Bicycling on City Council Agenda - June 10

Please come to Montpelier City Council to support bicycling - this Wednesday at 7 pm!
Montpelier City Council will discuss bicycling infrastructure, possible bike lanes, and a bicycle network.

Bicyclists are strongly encouraged to attend the meeting @ 7 pm this Wednesday at City Hall - this is the first agenda item. Montpelier Bikes (www.montpelierbikes.org) will present on potential addition of bike lanes to the Route 2/302 paving being done this summer, and preliminary support for funding a bicycle network, to include bicycle lanes, shared lane markings, bicycle shelters, bicycle lockers, and improving a few key missing links.

Citizen turn out for this meeting will help to propel bicycle improvements in Montpelier. Please bring your bike helmet into the meeting, or get a bicycle lapel sticker on the way in, to show your support (you need not speak, but your presence will make a difference.) For more information, please see: www.montpelierbikes.org

New Website

www.montpelierbikes.org

This blog site maintained for archival purposes; please see the above link for current news.

Montpelier Bikes @ Montpelier Planning Commission • 1/26/09

With input from many of you, and the combined thinking power of the Montpelier Bikes steering committee -- Montpelier Bikes is taking recommendations to improve conditions for bicycling before the Montpelier Planning Commission on Monday, January 26, at 7 pm, in the City Council Chambers - Montpelier City Hall. Becka Roolf of Going Green will make a presentation.

We encourage you to attend the meeting if you can, to learn more about these initiatives, and provide your additional public comment, input, and support. Here are our handouts for the meeting.

1. Bicycle Parking Recommendations
Our presentation will summarize a recent bicycle parking survey and our recommendations. Thanks to all on this list who participated in the survey. We had 42 responses. Here's two spreadsheets summarizing the results:

• Sidewalk/2-bike rack locations (PDF) - hopefully to be installed this spring!
  
• Bike shelters / bike lockers (PDF)
  

2. Complete Streets Resolution
A complete streets resolution would direct city staff to routinely accommodate all modes of transportation in all construction projects and planning. Currently, specific bicycle accommodation is rarely considered. Specific wording for Montpelier would need to be developed; the Montpelier Bikes group would like to initiate the discussion.

3. Bicycle Master Plan
The creation of a bicycle master plan was recommended in the city's transportation plan drafted in 2005. Montpelier Bikes would like the planning commission to make this a priority in 2009, and to subsequently seek funding for implementation.

4. Sidewalk Riding Ordinances
Possible revisions to the restriction to bicycles on sidewalks, to reduce the area in which sidewalk bicycle riding is prohibited to just the core business area (which is where police currently enforce it). See last page of handout, linked above.

Note: at this time we are not addressing specific streets or hot spots. We received some comments on streets as part of our bike parking survey. We did hear you, and we will take your input into account as our initiative moves in that direction in the coming year.

Montpelier Bikes Completes Bicycle Parking Inventory; Seeks Public Input on New Racks

The Montpelier Bikes project is recommending that the City add bicycle parking, including:

• Additional two-bicycle racks in the downtown business district.
• Covered racks or bike shelters in key commuter locations.
• Bicycle lockers where security is a concern, such as at the Montpelier Park & Ride.
• Upgraded bicycle racks (to get away from wheelbending!) at key locations.

We want your input! What locations should get top priority for new racks?
Please take our online survey - which takes about 5-10 minutes. Click HERE to take the survey.

Currently, Montpelier has bicycle parking, much of which is unfortunately poor or outdated in design.

Volunteers from the Montpelier Bikes project recently completed an inventory of existing bicycle parking in the capital city. The good news - Montpelier has a fair amount of bicycle parking in the form of bike racks.

Here's a map of Montpelier's current bike racks - with thanks to Dave Blumenthal, Carolyn Grodinsky, Bill Merrylees, Heather Pipino, and Gwen Roolf for their assistance in completing the inventory. Click on the map to see more detail.



Now for the bad news - most of Montpelier's current racks are of an outdated "wheelbender" style that can actually cause damage to bicycles -- and although these racks may look like adequate parking, few are located directly on the street/sidewalk, where bicyclists want to park. Almost none of the racks are under cover to protect bicycles from rain/snow, and many racks are poorly located too close to buildings, rendering them partly unusable. Many bicyclists instead lock to wastebaskets, tree cages, and parking meters.

Current national guidelines recommend bicycle racks that provide two points of contact with the bicycle frame, to keep the bicycle from tipping over. The old-fashioned "wheelbender" racks are no longer recommended. Bicycle parking should be distributed throughout an area, rather than concentrated in a single multi-bicycle rack.

Please take the survey and let us know where you think new bike racks should be!

Bicycle Ambassadors' Planning Meeting - Mon. Dec. 8, 2008

Bicycle Ambassador Programs engage community volunteers in promoting bicycling awareness and safety. There are programs currently up and running in communities around the country including Chicago, Illinois; Seattle, Washington; and Boulder, Colorado -- where 20% of commuters go by bike! The Montpelier Bikes Project is seeking input from potential ambassadors in preparation for a Spring 2009 program.

Montpelier Bikes • Bicycle Ambassadors' Brainstorming & Discussion meeting

Monday, December 8 • 6:30 pm
Montpelier High School (room directions will be posted at the front entrance)

The purpose of this meeting is to determine what we as a community need to research or figure out before we launch this program in the spring. You are invited to put on your thinking cap to ask the tough questions now -- so that we can pull together background information and develop a training program in time for the spring. We will conduct our trainings in April, in time to launch the program for Way To Go Week and National Bike Month in May 2009.

Montpelier Bikes would like to have 20-30 Bicycle Ambassador volunteers in Montpelier next summer. Individuals who are not Montpelier residents, but are regularly in Montpelier for work or other reasons are welcome, too.

Here are some ideas so far about what Bicycle Ambassadors might do in Montpelier:

• Assist with bicycle safety education (bike rodeos, or a neighborhood block parties or garage sales).
• Sign up with Onion River Exchange to provide "Bike Buddy" services to help someone rediscover bicycling, or to help a commuter get started - including selecting a route, helping with gear, pedaling a potential route together, or simply providing advice.
• Provide safe bicycling tips to other bicyclists - using outreach materials developed by Montpelier Bikes.
• Serve as a visible Ambassador to motorists - riding responsibly in town and wearing a Bicycle Ambassadors shirt (brightly colored for safety). Be prepared to discuss safe bicycling and bicycling laws with motorists respectfully and politely.
• Distribute flyers to bulletin boards around town with a "bicycle safety tip of the month" from April to October.
• Help staff a potential bicycle parking corral at public events - possibly the Farmer's Market, Independence Day fireworks, etc.
• Lead neighborhood "bicycle trains" for elementary or middle school kids going to school.

Bicycle Ambassadors will receive good karma, plus a bicycle ambassador t-shirt or vest, and a discounted one-year membership in the Onion River Exchange Program, to get you started in being a bike buddy. Each Bicycle Ambassador will be asked to provide a certain number of hours of volunteer service over the course of the 2009 "season."

Questions for meeting attendees to think about:

• What would you need to learn in order to feel confident in doing some or all of the above tasks?
• What materials or training would you need?
• What should the Bicycle Ambassadors policies be about helmet use and sidewalk riding?
• Are there other ways that you would see Bicycle Ambassadors promoting bicycling?
• How many hours of community service should we ask Bicycle Ambassadors to commit to?

You are welcome to send any comments via email, but we also want to have an in-person discussion with input from potential ambassadors. RSVP to info@goinggreenvt.com if you are planning to attend on December 8.

Thanks to Bicycle Sign Hosts

Thanks to our "Slow Down - Watch for Bikes" sign hosts for 2008 - Gretchen, Carolyn , Mary, Donna & Ed, Ken & his neighbors on Terrace St., Heather, Phyllis, Nancy, and Cass.

We'll consider adding a few more, selected signs in 2009 - please let us know if you live along an arterial street in town and would like to host. Of course, you are welcome to make your own home-grown signs, too!

Montpelier Bike Rack Inventory

New Bike Racks for Montpelier?
The Montpelier Bikes Project will work with the City of Montpelier to determine locations for 20 new bike racks. To do this, we're first inventorying where there are currently racks. See our draft list of current bike rack locations.

Where would you like to see a new bike rack? Also - this is beyond the City's current budget - but where would you like to see a covered bike shed, or bicycle lockers? You can answer these questions in an email to info@goinggreenvt.com or add to the comments on this blog.

If you are interested in donating $100 (Buy a Bike Rack) or $50 (Sponsor a Space), please contact us, and we will let you know when we are ready to collect funds for this project.

The new racks will most likely be the inverted-U racks as shown here. See Montpelier's current u-racks in real life in front of Coffee Corner.