Bike to Work Week
by Ann Gerckens, Editor
May is National Bicycle Month, and I can remember a time when our organization
would have been the center of activities and events intended to promote bicycling
in general, and Bike To Work Week in particular. In fact, somewhere here in the
COP office we have a 1985 proclamation from the mayor recognizing our efforts. But
time marches on and volunteers move on to other pursuits.
This year, Consider Biking is taking the lead on organizing and promoting Bike to Work Week. As you read in the last newsletter, Consider Biking (formally known as the Central Ohio Bicycle Advocacy Coalition) has hired a staff person, funded in part by COP's Bicycle Project Development Fund. Consider Biking has planned no less than 10 events and activities surrounding Bike to Work Week. You can check out their website, www.b2ww.considerbiking.org for the full schedule.
One of the featured activities will be a massive recruitment, and competition, of employers to encourage people to ride their bicycles to work during the week. A large kick-off event is scheduled for Monday morning, May 12 from 7:30 - 9:00 am to celebrate those that have taken the challenge to ride to work. Mayor Coleman will be the featured speaker, and will officially unveil the Bicentennial Bikeways Plan at this event. Please add your presence to the Statehouse lawn for this critical moment for cycling in Columbus!
Some of the activities planned for the week are: a bike-themed art show, a bar hop with educational speakers, a presentation about legal issues for cyclists, the ribbon cutting for the Broadmeadows bridge, a cyclists' pit stop at OSU, and an end of week awards luncheon for all the corporations that participate in the Commuter Challenge. Not enough for you?
The 5th Annual Ride of Silence, which is one of the first, and largest, in the country, will be the following week on May 21st. The slow, police escorted procession, has drawn 500+ cyclists in the past, to respectfully draw attention to the need to accommodate bicycles on our roadways. This event has been one of the most significant "statements" that have influenced our local politicians to fund the long-needed comprehensive bike plan that Mayor Coleman will unveil on May 12.
Consider Biking's mission is to create a friendly environment for bicycling and walking in Central Ohio, to enable all our citizens to make active transportation a part of their daily lives. Their vision is that everyone uses a bicycle, and that cycling and walking are respected within, and safely integrated into our transportation system. Simply put, Consider Biking will be doing work, so we can all "just ride."
I hope you will offer your support to these initiatives.
My thanks to Jeff Stephens for providing information on these events.
Ann Gerckens Photo by Jocelyn Metzger.