Federal Transportation Bill Threatens Bicycle and Pedestrian Funding
Posted on May 22, 2012 by Shayne

Congress is conferring on the next Federal Transportation Bill, and bicycle and pedestrian funding is still at stake. In the Senate transportation bill, programs that fund bicycle and pedestrian funding are preserved and improved, continuing to fund projects that benefit bicyclist and pedestrians. To contrast, the bill from the House of Representatives repeals programs that fund bicycle and pedestrian projects, and places the priority on our highway network. Federal funding for bicycle and pedestrian has been used in every congressional district in Pennsylvania, and has funded hundreds of projects that have improved conditions for bicycles and pedestrians.

We do not want to halt the progress that has been made in the past two decades. Chances are, your favorite bike path was partly funded with federal funding. Many communities have benefited from sidewalk replacement projects funded with federal dollars. In more recent years, the funds have been used to make walking and biking to school safer, and will have lifelong benefits for the children that attend schools that participated in the Safe Routes to Schools program.

Pennsylvania Walks and Bikes has a resource to help you learn which projects in your community have benefited from federal transportation dollars. If you want to see more of these projects; if you have benefited from better sidewalks, safer bike paths, and healthier children, tell your representative in congress.

Pennsylvania is well represented on the House Transportation Committee by Congressmen Bill Shuster, Lou Barletta, Patrick Meehan, Tim Holden, Jason Altmire; and also well represented in the conference committee by Representative Bill Shuster.

Congressman Shuster has not been supportive of preserving bicycle and pedestrian funding, and has been very open about his belief that the federal transportation bill should focus on our highway system. We do not want to see the progress towards a more walkable and bikeable Pennsylvania come to a halt. 

We enjoy the benefits of these programs, and we do not want to see the end. Let your representative know that walkable and bikeable communities are important. Let them know that we want to continue to improve Pennsylvania, not stop it with a flat.
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May is Bike Month

Show your support for bicycling in our Berks communities by attending these 2012 Bike Month events.

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Tuesday, May 1 :: Berks County Bike Month Proclamation Ceremony

When? 10:30 am
Where? Berks County Services Building, 633 Court St, Reading
What? Be there as the County Commissioners issue the proclamation to WalkBikeBerks, declaring May Bike Month in all of Berks County.

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Saturday, May 5 :: WBB Bike Rodeo at Youth Safety Day

When? 10 am – 2pm
Where? Lake Drive Recreation Area, Douglassville
What? A day of fun-filled family activities hosted by the Daniel Boone Optimist Club. The focus of this year's event will be bicycle safety. Kids in grades K-8 can register to win a bike. Download a flyer.

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Friday, May 18 :: Bike to Work Day

When? 7:00 am
Where? Brentwood Trailhead of the Thun Trail, just off of Rte 10 near Millmont (see map right)
What? Join us at the Brentwood Trailhead at 7:00am (ride begins at 7:15) and ride with the pack, including Reading Mayor Vaughn Spencer and Rep. David Maloney, to the Bike to Work Day ceremony at the Berks County Services Building (ceremony begins at 7:45am with address by Sen. Judy Schwank). The easy ride of approximately 2 miles will be escorted by police and promises to be a fun, visible way to promote bicycling in Greater Reading.

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Saturday, May 19 :: Bicycle Basics Class

When? 8:30 am
Where? Upland Center Community Room, Alvernia University, 540 Upland Ave, Reading
What? Learn effective cycling techniques with League of American Bicyclists Certified Instructor and WBB Board member, Benton Levengood. The primary focus of the class will be bicycle maintenance: learn to change tires, adjust brakes and gears, maintain and replace chains.  Bring your bicycle and helmet.

There is no fee for this class, but a voluntary, tax-deductible donation of $20 to WalkBikeBerks per individual or family will be greatly appreciated.  PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED:  email blevengood@walkbikeberks.org or call 717-449-4474.  Class size is limited to 10 students.

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Unwalkable America

From Tom Vanderbilt's Slate Column, America's Pedestrian Problem:

"This failure to plan for anyone on foot is just one of a number of shortcomings of our overbuilt, undermaintained road network that are coming into relief. In Orlando parents of children who live closer than two miles to school are worried about looming cuts in bus service due to budget constraints. There is even concern about those who face a relatively short walk of 100 yards to catch a bus. Why? Because the environment was not built to accommodate anyone walking—there are no sidewalks and only poor crossings amid fast-moving traffic. Elsewhere, schools built without sidewalks scramble for funding as students walk in the ditches beside busy roads. In South Jordan, Utah, a woman was cited with child neglect for allowing her son to walk to school. Why was he walking? Because the school had eliminated its “hazardous bus routes.” What’s a hazardous bus route? A bus route meant to pick up kids who live in areas without sidewalks. There is child neglect going on here, for sure, but it’s the neglect of a system in which children within walking distance of school cannot actually do so." 

Read the full article.

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Asked how they would like to see the Business 222 corridor improved, Muhlenberg Township residents listed walkability as a priority.

WBB participated in the development planning meeting last week.  Thanks to the Reading Eagle for this coverage.

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April 5th Agenda Reading Area Transportation Committee

                                                        
 There will be a meeting of the Reading Area Transportation Study Technical Committee on Thursday, April 5, 2012 beginning at 1:30 p.m. in the offices of the Berks County Planning Commission, Berks County Services Center, 633 Court Street, 14^th Floor, Reading, PA 19601

The agenda for the meeting is as follows:

1.    Call to Order – 1:30 p.m.

2.    Review / Approval of Technical Committee Minutes of March 1, 2012

3.    Business from the Floor

4.    Update on Federal Transportation Funding

5.    PennDOT Requested Amendments / Modifications to FFY 2011 – 2014 TIP

6.    Update on Draft FFY 2013 – 2016 TIP Development

7.    BARTA Report on Transit Development Plan Update

8.    PennDOT Update on Highway Projects

9.    Commuter Services Update

10. Other Business

11. Adjournment

Next Meeting: Joint Technical / Coordinating Committee - Thursday, May 17, 2012 1:30 P.M. at BARTA Executive Offices, 1700 North 11th Street,

                           Reading, PA  19604-1505

                                   

The Reading MPO is committed to compliance with the nondiscrimination requirements of applicable civil rights statutes, executive orders, regulations, and policies.  The meeting location is accessible to persons having disabilities.  With advance notification, accommodations may be provided for those with special needs related to language, sight, or hearing.  If you have a request for a special need, wish to file a complaint or desire additional information, please contact Alan Piper, Transportation Planner at 610-478-6300 or by e-mail at: planning@countyofberks.com.

Drivers vs. Bicyclists

http://grist.org/biking/the-a-biker-problem-why-its-hard-to-share-the-road/

Why it’s hard to share the road