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Bicycle Friendly Charlottesville!
May 2, 2008
The League of American Bicyclists decided this week that Charlottesville
is a “Bicycle Friendly Community.”
Two UVA students worked with the Alliance for Community Choice
in Transportation in the Fall semester to complete a lengthy
and detailed application for this designation. The Alliance,
also known as ACCT, finished the application and submitted it
in February on behalf of the City of Charlottesville.
This comprehensive application required answers from city traffic
and civil engineers, trails planners, police officers, members
of local mountain bike clubs and road cycling clubs, as well
as staff of local non-profits The Community Bike Shop and ACCT.
The League of American Bicyclists announced yesterday, through
a national press release, Charlottesville and ten other communities’
new designation as Bicycle Friendly Communities.
An awards ceremony will be held on May 12 at noon in front
of City Hall to kick off Bike Week here in Charlottesville.
The Mayor, possibly former Mayor David Brown, and Zachary Shahan
at ACCT will accept the award from the League. The League will
also provide the city with road signs to post around the city
and Charlottesville now has its own webpage on the League’s
website.
The Bicycle Friendly Community program includes five designations
– Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze, and honorable mention.
Charlottesville received a Bronze designation, but with improvements
we can always move up to Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Currently,
there are only two Platinum cities – Davis, California
and Portland, Oregon.
The League will also provide our community with specific feedback
on how we can make the city more bicycle-friendly and eventually
receive those higher designations.
Click
here for more information on the Bicycle Friendly Community
program. Charlottesville’s application is on file
with ACCT, and if you want any information on bicycling in Charlottesville,
contact ACCT.
To begin bicycling in Charlottesville, get in touch with ACCT
about their “Confident City Cyclist Course” or about
upcoming “Bike Week” activities or about their annual
“Bicycle Rodeo!” And enjoy your bicycle friendly
community on a bicycle!
Read the League's
national press release by clicking here.
DISCOVER TRANSPORTATION FREEDOM LAUNCHES
April 16, 2008
ACCT's major new program for 2008 launched at the Earth Day
Eco-Fair on April 19. The following Cville Tomorrow interview
with Zachary Shahan, ACCT Executive Director, was posted a few
days earlier. Zachary and others discussed the program on several
radio shows as well.
In this 17 minute innovative interview, Sean Tubbs and Zachary
ride the bus from downtown to Barracks Road Shopping Center
and talk about the program while Zachary does his weekly grocery
shopping.
Listen
to the Charlottesville Tomorrow interview here.
TRAVEL SMART
February 20, 2008
Peter Newman, visiting Professor of Sustainability
from Western Australia, and ACCT board member, Randy Salzman,
presented about travel demand management, smart transportation
in an era of climate change and peak oil, and a new and extremely
succesful "Travel Smart" program at a recent Metropolitan
Planning Organization Policy Board meeting. Coverage
by Charlottesville Tomorrow.
ACCT RESPONDS TO SERIOUS AUTOMOBILE-PEDESTRIAN ACCIDENT ON
RIO ROAD
February 15, 2008
Following the recent collision with two pedestrians on
Rio Rd., ACCT calls upon Albemarle County and VDOT to upgrade
pedestrian amenities along the road in order to prevent similar
accidents. Read ACCT's press release
here,WCAV TV's coverage here,
Daily Progress coverage here,
and NBC29 coverage here.
January 26, 2008
In coordination with the Community Bike Shop, ACCT held a Bike
Action Team meeting to discuss improving data collection of
bike-auto accidents and incidents in the area and to improve
the safety of roadways for bicyclists and automobile drivers.
The Bike Action Team will be finalizing the survey and beginning
distribution soon. The January 26 meeting was covered by the
Charlottesville
Newsplex. More extensive coverage of the issue is in the
Cville
Weekly as well.
FIRST ARTISTIC BIKE RACKS INSTALLED
January 14,
2008
In coordination with
Art-in-Place and the City of
Charlottesville, ACCT held an Artistic Bike Rack Design Competition and
helped to evaluate proposals from artists to build creative and fun
bicycle racks to be placed in central locations in the City of
Charlottesville. From this Artistic Bike Rack Design Competition, four
bike racks by four local artists were selected to be installed in the
city. The first bike racks were installed in Washington Park on January
14th. The artist for these first racks is Bill Hess and the name of the
racks is "Tree Cyclists Waiting for Bikes." For more information on all
of the winning bike racks, the artists, and the design competition,
click on this
link. And be sure to go out and see (and use)
these fun, attractive bicycle racks!
An article on these racks printed in the Hook.
ACCT URGES PLANNING COMMISSION
TO DISCONTINUE VEHICULAR CROSSING
December
11,
2007
Zachary Shahan urged the city planning commision to discontinue the
second vehicular crossing on the downtown mall. The crossing
compromises the pedestrian-oriented environment, is not achieving it's
intended goals and is not in line with the city's Comprehensive Plan.
Read ACCT's official statement here.
ACCT's BOARD
PRESIDENT MODERATES
CANDIDATE FORUM
October
18, 2007
Candidates for the three open seats on the Albemarle County Board
of Supervisors took part in a unique forum hosted by ACCT, Advocates
for a Sustainable Albemarle Population, the Rivanna
Conservation Society,
the Piedmont Environmental Council, and Citizens for Albemarle. ACCT's
Len Schoppa moderated the event, which focused on
sustainable growth, transportation, and the environment. Read
more and find a podcast of the event from Charlottesville Tomorrow.
You can also watch their video of the event, below.
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