As we look back on 2018, we’re pretty darn proud of what we’ve accomplished together this year. The highlights below are just a snapshot of all the good work we’ve been able to do, thanks to the financial support of Reconnect members, the passionate volunteers that made our programs and initiatives run, and so many others that engaged in our work in countless ways. Thanks to each and every one of you.
If you haven’t yet made a membership donation, we hope you’ll consider doing so to help fuel our work in 2019! View the membership levels and gift options here. And don’t forget, we have a matching gift in effect from Jason Partyka for NEW members that join by Dec 31st!
Things we’re most proud of in 2018:
Giving transit riders a respectable place to sit at 33 bus stops around the city. We were thrilled to see our bus stop cubes replicated by our neighbor to the west, and we made some progress exploring a permanent fiberglass cube design as a year-round solution… stay tuned in 2019!
Releasing an in-depth report we commissioned on Transportation & Poverty in Monroe County, and working within the Rochester-Monroe Anti-Poverty Initiative transportation work group to translate the data into proposed policy solutions.
Transforming an intersection in the Beechwood neighborhood through our Complete Streets Makeover project, and applying complete streets design to other trouble spots around the city to show how they could be made safer for pedestrians and cyclists.
Raising funds to continue sponsoring our two bike share stations on Hudson Avenue & Adams Street. This fall, we hosted a live online presentation to give people a chance to hear from Pace about how Rochester’s 2018 bike share season went (watch a recording here).
Producing three (3) Street Films events that stimulated community conversation about transportation infrastructure investment, the era of highway construction, and designing streets for people. We added two original films to our growing collection (watch them on our YouTube channel).
Engaging with the public every day via live events, community outreach tabling, speaking engagements, media interviews, social media sharing, and blog posts about things like sidewalk snow removal and transit-supportive development.
Encouraging public engagement, lending support and giving input into local planning initiatives like Reimagine RTS system re-design, and the City of Rochester’s Comprehensive Access & Mobility Plan, Comprehensive Plan & Roc the Riverway.
Fighting for the transit dependent in our community through countless advocacy actions, like traveling to Albany on Transit Awareness Day, hosting a joint press conference with Our Streets Transit Coalition partners, and joining the New Yorkers for Better Public Transit campaign.
And after two years of conceiving and planning with a powerful coalition of partners, we helped launch the Drive 2B Better public awareness campaign to make our streets safer to walk and bike. Look out for a second phase of the campaign in 2019!
![A new LEGO bus shelter is being constructed at the corner of Monroe Avenue and French Road in Pittsford. [IMAGE: Reconnect Rochester]](http://www.reconnectrochester.org/images/photos/lego-bus-shelter-progress-01.jpg)
![The City of Rochester was looking for someone to adaptively reuse, redevelop, and operate five former bus shelters on Main Street in downtown Rochester (similar to this one in Portland, OR. If no one responds by the end of this week, the shelters will likely be removed. [PHOTO: Hennebery Eddy Architects, Inc.]](http://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/portland-bus-shelter-coffee-kiosk.jpg)
