Share the Road License Plate - Cycology Bicycles

As previously mentioned, there is a June 2011 deadline for 1000 3 ft law/share the road license plate orders for the plate to go into production. As of today, the Jeff Roth Cycling Foundation is reporting 252 orders so far. Cycology Bicycles in Maryville is offering a special promotion in support of this cause. If people go there and sign up there for a plate for $35, they will receive a $20 gift card from Cycology for anything in the store.

Bicycle Club Advocacy Basics

What can bicycle clubs do for bicycling advocacy in Tennessee?  

Several years ago, I was appointed to Advocacy Chair for the Harpeth Bike Club.  I knew advocacy was important and we had a strong active membership.  I wasn't completely sure what we needed to do.  Now that I have a little more experience, I hope this post will provide some some guidance for the 60+ bicycle clubs and racing teams across Tennessee.

Future Concord Rd expansion plans

A further development in terms of infrastructure construction in Knox County and the town of Farragut is detailed here. Basically, starting three years from now, Concord Rd will be widened from two lanes to five, with bike lanes and a sidewalk on one side and an extra wide trail on the other. The "median islands" mentioned are a recent development, in that studies have shown some downside to having a continuous center-turn lane. A new bridge will be built to feed into the roundabout at Northshore Drive. A greenway paralleling Northshore Drive will be built on its north side. (Since much of Northshore drive has few intersections, the greenway should be OK for cycling.)

For what it's worth, proposed Concord Rd expansion was previously held up as part of transportation spending rescissions. As such, it's difficult to project what the funding situation will be three years from now, which is the scheduled start of construction. To what extent traffic levels will require a five lane road is another question.

Campbell Station Rd expansion complete

The Farragut Press Enterprise is reporting that the widening of Campbell Station Rd is complete. This stretch of road has been widened to be 5 lanes, with bike lanes and sidewalks on both sides. This project is an example of a road widening that also completed the street, in that all modes of travel are readily accommodated now. It is also located in such a way that quite a few neighborhoods have ready access to all the Farragut Schools (Primary, Intermediate, Middle, and High) in addition to the Farragut branch of the Knox County Libraries.

Putting more cyclists and pedestrians on the road is a good thing, even when there aren't special facilities for them in that drivers would tend to be more alert. One effect of bike lanes in areas is that people tend to venture beyond the areas with the lanes, putting more bikes on the road overall.

Bike Lane Opponents in NYC

Expansion of Bike Lanes Brings Backlash

As this story explains New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg greatly expanded bike lanes in the city. This year a similar backlash showed up in several places around the country. One law suit in San Francisco held up their city bike plan for over three years because of the lack of an environmental impact study! It may be just a matter of time until we experience this in Tennessee. It could be a positive development because it would mean that bicycle infrastructure is growing.

East Tennessee Clean Fuels Coalition (ETCFC)

Yesterday at the University of Tennessee's homecoming celebration, I had a chance to visit the College of Engineering where I was able to pick up a brochure from the East Tennessee Clean Fuels Coalition. The brochure contains many statistics for the area that are quite striking; basically, their two main goals are to (1) "reduce dependence on foreign oil, and (2) improve regional air quality and sustainability." The coalition is a participant in the Department of Energy's Clean Cities Program.

Top 40 Walking Cities in the US - walkscore.com

Previously, there was a post on September 25 on the list of the top 20 walking cities in the US, none of which was located within the state. A list of the top 40 cities is available now at walkscore.com, based on a walk score. Also listed are neighborhoods in each of the cities listed, since the walkability of a city can vary greatly from neighborhood to neighborhood. The cities in the state that made the list are

Watertown US70 Gets Rumbled

US 70 Bike Route in Watertown was resurfaced and rumbled last week (early November 2010).  This stretch of highway runs to the Dekalb county line and is used for the annual Big Hill Challenge sponsored by the Veloteers. The grooving was applied in accordance with the March 2010 TDOT specifications.

Advocacy Advance

Advocacy Advance is a partnership between the League of American Bicyclists and the Alliance for Biking and Walking to research issues critical to the bicycling community. The Advocacy Advance Team has created a series of reports to help Alliance member organizations access Federal funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects.