposed new MUTCD text and view new tables and figures. There is also a link to view submitted comments for docket Federal Highway Administration(FHWA)-2007-28977, plus advice on submitting comments. Part 9 deals with Bicycles while Pedestrian matters are interspersed throughout--- This link will take you directly to bicycle issues--- http://www.trafficsign.us/npa/part09compl.pdf.

Apbp president Seleta Reynolds has prepared an overview Powerpoint presentation which is posed on our website at http://www.apbp.org/pdfsanddocs/mutcd_bpdg_6.20.08.ppt which summarizes some of the changes, as well as information relative to the California MUTCD, in case you need a quick familiarization.

To submit a comment, simply go to the www.regulations.gov website and search on "28977" (the regulatory number assigned to the new MUTCD). Then follow the instructions on the webpage.

Rock Hill Velodrome

Most of you have probably already heard about the possibility of a velodrome in Rock Hill, SC. According to an email from the Carolina Velodrome Association (CVA), a group that has worked toward this goal for many years, the project is coming along:

“Earlier this year, we were presented with an opportunity to place the velodrome in the center of a 100 acre, mixed use development. The developer has already donated the land and presented his support to the City Council. We have raised $500,000 and have the full support from USA Cycling. All the economic impact studies have been done, everything is set.”

Sounds great, but they are at a point now when they need our help. The CVA is asking the City of Rock Hill to pay for construction costs, and to jointly operate the velodrome with them. All of us who would use the velodrome need to let the Mayor and City Council know that we support it by the end of July. Take a minute to contact them (download contact info here) and let them know that you support the idea of building the only world-class velodrome in the southeast right here in South Carolina. If it helps, you can also download a sample letter to use. For more information, read about the velodrome effort on the news page of the CVA website.

Coincidently, I am writing this on the same day that I am selling my track bike of 20 years. Oh well, if the velodrome gets built, I’ll just have to buy a new one. At this point, let’s just voice our support to make sure that does happen.

Photo credit: Racing at the Lehigh Valley Velodrome in Trexlertown, PA by Fußgänger

A quick BFC workshop follow-up

The BFC workshop with Bill Nesper on Tuesday was a big success. I don’t have time to do a full recap today, but I do want to pass along the summary of the action step recommendations as determined by the workshop attendees (myself included). Also, I want to ask all of you reading this to think about volunteering to participate in one of the BFC committee based on the 5 E’s:

1. Engineering

2. Education

3. Encouragement

4. Evaluation & Planning

5. Enforcement

If you would like to participate, send an email to Andrew Meeker with the City of Greenville. You are welcome to contact me as well if you have ideas or if you would like a copy of the PowerPoint presentations from the meeting. I can’t stress enough that we really need for people to get involved to make this happen. Several cities in the southeast have received bronze level BFC designation. Here in Greenville, we have an exciting opportunity to work toward silver level. It won’t be easy, but I think it is a worthwhile goal.

Now, onto the 11 ACTION STEP RECOMMENDATIONS from the workshop:

1. Start a BFC Committee and set the goal of applying for the BFC application and reaching Gold by a certain time.

2. Set up a League Cycling Instructor seminar to certify instructors who can teach children, adults, an motorists. Start regular class for each of these groups.

3. Create a plan for improved signage (bike lanes, yield to bikes/pedestrians, share the road, bike parking) –start implementation on most traveled roads first.

4. Expand the bicycle network and increase network connectivity through the use of bike lanes, shared lane arrows and signed routes. This will provide a broader range of facility choices for users of various abilities and comfort levels.

5. Facilitate the creation of a stronger, more centralized advocacy group that will take the lead on education and encouragement program. Work with the PCC to launch this initiative

6. Create a bicycling website for Greenville that will act as a central hub for bicyclists and potential bicyclists to gather education tips, local bike routes, people to ride with, and news about events and other cycling-related activities. This site will also act as a place for bicyclists to comment on current bicycle projects and to report facility maintenance issues, etc.

7. Expand public education campaigns to promote the "share the road" message and the rights and responsibilities of all users. PAS'sPAS'S for TV, radio, and in print.

8. Adopt a Complete Streets policy in the community.

9. Develop a series of short (2-5 mi.) loops rides around the community and provide appropriate way-finding signage. Integrate these rides into a local bike map.

10. Improve marketing and education of bike rack and bus bike rack use. Ensure that drivers are educated as well.

11. Fill out BFC application!

Bicycle Friendly Community workshop

As hard as it is to do, I will take a break from following the web coverage of the Tour de France on my lunch hour to pass along a few updates and links.

Since Spartanburg was designated as a Bicycle Friendly Community not long ago, several people have asked when Greenville plans to apply for designation. It has been discussed among the Spinners and within the City for a long time, but Greenville just wasn’t ready… until now. Next Tuesday, the process begins with a workshop to educate City officials and business leaders about the benefits of becoming a bike friendly city. We are very lucky to have Bill Nesper, the League of American Bicyclists’ Director of the Bicycle Friendly Community program, here in Greenville next week to conduct the workshop. This workshop is the first official step toward BFC designation, so I will let you all know how it goes.

I was looking through the July/August issue of G Magazine (I think it is only the second issue) and I was surprised to see a short article about colored bike lanes (scroll down to read it here). When Portland started implementing the colored lanes in intersections in 2005 (if I remember correctly), I mentioned it to Jason V. who was the Spinners advocacy chair at the time. He was immediately interested in sharing information about painted lanes with Mayor White and City Council, so I pulled together some statistics from studies in Denmark, Sweden, and Montreal where the colored lanes were already in use. I hadn’t thought much about it since then, but it is good to know that the City is still interested. Of course, this is something that would most likely happen in the distant future; we need more bike lanes before we can start painting them green through intersections. But hey, we are making progress in Greenville and I do believe we could see colored lanes or bike boxes here someday.

Since I mentioned G magazine, I should point out that the same issue had a great article about a Main street bicycle shop from the 1800’s and a nice profile of George Hincapie. The other content is great too, so I encourage you to pick up a copy if you haven’t seen it.

This isn’t related to Greenville, but NBC Nightly News did a story on bicycle commuting this week. They mentioned Portland and pointed out that 6% of daily commuters in that city use bicycles. They also mentioned that Portland has 170 miles of bike lanes (not an unrelated fact to that commuter percentage). As someone who has commuted by bike off and on for nearly 20 years, it is great to see this kind of coverage about transportational cycling in the national news. Interest in bike commuting nationwide is at an all time high, so we need to prepare for more bike commuters here in Greenville going forward.

Finally, I just want to thank the guy with the Parlee TT bike who gave me his spare tube before the Spinners time trail at Donaldson last night. It wasn’t the first time I have showed up for a race or event unprepared and it probably won’t be the last. I offered to pay him for the tube, but he said something like “hey, we’ve all been there.” Very true, I have given people tubes, patches, etc. and have also been the recipient of such generosity on many occasions (including last night). Without getting too sappy, I’ll just point out that those within the cycling community look out for each other and that cyclists, in general, are a generous bunch. Sorry I didn’t get your name, but thanks again for the tube. Without it I would have just been sitting on the side of the road watching everyone else ride.