News

 
We don’t often send mail to all of our friends and followers (in fact, never before).  But in honor of the new year and several exciting announcements, we thought we’d provide this factsheet and the attached photo(s), explained below.
Our Facebook page is at http://www.facebook.com/rochestercyclingalliance.  it’s the usual Facebook “moshpit”, and a good way to communicate with the community
You can subscribe to our email list by writing to info@rochestercyclingalliance.org This is how our active activists communicate with each other.
Our website is at http://www.rochestercyclingalliance.org.  It includes

• lots of announcements (including this one)
• a list of our some of our signal achievements for 2012.  http://goo.gl/Zafd9
• a paypal link (in case you want to support our activities)
• a calendar of RCA meetings and events

Among our signal achievements in 2012  was a “bike corral” at the Rochester Greentopia festival which benefitted  hundreds of cyclists who got to park their bikes and learn about the RCA

• We have another bike corral planned for the Fairport Canal Days festival http://finditinfairport.com/fairport-canal-days.html , and we are seeking volunteers (2 hours to help check bikes in and out).  Email RCA VP Bill Collins,  alameda@frontiernet.net
• The attached photo(s) are from the Greentopia Bike Corral.  If you participated, you may find a picture of yourself!

Among our signal achievements in 2013, will be the Second Bi-Annual Greater Rochester Active Transportation Summit (GRATS)  on April 30.  Mark your calendars!  The first GRATS was a watershed event, and most of the presentations (but none of the hallway conversation) can be found at at http://www.rochestercyclingalliance.org/?page_id=129.   This year, you, too can help shape the future of Active Transportation in Rochester, and meet  our keynote speaker,  (…get ready…)  US. Representative Earl Blumenauer of Oregon.  Please keep April 30 free, and share this message with other interested parties.
Finally, please add your voice to the City’s Master Plan Survey!  It will make our job so much easier, and will make your city so much better!  http://www.cityofrochester.gov/centercitysurvey/
Best wishes from the Rochester Cycling Alliance!

It is a great pleasure to announce that Elizabeth Murphy has joined our Healthi Kids Team – effective Monday, January 28th. Elizabeth assumes the position of Active Transportation Specialist funded by our community’s H.E.A.R.T. Grant (CDC Community Transformation Grant).
This position focuses on engaging, organizing, and educating the community to achieve public-policy and practice changes that promote active transportation in Monroe County. Ms. Murphy will serve as project manager, focusing on four key areas to best attain systems changes:
1. Increase decision-maker’s awareness of the benefits of active transportation by facilitating educational and informational public workshops, meetings, including an Active Transportation Symposium;
2. Offer technical support and assistance to communities that wish to develop and implement active transportation plans;
3. Give technical support and assistance to schools to develop and implement Safe Routes to School programs and practices; and
4. Provide support to businesses, organizations and municipalities in planning and executing events, to increase community awareness of and support for active transportation.
We are really pleased to have Elizabeth join us – Here’s a little bit more about her:
· Elizabeth is a Rochester native and a graduate of the City School District. Elizabeth completed her undergraduate studies at Bard College with a major in Economics and her Masters in City and Regional Planning from Cornell University.
· Elizabeth started her career in Sacramento, California co-managing a joint project with the California Department of Health Services to conduct “walkability workshops,” with a focus on Safe Routes to School and “Safe Routes to Transit.” Elizabeth organized, trained, and certified California-based “walkability experts” to lead future workshops and build internal capacity on walkability issues statewide.
· For the past five years, Elizabeth worked with US Department of Transportation/Volpe Center, Policy and Planning in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Strategic planning, project management and implementation of the FHWA-FTA’s jointly funded Transportation Planning Capacity Building (TPCB) program were key elements of the position. The TPCB Program provided education, professional development, information dissemination, and exploratory research on issues of primary concern for transportation planning agencies nationwide (state, regional, local, tribal).
· Elizabeth brings a wealth of experience in project management and budget development; peer exchange workshop coordination; research, analysis, and report writing; meeting facilitation; communication and outreach.
Rachel A. Pickering
Associate Director of Community Engagement
Finger Lakes Health Systems Agency
www.flhsa.org

The next counts for the National Bicycle and Pedestrian Documentation Project are scheduled for January 8th, 9th, and 10th. If you’re interested in helping out, please see this site: http://trails.zgroks.com/index.html which lets you view all of the sites and easily sign up, if you wish. Several of the sites are identified as “priority sites” because they need more counts to be made before they’ll be statistically useful (for extrapolation). I realize the weather could be a challenge for the winter count, but I wanted to offer the opportunity to assist with the counts nonetheless.
Data from the previously-taken counts can be viewed here: https://docs.google.com/folder/d/0BwL5SwyNJMgSVDZsSEs4N0NhODg/edit
If you’d like to participate during warmer weather, the next counts following the January counts will be May 7th, 8th, and 9th. We’ll use a similar sign-up page which will be posted in Mid-January 2013.
Please feel free to contact me at your convenience if you have any questions or comments. Also, feel free to share this email if you know of anyone that may wish to participate in the project.
Richard
rdscomm@rochester.rr.com

NYBC Press Release Objects to NYS DOT draft Capital Plan
Posted on November 29, 2012 by brkehoe
Media Release:
NYS Dept. of Transportation’s Draft Capital Plan misses 1/4 of traffic deaths/injuries
Complete Streets Law mandates also ignored in draft Plan
Upon careful review of the recently released New York State Department of Transportation’s (NYSDOT) Two-year Capital Plan, the New York Bicycling Coalition (NYBC) is dismayed to report that this critical planning document entirely excludes walkers and bicyclists. In fact, while all other transportation modes (automobile, transit, plane, etc.) are accounted for throughout the draft Plan, bicycling and walking are never mentioned. The Capital Plan is available at http://esd.ny.gov/PublicMeetings_Notices/NYWorks/10092012_DOT_TwoYearCapitalPlan.pdf
NYBC Board President Paul Winkeller stated, “To say we are puzzled thatNew York’s Transportation Department could develop a capital program omitting bicycling and walking, two critical and increasingly popular modes of travel would be a huge understatement. Bicycling and walking are primary transportation modes for many state residents – including the young, the elderly, people with disabilities, and low-income populations. Official statistics show that citizens biking and walking are involved in a quarter or more of traffic related injuries and fatalities. These accidents are tragic and collectively represent a tremendous, ongoing societal expense in terms of health care and legal costs.”
The NY Bicycling Coalition web page briefly describes the very high return-on-investment of providing equal safety and access to bicyclists and pedestrians. These infrastructure enhancements are critical for the health of New York’s citizens and in creating a 21st century work and lifestyle environment that are key to fostering economic development throughout the state. http://www.nybc.net/a-few-quantitative-reasons-why-bike-ped-infrastructure-has-high-roi
Brian Kehoe, NYBC Executive Director, added, “NYSDOT’s Draft Capital Plan is frightening in its complete neglect of critical transportation modes and NYBC has expressed these concerns to the Governor’s Office. Many citizens, including children and the elderly, rely solely upon walking and bicycling. People around the state consistently cite safety concerns as the biggest reason they don’t walk and bicycle more often. NYSDOT has a responsibility to at least attempt to address the serious safety concerns these citizens face every day. DOT should amend the draft Plan to explicitly address walking and bicycling safety concerns.”
The purpose of the New York Bicycling Coalition (NYBC) is to serve the State of New York and its residents by promoting the safe use of the bicycle and walking as modes of transportation, sport, recreation, health, environmental protection, energy conservation, tourism and economic development. For twenty years, NYBC has advocated for the rights of all bicyclists and pedestrians throughout New York State by supporting safety, education, and access for road and trail users.
For additional information contact: Brian Kehoe, NYBC Executive Director 518-436-0889 brian@nybc.net

The Genesee Community Charter School’s 6th graders are raising funds to help support their travel to learn directly about four great bicycing cities in the USA. The four cities selected are, Austin TX, Portland OR, Boulder CO and Madison/Milwaukee WI.
The class will split up into four groups. Each group will travel to one of the selected cities to study their bicycling infrastructure. The class will present their findings to the Rochester Community at a public meeting in 2013. Several members of the RCA are advisers for the year-long class project.
To support the fund raising effort, anyone shopping at the Pittsford Plaza’s Barnes & Noble store on Friday November 16, from 6 -9 PM can simple identify themselves as helping the school fundraiser. All food, drink and store products purchased are part of the program. Up to 20% of total sales identified will be donated to the fundraiser. Look for the entertainment provided by the school’s 6th grade class.

The Finger Lakes Health Systems Agency Job Posting:
Transportation Specialist
This position focuses on engaging, organizing, and educating the community to achieve public-policy and practice changes that promote active transportation in Monroe County.
Active transportation describes human-powered methods of transportation, like walking and cycling.
http://www.flhsa.org/Employment.html

Several years ago, members of the Rochester Bicycling Club (RBC) helped to rate selected roads in the City of Rochester, surrounding Monroe County, and nearby towns in Wayne, Ontario, and Livingston Counties. These road ratings were used by the Genesee Transportation Council (GTC) to develop the 2009 Edition of the Greater Rochester Area Bicycling Map. 20,000 copies of the map were printed by the GTC and distributed throughout the bicycling community by members of the RBC and others. Read more

We need your help for the next round of Bicycle and Pedestrian Traffic Count
On September 11, September 12, and September 13, 2012, members of the Rochester Cycling Alliance, the Active Transportation Working Group, and other interested parties are invited to participate in the National Bicycle and Pedestrian Documentation Project counts for the Rochester Area. This will be the second series of counts for the region (the first was completed in May of this year). Read more

Summer is here in Rochester, and with this summer there is a noticeable change in our community. As I ride my bicycle around town, I see hundreds of people enjoying our city’s new bicycle paths, bike lanes, and shared roadways. We cannot yet compare to Amsterdam, or even to Portland, but Rochester is quickly becoming a bicycle town!
The Rochester Cycling Alliance would like to invite you to join a new bicycling incentive being started in our community called Bicycle Benefits (http://www.bicyclebenefits.org). Bicycle Benefits forges links between bicycle-friendly businesses and cycling customers, promoting safe bicycle transportation by offering incentives to cyclists. The program is already successfully deployed in Buffalo, Ithaca, Syracuse, and communities in over 20 states, and is now being launched in Rochester.
As a participating business, you provide an incentive or benefit of your choice to participating cyclist customers. It may be a product discount, a free item with a purchase, or an enhanced service. The incentive is offered to cyclists who arrive on their bicycle wearing a helmet with a reflective Bicycle Benefits sticker attached.
For more detail about the program contact Scott Wagner at 585-880-7643 or BicycleBenefitsRochester@gmail.com.

RCA Meeting Notice
Date: Thursday July 19
Time: 7:00 – 9p.m.
Location: U of R
Map Link: www.rochester.edu/maps/
(River Campus) (Goergen Hall, Room 110) (Intercampus Drive & Trustee Road)
Think Bicycling as Transportation