URGENT! Email your U.S. Senators today to preserve bike funding
09-14-11, 04:32 PM
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URGENT! Email your U.S. Senators today to preserve bike funding
I received this via email today. I know it's verging on political, but it is definitely Advocacy as well. Consider this a PSA.
Let's flood 'em with emails (The Senate).
Federal funding for bicycling is under serious attack. Today or tomorrow, Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma will introduce an amendment to eliminate dedicated funding for Transportation Enhancements, which is the main source of funding for bike projects of all types. We need you to take action today by emailing your U.S. Senators to urge them to oppose and defeat Mr. Coburn's amendment.
If Senator Coburn's amendment succeeds, bicycling in the U.S. will become less safe and more difficult. Twenty years of consistent, cost-effective investment in beneficial bike projects will stop.
When we launched peopleforbikes.org, we promised you that we would only ask for your help when we really needed it. This is one of those times.
We need every U.S. Senator to hear from hundreds, if not thousands, of their constituents who value government support for bicycling. A strong vote against Coburn's amendment will be a convincing statement of how much Congress and Americans value bicycling, and will influence all future votes on bike and pedestrian programs and funding.
Please email your U.S. Senators today and tell them to oppose Coburn's amendment and preserve funding for bicycling. (You can find your Senators, review basic suggested text for your email, and send your note directly from this link.)
Thanks for your support and your quick response to this call to action.
Tim Blumenthal
Director, Peopleforbikes.org
If Senator Coburn's amendment succeeds, bicycling in the U.S. will become less safe and more difficult. Twenty years of consistent, cost-effective investment in beneficial bike projects will stop.
When we launched peopleforbikes.org, we promised you that we would only ask for your help when we really needed it. This is one of those times.
We need every U.S. Senator to hear from hundreds, if not thousands, of their constituents who value government support for bicycling. A strong vote against Coburn's amendment will be a convincing statement of how much Congress and Americans value bicycling, and will influence all future votes on bike and pedestrian programs and funding.
Please email your U.S. Senators today and tell them to oppose Coburn's amendment and preserve funding for bicycling. (You can find your Senators, review basic suggested text for your email, and send your note directly from this link.)
Thanks for your support and your quick response to this call to action.
Tim Blumenthal
Director, Peopleforbikes.org
__________________
. “He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.”- Fredrick Nietzsche
"We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals." - Immanuel Kant
. “He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.”- Fredrick Nietzsche
"We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals." - Immanuel Kant
Last edited by Tom Stormcrowe; 09-14-11 at 05:08 PM.
09-14-11, 04:39 PM
#2
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09-14-11, 07:10 PM
#3
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Sorry, but on the political side I want it handled locally - not with Fed money. If we want bike-related improvement in our locale, we should find the money locally. We need to get our fiscal house in order - may be painful, but it has to be done.
09-14-11, 08:56 PM
#4
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Thanks for this sticky. This is critical. I'm all for federal funding for this and happy to write to my Senators (both of whom are avid bike riders, one of whom I have ridden with on a bike path) Unfortunately, one of my senators is Scott Brown and despite his bike riding I have a feeling he will vote against it.
I'll do my best to persuade him change his mind.
I'll do my best to persuade him change his mind.
09-14-11, 10:34 PM
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Worthy cause indeed, will send and share.
While true there should be cuts, how about they prioritize the areas of concern? How is this ANY where near the top of the list??
While true there should be cuts, how about they prioritize the areas of concern? How is this ANY where near the top of the list??
Last edited by Soma Roark; 09-14-11 at 10:51 PM.
09-14-11, 11:49 PM
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I saw this in my e-mail a couple days ago. I already contacted my state's U.S. Senators' about this.
The one thing to be careful about is, while contacting the U.S. for your State, be careful not to allow(unless you want to allow) being put on their mailing list.
The one thing to be careful about is, while contacting the U.S. for your State, be careful not to allow(unless you want to allow) being put on their mailing list.
09-15-11, 03:59 AM
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I recommend sharing the link on Facebook as well... these things have a tendency to get pretty viral. I put one up 30 minutes ago and it's already been shared a handful of times.
09-15-11, 06:55 AM
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The fact this bill is in trouble in the SENATE shows you how pathetic the overall bill is. If somewone wrote a bill requiring a murderer to ride his bike to the gallows, would you support the death penalty as a result? The House will destroy this monstrosity and hopefully even the Senate!
roughstuff
roughstuff
09-15-11, 09:24 AM
#9
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The fact this bill is in trouble in the SENATE shows you how pathetic the overall bill is. If somewone wrote a bill requiring a murderer to ride his bike to the gallows, would you support the death penalty as a result? The House will destroy this monstrosity and hopefully even the Senate!
roughstuff
roughstuff
What do you think will happen to the economy if we let the bridges and roads crumble? Government funding of transportation infrastructure is essential to any post-stone age economy. And good non-automobile transportation is vital to any post-industrial economy.
As for federal vs. state funding, personally I like to eat oranges in January, and they don't grow in Michigan.
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09-15-11, 10:09 AM
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The fact this bill is in trouble in the SENATE shows you how pathetic the overall bill is. If somewone wrote a bill requiring a murderer to ride his bike to the gallows, would you support the death penalty as a result? The House will destroy this monstrosity and hopefully even the Senate!
roughstuff
roughstuff
Seriously... this is pretty plain advocacy. If you aren't in favor for political reasons, that's perfectly fine, but why post in a cycling advocacy forum if you don't agree with cycling advocacy???
09-15-11, 11:38 AM
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Reading A&S I have come to the conclusion that there is a small but vocal minority of veteran cyclists who actually like things just fine as is. They don't want more cycling infrastructure, they don't want bike-share programs, they don't want anything that will bring more people---people unlike them---into cycling.
Just look at the resentful tone of the anti- posts here or in the thread below about the success of Boston's bike-share program. Yes, there are people who will find something negative to say even about something that by any measure of bike advocacy is a great success.
BTW the Republican opposition to this bill has nothing to do with the bill in itself. Don't kid yourself that there is some kind of actual principle of saving money involved. They are just fine with billions being spent on highways. It's just the bike and walking infrastructure and highway beautification parts they want to remove from the bill. That position is a big, deliberate FU to cyclists, because it feeds into the narrative that 'we' are suspect, probably 'urban elites' and possibly communists. If you are fine with being treated that way, think that's what we as cyclists deserve, okay then, there's at least one in every crowd.
Just look at the resentful tone of the anti- posts here or in the thread below about the success of Boston's bike-share program. Yes, there are people who will find something negative to say even about something that by any measure of bike advocacy is a great success.
BTW the Republican opposition to this bill has nothing to do with the bill in itself. Don't kid yourself that there is some kind of actual principle of saving money involved. They are just fine with billions being spent on highways. It's just the bike and walking infrastructure and highway beautification parts they want to remove from the bill. That position is a big, deliberate FU to cyclists, because it feeds into the narrative that 'we' are suspect, probably 'urban elites' and possibly communists. If you are fine with being treated that way, think that's what we as cyclists deserve, okay then, there's at least one in every crowd.
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09-15-11, 06:52 PM
#12
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Breaking news--evidently the clean extension passed at the last moment and bike funding will be preserved.
https://www.politico.com/news/stories/0911/63614.html
https://www.politico.com/news/stories/0911/63614.html
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09-15-11, 06:55 PM
#13
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Of course the same fight will arise again when (or if) Congress gets around to passing the overdue new Transportation Bill. Bike advocates need to get their ducks in a row if they want to hang on to the tiny gains that have been made over the last few years.
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09-15-11, 07:54 PM
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Breaking news--evidently the clean extension passed at the last moment and bike funding will be preserved.
https://www.politico.com/news/stories/0911/63614.html
https://www.politico.com/news/stories/0911/63614.html
09-16-11, 07:48 AM
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The fact this bill is in trouble in the SENATE shows you how pathetic the overall bill is. If somewone wrote a bill requiring a murderer to ride his bike to the gallows, would you support the death penalty as a result? The House will destroy this monstrosity and hopefully even the Senate!
roughstuff
roughstuff
It's always puzzled me why people think it's "fiscally conservative" to strip small funding items like bike funding out of a bill with no analysis of actual bang for the buck and no cuts for the huge programs (highway funding, defense waste) that are actually eating the budget up. I'm sure the first $100 million spent on bike improvements has a greater positive impact than adding another billion to the billions already being spent on freeways, simply because it hasn't yet hit the point of diminishing returns. I think Coburn did this because a) he represents a very backwards state where the car is king, and b) it allows him to claim he's a "tough fiscal conservative" without actually having to make any hard choices or offending any powerful interests. So our budget never gets fixed, but we do succeed in killing small programs with a huge benefit. And people think that's a good thing???
Last edited by mnemia; 09-16-11 at 07:52 AM.
09-16-11, 04:55 PM
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And an update! We won. 
The U.S. Senate affirmed its time-tested support of bicycling Thursday by forcing Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma to withdraw his proposal to eliminate dedicated funding for the Transportation Enhancements program.
Peopleforbikes.org supporters and our advocacy partners influenced this outcome by sending close to 50,000 emails and making thousands of phone calls to their U.S. Senators in just 48 hours. Thank you!
As a result, funding for all federal transportation programs has now been extended to March 31, 2012. The key, cost-effective programs that make bicycling safer and easier -- Transportation Enhancements, Safe Routes to School, and Recreational Trails -- will continue to receive modest, dedicated support -- about 1.5 percent of the total federal transportation investment.
Every U.S. Senate office received an unprecedented number of well-crafted emails and articulate phone calls this week from people who bike. This powerful show of support for bicycling made a strong impression on Congress and influenced the positive outcome.
We reminded the Senate that bicycling investments support a growing number of transportation trips coast to coast, and save government agencies money on road repairs, parking infrastructure costs, and health-care costs. They recognize that this is a small investment with a big payback that makes Americans safer.
A huge thanks to the thousands of Americans, our supporters, who rallied quickly to contact their elected officials on this challenge. We will continue to keep you posted on key issues and opportunities that affect the future of bicycling in the United States. I hope you'll join me in taking a ride this weekend to celebrate!
Tim Blumenthal
Director, Peopleforbikes.org
Peopleforbikes.org supporters and our advocacy partners influenced this outcome by sending close to 50,000 emails and making thousands of phone calls to their U.S. Senators in just 48 hours. Thank you!
As a result, funding for all federal transportation programs has now been extended to March 31, 2012. The key, cost-effective programs that make bicycling safer and easier -- Transportation Enhancements, Safe Routes to School, and Recreational Trails -- will continue to receive modest, dedicated support -- about 1.5 percent of the total federal transportation investment.
Every U.S. Senate office received an unprecedented number of well-crafted emails and articulate phone calls this week from people who bike. This powerful show of support for bicycling made a strong impression on Congress and influenced the positive outcome.
We reminded the Senate that bicycling investments support a growing number of transportation trips coast to coast, and save government agencies money on road repairs, parking infrastructure costs, and health-care costs. They recognize that this is a small investment with a big payback that makes Americans safer.
A huge thanks to the thousands of Americans, our supporters, who rallied quickly to contact their elected officials on this challenge. We will continue to keep you posted on key issues and opportunities that affect the future of bicycling in the United States. I hope you'll join me in taking a ride this weekend to celebrate!
Tim Blumenthal
Director, Peopleforbikes.org
__________________
. “He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.”- Fredrick Nietzsche
"We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals." - Immanuel Kant
. “He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.”- Fredrick Nietzsche
"We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals." - Immanuel Kant
09-24-11, 12:34 PM
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For those who like such things, here is a link to the vote tally
The final vote on HR 2887 was 92 YEA votes, 6 NAY votes, and two senators not voting.
Buzzman, I share your concerns. On this vote though, both Senators Brown and Kerry voted YEA.
The final vote on HR 2887 was 92 YEA votes, 6 NAY votes, and two senators not voting.
Buzzman, I share your concerns. On this vote though, both Senators Brown and Kerry voted YEA.
