Bicycle
Advocacy Articles for Newsletters
Cycling Advocacy Newsletter Articles
Contents:
Rumble Over
Rumble Strips & Crumble Shoulders
How to Organize &
Conduct A Successful Bike Day
Share the Road
& Bike With Traffic Campaigns
Click here for: Information
Articles
Formatting notes: you can easily copy/paste the text and
photographs in Rumble Over Rumbe Strips & Crumble Shoulders. Please cite the
author, her title, and the New York Bicycling Coalition's URL & email addresses.
If prefer an MS Word or Adobe Acrobat formatted copy with embedded pictures; or a plain
ASCII text formatted copy with separate pictures; of this article please contact Harvey at
Cyclotour Guide Books, cyclotour@cyclotour.com,
please place "Bike Article" in the Subject line.
Rumble Over Rumble Strips and Crumble Shoulders
By Jennifer Clunie, NYBC Executive Director, New York Bicycling Coalition
www.nybc.net, nybc@nybc.net
New York State probably does not receive enough credit for being a
bicycling friendly cycling destination. Granted, urban areas often do not receive the
investment in bicycle infrastructure they deserve, but since the mid-1960s the NYS
Department of Transportation's (NYS DOT) policy has been to build State maintained roads
with a smooth paved and striped from the motor vehicle lane shoulder.
The NYS DOT's policy is to maintain this network of State roads with an
adequate minimum shoulder width (>4 ft.) In the 1990's, the DOT reconstructed many
State maintained roads with wider paved shoulders. These wide smooth paved shoulders are
one reason out of state bicycle tourists consistently positively comment on cycling in New
York State. The amount of available shoulder space afforded to them surprises and delights
both long distance and day trip cyclotourists.
Rumble Strip Problem
Since late spring 2008, the existence of this wonderful roadway
shoulder network is under threat according to emails sent to the New York Bicycling
Coalition (NYBC.) Early in summer, 2008, Dave Wilson, president of the Westchester Cycle
Club, alerted the Coalition that the NYS DOT repaved a section of Route 100 in Westchester
County with a length of "rumble" strips. These rumble strips jeopardize the
safety of all bicyclists and deter bicycle tourists from using Route 100. A full
description of the Route 100 issue, including articles in the local press, is on
Wilson’s blog: http://cycling.lohudblogs.com/author/dwilson/
Although bicyclists have the legal right to ride in the roadway lane,
rumble strips arbitrarily force bicyclists to ride in the motor vehicle lane on busy
roadways like Route 100.
Crumble Shoulder Problem
In various regions of the State, the NYS Department of Transportation
(NYSDOT) is testing experimental “crumble shoulders” of a coarse and loose
material in an attempt to reduce the costs of creating smooth paved shoulders on State
maintained roads. It remains to be analyzed how well the new shoulder material will hold
up and reduce the costs of paving roadways. The New York Bicycling Coalition (NYBC)
already has received comments from concerned bicyclists and pedestrians indicating that
the "crumble shoulder material is potentially dangerous for bicyclists, pedestrians,
and even motorists. The rough material frequently becomes loose and thrusts upwards if an
motor vehicle veers onto the shoulder. Like the existence of rumble strips, the rough
texture of "crumble shoulders" force bicyclists to alternate between cycling in
the motor vehicle lane with cycling on the shoulder.
New York Bicycling Coalition's Response
The NYBC is dedicated to preserving New York State’s wide and
smoothly paved shoulder network. It is an important asset for use by the State’s
residents (bicyclists and pedestrians) as well as visiting cyclists. Soon after learning
of the rumble strip and crumble shoulder controversies, we discussed the
Route 100 matter in a recent meeting with NYS DOT Commissioner Astrid Glynn. In addition,
we pursued amicable communication with Region 8 (Hudson Valley) DOT officials.
The NYBC has reservations and concerns about the adoption of these
roadway “improvements,” especially in regards to compromising bicyclists’
safety and the quality of riding surfaces on thousands of miles otherwise scenic roadways.
The NYBC will continue to correspond and meet with the NYS DOT on these matters.
Take Action, Every Bicyclist Can Be Involved
If you simply are "apprehensive" or are more concerned about
the existence of "rumble strips" and "crumble shoulders" then express
your apprehension and concern in a written (email or paper) communication to your club's
government relations or advocacy chair; to the NYBC (nybc@nybc.net); and contact the local
NYS DOT regional office about your concerns.
Do not hesitate to contact the New York Bicycling Coalition regarding
important local bicycle and pedestrian related issues in your community. Now, at the
beginning of 2009, we hope you will take the time to either become a member of NYBC, or
renew your membership. You can affirm your commitment for better bicycling conditions in
New York State www.nybc.net/donate and joining
us. NYBC: Working Toward a More Bicycle-Friendly New York
The New York Bicycling Coalition (NYBC) monitors government activities
concerning bicycling and pedestrian issues. The Coalition advocates on behalf of the
communities to the NY legislature and state agencies for better bicycling and walking
conditions. We provide technical assistance to clubs, non-profit organizations, and local
governments working to foster a "Complete Streets" concept of transportation
development. This is article is one example of the NYBC's response to the many challenging
local transportation situations around the State.
Bike
Day
Formatting Notes:
This is a template of How to Organize & Conduct A
Successful Bike Day.
It is designed to be used by a bicycling club; a civic
organization/community group; govern-
ment bureau; or a private enterprise; actually anyone.
You need only to insert your logo and other information in the spaces.
A community Bike Day does not have to be held during Bike Week (May).
Many
communities in the northern part of the United States hold Bike Week in the Fall
when there
are fewer competing events (everything from high school and community sports to
just plain
sunny weather).
It was originally a MS Publisher document, 2 text frames on each side
of an 81/2 x 11
sheet of paper in landscape printing mode. The font size and style should be
changed.
It is copyrighted but permission is NOT needed to use How To
Organize & Conduct a
Successful Bike Day.
A number of items in this template can be simply deleted. They have
been inserted into the
original brochure to give you some ideas of the range of activities your club can conduct
during
Bike Week or during a Bike Day program.
The Rochester Bicycling Club's Bike Week Committee sent this brochure
to every
municipality, civic organization (Rotary, Lions, religious groups, neighborhood
organizations)
and many businesses in a nine county area around Rochester, New York. Your
Club or
Metropolitan Planning Organization catchment area may not be as large but try to do
a mass
mailing. The first year only four municipalities conducted a bike day via
their recreation
departments. By the third year, over 50 municipalities conducted community
bike days.
Page 1
How
To Organize & Conduct A Successful Bike Day
By Harvey Botzman
[Insert: Your logo]
Bike Week
[Insert: Place, Day, Date & Time]
Sponsored by
[Insert: Your Club's Name]
[or the Local Municipality name]
[telephone number/fax number]
[e-mail address]
[web site]
Page 2
Bike
Week
Goals
To encourage:
Individuals to ride bicycles in a safe manner;
Vehicle drivers to be more aware of bicyclists;
Individuals to commute to work using a bicycle;
Individuals to use a bicycle as transport to do
every day errands;
Individuals and groups to ride their bicycles
for recreation & better health;
Communities to work for improved roadway
conditions for bicycle riding;
Communities to plan and make recreational
trails accessible for bicyclists;
Communities to officially proclaim [Insert day
& date] as Bicycle Month/Day.
Bike
Week
[Insert: Days & Dates]
[Insert: A
blurb about your Club's Bike Week activities in past years or about the Club's
current activities/goals.]
Bike
Week Events
[Insert: your Club's events, rides etc. during Bike Week]
These are some of the events which the Rochester Bicycling Club
has sponsored:
Roll & Stroll Commuter Challenge
A friendly competition between businesses to determine which has the
greatest
percentage of employees who commute to work via bicycle or by walking/skating to
work.
Commuter Test Rides
An experienced bicycle commuter maintains a schedule and meets new
cyclocommuters
along a given route. Bicyclists who want to try to commute to work are given hints
on how to
commute as they are bicycling to work.
Safety Workshops & Repair Clinics
Basic bicycle repair clinics (how to fix a flat; checking and adjusting
brakes) are conducted
by Bike Club members or bike shop employees. With the help of local and State
Police
bicycle safety workshops are held & safety information is distributed on Bike
Day.
Share the Road & Bike With Traffic media campaign
A mass media campaign to inform motorists and bicyclist to Share the
Road; A mass
media campaign to inform bicyclists to Ride With Traffic;
Using graphics designed specifically for these campaigns.
[See Notes for information on how to obtain these
graphics.]
Articles on the importance of sharing the road and bicycling with
traffic are prepared to send
to newspapers, local magazines, free distribution newspapers, civic organizations and
government organization newsletters. Television and radio stations are asked to publicize
Share the Road and Bicycle Ride With Traffic with public service
announcements, interviews
on daily news programs and special community interview programs; and in movie theaters the
graphics were displayed between movies as preview advertising slides. These articles
should
include some hard data on bicycle use nationally, in municipalities of a similar size as
yours
and your municipality; bicycle accident rates, etc. The local Metropolitan Planning
Organization, police department or State data center usually has some statistics on these
bicycle related items.
Distribution of bumper stickers with Share the Road to spread
the message.
Share the Road banners hanging over roadways are used to
advertise the message to
motorists.
Public transit buses with outside advertising also have the messages
& graphics Share
the Road and Bike with Traffic emblazoned on their sides.
[Graphics were specifically designed for these media campaigns
(see Notes).]
Effective Cycling Programs
Trained instructors teach adults and children effective and safe riding
techniques.
Classes begin at several locations during throughout the year.
Club Rides
The [Insert name] Bicycle Club will have regular Club rides scheduled
each day during
Bike Week. Call the Club's Ride Line, tel.: [____], or look on our web site:
[_____] for
start locations and times [or list the rides.]
Page 3
Bike Day
Bike
Day Events
There is no set formula for a community’s Bike Day. Most
communities include these
basic events:
Family ride
Safety Workshop
Repair Clinic
Proclamation Ceremonies
Bike Week Committee Assistance
[Insert Club's name] Bike Week Committee will:
Provide posters with the place, day, & time
of Bike Day in your community.
Provide a ride leader, if a local ride leader
is not available.
Help you contact the Police and Sheriff’s
safety officers.
Help you find an individual who will conduct
repair, commuting, effective cycling, or
touring workshops.
[Insert: Club’s Bike Week chair’s name and contact
information]
Procedure:
1. Choose a date and time, it does not have to be on a weekend.
A weekday evening Bike Day during Bike Week can
be very successful. Many adults like
to bicycle alone/with friends or to ride with their children after work in the
early evening.
2. Contact the Town or Village Recreation Director & the Council
Recreation Chairperson.
Have the Director work with you to arrange Bike Day. Ask the Council Person to
sponsor
& present the Proclamation.
Recreation Director:
Tel:
Council Person:
Tel:
Is a permit necessary?
Cost?
3. Contact Bike Week Chairperson, [Insert name], Tel.: [____] to tell
him/her of the
Community’s day, time, location & events for Bike Day.
4. Contact the State/Town/Village Police in your area. Request that the
Safety Officer to
conduct a bicycle safety workshop on Bike Day.
Officer:
Tel.:
5. Call a local bike shop. Ask the owner or manager to provide an
experienced person to
conduct a basic bicycle repair clinic.
Bike Shop & Person:
Tel:
Page 4
6. Ask around your town or village: Who’s a bicyclist?
Contact the bicyclists & ask if they will
lead a 5-10 mile ride around the town or village
on Bike Day. Bike Day organizers have been known to stop bicyclists on the
road to ask
this question!
Bicyclist:
Tel.:
Bicyclist:
Tel.:
Bicyclist:
Tel.:
7. Other items:
Water/soft drinks/juice
Refreshments
Prizes
Other
Call everyone the week before Bike Day to confirm that they will be participating!
That’s
all there is to it!
Show up on Bike Day! & it will be a success!
This
brochure was originally prepared by Harvey Botzman for the
Rochester Bicycling Club, '97 Bike Week Committee and
the Genesee Transportation Council.
Harvey
Botzman, PO Box 10585, Rochester, NY 14610-0585; cyclotour@cyclotour.com;
http://www.cyclotour.com
Rochester Bicycling Club, PO Box 10100, Rochester, NY 14610, 585 420-2953;
http://www.rochesterbicyclingclub.org
Genesee Transportation Council, 55 W. Broad St., Rochester, NY 14604, 585 232-6240,
gtcmpo@frontiernet.net; http://www.gtcmpo.org
© Harvey Botzman and the Rochester Bicycling Club, Inc., 1997, 1999.
Please
acknowledge that you obtained the original brochure and information from the
Cyclotour Guide Books web site with the following citation:
Bike Day Brochure courtesy of Harvey Botzman, Cyclotour Guide Books,
http://www.cyclotour.com
Please send a post card or e-mail to Harvey if you use any of the material in this
template.
Harvey
Botzman writes and publishes bicycle tour guides. He can be reached at
PO Box 10585, Rochester, NY 14610; cyclotour@cyclotour.com ; www.cyclotour.com ;
tel. & fax: 585 244-6157.
NOTES
1. You want to freely distribute "Share the Road" and
"Share the Trail" bumper stickers and
banners. These are available from many sources including your
state's Department of
Transportation or local Metropolitan Planning Organization.
2. A Metropolitan Transportation Organization (MPO) is a local
government agency that is
responsible for planning transportation, primarily surface
transportation, facilities as well as
reviewing, distributing and monitoring Federal Highway Administration
funds (e. g., TEA-21)
in your area. Among other things an MPO is responsible for
making certain that new and
reconstruction highway projects include bicycle related
facilities (e. g., wide shoulders
(AASHTO guideline standards + a few meters), bicycle lanes,
highway department share
the road signs) in addition to bicycle facilities allocated
under the bicycle enhancement
funds provision of TEA 21 and other Federal highway laws.
3. It is to the individual bicyclist’s and local Club’s
advantage to make certain that the local
MPO has an active Bicycle-Pedestrian Advisory Committee. The
Club should make certain
that a Board member serves on this Committee and goes to its meetings.
The Club should
make certain that the MPO hires a transportation planner to
specifically plan and advocate
for bicycle (and pedestrian) facilities.
Share the Road & Bike With Traffic Campaign
Goals
A mass media campaign to inform motorists and bicyclist to Share the
Road;
A mass media campaign to inform bicyclists to Ride With Traffic;
Process
Using graphics designed specifically for these campaigns.
See Notes for information on how to obtain these graphics.
Articles on the importance of sharing the road and bicycling with
traffic are prepared to send
to newspapers, local magazines, free distribution newspapers, civic organizations
and
government organization newsletters. Television and radio stations are asked to
publicize
Share the Road and Bicycle Ride With Traffic with public service
announcements, interviews
on daily news programs and special community interview programs; and in movie
theaters
the graphics were displayed between movies as preview advertising slides.
These articles should include some hard data on bicycle use nationally,
in municipalities of
a similar size as yours and your municipality; bicycle accident rates, etc.
The local Metropolitan Planning Organization, police department or
State data center
usually have some statistics on these bicycle related items. See the links
pages on the
Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute's web site for additional data sources.
Distribution of bumper stickers with Share the Road to spread
the message.
Share the Road banners hanging over roadways; have been used to
advertise the message
to motorists.
Public transit buses with outside advertising also have the messages
& graphics Share
the Road and Bike with Traffic emblazoned on their sides.
Graphics were specifically designed for these media campaigns
(see Notes).
©c. Harvey Botzman, 1994, 2000. Cyclotour Guide Books,
http://www.cyclotour.com,
cyclotour@cyclotour.com.
Notes:
1. What you really want is "Share the Road" and "Share
the Trail" bumper stickers and banners.
2. A Metropolitan Transportation Organization (MPO) is a local
government agency which
reviews and distributes Federal Highway Administration funds (e. g.,
TEA-21) in your area.
Among other things an MPO is responsible for making certain that new
and reconstruction
highway projects include bicycle related facilities (e. g., wide
shoulders (AASHTO guideline
standards + a few meters), bicycle lanes, highway department share
the road signs) in
addition to bicycle facilities allocated under the bicycle
enhancement funds provision of
TEA 21 and other Federal highway laws.
3. It is to the individual bicyclist’s and local
Club’s advantage to make certain the local MPO has
an active Bicycle-Pedestrian Advisory Committee. The Club
should make certain Club member
serves on this Committee and goes to its meetings. The Club
should make certain the MPO
hires a transportation planner to specifically plan and advocate
for bicycle (and pedestrian) facilities.
4. Additional Share the Road/Bike With Traffic graphics
and bike safety materials can be
obtained from your local Metropolitan Planning Organization or state
Department of Transportation.
Mr. Botzman has written 8 bicycle touring guide books:
'Round Lake Ontario: A Bicyclist's Tour Guide, Erie Canal Bicyclist & Hiker
Tour Guide,
'Round Lake Erie: A Bicyclist's Tour Guide, 'Round Lake Michigan: A
Bicyclist's Tour Guide,
'Round Lake Huron: A Bicyclist's Tour Guide, 'Round Lake Superior: A Bicyclist's
Tour Guide,
Finger Lakes Bicyclist's Tour Guide, and Long Distance Bicycle
Touring Primer.
[Publication's editor may omit up to 5 titles.]
Harvey will answer your questions on bicycle touring if you
write to him at Cyclotour Guide Books,
PO Box 10585, Rochester, NY, USA; www.cyclotour.com ; cyclotour@cyclotour.com