Update: May 2, 2008 — Why were they chosen?
Two outstanding communities for bicycling on the Olympic Peninsula — Bainbridge Island and Port Townsend — have been named among the 11 new Bicycle Friendly communities by the League of American Bicyclists.
The others are Colorado Springs and Durango, Colorado, and Minneapolis, Minnesota (all silver level), and Arcata, California, Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlottesville, Virginia, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, Oxford, Mississippi, and Sitka, Alaska (bronze).
Meanwhile, Bellingham, Washington, renewed its silver level designation. In all, six Washington communities — Bainbridge, Bellingham, Liberty Lake, Port Townsend, Redmond and Vancouver — are Bicycle Friendly.
Bainbridge Island
Seattle cyclists are familiar with Bainbridge Island for hosting February's Chilly Hilly bike ride, above, when more than 4,000 bicycle riders take the ferry and jam up a 33-mile loop around the island.
LAB cites the community highlights and most recent accomplishments that led to their award:
In 2007, 7 percent of the Bainbridge population participated in their Bike to Work and School Day. The city currently boasts 30 miles of bike lanes, covering nearly 20 percent of their total road network. Of the arterial streets, 65 percent has bike lanes or paved shoulders.
In the last year, the City of Bainbridge Island included $800,000 for non-motorized capitol projects including on-road and off-road facilities.
Port Townsend
Port Townsend, right, also a ferry stop on the Olympic Peninsula, is a destination for bike touring enthusiasts who enjoy stress-free rural roads. The Port Townsend Bicycle Association, among other activities, publishes a set of maps that is ideal for getting the most out of area bike rides.
You can support the bike club by riding in the 16th Annual Rhody Bike Tour this Sunday.
Highlights and recent accomplishments cited for Port Townsend by LAB:
According to the last census Port Townsend has a 5.3 percent bicycle mode share. With over 505 percent (I'm assuming that's 50.5%) of arterial roads having bike lanes or shoulders, 35 miles of paved trails and 18 miles of natural surface trails over 9 square miles of land the community is very conducive to bicycling. Not to stop there, local engineers and planners have attended Road I courses taught by the League of American Bicyclists and 3 out 4 schools offer safety programs, with a local teen coffee house offering bicycle maintenance education. Additionally, city government employees are encouraged to bike commute to work through covered bike parking & showers.
Port Townsend recently formed a bicycle education program targeting middle school students.
Totals
The recent additions brings the number of Bicycle Friendly cities to 84, located in 31 states. Here's the full list (.pdf).
In announcing the new cities, the League said it also renewed the designations of 11 other communities, elevating some in the process. That made news earlier when it was announced the Portland, Oregon, had joined Davis, California as the only other platinum level city. The cities are:
Platinum
Portland, Ore.
Gold
Madison, Wis.
Tucson/East Pima Region, Ariz.
Silver
Bellingham, Wash.
Missoula, Mont.
Bronze
Albuquerque, N.M.
Ashland, Ore.
Gilbert, Ariz.
Longmont, Colo.
South Sioux City, Neb.
Sunnyvale, Calif.
See more Bike Month news at Commute by Bike “Happy USA National Bike Month”
Recent Comments