The U.S. News and World Report suggests riding your bike to work as one of "50 Ways to Improve Your Life" in its December 18th issue.
http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/50-ways-to-improve-your-life/2008/12/18/ride-your-bike-to-work.html
As you celebrate the closing of 2008 and look forward to all of the possibilities of 2009 -- set this new year's resolution: Join WalkBikeBerks for Bike to Work 2009!
We need 'employees' from every profession -- yes, that means you. We'll make sure to help you improve your life -- by improving walking and bicycling in Berks County. But....we can't do it without you.
I look forward to seeing you January 10 at 8:00 a.m. at the Holy Cross Church in Reading, PA to begin planning Bike To Work. Our regular meeting begins at 9:00 -- and we are always happy to see new faces and make new friends. National Bike to Work events are held in May -- and you can learn more now by visiting: http://www.bikeleague.org/programs/bikemonth/.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
The Winter Cyclist
http://www.flickr.com/photos/voidoid21/298894294/
A wintry chill is in the atmosphere,
As from the heaving lake the storm wind blows;
And weak-kneed brethren of the cycle fear
That brings the riding season to close.
Jack Frost assails us with his wicked thrusts;
Our polka-dotted mufflers are on guard
And many a good wheel in the basement rusts
Which should be speeding down the boulevard.
And shall we join the patient, suffering throng,
Which crowds the rumbling street cars to the door?
Which kicks against the service loud and long,
But keeps on riding as it did before?
Nay! Perish such a thought. On every street
The hardy wheelman has the right of way;
No ancient female comes to claims his seat;
No cable breaks, no lumbering teams delay.
Our hearts beat high, our life-blood dancing flows,
Though ice-flakes sparkle in the biting air;
While street-car heaters, every patron knows,
Are but a vain delusion and a snare.
The steed that bore us through the woods aglow
With sunshine, where the morning glories creep,
Will bear us safely through the mud-streaked snow
Until it lies at least five inches deep.
PETER GRANT
Monday, December 29, 2008
PennDOT Smart Transportation
Renee Sigel, Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) Pennsylvania Division Administrator, speaks on Smart Transportation
ACCOMODATE ALL MODES OF TRAVEL: Watch this slideshow to see solutions that accomodate bicyclists, pedestrians, mass transit, historic and land preservation, and traffic flow:
Sunday, December 28, 2008
The Reading Eagle Supports Us, Won't You?
More than a year ago, the Reading Eagle provided us this written 'endorsement' of the work we hope to accomplish in Berks County. We've been working hard to make the ideas highlighted below a reality, and we think we've made some significant gains in only our first year. Mount Penn has held two successful Walk to School events with our help -- and the funds we received as partners in a Safe Routes to School Academy Grant. Exeter Township Pedestrian and Bicycle Task Force has submitted a Smart Transportation / Pennsylvania Communities Transportation Initiative (PCTI) application with the goal of writing a Township-wide Greenway and Transportation Plan. We have also been supporting the work of the Schuylkill River Heritage Area, the Berks County Planning Commission and the RiverPlace Corporation. We are working with Emily Weidner to complete a Bicycle Friendly Community Application for Reading. We would love to have you join us and let us work with you to make your community a nicer place to live. Let us know how we can help you.
Editorials : Fostering better use of roads a good idea
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Fostering better use of roads a good idea
The Issue: A Berks County group is formed to find ways to make streets and highways more inviting to hikers and bikers.
Our Opinion: In this time of expanding waistlines, encouraging any kind of physical activity is commendable.
If the goal of a recently formed group called Walk Bike Berks becomes a reality, area roadways will become multipurpose transportation corridors accommodating not only motorized vehicles, but also bicyclists and pedestrians. The concept is certainly worthy of serious consideration. As gasoline prices rise and waistlines expand, encouraging people to use human-powered modes of transportation is an excellent idea. Michele Barrett, an Exeter Township resident and founder of Walk Bike Berks, said the group is studying ways in which Berks County’s streets and highways can be made more inviting to those who would like to use them for hiking and biking. Barrett said the group plans to promote building sidewalks and adding bicycle lanes to roads and crosswalks. The group has formed an alliance with two national groups — Complete the Streets and the National Center for Safe Routes to School — that are promoting similar issues across the country. Complete the Streets was begun by a diverse collection of organizations including the AARP, the American Council of the Blind, the National Parks Conservation Association and Paralyzed Veterans of America. According to its Web site, Complete the Streets encourages local and state governments to design roadways and re-configure existing ones in order to make them more pedestrian friendly. Last year, through the efforts of Complete the Streets, Chicago issued a policy mandating that transportation projects should accommodate all users of public rights of way, even the most vulnerable, such as the elderly and the disabled. The National Center for Safe Routes to School, created by Congress in 2005, involves a network of more than 300 organizations and promotes exactly what its name implies — making it safer for children to walk or bike to school. The center’s aim, according to its Web site, is to increase the number of students walking and biking to school as a way to fight obesity among children. These days most students are driven by the parents, ride a school bus or drive themselves to school. But that wasn’t always the case. According to the National Household Travel Survey, in 1969 approximately 50 percent of students either walked or rode bicycles to school. Over the next 30 years that figure had dropped to 15 percent. When Congress created the Safe Routes to School center, lawmakers also provided it with $612 million to fund projects across the country. In Bay City, Texas, the center was instrumental in providing a $233,000 grant to establish a three-mile-long trail connecting four schools. In Huntingdon, Tenn., the town and the Huntingdon Special School District were given $250,000 to construct and improve sidewalks, including a bridge over a creek, to connect a primary school with a middle school. In Takoma Park, Md., a $150,000 grant from the Safe Routes to School was used to hold workshops on safe cycling and construct sidewalks around the town’s four public schools and one private school. As for Walk Bike Berks, Barrett has expressed the hope that the group will be able to make a difference in the lives of county residents. “I just want to love the town I live in,” she said. “I want to walk out the front door and feel connected to my community. I do think that people feel more tied to their community if they can freely move about.” That makes sense.
Editorials : Fostering better use of roads a good idea
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Fostering better use of roads a good idea
The Issue: A Berks County group is formed to find ways to make streets and highways more inviting to hikers and bikers.
Our Opinion: In this time of expanding waistlines, encouraging any kind of physical activity is commendable.
If the goal of a recently formed group called Walk Bike Berks becomes a reality, area roadways will become multipurpose transportation corridors accommodating not only motorized vehicles, but also bicyclists and pedestrians. The concept is certainly worthy of serious consideration. As gasoline prices rise and waistlines expand, encouraging people to use human-powered modes of transportation is an excellent idea. Michele Barrett, an Exeter Township resident and founder of Walk Bike Berks, said the group is studying ways in which Berks County’s streets and highways can be made more inviting to those who would like to use them for hiking and biking. Barrett said the group plans to promote building sidewalks and adding bicycle lanes to roads and crosswalks. The group has formed an alliance with two national groups — Complete the Streets and the National Center for Safe Routes to School — that are promoting similar issues across the country. Complete the Streets was begun by a diverse collection of organizations including the AARP, the American Council of the Blind, the National Parks Conservation Association and Paralyzed Veterans of America. According to its Web site, Complete the Streets encourages local and state governments to design roadways and re-configure existing ones in order to make them more pedestrian friendly. Last year, through the efforts of Complete the Streets, Chicago issued a policy mandating that transportation projects should accommodate all users of public rights of way, even the most vulnerable, such as the elderly and the disabled. The National Center for Safe Routes to School, created by Congress in 2005, involves a network of more than 300 organizations and promotes exactly what its name implies — making it safer for children to walk or bike to school. The center’s aim, according to its Web site, is to increase the number of students walking and biking to school as a way to fight obesity among children. These days most students are driven by the parents, ride a school bus or drive themselves to school. But that wasn’t always the case. According to the National Household Travel Survey, in 1969 approximately 50 percent of students either walked or rode bicycles to school. Over the next 30 years that figure had dropped to 15 percent. When Congress created the Safe Routes to School center, lawmakers also provided it with $612 million to fund projects across the country. In Bay City, Texas, the center was instrumental in providing a $233,000 grant to establish a three-mile-long trail connecting four schools. In Huntingdon, Tenn., the town and the Huntingdon Special School District were given $250,000 to construct and improve sidewalks, including a bridge over a creek, to connect a primary school with a middle school. In Takoma Park, Md., a $150,000 grant from the Safe Routes to School was used to hold workshops on safe cycling and construct sidewalks around the town’s four public schools and one private school. As for Walk Bike Berks, Barrett has expressed the hope that the group will be able to make a difference in the lives of county residents. “I just want to love the town I live in,” she said. “I want to walk out the front door and feel connected to my community. I do think that people feel more tied to their community if they can freely move about.” That makes sense.
Monday, December 22, 2008
BCTV December 22, 2008
WalkBikeBerks
on Berks County Television (BCTV)
TONIGHT: December 22 -- 7:00 PM
Bicycle Education
Service Electric: Channel 19
Comcast: Channel 13
Watch LIVE or on Archives at www.BCTV.org
We invite you to call-in during the live program: 610-378-0426
Replays on: Wednesday @ 1:00 PM, Thursday @ 10:00 PM, Friday @ 9:00 AM
Create awareness of need for improved accessibility for individuals using non-motorized forms of transportation.
Produced and Hosted by:
Bob Hospidor
Service Electric: Channel 19
Comcast: Channel 13
Watch LIVE or on Archives at www.BCTV.org
We invite you to call-in during the live program: 610-378-0426
Replays on: Wednesday @ 1:00 PM, Thursday @ 10:00 PM, Friday @ 9:00 AM
Create awareness of need for improved accessibility for individuals using non-motorized forms of transportation.
Produced and Hosted by:
Bob Hospidor
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Walking School Bus in Mount Penn, PA
A little rain couldn't stop these Pennsylvanian children from walking to school in December. Surrounded by parents, teachers, police escort on bicycles, and volunteers from WalkBikeBerks -- these kids simply prepared. They carried umbrellas, wore brightly colored baseball caps, and were sure to clip their reflective zipper pulls on their outerwear. Posters from the Safe Routes to School Academy Tool Kit were displayed to spread the message: Walking to school is safe, healthy, and fun for children. 
The 'school bus' carries umbrellas, zipper pulls, baseball caps, and other supplies that are given to children at each new 'bus' stop along the route.
Reflective zipper pulls and brightly colored baseball caps make the children more visible for the early morning trip to school.
See the school bus in the back of the photo? Children (and their parents) were delighted to leave the real bus behind to join the Walking School Bus in Mount Penn. Even in a December rain. Why? Because they value a lifetime of health, safety and fun.
The 'school bus' carries umbrellas, zipper pulls, baseball caps, and other supplies that are given to children at each new 'bus' stop along the route.
Reflective zipper pulls and brightly colored baseball caps make the children more visible for the early morning trip to school.
See the school bus in the back of the photo? Children (and their parents) were delighted to leave the real bus behind to join the Walking School Bus in Mount Penn. Even in a December rain. Why? Because they value a lifetime of health, safety and fun.
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