Cyclists from all over the country listened eagerly at the Thursday, March 11 National Bike Summit evening reception as Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood stood on a tabletop to thank us for being there, and lay out his vision for livable communities in America. Then on March 15, LaHood took to his blog to “announce a […]
BikeNews; Advocacy
Inspiring Words From Transportation Secretary
Texas Well-Represented at Largest National Bike Summit Ever
With more than 725 attendees at this year’s League of American Bicyclists National Bike Summit, the 2010 Summit was the biggest yet! From March 9-11, BikeTexas staff joined a diverse group of BikeTexas members, bike retailers, and professional and citizen advocates from all over Texas. The goal? To share ideas with cyclists from around the […]
Safe Passing in San Antonio!
Congratulations to the citizens of the Alamo City, who now have a Safe Passing Ordinance! On a rainy Thursday, February 4, 2010, San Antonio City Council passed the Safe Passing Ordinance with the same language as SB 488, the Safe Passing Bill. The Safe Passing bill passed overwhelmingly in the 2009 State Legislative Session, but […]
Hundreds Turn Out for Unanimous Adoption of Fort Worth Bicycle Master Plan
(Contributed by Jim Wilson, Benbrook City Councilmember and President of Lockheed Martin Recreation Association Bicycle Club) Fort Worth’s Lockheed Martin Recreation Association Bicycle Club (LMRABC) teamed with Colonel’s Bicycles, Bicycles, Inc., and the Fort Worth Bicycling Association (FWBA) to show highly visible support for the BIKE Fort Worth Plan at a public hearing on Feb […]
Alliance for Biking and Walking Releases 2010 Benchmarking Report
The Alliance for Biking and Walking has released their Benchmarking Report for 2010. This report is intended to mark the state of biking and walking around the country, and to help cities and states plan for better biking and walking programs and infrastructure.
Study Shows Biking Helps Wisconsin’s Economy
According to a new study done by graduate students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, bicycling generates a bigger economic impact for the state of Wisconsin than the deer hunting industry – about $1.5 billion annually. And in addition to economic benefits, bicycling could potentially generate health benefits as well, up to $319 million a year.
Safe Passing Ordinances Gaining Momentum Among Texas Cities
In October, the City of Austin showed itself to be a leader by passing Texas’s first citywide Safe Passing ordinance. (Click here for a piece by UT journalism student Melanie Torre, featuring an interview with BikeTexas Executive Director Robin Stallings.) But other Texas cities are not far behind. Cyclists in towns and cities from around […]
San Antonio Cyclists Pedal with Mayor After Bike Summit
On November, 2, 2009, San Antonio cyclists got a chance to hang out with San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro and ride the Missions Trail, after the morning San Antonio Bikes Summit at City Hall. A number of City department heads and program managers joined San Antonio bike advocates to hear Mayor Castro outline his hopes […]
Make Plans Now to Attend the LAB Bike Summit in D.C.
League of American Bicyclists National Bike SummitWashington, D.C., March 9-11, 2010 Calling all bicycle advocates! The League of American Bicyclists National Bike Summit will take place March 9-11, 2010 Now is the time to start making your plans to go! The 2009 Bike Summit saw a great turnout of Texas cyclists. BikeTexas staff organized and […]
BikeTexas Volunteers Help with Safe Passing Petition – Now Over 6,700 Signatures!
Signatures on the Safe Passing Petition had been coming in faster than BikeTexas staff could process them. So we decided to call on the cycling community for help, and they certainly stepped up! We held two volunteer nights a week for three weeks in late October and early November, and our wonderful volunteers got the […]
Austin City Council Votes 6-0 for Safe Passing!
Congratulations to the City of Austin – on Thursday, October 22, 2009, Austin became the first city in the State of Texas to adopt a Safe Passing ordinance! This means that Safe Passing will now be the law of the land in Austin, TX. Click here to read the ordinance. Thanks to the Austin City […]
Texas Senators Vote to Strip Bike/Ped Funding
On September 17, 2009, the U.S. Senate voted on two amendments to the Transportation Appropriations bill, offered by Sen. Coburn (R-OK), that would have devastated funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects across the country. The amendments targeted the Transportation Enhancement program, which funds hundreds of bike-related projects with millions of dollars every year (click here […]
BikeTexas Goes to Little Rock
On Oct 16th-18th, 2009, BikeTexas staff traveled to North Little Rock, Arkansas to attend the “Winning Campaigns” training hosted by the Alliance for Biking and Walking. The training consisted of facilitator-led exercises in planning campaigns, based upon successful model campaigns. In attendance were bike/ped advocacy organizations from Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. […]
Austin Considers a Safe Passing Ordinance
If you’re in the Austin area, you have a chance to help enact Safe Passing in your own town – this Thursday, the Austin City Council will vote on an ordinance to implement the 3-foot passing law in Austin! It will be Agenda Item #30. What you can do: Register your support for Safe Passing […]
Don’t Forget the Safe Passing Petition!
We are half way to our goal of 10,000 Texanssigning the BikeTexas Safe Passing petition,and we need your help to keep the momentum going! If you haven’t signed it already, please take a moment and do so now. Equally important, please forward the link to the petition(http://www.BikeTexas.org/petition)to family and friends and ask them to sign. […]
Winning Campaign Training for Activists
Are you interested, or already involved in advocacy for bicycle and pedestrian issues? If so, you may want to consider attending a Winning Campaigns Training, organized by the Alliance for Biking and walking. These sessions are for leaders of grassroots bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organizations: board members, staff, and super volunteers. October 16-18, 2009, the […]
Public Records from Governor Give No Insight into Veto of Safe Passing Bill
As we process our disappointment over Governor Perry’s veto, we are still wondering… why? A Public Information Act request to the Governor’s office, submitted by Leslie Luciano of Bicycle Sport Shop in Austin, has not provided any clues. As the records of phone calls on the day of the veto show, more than 2,000 people […]
NCSL Bipartisan Bike Ride in Philadelphia
State legislators from all over the United States woke at dawn on Thursday, July 23 to participate in one of the hottest-ticket events at the National Conference of State Legislatures – the 6th NCSL Bipartisan Bike Ride. The ride was co-hosted by Senator Rodney Ellis (D-Houston, TX), and Representative Rick Geist (R-Altoona, PA), the Chair […]
BikeTexas Happenings at Hotter n’ Hell
Volunteer to help gather Safe Passing Petition signatures at HHHBikeTexas staff is gearing up for its advocacy booth at the biggest bike exposition in Texas, the 28th Annual Hotter n’ Hell Hundred (HHH) Expo and century ride in Wichita Falls, August 26-29, 2009. If you can spare an hour or two, please volunteer to gather […]
A Letter from the Executive Director
Dear Fellow Texas Cyclists, BikeTexas staff and board thank so many of you for your hard work on behalf of bicycle advocacy during the now-ended 81st Texas Legislative Session. We had hoped we could do so in light of a new Safe Passing Law in Texas. As you all know, Governor Rick Perry chose to […]