White Clay Bicycle Club voted LAB's 2010 Club of the Year!

WCBC was recently chosen by the League of American Bicyclists as its 2010 Bicycle Club of the Year for region 2 (DE, MD, NJ, PA, WV and DC). This award is in recognition of WCBC’s rich, 37 year history of excelling at: reaching out to the community to promote safe recreational bicycling activities; offering cyclists multiple opportunities to engage in, develop and grow in the sport of cycling; and advocating the rights of bicyclists on a local, state and national level.

Most recently, WCBC has provided critical time, talent and seed money to assist Bike Delaware to get organized, incorporated and functioning to "promote bicycling as a healthy alternative to driving and to advocate bicycling safety provisions within our state transportation system".

In addition, WCBC’s four popular and well-known, fully supported annual fundraising rides have allowed the club to donate over $7000 annually over the last five years to organizations such as: Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia; Bike DE; Wilmington Urban Bike Project; DE School Nurse Helmet Bank; DE Special Olympics, DE Autism Foundation; DE Greenways; Rails to Trails; USA Cycling Development Foundation; LAB and others.

For the complete early history (1970s) of this legendary bicycle club, go HERE. Check out their membership benefits and join HERE.

Governor Markell to attend National Bike Summit

Governor Jack Markell is on the list of attendees for the upcoming National Bike Summit in Washington, DC, March 9-11. It appears Delaware has the only governor signed on, to represent our state at the highest level. This is the most important advocacy event of the year, so we thank Jack in advance for his participation.

Perhaps he will speak about our statewide adoption of a Complete Streets policy, still to be finalized and implemented? Stay tuned . . .

Smart Cycling-Traffic Skills 101 Course - Dover and Seaford

March 5, 12, 2010. Smart Cycling-Traffic Skills 101 is a nine hour course that provides instruction and guidance in the basic principles of vehicular bicycling. Bicyclists have more fun when they ride with skill and confidence. This course combines classroom discussion and parking lot activities with on-road practice of the principles of vehicular bicycling. The instructor for this course is certified by the League of American Bicyclists. This is an excellent event, and strong attendance is needed. Event flyer (pdf) with full information HERE.

Bike Delaware going to Washington, DC

Ten years ago, the first National Bike Summit brought just over 100 advocates and industry leaders to Washington, D.C. This year, the League of American Bicyclists expects closer to 1,000 participants, and the impact will be overwhelming. Congress and our Federal agencies will be setting national targets and goals for 2020. They will be writing transportation, climate, health care, natural resources and other critical pieces of legislation that will shape our future. Bicycling must be prominently featured in these important pieces of legislation, documents, funding streams and programs.

Bike Delaware will be there. We will be joining hundreds of fellow advocacy organizations from around the U.S, speaking up for bicycling on the national level. We will be helping the League of American Bicyclists celebrate 10 years of progress, while propelling us into our best decade yet. This includes walking the halls of Congress and visiting our elected representatives on March 11. We'll be asking them to support the Active Community Transportation Act, as well as federal transportation, climate change, and other initiatives that will get more people on bikes more often. If you would like to join us, please send us an email with your contact information. This day involves traveling down to Washington DC, meeting up with our team around 9 am on the House side, walking around to offices most of the day, and ending up at a reception on the Senate side around 4 pm.

SEPTA Expands Bike on Rail

SEPTA has posted their new bicycle regulations on their website and it contains a nice surprise-the two bikes per train rule has been changed to two bikes per car. Doubling the number of bikes that can be carried on most off-peak trains and offering the potential of carrying as many as 14 bikes on SEPTA's seven car Comet Train Sets (although most of those trains run peak hour/peak direction only). In addition folding bicycles are now permitted on buses and trolleys. This is a major step forward in improving bicycle access on transit lines.

It's official: Bike Delaware Incorporated

It is official! Bike Delaware, Inc. is officially incorporated in the state of Delaware as a non-profit organization, effective February 2nd. The purpose of the organization as stated on the certificate of incorporation is:

1) To identify, prioritize and communicate local bicycle issues with the local bicycling community and with other local and governmental organizations;
2) To educate the bicycling community of bicycling laws and the legal status of bicyclists;

3) To promote safe, defensive bicycling throughout Delaware.

Bike Delaware, Inc. shall be a membership organization and will elect its Board of Directors in accordance with established Bylaws.

We are pursuing filing the required governmental form to the IRS for Section 501(c)(3) status so that donations to our organization can be tax deductible as allowed by law. It is our intent to acquire this status by mid-year. Special thanks to Sally Humphrey, Delaware Greenways, for her facilitation and Glen Trudel with the law firm, Connolly Bove Lodge & Hutz, for his legal counsel.

WCBC's Annual Banquet with Alex Doty, BCGP Executive Director

On February 27th at 7:00 pm, the White Clay Bicycle Club will have the honor of hearing a presentation by Alex Doty, Executive Director of the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia. He has held this position since 2004. Alex has not owned a car for the 17 years he’s lived in Philadelphia. He commutes on his bicycle 4 miles to work each day. Starting in October, his commute route will include the new South Street Bridge bike lanes. He enjoys riding his Breezer bike with his son Felix and daughter Olivia and looks forward to the day when bike lanes and trails will connect seamlessly from his house in West Philly all the way to Valley Forge. BCGP was also instrumental in the rise of Bike Delaware, WCBC's advocacy partner organization. Cost is FREE and open to the public, just bring a potluck dish to share. Hors d’oeuvres begin at 5:30 pm. Must RSVP. Full details HERE.

Bike Delaware Annual Meeting wrap-up

Bike Delaware's first "Annual Meeting" took place on Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at WILMAPCO in Newark. The meeting had record attendance - 14 people - including several first-time attendees. The officers were introduced, including President Drew Knox (on vacation and unable to attend), Vice President Caroline Honse (tied up with work and unable to attend), Secretary Maria Wilburn, Treasurer Carol Ireland and Public Relations Frank Warnock. The big news of the evening came from Sally Humphrey: Bike Delaware is officially incorporated!! Many thanks to Sally of Delaware Greenways for engaging a lawyer to assist Bike Delaware on a pro bono basis in completing the incorporation papers.

A special topic on the agenda was a 2009 summary given by Frank Warnock. In mid-2009, Bike Delaware had identified three goals:

1) Promote a safe bike crossing of the C&D Canal, on the St. Georges Bridge.

2) Seek passage of a 3-foot passing law.

3) Followup on the Complete Streets Executive Order.

Significant progress was made on all three goals. Anthony Aglio, Bicycle Coordinator for DelDOT, announced significant progress with the St. Georges Bridge, and what could be a major victory for bicyclists in Delaware. Bike Delaware provided feedback on the DelDOT policies resulting from the Complete Streets Executive Order. We will continue to monitor the implementation of those policies. The 3-foot passing law passed the Senate unanimously. Our hope is that it will pass the House early in 2010. See Frank's charts HERE (pdf) for additional information on the progress made by Bike Delaware in 2009.

John Boyle gave a presentation outlining the progress made by the Bike Coalition of Greater Philadelphia in that city. Definitely an inspiration for Bike Delaware!

The pizza-sub-chips-soda supper was supplemented by a cake to celebrate the fact that Bike Delaware is now incorporated.

Will Mike Castle ACT? An open letter from a Bike DE member

Rep. Mike Castle, who is running for the Senate this year, has declared that his top legislative priorities include (1) energy independence, (2) fighting diabetes and (3) reducing congestion. Who would argue with these priorities? As Delaware voters, though, we need to ask Rep. Castle the following questions:

(1) Does building more and wider roads reduce our dependence on Middle East oil?

(2) Does building more and wider roads help to reduce the incidence of diseases like diabetes linked to obesity and sedentary lifestyles?

(3) Does building more and wider roads reduce road congestion in Delaware?

The answers to (1) and (2) are clearly "no" and "no". What about (3)? Well, we've been building more and more roads for 50 years now. The result? Commute distances have skyrocketed; the percentages of kids who walk or bike to school has fallen below 10%; and everybody drives everywhere to do everything. And our roads are still congested.

In 2010, the federal government will pass a major transportation bill, something it does every 5 years or so. Although almost all of this money will end up being used to build more and more and wider and wider and faster and faster roads in Delaware, we also have an opportunity to do something a little bit different with this upcoming bill. Instead of spending all of these federal funds on roads, why not spend a small percentage of these dollars in Delaware on infrastructure for non-motorized transportation like biking that would increase the percentage of people who use a bike to get to work, school and shopping? Here are some reasons why this is a good idea:

(1) Biking to work doesn't require any oil from the Middle East.

(2) Biking to school reduces obesity in kids.

(3) Biking to shopping reduces the number of cars on roads and frees up the roads for faster travel, increasing the productivity of Delaware's economy.

Rep. Castle should be supporting the idea of spending a small percentage of federal surface transportation funds on non-motorized infrastructure. He has an opportunity to do so by being a lead co-sponsor of the Active Community Transportation Act (ACT), which does just that. ACT is the most cost-effective way to simultaneously address three of Rep. Castle's own declared legislative priorities. How could he possibly pass up that chance? He can't. We sent him to Congress to not just talk about energy independence, diabetes and road congestion, but also to ACT.

~ James Wilson

2009 MUTCD: Secretary Wicks responds

On January 1, Bike Delaware wrote to Carolann Wicks, DelDOT Secretary, requesting our state adopt in full all bicycling-related updates and additions found in the 2009 Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices. Among others, Sharrows are a new addition, and will be indispensable where BFCs (Bicycle Friendly Communities) are concerned. As a gesture of good will, Secretary Wicks will have her department stay in regular touch with Bike Delaware and the Delaware Bicycle Council on developments as they occur. Read her letter of response in pdf HERE. Email Anthony Aglio, DelDOT Bicycle Coordinator with your own support: Anthony.Aglio@state.de.us

Bike Delaware Year in Review Presentation

2009 was a year full of challenges, and success. Much work remains; 2010 promises even more action. View the presentation in Power Point HERE, or pdf HERE. If you like what you see, and support our mission, please consider even a small donation to Bike Delaware HERE.

Visit our Participation page for more information.

WILMAPCO seeks comments on 2011-2014 TIP

WILMAPCO and DelDOT seek our input about transportation projects proposed for the next four years. The Draft FY 2011-2014 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) contains federally funded transportation projects for New Castle County, Delaware and Cecil County, Maryland. A public meeting will be held on February 22 to discuss the upcoming transportation projects under consideration. The Open House will invite your comments on projects proposed for the FY 2011-14 TIP. The TIP contains the agreed upon list of specific priority projects. The TIP lists all projects for which federal funds are anticipated, along with non-federally funded projects that are regionally significant. Projects include multimodal, highway, transit, bicycle, pedestrian, and freight facilities and work to preservation existing infrastructure, as well as improvements and expansions.

Meeting invitation HERE (pdf). See the entire TIP on WILMAPCO's web site HERE. If you can't make it, comment via email HERE.

Active Communities Transportation Act - where's Mike Castle?

Partnering nationally with the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy's 2010 Campaign for Active Transportation, we still hope to secure funding in the 2010 federal transportation bill to expedite the completion of planned improvements. But Earl Blumenauer, the bill's sponsor, can't do it alone. Our own Mike Castle (R-House), who's support would ensure its success, has thus far remained absent on any decision. The 2010 Campaign aims to fund dozens of communities across the country with $50 million each to promote trails, walking and biking for improved mobility. The campaign builds on the Nonmotorized Transportation Pilot Program (NTPP) in the 2005 federal transportation bill SAFETEA-LU. Learn more about the Active Community Transportation Act of 2009 HERE. View our own, we believe winnable Active Transportation in Northern Delaware Case Statement (pdf). More information on the program from RTTC HERE.

Neighboring Elkton, Maryland Bike Plan: UPDATE

WILMAPCO is working with the Town of Elkton to develop a bicycle plan to expand the existing transportation system, support economic activity and growth, and improve quality of life for Town residents and visitors. The Elkton Bicycle Plan will introduce a proposed coordinated bicycle network, which will connect residents with surrounding neighborhoods, the downtown central business district, and other key destinations, along with improvements for bike facilities such as bike racks and signage. This Plan is being developed with the participation of an advisory committee comprised of Town, County and State officials, and citizen advocates. One key task in the planning process is identifying the network, in which cyclist's input will be most valuable. Thus, those who bike in Elkton are encouraged to fill out a Field Worksheet and/or map the route (available online) that they take in and around Town. This input will help to identify improvements that can be made along bike routes, and will be used to better prioritize corridors for improvements. To give input, join the Advisory Committee or email Dave Gula: dgula@wilmapco.org for more information. This is your chance to help create some of the very first Bicycle Friendly Communities in the North East US, and it can only happen with cyclist participation.