Don’t miss the Coast Guard City Century ride in Portsmouth on Saturday, August 7. Four separate rides will depart from Ntelos Pavilion:

• 100 Mile Century Ride – 7 am
• 65 Mile Metric Century Ride – 7:30 am
• 50 Mile Half Century Ride – 8 am
• 10 Mile Fun Waterfront Ride – 8:30 am until 10 am

The 100 mile route finishes with several loops through downtown Portsmouth, filled with cheering spectators. All other routes return to Ntelos Pavilion, and the 10 mile route features guided tours of the historic Portsmouth waterfront.

The City Century ride is a centerpiece of the Coast Guard’s 220th anniversary celebration along with many other events, including a concert by the Counting Crows (click here for a $10 discount).  For more information, see the Cycle Classics website or the Tidewater Bicycle Association website.  Register at EventBrite, and make sure you register by August 4 — there’s no walk-up registration.

New Updates:


1. IN HONOR OF THOSE THAT HAVE SERVED IN THE MILITARY, ESPECIALLY THE COAST GUARD, GET $10 OFF REGISTRATION FROM NOW UNTIL AUGUST 4th! EMAIL Lisa.A.Johnson@uscg.mil for DISCOUNT CODE!
2. Also, in celebration for the final week of the Tour de France, anyone can register between now and Sunday midnight (July 25th) and get $10 off using the Discount Code “TDF”.
3. There are now over $5,000 in prizes for those participating in CGCC – just sign up to ride, fill out form when you check in, and you may win one these great prizes that you can see at www.coastguardday.com
4. GPS routes for your Garmin will be available to download next week at http://cycleclassicsva.tripod.com/id21.htm

Reston, VA, July 14, 2010 – Virginia bicycling advocates have a new resource to help them review and comment on public road projects. The new guide, prepared by Fairfax Advocates for Better Bicycling (FABB) in consultation with the Virginia (VDOT) and Fairfax County departments of transportation, outlines ways bicycling proponents can get involved in the process of designing, approving, building, and retrofitting roads to ensure that bicycling accommodations are integrated into the plans where needed. Although geared for Virginia, many of the ideas contained in the report could be applied to other locations as well.

As described in the guide, planning, approving, and constructing road projects is a long process that presents many opportunities for bicycling advocates to provide input into the final outcome. Readers will find helpful tips for speaking at public hearings and meeting with engineers. The easy to read booklet covers the basics of understanding engineering plans and also outlines various roadway features (such as intersections, roundabouts, wide curb lanes, and bike lanes) that could be shown in the plans. Design standards and guidelines, design and safety issues, and a checklist for each of these features help advocates review and comment on road design plans.

“As far as we know, no one has compiled material like this before,” said Fionnuala Quinn, primary author of the guide. “I wanted to use my background in civil engineering to help demystify the road design process and to help people take advantage of occasions to incorporate bike facilities whenever roads projects are being designed. A crucial point to remember is that the earlier you provide input to the road design, the better your chances of having an effect on the final design. Besides the printed version of the report, we also plan to have an online version on the FABB web site that contains links to additional information.”

Funding for the report came from an Advocacy Advance Grant from the Alliance for Biking & Walking. Funding for the grant was provided by SRAM, Planet Bike, Bikes Belong Coalition, and 42BELOW. Additional funding was received from the IEEE.

The report “Guide for Reviewing Public Road Design and Bicycling Accommodations for Virginia Bicycle Advocates,” by Fionnuala Quinn and Bruce Wright, will be provided to major bicycle organizations in Virginia and to the Alliance for Biking & Walking. Copies are available free of charge upon request to finnbike [at] gmail.com or can be downloaded from www.fabb-bikes.org.

For more information on the guide, contact Fionnuala Quinn, finnbike@gmail.com, or Bruce Wright, chairman [at] fabb-bikes.org, 703-328-9619. FABB is a grassroots initiative in Fairfax County, VA, affiliated with the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA), aiming to make bicycling an integral part of Fairfax County’s transportation network. Visit us on the web at www.fabb-bikes.org.

Come howl at the moon and celebrate the joy of cycling at night! The Anthem Moonlight Ride is presented by Richmond’s Sportsbackers, and sponsored by Anthem Blue Cross & Blue Shield, along with VCU Medical Center.

The ride begins on Saturday, August 21 at 8pm, with two course options, an 8-mile “Half Moon” course, and a 17-mile “Full Moon” course, both through downtown Richmond. Entry fee includes a glow-in-the-dark event T-shirt, red rear safety light, goodie bag, and after party with live music and complimentary Blue Moon Beer.

For more information and to register, see the Sports Backers website. Also see the event page on Facebook.

The Southeast High Speed Rail Corridor proposed to run from Petersburg, Virginia to Raleigh, North Carolina includes a a bike and pedestrian trail as an integral part of the project.

If completed, this 160 mile trail would connect  the towns and cities of Southside Virginia with these major metropolitan areas as well as the Tobacco Heritage Trail network.

This trail project would  be an ideal location for the East Coast Greenway and an ideal test case for implementation of a major rail-with-trail project.  Should potential federal rail-with-trail legislation pass, it might set the trend for many future rail enhancement projects.

Having the trail separated out as a standalone project, as some have suggested, might seriously threaten the likelihood that the trail would be completed.

We need your help to let officials know that we want this rail-with-trail to be included as an integral part of this rail project.

For more details on the project and a list of public hearings, see: www.sehsr.org or by by clicking here.

Click here to complete the online feedback form.  Please ask that a bike and pedestrian project be include as an integral and part of the project.

Please also sign our Rails-With-Trails Petition, and get your organization to write a letter of support for our Rails With Trails Resolution.

Organizers aim to create Action Plan for Bicycle Friendly Community

CHARLOTTESVILLE – The 2010 Bike Ballot is open for voting from Monday, June 21 through Thursday, July 15th at bikecharlottesville.org. The ballot consists of a series of simple questions that invite you to choose the most important projects to make the Charlottesville area more bicycling-friendly. The results will be presented to local officials later this summer, and an action plan will be developed to drive progress on the top-voted projects.

The options listed on the 2010 Bike Ballot are the top ideas that resulted from the 2010 Bike Summit, which was held on May 22 at CitySpace. More than 75 cyclists and community members attended, where they brainstormed dozens of ideas to make the Charlottesville area more bicycling-friendly. At the end, each participant voted for the projects they felt were the most important. Says Vince Caristo, executive director of the Alliance for Community Choice in Transportation, “We had a nice turnout, had some fun, got a bunch of great ideas up on the wall, and hopefully we can turn this into a mandate for change”.

Following the first Charlottesville-area Bike Summit in 2006, over 400 people weighed in on the online survey for the most important projects. This led to a list of prioritized bicycling improvements, called the “Top 5 Priority Bicycling Projects”, which was presented to local officials. While slow, progress has been made in all areas. In January, Charlottesville trails planner Chris Gensic called this list of priority improvements “the best thing that’s ever been done for bike advocacy in the city.” This year, the effort is aimed boosting the region to a Silver rating in the League of American Bicyclists’ “Bicycling Friendly Communities” program. The League evaluates communities in the areas of engineering, education, encouragement, enforcement, and evaluation. In 2008, the Charlottesville area earned a Bronze rating, and is due to reapply in 2012.

Founded in 2001, ACCT is dedicated to promoting sustainable land-use and alternative transportation in the Charlottesville region. Founded in 2010, Bike Charlottesville is a coalition of cycling clubs, advocacy organizations, retailers, employers, and individuals from in and around Charlottesville dedicated to promoting safe cycling for transportation, recreation, and sport.

Ror More Information, contact:

Vince Caristo, Executive Director
Alliance for Community Choice in Transportation
vince@transportationchoice.org
434.295.6554

Heather Higgins, Spokesperson
Bike Charlottesville
hey@bikecharlottesville.org
434.760.3330

Virginia LTAP (Local Technical Assistance Program) is offering a workshop, “Bicyclists & Pedestrians – Effectively Meeting the Needs of Non-Motorized Transportation,” August 5 in Leesburg. We strongly recommend these workshops for all bike advocates, planners, municipality staff and elected officials. This course will be taught by Jake Helmboldt, former statewide bike-ped coordinator for VDOT.

LTAP is a technology transfer program sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration, to improve the skills and knowledge of local transportation service providers.

The 45-day review process begins June 16, 2010, and ends July 30, 2010.

RICHMOND – The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) have developed the 2035 Virginia Surface Transportation Plan, which provides long-term multimodal transportation suggestions for the commonwealth. The draft plan is available for public review and comment beginning June 16, 2010, and concluding July 30, 2010.

The 2035 Virginia Surface Transportation Plan represents the first time VDOT and DRPT have organized multimodal proposals in a single plan.

The plan provides information for potential long-term project development and investment based on the goals identified in VTrans2035, Virginia’s statewide multimodal transportation policy plan. The draft plan includes possible improvements to transit, rail, freight, highway and intelligent transportation systems. Transportation needs identified in the plan are used to help determine highway projects for the Six-Year Improvement Plan.

The 2035 Virginia Surface Transportation Plan, including a summary map and plan report can be found at www.vtrans.org. Comments can be submitted via e-mail to statewideplan@VDOT.Virginia.Gov between June 16, 2010, and July 30, 2010.

From the League of American Bicyclists:

On Monday, June 14, 2010, we alerted you to the possibility that the federal Safe Routes to School program could be targeted for a House floor vote to cut the program. Rep. Cantor (R-VA) had identified Safe Routes to School as one of five options that the public could vote on cutting through his YouCut initiative. Fortunately, Safe Routes to School was not subjected to a vote at that time, selling off excess federal property, got the most votes.

On very short notice, advocates across the country sprang into action and contacted their Members of Congress to ask them to vote against any effort to cut Safe Routes to School. More than 1150 people used the League of American Bicyclists’ advocacy system in a 24-hour period to contact their Members of Congress via email. We also heard from many others that made phone calls or contacted a Congressional staff person directly that wouldn’t be included in that tally.

The League and Safe Routes to School National Partnership is grateful to all the national, state and local organizations that helped quickly spread the word about this threat. And, thank you to everyone who took the time to contact their Members of Congress. Even though there was not a vote this time, it helped raise awareness about the importance of Safe Routes to School and the wide support it has across the country.

However, we will have to remain vigilant. This isn’t the first time Rep. Cantor has attacked bicycling and walking, and his press secretary has stated that bicycling and walking will likely be the subject of future YouCut votes.

If you have not done so please contact your Representative to urge them to support Safe Routes to Schools.

Thanks to everyone who wrote or called their representatives. Be ready to do it again though — we can probably expect more attacks on federal bike-ped funding soon.

From the League of American Bicyclists:

House Republican Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) has targeted the federal Safe Routes to School program established under the 2005 Federal Surface Transportation Bill (SAFETEA-LU) as wasteful government spending in his weekly “YouCut program”.

Each week representative Cantor asks people to vote for which of five options they would cut from the federal budget. Republicans then hold a floor vote in the House of Representatives to try to eliminate the program that gets the most votes.

This week, the federal Safe Routes to School program is one of Rep. Cantor’s targets. He argues that SRTS duplicates other bicycling and walking programs, and that bicycling and walking infrastructure is a local government responsibility. We need your help making sure that Members of Congress understand the value of Safe Routes to School and support it.

Please take a few minutes to send a message to your Member of Congress to ask them to vote against any effort to cut Safe Routes to School.

If you are a resident of Virginia’s 7th District:

• Call Rep. Cantor’s office at 202-225-2815
• Tell whoever answers the phone that you are a constituent and have a message for Rep. Cantor
• Provide your name and where you live
• Use the following talking points to give a succinct message on Safe Routes to School:
• I’m calling because I heard that the Safe Routes to School program is included in Congressman Cantor’s YouCut program this week.
• This is a program that Congressman Cantor should be supporting — please do not cut Safe Routes to School.
• Children in our communities are facing so many safety dangers, and schools are struggling with busing costs. Safe Routes to School is the only federal program that can help with these issues. It is not wasteful or duplicative.
• I hope Congressman Cantor reconsiders and supports Safe Routes to School.

Thanks also to Stephanie Smith of the Active Williamsburg Alliance for the above alert.

What if you were to take driven, elite-level cyclists and develop them into civic leaders? That’s the idea behind Richmond Pro Cycling, a whole new paradigm for professional racing teams. Enjoy the video.