West Windsor’s BikeFest, put on by the Recreation Department with help from local volunteers, is back for its 22nd year.

This time it’s happening on Sunday, Sept. 13.

Choose one of four routes — everything from 1.5 miles to 40 miles. Decorate your bike. Join in the scavenger hunt. Have lunch. It’s all part of this community tradition.

Sign up your family. Bring friends.

For more information and to register, click here.

The West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance’s hardworking trails maintenance crew has been busy improving the trails at Rogers Preserve (between Clarksville Road, Landing Lane and Berkshire Drive.) Not only have they cleared trails but they have installed new signage and refurbished the kiosk.

Join us in thanking this all-volunteer crew on Sunday, Aug. 23!

We will gather at Van Nest Park (218 Cranbury Road) at 10 a.m. for a guided family-friendly walk through the historic Grovers Mill neighborhood and the Rogers Preserve — about 1.2 miles. There is an optional walk through more of West Windsor’s trail network for a total of about 2.25 miles.

The ribbon-cutting will be at the kiosk off Clarksville Road.

This event is jointly sponsored by the WWBPA, the Historical Society of West Windsor and Friends of West Windsor Open Space. Please pre-register here so we can bring enough free reflective armbands, gardening gloves and snacks for all.

West Windsor has applied to be a silver-level bicycle-friendly community. Our township became New Jersey’s first bicycle-friendly community (bronze level) back in 2011. Now we want to move up to silver and catch up with Princeton.

The League of American Bicyclists, which is reviewing West Windsor’s application right now, wants input from everyone so it can better understand the experiences of those who ride a bike in our community.

Please fill out this short survey ASAP.

The WWBPA has played a big part in the application and hopes you agree that West Windsor has done the work to become a silver-level community.

Those pedestrian-activated yellow flashing lights are being installed at 6 more crucial crossings around town.

They are:

– Penn Lyle Road and Canoe Brook Drive, where a 63-year-old was hit in the crosswalk in January 2023;
– Penn Lyle Road and the popular Trolley Line Trail;
– Alexander Road and Harris Road, improving a popular walking route between High School South and the Windsor Plaza shopping center;
– Village Road East at Dutch Neck School;
– New Village Road and Shannon Way, which creates a safer crossing to Village Elementary School;
– New Village Road at Southfield Road, which creates a safer crossing for students attending Grover Middle School.

The West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance is a big fan of these lights (the technical term is rectangular rapid-flashing beacons, or RRFBs). We have long advocated for them to be installed at many of these locations as well as other spots in town.

Township officials had flagged plans to install these flashing lights at a budget meeting several months ago, and the WWBPA is pleased to see the follow-up happening so quickly. The township council approved the contract on Monday night, and the contractor will have 45 days to do the work.

We look forward to seeing the work finished before school starts again so that many more students can feel safe walking to school.

The WWBPA will continue to advocate that RRFBs be installed in several other locations, including at the intersection of North Post Road and Municipal and Courtney drives, where a 73-year-old was struck by a pick-up truck in December, and at Rabbit Hill Road and Abbingdon Lane/Bennington Drive, where a 12-year-old was killed in the crosswalk in 2023. In May, the council approved a contract for a safety demonstration project at Courtney Drive.

Finally, don’t forget to hit the button whenever you are at a crossing with an RRFB so that you alert drivers that you are there. Always make sure motorists have stopped before you step into the road.

Rhea Biswas, center, with with WWBPA board member Susan Conlon and WWP High School North Principal Lamont Thomas.

The West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance is pleased to award a scholarship to Rhea Biswas, who is graduating from High School North.

Working with other high school students as well as residents of Millstone Road in West Windsor, Rhea sought to persuade West Windsor and Plainsboro officials to build a sidewalk on each town’s side of the Millstone Road bridge. The goal is to create a safer walking route to schools, parks, and the train station.

Although both townships have yet to agree to build a sidewalk (which then could take years to build due to funding and other constraints), the WWBPA appreciates how Rhea engaged with the local neighborhood and her continued dialogue with West Windsor’s government officials. We encourage Rhea’s Sunrise Movement colleagues to pursue working toward the goal.

You can learn more about the WWBPA’s annual scholarship program here.

The West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance has two new board members: Susan Conlon and Chris Fisher.

Susan is one of the WWBPA’s founding board members who has returned to the board after a lengthy break. She has lived in the Berrien City neighborhood for 33 years and is active in the Berrien City Neighborhood Association.

In her initial years as a WWBPA trustee, she helped advocate for sidewalks and safe crosswalks, organized annual bicycle drives and established the student advisor and scholarship programs.

She also helped spearhead the project to map and collect data to evaluate sidewalks and track the condition of township intersections and safe crossings in light of connectivity to schools, transit, retail and more. She is looking forward to working with other trustees and members to bring the data up to date for a fresh evaluation.

Chris moved to West Windsor about four years ago from Highland Park. (He grew up in the Hopewell Valley.) He first got involved with the WWBPA by volunteering for our hardy trail maintenance crew. He also helped at our farmers market table. Since joining the board, he organized and led our Celebrate Trails Day walk through Rogers Preserve and the Millstone West Trail.

His experience with trail building and trail maintenance includes working on the creating of the historic HOST Trail on a former NASCAR dirt track in Hillsborough, N.C., and volunteering as a trail monitor on the Lawrence Hopewell Trail.

Chris is a longtime member of the Princeton Free Wheelers bicycle club — it’s how he met his wife!

Susan and Chris replaced Daryl McMillan (a WWBPA founding board member) and Brian Clissold. Terms for Susan and Chris expire in 2029.

About 20 kids attended our annual Learn to Bike class this year, and we are beyond thrilled that almost all left pedaling on two wheels.

Congratulations to all! We know that learning to ride a bike is hard work! And we know those who didn’t quite master balancing and pedaling will do so very soon.

If you know someone who is interested in signing up a child for our class next year, we recommend they get on the mailing list so they are among those who hear about it first. The class fills up quickly!

If you are looking for a class for your child this year, reach out via email, and we can point you toward some options.

Many thanks to the West Windsor Parking Authority for allowing us to use the Upper Vaughn Drive lot and for the West Windsor Farmers Market for all its support.

Get some fresh air on the way to getting fresh vegetables. The West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance is leading a casual, pick-your-distance bike ride to the West Windsor farmers market on May 30 to close out National Bike Month.

The ride will start at Conover Field in the northern parking lot at 9:30 a.m. We’ll take back roads, bike lanes, and a portion of the Trolley Line trail and get to the farmers market by 10:15 a.m.

Join from the start and do 5 miles, or join at one of two meeting points along the way for a shorter ride. The additional pick-up points will be on the Trolley Line Trail at Brian’s Way (3-mile ride to the market) and by West Windsor Arts, at Scott Avenue and Alexander Road (1-mile ride to the market).

Here’s the route.

All are welcome, though children under age 13 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Helmets are required. Remember to bring a backpack or something else to safely carry your purchases home.

You can register and sign a waiver at Conover Field or at whichever pickup point you join in. Arrive a little early and be ready to roll at 9:30 a.m. from Conover Field. We hope to be at the Trolley Line Trail at Brian’s Way at 9:40 a.m. or soon after, and at West Windsor Arts at 9:50 a.m. or soon after.

There is an optional group ride back to Conover Field that will leave the farmers market at 11:15 a.m.

We will have a free prize drawing by the WWBPA tent at the farmers market for all participants. Ride to the market on May 30, and you might get a free $5 Market Bucks token! (One prize per family.)

New Jersey’s unusually restrictive e-bike law took effect on Jan. 16, and the six-month grace period on enforcement expires in two months.

Here’s what you need to know:

• No e-bike-riding allowed for those under 15 years old
• Everyone else riding any kind of e-bike needs a license, registration and insurance. Those 15 and 16 years old (ie too young for a drivers license) will need a special license.
• The new categories are low-speed electric bicycles, motorized bicycles, and electric motorized bicycle. The first is similar to the old class 1 label, and the second is closer to the old class 2 and class 3 categories. Electric motorized bicycles are e-motos.
• The first year of registration is free.

You can find out more about the law here.

BUT…. there’s lots of work being done by advocates to get the law changed.

Why should you care?

As New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition says, e-bikes are how teens get to school, college students get across campus and between transit stops, workers get to jobs, seniors who may no longer drive stay connected to daily life and people without cars get around their communities. They are also an important mobility tool for riders with disabilities and individuals on the autism spectrum who may rely on cycling for independence and access.

Plus they support recreation, fitness and everyday riding across New Jersey.

E-bikes already are in our community. Some people commute to the Princeton Junction train station this way, as the photo at the top shows. On the other hand, Princeton University has said no more e-bikes on almost all of its campus starting June 1.

What’s next?

New Jersey bicycle advocates and bicycle shops are working hard to change the law.

The most basic fix being sought is that low-speed electric bicycles that max out at 20 mph should not be subject to license, registration, or insurance requirements. If you agree, contact elected state officials. Here’s a template for a letter.

You also can join a short bike ride (on a regular or low-speed e-bike) and protest in Trenton on Thursday, May 21. If you can’t come by bike, you can join at the State House. Details are here.

It’s sign-up time for the WWBPA’s once-a-year Learn to Bike class for kids, happening this year on May 16 at the WW farmers market.

The class will be held in the upper Vaughn Drive parking lot (next to the farmers market). Children should be at least 5 years old. Please bring a working bicycle that fits your child, a helmet (required!), and this completed waiver form.

Then leave the teaching to us while you shop at the market.

We ask that you let us know whether you expect to arrive between 9 a.m. and 9:30 a.m., between 9:30 a.m. and 10 a.m., between 10 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., or later. We find kids learn best together, but we need some time to take off their pedals.

We will end the class at 12:30 p.m.

We urge you to pre-register. We will cap the number of kids (preliminarily at 15), and we filled up in less than 48 hours last year, just from one email.

While this class is free, priority will be given to WWBPA members. Non-members will be put on a waiting list. So parents, please consider becoming a member to guarantee your slot.

Your membership supports our efforts to make West Windsor a safer and more enjoyable place for everyone to walk and bike.

Email us at wwbikeped@gmail.com to pre-register (let us know which arrival time you prefer) or if you have any questions.

This class will not be repeated in 2026. If May 16 doesn’t fit your schedule, we can point you toward other options.