Reconnect Rochester’s Mobility Action Alerts is an email list to engage community members across the city of Rochester in actionable, tangible advocacy and volunteer opportunities involving transportation, safe streets, and bike infrastructure. The alerts are sent out as soon as our team is notified of engagement opportunities including surveys, public meetings, city planning projects and other transportation or mobility-related special events. The Mobility Action Alerts are an opportunity to hold our city officials and other entities accountable for the future of mobility in Rochester.
Previous Alerts Sent Out
Hello Reconnecters! We still have three letter-writing campaigns open. These have been included in previous Mobility Action Alerts:
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Send NYSDOT and elected officials your input on the Monroe Avenue redesign: Click this link for more information.
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Send a letter to your NYS representatives and the Governor’s office about a proposed Autonomous Vehicle authorization in New York State.
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Send a letter to the Governor and State Legislatures to fully fund transit: Click here to send a letter.
Virtual book talk with Carter Lavin, author of: If You Want to Win, You’ve Got to Fight: A Guide to Effective Transportation Advocacy
Want safer streets, better buses, or high-speed rail? Carter Lavin—transportation advocate and author of If You Want to Win, You’ve Got to Fight: A Guide to Effective Transportation Advocacy (Island Press)—shows you how to turn big ideas into real change. With lessons, tactics, and stories from campaigns across the country, this is your roadmap to effective transportation advocacy.
While Carter will be speaking virtually, you can join us at our offices at Harro East. 400 Andrews Street Suite 100, Rochester, NY 14604 OR on Zoom (details to be provided to registrants in advance of the event).
Click the link below to register!
https://docs.google.com/forms/
Town of Penfield Active Transportation Plan Public Meeting
The Town of Penfield is hosting a public meeting to present their draft Active Transportation Plan. If you walk, bike, or roll in the town, this is a great opportunity to come share your thoughts about the plan. More information can be found here: www.penfieldny.gov/detail_T12_
Points to emphasize
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The Town of Penfield should push County DOT and NYSDOT hard on road diets and dedicated bike infrastructure to achieve active transportation goals.
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More sidewalks; continue to invest in trails
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Right now, cyclists are prohibited from riding on Penfield trails. This should change. Trails can be upgraded & widened over time.
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Slower speed limits
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Allow e-bikes to be ridden on roads in the Town with speed limits greater than 30 mph.
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Empire & Browncroft need radical changes so they safely serve more than motorists
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There’s no need for Penfield’s code about bike helmets to be more restrictive than state law. (State law is that all cyclists under the age of 14 need a helmet. In Penfield: everyone.)
In-Person Meeting:
DATE: Tuesday, February 24, 2026
TIME: 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
LOCATION: Penfield Community Recreation Center → 1985 Baird Road, Penfield, NY 14526
TRANSIT OPTIONS: This isn’t a great connection, but we wanted to at least let you know… Riders from the Transit Center would need to take the 8 or the 10 to the Blossom Loop Connection Hub and then take the 50 bus to (Penfield/1795 Penfield) and then walk for roughly 30 minutes.
BIKE RACKS: Bike parking is available to the right of the main entrance: Google Street View
Thank you for your advocacy!
-Henry
Hello Reconnecters! We still have two letter-writing campaigns open.
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Send NYSDOT and elected officials your input on the Monroe Avenue redesign: Click this link for more information.
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Send a letter to your NYS representatives and the Governor’s office about a proposed Autonomous Vehicle authorization in New York State.
Transit Equity
Happy Transit Equity Day, Feb. 4th, celebrated in honor of Rosa Parks’ birthday. Today we’re issuing a call to New York State to fully fund our public transportation system:
Click the link below to send a letter to the Governor and State Legislatures to fully fund transit!
https://actionnetwork.org/
Tell Congress: This technology could save lives
We are amplifying a League of American Bicyclists action item: The House Energy and Commerce Committee is currently developing its portion of the next transportation bill. The Magnus White and Safer Streets for Everyone Act would require new vehicles to automatically brake when a cyclist or pedestrian is detected by being equipped with Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) systems capable of detecting and responding to vulnerable road users.
According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and other research, AEB could reduce bicycle-vehicle crashes by 26-50% and reduce bicyclist deaths by 50-80%.
The Magnus White and Safer Streets for Everyone Act is named in honor of Magnus White, a 17-year-old competitive cyclist who was killed by a driver while training to compete for the U.S. in the Mountain Bike World Championships. Cyclist-AEB can prevent future tragedies due to drunk, drowsy, or distracted driving by ensuring that the vehicle itself can give cyclists a brake.
Take action now to tell Congress cyclist-AEB saves lives!
Thank you for your advocacy!
-Cody
Happy New Year Reconnecters! We hope you had a happy holiday season!
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Tomorrow (Friday January 9th) we will be rescreening 2017’s Rochester Street Films: Winter Edition at our office (400 Andrews Street) focused on winter advocacy and practical tips for biking in colder months. For more information and to register click here!
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The New York State Legislature is back in session and we will have a mobility action alert out soon to let you know how you can help push lawmakers to make our streets safe.
Monroe Ave in Brighton Public Open House
The New York State Department of Transportation will be hosting a Public Open House on Tuesday, January 20th from 4pm to 7pm to answer questions and take public input about the upcoming re-milling of Monroe Ave (NY-31) in the Town of Brighton. This road project is an opportunity to implement significant safety improvements for all modes.
More details can be found on the NYSDOT Project website:
https://www.dot.ny.gov/
Advocacy Opportunities:
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Thank the project team for including a road diet for the majority of the roadway and ask for it to be continued through the twelve corners intersection. Road diets can reduce crashes by an average of 30% offering huge safety improvements. Ask project designers to continue the diet through the 12 Corners intersection to maintain safety benefits. Extra space can be used to accommodate dedicated turn lanes and to restore a tree lawn between the roadway and the sidewalk.
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Lower Monroe Avenue’s Speed Limit to 30 Miles Per Hour. We know that slower speeds will save lives, especially on corridors with high pedestrian activity such as Monroe Ave. According to the USDOT, a pedestrian struck by a vehicle traveling at 32 MPH has a 25% risk of death. This balloons to 50% risk of death when struck at 42 MPH. The Town of Brighton has already lowered its residential speed limit to 25 MPH. In the City of Rochester, Monroe Ave already drops to a speed limit of 30 MPH and the city is actively considering lowering it to 25 MPH as part of its Vision Zero program. In the draft New York State Transportation Plan, NYSDOT is planning to adopt the safe system approach through “setting appropriate speed-limits (which can include lowering speed limits)” (NYSDOT 2050 page 69). NYSDOT engineers will save lives by lowering the speed limit and designing Monroe Avenue for slower speeds.
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Add Pedestrian Islands at key unsignalized intersections. The proposed road diet offers an incredible opportunity to include pedestrian islands throughout the corridor as the two-way-turn-lane can be used near bus stops to facilitate safe crossings. We recommend that designers investigate the inclusion of five pedestrian islands in the project area at the following locations: Monroe Parkway, Hampshire Drive, Continental Drive, St Regis Drive N, and 1392 Monroe Ave. All of these locations are adjacent to bus stops and significant pedestrian destinations such as congregations/religious centers, schools, significant apartment complexes, and commercial hubs. These islands would not only serve these destinations and bus stops but would be a massive improvement to pedestrian safety by simplifying crossings and strengthening the network. Every bus stop should have a safe pedestrian crossing nearby.
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Ensure that every bus stop along NY-31 in Brighton has a safe marked crossing. At signalized intersections, this means including LPI and NTOR as well as crosswalks along all four legs of the intersection. At unsignalized intersections, this means including pedestrian islands as discussed above.
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Ensure Leading Pedestrian Intervals (LPIs) and No-Turn-On-Red (NTOR) restrictions are implemented at every signalized intersection along the corridor. LPIs do not require any additional infrastructure, only a reprogramming of signals to allow pedestrians a 3-7 second head start before vehicles are given a green light. This helps to communicate right-of-way, increase visibility of pedestrians, increase motorist yielding, and reduce crashes. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has found that LPIs reduce crashes by 13%. We also recommend implementing no-turn-on-red restrictions (NTOR) to increase driver yielding and reduce the number of crashes with pedestrians. A 2022 study published by the Institute of Transportation Engineers found that NTOR led to a 92% decline in the number of drivers that failed to yield to pedestrians.
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Prioritize Bike Boulevard Connections. The Monroe County Active Transportation Plan calls for Monroe Avenue to be part of the county’s Active Transportation Network. If protected bike lanes are not feasible in this project, it is critical that all four intersections where bike boulevards cross Monroe Ave are given safe crossings with signals that recognize vulnerable road users. We strongly encourage engineers to use minimum lane widths (10’ travel lanes and 11’ two-way-turn lanes) to maximize the shoulder space available for cyclists.
In-Person Meeting:
DATE: Tuesday, January 20, 2026
TIME: Anytime between 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
LOCATION: Empire State University → 680 Westfall Road, Rochester, NY 14620
TRANSIT OPTIONS: RTS Routes 13/17/14 (Stop: E Henrietta/Westfall, walk approx. 15 min) OR route 12 (Stop: Lac De Ville/Lac Kine S, walk approx. 15 min)
BIKE RACKS: A bike rack is located to the right of the main entrance: Google Street View
Redman Rd & 4th Section Rd Public Open House
The New York State Department of Transportation will be hosting a Public Open House on Tuesday, January 13th from 4pm to 6pm at the Sweden Town Hall to answer questions and take public input about the proposed intersection safety improvement project. NYSDOT is planning to reconstruct the intersection to build a modern roundabout.
More details can be found on the NYSDOT Press Release:
https://www.dot.ny.gov/portal/
Advocacy Opportunities:
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Roundabouts are great! We are happy to see NYSDOT increasingly implement modern safe intersection designs such as roundabouts. The Federal Highway Administration has found that roundabouts can reduce fatal and injury crashes by 78% as compared to signalized intersections.
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Encourage designers to extend sidewalks as far as funding allows.
In-Person Meeting:
DATE: Tuesday, January 13, 2026
TIME: Anytime between 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
LOCATION: Sweden Town Hall → 18 State Street, Brockport NY, 14420
TRANSIT OPTIONS: Riders who live within the Brockport RTS OnDemmand zone are able to use the service. Find out more here.
BIKE RACKS: Town Hall does not appear to have a bike rack but you could lock a bike to this sign post.
Thank you for your advocacy!
-Henry
“There will never be a bell loud enough, a helmet strong enough or clothing bright enough to make up for poor infrastructure. Never.”
–Tom Flood, Bicycle Advocate