CrankyOne

There's been a bit of discussion here about what different organizations are doing and in particular who is advocating for protected vs painted bike lanes vs vehicular. Do you have good organizations where your are? What do they advocate for? What should they?

Chris516

There are a number of them in the D.C.-Metro region. The major advocacy organization for the metro region is WABA(Washington Area Bicyclist Association). They advocate for better road conditions for cyclists'.

CrankyOne

What specifically? Is better road conditions a 3 foot law? Wider shoulders? Door zone bike lanes? Well designed protected cycletracks and side paths?

Chris516

Well WABA got the 3-foot bike-passing law in Maryland, in 2010.

CrankyOne

Did a quick look at WABA website. Seem to be on the right track with pushing for a lot more protected infrastructure.

snow_echo_NY

in NYC we have Transportation Alternatives. they are great.

MMACH 5

I'm a board member for BikeDFW. We're a young group that has focused mainly on bicycle safety education (teaching cyclists to safely navigate the roads).

We attend most public street planning meetings. We usually don't specifically ask for bicycle infrastructure, because by law, bike stuff has to be penciled in before these meetings take place. There are always folks who get up to speak out against spending any money on bicycle lanes (the argument usually is explained as how few cyclists there are in their neighborhood). We don't butt heads with them, for the most part. When it's our turn to speak, we just request that the implementation of roads NOT hinder cyclists. You don't have to spend money on protected bike lanes, but don't construct roads that discourage cycling (ie - if a raised highway is cutting a swath through an area, be sure to allow for crossing that highway in some way other than a car).

daihard 

We have Cascade Bicycle Club in Washington State. Cascade is a non-profit organization that plans on rides like Seattle-to-Portland (STP) and Ride Seattle to Vancouver (RSVP) as well as providing political endorsement for politicians who support better cycling infrastructure, road safety, etc. We also have Washington Bikes, though I'm not very familiar with their missions or activities.

asmac

We have an organization called Cycle Toronto https://www.cycleto.ca/

They advocate for infrastructure improvement, promote utility cycling and represent cyclists regarding legislative changes among other things.

Looigi

I'd rather see more effort and resources put toward road user education and continued awareness programs. The large majority of drivers don't know about and understand the rights of non-motorists and how to share the road with them.

daihard 

I agree user education is important. On the other hand, I wouldn't expect it to change the behaviour of everyone who drives. I'd prefer the advocacy for safer road infrastructure for everyone, regardless of the mode of transport.

Looigi

Yes. It's all good, but IMO, there's more bang for the buck with education and awareness programs. Starting now with kids just going through drivers ed, during licensing testing, during renewals, etc. so that expecting to share the road and knowledge and understanding becomes the norm not the exception that it now is.

Then inappropriate behavior will be willful rather than borne out of ignorance.

In cities and towns there is growing interest in and actual infrastructure accommodations for cyclists, but the 95% plus of the suburban/rural roads I ride on won't see any improvements or infrastructural for cycling in my lifetime, and maybe for several lifetimes after that, and that's probably true pretty much everywhere outside cities and major towns across the country. Education and awareness programs will benefit all riders, urban, suburban and rural.

CrankyOne

What do you plan to do differently than what Forester, LAB, and others have been doing for the past 40 years? What will the result be? Where will this get us in another 40 years? In 2055 will we still be largely where we are today?

CrankyOne

Very true if nobody fights for better infrastructure or we focus on education rather than infrastructure.

How?

hotbike

I joined this one:

https://www.facebook.com/StreetsPAC.NY

CrankyOne

Seem to generally be a good organization fighting for the right things. Too bad about the loss of Sadik-Kahn.

CrankyOne

Seems largely a MAMIL (Middle Aged Men In Lycra) organization. What are you doing to make bicycling safer and accessible for kids who want to ride to school or people who want to ride to dinner or the grocery? IOW, the 90% of the population who are not strong and fearless or enthused and confident and who do not want to play dodge-car with 4000 vehicles?

CrankyOne

Both of these seem largely focused on recreation or vehicular cycling. Who is working to get better protected infrastructure in Washington?

CrankyOne

Looks like a good organization. Are they tied in the Transportation Alternatives?

MMACH 5

Maybe I'm reading it wrong, but you seem rather put off by what you perceive this organization to be.

And, I did mention that we've been focused on education. Some of our most popular courses have been how-to-ride (for children and adults).
We have active members involved with most of the area city councils and transportation planning committees. I can assure you that Dallas and Fort Worth are vastly different cities, in regard to bicycle infrastructure than they were ten years ago. Was BikeDFW a part of these changes? Absolutely. This group formed from active members of the area's bicycle community.

daihard 

Cascade has been playing a huge role in promoting safe pedestrian/bike infrastructure in Seattle. They are a main supporter of the city's Master Bike Plan (MBP), which includes the installation of safe/protected bike lanes on many of the city's arterial and non-arterial roads. They also have an organization called "Connect Seattle," which promotes safer streets for everyone.

If they have ever promoted Vehicular Cycling in the past, I don't see any trace of it now.

CrankyOne

That's good to know. I'd never have known it from their website and legislative agenda which seems quite vehicular cycling focused.

CrankyOne

You read it right. I am rather put off by what I perceive this organization to be. They do seem to be vehicular cycling advocates and not protected infrastructure advocates. Which of these is most likely to result in greater numbers of people riding and in greater safety?

Chris516

Not just in the State of Maryland. But also in DC, and the State of Virginia.

daihard 

Would you mind sharing with me any particular references on their website that gave you that impression? I'm curious.

That said, there are places "vehicular cycling" make sense. Residential streets are a good example. OTOH, highways and arterial roads need well-designed bike/pedestrian infrastructure so a large volume of high-speed motorized traffic would be less likely to harm the more vulnerable road users.