Wednesday Bridge Dedication- Be There!

Come celebrate the (near) completion of the Chehalis-Western Trail bridge over Martin Way, and register for the Bicycle Commuter Contest! 11:30 am Wednesday March 31 at the north end of the new bridge, which is about halfway between Sleater-Kinney and Lilly Roads, on Martin Way. Rain or shine, show your bicycle commuting hutzpah!

New Status for Bikes in National Transportation Planning

On Monday, March 15th, US DOT Secretary Ray LaHood announced a new “complete streets” policy that would put planning for bicycling and pedestrians on equal footing with highways and transit. In his blog, Secretary LaHood states that “this is the end of favoring motorized transportation at the expense of non-motorized.”
He goes on to say:
“We are integrating the needs of bicyclists in federally-funded road projects. We are discouraging transportation investments that negatively affect cyclists and pedestrians. And we are encouraging investments that go beyond the minimum requirements and provide facilities for bicyclists and pedestrians of all ages and abilities.
To set this approach in motion, we have formulated key recommendations for state DOTs and communities:
· Treat walking and bicycling as equals with other transportation modes.
· Ensure convenient access for people of all ages and abilities.
· Go beyond minimum design standards.
· Collect data on walking and biking trips.
· Set a mode share target for walking and bicycling.
· Protect sidewalks and shared-use paths the same way roadways are protected (for example, snow removal)
· Improve nonmotorized facilities during maintenance projects”.
The new US DOT Policy Statement on Bicycle and Pedestrian Accommodation Regulations and Recommendations are posted on FHWA’s website.
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/bikeped/policy_accom.htm

Thanks to Karen Parkhust, TRPC

New web inititiative from Bikes Belong

Another way to share your passion for biking! http://www.peopleforbikes.org/

Be among the first to sign up for the BCC!

The first opportunity to register for the Bicycle Commuter Contest this year will be a sneak pre-April event- at the Martin Way Bridge Dedication ceremony mentioned in a recent post on this blog. On Wednesday, March 31, at 11:30 am, I will be on hand at the dedication ceremony to register participants for the BCC. Bring your checkbook or five bucks (twenty if you want a t-shirt too!), and be among the first registrants for this years BCC! These events are also a great chance to rub elbows with a veritable who's-who of state and local transportation planners and bicycle commuting advocates- don't miss the fun!
The new bridge spans Martin Way at the Chehalis-Western Trail, about a quarter mile East of Lilly Rd.

BCC In the News

Christian Hill of The Olympian has a story on his "Outside" blog that mentions the BCC and some items of interest to BCC followers and participants. Here's a link: http://bit.ly/bKdaU7

Martin Way Bridge Dedication Scheduled

Wed. March 31 11:30 am - There will be a dedication ceremony for the new (almost complete) Martin Way Bridge. Present to dedicate the bridge will be County Commissioners, Congressman Brian Baird and the Mayors of Olympia, Lacey and Tumwater. The ceremony will be held at the North end of the new bridge.

Bridge Status Update From Thera Black, Thurston Regional Planning Council:
As those of you who commute through this area know, the bridge over Martin Way is not yet open. Last week the contractors learned of a problem with the fence mesh for enclosing the bridge. That fencing now has to be remanufactured and installed before the bridge can be safely opened to the public. As soon as we hear of a firm date for completion of that installation we’ll let you know. In the meantime you can still cross I-5 and make connections to the trail north of I-5 by using the at-grade crossing on Martin Way.

Once the Martin Way crossing is complete work will begin on the Pacific Avenue crossing!

League Of American Bicyclists recognizes Olympia and the BCC

The City of Olympia has been given the Silver designation in the "Bicycle Friendly Community" program of the League Of American Bicyclists. The City's most significant recent accomplishment? Growing the Bicycle Commuter Contest from a handful of participants in 1988 to over 1600 in 2009 (the numbers in the LAB article are a little out of date- they must have been using 2008 figures). See the article here: http://bit.ly/dA4TDK

Capitol Bicycling Club offers Urban Cycling Workshops

The popular Urban Cycling Workshops are back for 2010, now under the banner of the Capitol Bicycling Club. The new website is up! Visit: www.decidetoride.org

Ever thought of taking a bicycle ride or commuting by bike but are unsure of how to get started?

Take an Urban Cycling workshop and learn:
· Traffic laws and how to ride comfortably with traffic
· Navigating intersections
· Outfitting yourself and your bike with tools and gear
· Fixing a flat tire, and much more!
· All classes end with a slow-paced ride, practicing everything learned in class

Register online with the Capital Bicycling Club at www.decidetoride.org

Registered Participants in the 2010 Bicycle Commuter Contest will recieve a coupon code for $5 off the price of an Urban Cycling Workshop during April or May. See BCC registration form for details.

An Image That Speaks For Itself!

Seattle Bike Expo This Weekend!

CascadeBicycle Club's Seattle Bike Expo Expo is the largest consumer bicycle show in the United States! Expect more than 300 exhibits of bikes, gear, travel, health and fitness. Should be lots of fun and educational, too. Make sure you take public transit to get there of course (or at least corpool). See Intercity Transit's website for help getting there: http://www.intercitytransit.com/Pages/default.aspx
Follow this link for more info about the Expo: http://cascade.org/EandR/expo/

Our Flag is Flying!

The Bicycle Commuter Contest Banner is UP!

For the first time, the BCC banner is flying in Lacey, over College St. between 6th and Pacific Aves. Not neccessarily a big bike route, but we're showing ourselves off to all those car commuters who might decide to change their ways!

Google Maps launches directions for bicycling

At the National Bike Conference this morning Google announced that they had turned on an option for bicycle directions in its "Get Directions" feature on Google Maps. The new feature is in Beta testing form, and is limited to Google's online data set – so some neighborhood shortcuts and trails are not included. There is a link for reporting unmapped routes or streets that are unsuitable for cycling. I and several people I know have tested the feature, and it seems to work pretty well!

Bridging The Gap Update- I-5 Bridge Open

The new bridge over Martin Way on the Chehalis-Western Trail is nearing completion- only the railings remain to be installed. The bridge over I-5 has re-opened, and has access to Martin Way via a street and sidewalk on the West side of the new bridge approach.

Happening right now in the other Washington...

http://www.bikeleague.org/programs/bikeadvocacy/summit.php

Good cycling video- Check it out!

http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/03/01/the-dance-on-video/

Bridging the Gap Update

According to a flagger on the jobsite that I talked to yesterday, we can expect that the Chehalis-Western I-5 bridge will re-open to traffic (with a path on the West side of the new bridge ramp leading to Martin Way) in about a week, or around the middle of March. The Martin Way Bridge should be finished by the end of the month. Of course this is unofficial information, but from a worker on the site, so keep your fingers crossed, and I'll post info about the official opening of the new bridge as soon as I get it.

In other news: preparations for this year's BCC continue apace; sponsors are all lined up, most of our graphics are ready to go to print, Bicycle Commuter Month Proclamations are scheduled with the local jurisdictions, and we're planning our publicity campaign.

There's obviously no need to wait until May to start riding your bike to work, school or on errands, especially with the mild winter we're having. Keep pedaling, stay safe, and save a pound of carbon emissions for every mile you ride!

Sponsors and more sponsors for BCC 2010!!

Preparations are proceeding apace to put everything in place for this year's Bicycle Commuter Contest. We've chosen a "Theme" for 2010, which you can see to the left of this post:
Been There, Doing This! We are in the midst of designing a t-shirt and finishing up the process of signing up sponsors. I have updated our list of links to our sponsors' websites- check it out, under "Supporting Businesses and Sponsors" in the list of gadgets on the left. We have many returning loyal sponsors from past years, and some very exciting new ones as well! We are going to have some great stuff to award as prizes this year, thanks to many generous sponsors form near and far, but mostly near; I have been making an effort to engage sponsors as locally as possible this year, going farther afield only when I think we couldn't do better right here in the Pacific Northwest.

In other news, the SEATTLE BIKE SWAP is TOMORROW from 9-2 at Magnusen Park in Seattle, hosted by the Cascade Bicycle Club. Go to their website for directions and more info. See you there!

Interesting article on a post-carbon world

Worth checking out.



http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/201003/nocar.aspx

Is Spring here?! Well, it's good bike commuting weather!

Take advantage of the amazing weather we're having, and start your bike commuting season early! If you haven't already started biking this year, or haven't biked this early in the season before, there are just a few things to remember:

• Be Visible! Make sure you have lights and bright clothing in case you end up riding after dark. If you haven't made this a priority yet, PLEASE do- "invisibikes" are dangerous!!
• Bring layers of clothing to adjust for drastic changes in temperature. We're experiencing 25 degree swings between high and low temps right now- it cools down fast when the sun goes down!
• Watch for patches of ice in the early morning. The roads are pretty dry right now, but watch out in shaded areas or where water pools or runs across the road.
• Remember, you can always take the bus home, or for part of your commute. Every Intercity Transit Fixed Route bus has room for two bikes on the front easy-loading rack.
• Visit your local bike shop for proper lights and other gear, and for expert cycling and safety information.
• You can do it! The hardest part is making the choice. Just choose the bike and go for it!

Article from the FTE News Magazine for State Employees (published with permission)

ECY engineer logs 5,050 miles commuted by bicycle

(OK, if this guy can do this year round in Spokane's climate...)

Photo by Jani Gilbert, Comm. Mgr
Ecology, Eastern Region

Kim Sherwood doesn’t have to worry about making exercise resolutions for 2010. He had already sweated enough in 2009 to last a lifetime. Before the New Year rolled in, Kim had logged 5,050 miles in 12 months of bicycle-commuting to his job as Water Quality Permit Manager at Ecology’s Eastern Region Office (ERO).
Such a feat takes patience, time, and determination, plus a passion for bicycling—qualities Kim has cultivated over the past 20-odd years of working for Ecology.
Kim began bicycle commuting in 1986, when he worked at the Central Region Office, in Yakima. Those early commutes weren’t so far, he said, but they got him into the bicycling habit, and it stuck. So when Kim relocated to ERO in Spokane, six years ago, it was second nature for him to plan out a bicycle commute route. The glitch: the office was 32 miles away.
Kim bit off the bicycle challenge in chunks. For awhile, he used combinations of car, bus and bicycle to make the commute. Over time, he added more bicycle miles until, in 2008, he found himself bicycling the entire route.
Kim’s morning begins at 3:00 a.m. to gear up for his two-plus-hour bike ride that takes him over country highways near the Idaho border, along the Spokane River Centennial Trail, and finally up the congested city streets of Spokane to the Ecology office north of the city center.
Kim’s bicycle, a little-known make that he bought years ago in Yakima, weighs 28 pounds and bears the scars of many years and many miles. The bike sports a relatively narrow front tire, and a fatter mountain bike tire behind. “It’s not as fast as a road bike,” says Kim, “but I don’t get so many flat tires either.”
Inclement weather doesn’t keep Kim off his bicycle. When the storms move in, Kim tops his bicycling shorts with sweats and turtle-neck layers for warmth. He covers it all with a large, white plastic bag converted to a poncho, belted snugly in place by a fluorescent safety harness studded with flashing lights. He wears a tight-fitting polypropylene hood to keep his head, ears and neck warm underneath his bicycle helmet.
There’s no doubt that Kim is noticeable when he’s on his bicycle. He wants it that way so that motorists will be sure to see him when he’s cycling in the dark. Kim is so visible, in fact, that a Washington state trooper recently pulled alongside at a stoplight to tell Kim he wished all bicyclists would show up so well in the dark.Kim can cite many reasons for dedicating himself to bicycle commuting, including the fact that he saved more than $2,000 by leaving his car in the garage. But, for Kim, the most important reason is that, by his calculations, he has kept at least 10 barrels of crude oil in the ground. “That’s my return to my cousins—including my non-human cousins—that I reduce my footprint so other life can share the planet.”