RSSThu 1 Dec 2005
The mission of Bike Denver is to promote and encourage bicycling as an energy efficient, non-polluting, healthy, and enjoyable transportation alternative within the City and County of Denver.
NEXT MEETING: January 12, 6-7pm, Union Station, Bicycle Colorado offices, Suite 236 upstairs.
FUN RIDE FUN RIDE FUN RIDE
Join BikeDenver for a winter comfort ride on Saturday, January 28. We’ll meet at Perk Hill Coffee at 2202 Kearney Street in Park Hill for a 4:00 p.m. ride start. We’ll ride through the Park Hill and Stapleton neighborhoods and then return to Perk Hill for coffee, hot chocolate, snacks and a movie. What’s the movie, you ask? “Breaking Away,” of course! For those interested in more substantial fare, we can order pizza from Oblio’s pizza around the corner. We’ll make a go/no-go decision for the ride on Thursday, but the movie will still play at 5:30 p.m. regardless of the weather. Be sure to bring your helmets and lights, as it will be dark after the movie. There is plenty of on-street parking in the area, as well as an off-street lot. Ride updates will be posted on the website at www.bikedenver.org. Contact Tracy at thalasin@yahoo.com with questions.
ITEMS IN THIS MONTH’S NEWSLETTER:
** BIKEDENVER APPLIES FOR EPA FUNDS
** BIKEDENVER TO HOST THUNDERHEAD ALLIANCE TRAINING
** ANNUAL PLANNING RETREAT HELD
** NEWS FROM MAYOR’S BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE
** POSITIONS OPEN WITH CYCLE CIRCUS
WINTER SOLSTICE FUN RIDE
BikeDenver’s first ride arrived with winter, taking place on December 21, the Winter Solstice. The weather was perfect and quite un-winter-like, as 15 enthusiastic riders arrived in City Park for the 6:30 p.m. ride start. We were a festive bunch, with our headlights and red blinkies. Some even adorned themselves with a string or two of Christmas tree lights.
The group took a lap around City Park with a view of the zoo’s Wildlights display. We then rode on to Cheesman Park, where we circled the park and headed over on 12th Avenue to see the neighborhood lighting display in the 1300 block of Milwaukee Street. The group closed the loop by heading back to the ride start in City Park, bringing the ride to an end.
Fun was had by all, and some participants continued on for warm beverages at a local coffee shop. Look for more BikeDenver ride events this winter and continuing into summer.
BIKEDENVER TAKES LEAD IN APPLYING FOR EPA FUNDS
In another first, BikeDenver took the lead in responding to a recent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) request for proposals. Staff help from Downtown Denver Partners, RTD, DRCOG, CDOT, and the City and County of Denver was critical to the development and writing of the proposal. Letters of support were obtained from each of these agencies and they will remain partners in the project if funded. Our community-based project proposes to teach a series of adult bicycle commuting classes that will help the participants overcome common barriers to commuting by bicycle and reduce the number of contributors to ozone pollution. The winning grants will be announced in March.
BIKEDENVER TO HOST THUNDERHEAD ALLIANCE TRAINING
BikeDenver was one of only two successful bids to host a Thunderhead Alliance Training for bicycle advocacy leaders in 2006. This is a real feather in our cap. The details are still to be worked out and we will be soliciting volunteer help as plans progress. The Thunderhead Alliance is the national coalition of state and local bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organizations working in unison to break down the barriers to safe bicycling and walking in North American communities. They bring leaders of their member organizations together to help each other grow their organizations and become more effective.
ANNUAL BIKEDENVER PLANNING RETREAT HELD
A small, dedicated group of members joined the BikeDenver Board of Directors at our recent planning retreat. We reviewed our accomplishments and current status, took stock of our resources and discussed where to focus our efforts in the future. We will continue to improve our current operations that include the website, newsletter and our bike parking program. Since our volunteers and members are the backbone of our organization, we plan to involve them more through fun events such as movie nights and theme rides. There never seems to be a shortage of advocacy issues and we will continue to be involved in DMAP, the MBAC, Thunderhead (if you don’t know what these stand for, read on) and the Strategic Transportation Plan (STP). As all of these activities cost money, we will be looking for more funding opportunities such as the EPA grant noted above.
As a member, you are urged to come to our open meetings (2nd Thurs of every month) and get involved in one or more of our projects.
REDESIGNED WEB SITE
Our redesigned and upgraded website is now up and running, so check it out at www.BikeDenver.org. Current cycling news and action alerts appear along with links to many other bike related sites. The calendar on the web page will be more current than the one usually found in this newsletter so that item will be discontinued after this issue.
NEWS FROM MAYOR’S BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE
The new MBAC chair is Tracy Halasinski, a member of the BikeDenver Board of Directors and an avid cyclist. Congratulations Tracy!
RTD is currently looking at the potential alignments and station alternatives for the Air Train that will run between Union Station and DIA, in part along I-70 (also known as the I-70 East Corridor). The Union Pacific railroad corridor is the most likely route and there are no bike routes/trails within that corridor. The committee moved to support that the I-70 EIS alternatives include a trail inside the railroad corridor.
Looking at interface of Curtis Park and Downtown, the MBAC moved to recommend the extension of the Lawrence St. bike lanes up to 36th Avenue and a bike route on Larimer St. from 37th Avenue into downtown.
The final action at the Nov mtg. concerned the Denver Multimodal Access Plan (DMAP) for downtown that calls for combination bus/bike lanes on both 18th and 19th Streets between Broadway and Wynkoop. However, no bike connections from Broadway are defined to reach Sherman Street, which serves as a distributor for the 16th Ave and 18th/19th Ave. bike routes. Therefore, a motion was made that DMAP include bicycle connections from the proposed 18th and 19th Street bus/bike lanes to connect with Sherman Street.
An update of the Sand Creek Greenway was presented at the Dec mtg. The overall length of the trail will be fourteen miles, from the Platte River Trail in Commerce City to the High Line Canal Trail in Aurora. The Greenway Foundation will do 5-6 projects in the next five years and then turn the trail over to the cities. The Commerce City portion in the floodway is paved. The master plan calls for future paving with an adjoining soft surface trail. Currently, the old Stapleton airport runway bridges over Sand Creek are being removed and there will be future landscaping in that area. The washout of the trail beneath a railroad bridge in Commerce City requires a response from the railroad before any repairs can be implemented.
James Mackay announced that the Holly Street Bridge over Cherry Creek would be replaced in 2006. During construction, the crane pad will occupy the trail head/parking lot on the west side of the Holly and Cherry Creek Drive North intersection. A new traffic signal system will be installed, with better locations for pushbuttons for Cherry Creek Trail users. The Quebec Street Bridge over Cherry Creek will be widened next year as well with a new ramp to be built on the western side of Quebec Street. Trail users will be able to use both the existing ramp on the east side and the new, western ramp when construction activities require that the trail be closed.
Source: Approved Nov minutes and draft minutes of the Dec MBAC meetings; James Mackay, Denver Bicycle Planner
NEWS FROM BICYCLE COLORADO
On December 12, Bicycle Colorado met with the State Patrol, state legislators, transportation planners, and event organizers to discuss concerns about the State Patrol’s cap on bicycling events with more than 2,500 riders. The main result of the meeting is the formation of a working group to review ideas and best practices for keeping events safe, instead of an event cap. This taskforce will include Bicycle Colorado, State Patrol, and CDOT staff. This group will look at ride safety, State Patrol event resources, and motorist behavior. To stay on top of this issue, be sure to visit their web site at www.bicyclecolo.org
Bicycle Colorado continues to advocate strongly for the bicycling community and our efforts to build a bicycle-friendly Colorado. Show your support by becoming a member and plan on attending their annual fundraiser to be held this year on April 22nd.
Source: Bicycle Colorado - www.bicyclecolorado.org
POSITIONS OPEN WITH CYCLE CIRCUS
The circus, dedicated to educating children and their families in safe cycling and the importance of wearing a helmet, has just had its most exciting and successful year ever. We presented bike safety messages to 5,000 children in schools throughout the Front Range, and at the circuses at the Pepsi Center, Colorado Springs, Fort Collins and Boulder. The request list for 2006 is long and help is needed.
Two positions are open: (1) - An experienced Event Coordinator for events in the four cities above and (2) - a School Programs Coordinator to manage program and present in classroom. Contract position; educator preferred. February - June, and September. To apply or get additional information send an e-mail to: biacsafetycircus@aol.com with the subject title - POSITION.
We are also seeking interested volunteers with a passion for child safety to join our steering committee/board. Expertise in marketing, business and accounting would be especially valued. Come and join a fantastic team. Send an e-mail to: cfnagel@comcast.net with the subject title - CIRCUS
UPCOMING EVENTS
Remember to check our web site www.bikedenver.org for the most current listing of events.
April 22
Bicycle Colorado Gala Celebration and Auction
Walnut Foundry, Denver
www.bicyclecolo.org
June 4
Elephant Rock Ride
Castle Rock
www.elephantrockride.com
June
Cycle Circus for Kids
Pepsi Center
www.cyclesafety.org
June 28
Bike to Work Day
www.biketowork.com
June
Ride the Rockies
www.ridetherockies.com
July
Triple Bypass
www.teamevergreen.com
August
Moonlight Classic
www.moonlight-classic.com
MEMBERSHIP IN BIKEDENVER means:
1. We have your email address. We send you action alerts and a monthly newsletter.
2. You act on BikeDenver action items, as you feel willing and able.
3. You recruit other bicyclists to join BikeDenver. Membership is FREE!!!
To join BikeDenver send an email to info@bikedenver.org and write “subscribe” in the subject.
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