Bike Walk Tennessee Newsletter
October 2014 
 
In This Issue
Walk Bike Nashville Hosts Mayoral Forum
3rd Annual Ride with Elected Officials in Knoxville
Complete Streets in Tennessee
Memphis Updates Bike Ped Plan
Hampline Underway in Memphis
TN Advocates at Congress for New Urbanism
National Bike Challenge a Success in TN
Walk to School Day in TN
TN Bike Summit - Save the Date
Quick Links



It's a great time to walk and bike in Tennessee.  The League of American Bicyclists just released their "Where We Bike" report, and trips by bicycle increased in our state by more than 100% between 2009 and 2013.  Bicycle commuting in Memphis grew by more than 250%, and bike commuting in Nashville increased by more than 140%.  Both Nashville and Memphis are among the top cities for bike commuter growth in the US.  And as you'll see below, Knoxville and Chattanooga will join cities around the state participating in walk to school day.    

Anthony C. Siracusa
President, Bike Walk Tennessee
Anthony Siracusa, President of Bike Walk Tennessee
 

Walk/Bike Nashville Hosts Mayoral Candidate Forum on Walkability


On October 8 Walk/Bike Nashville hosted a forum with all five declared mayoral candidates focusing on walkability and sidewalks. This was the first time all five candidates appeared together in public, ensuring that active transit emerged as one of the key issues in the early campaign. 150 residents, advocates, elected officials, and Metro Nashville employees packed into the Ruby event space for the discussion, which was moderated by Bobby Allyn of WPLN, Nashville's Public Radio station.

Each candidate shared their vision for a more walkable Nashville and the different strategies they would use as mayor to make their vision become a reality. The candidates also answer questions submitted by community members in four categories: Policy, Economics and Funding, Health and Safety, and Design.

The candidates in attendance were Megan Barry, Charles Robert Bone, David Fox, Jeremy Kane, and Linda Rebrovick. See Walk/Bike Nashville's blog posting on the event HERE.
Bike Walk Knoxville to Host 3rd Annual Elected Official Ride on October 21

Bike Walk Knoxville's is hosting its 3rd Annual Ride with Elected Officials on Tuesday, October 21st at 6 pm . The ride will include a variety of guests, including Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero and Bike Walk Tennessee President Anthony Siracusa. The ride will be followed by a reception at the Bike Zoo at 7 pm. Thank you to our sponsors: Bike Zoo, Ruth's Chris Steak House, Eagle Distributing, Hillside Winery.

More information on this event can be found on Bike Walk Knoxville's webpage HERE.
2013 Elected Official Ride
UT Students Tackle Complete Streets

University of Tennessee's Howard Baker Policy Challenge has chosen Complete Streets, which was submitted by Bike Walk Knoxville, as one of their challenge policies. Bike Walk Knoxville members David Bassett and Caroline Cooley are advising a team of participating students on development of an executive summary this semester.Team finalists will create policy solutions next semester.

Read the full article in Daily Beacon HERE.
Memphis MPO Releases Draft of 2014 Regional Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan


The draft 2014 Regional Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan is ready for review. A lot has changed in regards to walking and biking in the Memphis area since 2011, when the MPO's most recent Regional Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan was adopted. Demand for more and improved bicycle and pedestrian facilities like bike lanes, greenways, and sidewalks has grown. Memphis area residents are more often looking towards these active forms of transportation as a means to get around. Innovative projects are breaking ground or in the works throughout the region. To better reflect these new conditions and positive developments, the MPO has commenced an update to the Regional Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan.

To find out more about the update process and the DRAFT, please visit the project page on the MPO's website.

Memphis MPO Releases Draft of 2014 Regional Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan

Hampline Project Underway
Two key projected bike lane projects are currently underway in the City of Memphis which will create more than 3 miles of separated bicycle infrastructure.

One project, The Hampline, has been underdevelopment for some time and is now proceeding with construction phase 2 which will create a two-way protected bike lane along the south side of Broad Avenue, between Tillman St. and Collins St. A previous phase of this project was completed earlier this year and phases 3 and 4 are expected to begin sometime in 2015. When complete, The Hampline will provide 1.5 miles of separated bicycle infrastructure connecting Overton Park in Memphis to the Shelby Farms Greenline, a 6.5 mile rail-to-trail conversion that run through the heart of Memphis.

Another project, Danny Thomas Blvd (SR-1) is being constructed by the Tennessee Department of Transportation as a part of ongoing resurfacing work near downtown Memphis. This corridor has been placed on a road diet, utilizing excessively wide outside lanes to create one-way protected bike lanes on each side of the street, separated from motor vehicle traffic by a 6 foot buffer. This project runs along the entire eastern edge of downtown Memphis,and when connected to other protected bike lane projects already underdevelopment along Riverside Drive, Dr. MLK, Jr. Ave, and Crump Ave., will create a complete protected cycling experience along the perimeter of downtown Memphis and along the riverfront.

Both projects will be completed and open for public use by the end of the year.
Tennessee Advocates Attend Congress for New Urbanism

The Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) held their 2014 Transportation + Equity Summit in New York City on October 1-3. The summit brought planners, designers, and scholars from around the U.S. and Canada together to discuss how social, racial, and economic equity can be brought to the forefront of ongoing conversations about completing our streets. Presenters included Adonia Lugo, manager of the League of American Bicyclists' Equity Initiative, and Barbara McCann, Director of US DOT's Office of Safety, Energy and Environment.
NYC Bike Tour, Sponsored by CitiBike

National Bike Challenge a Success in TN
Tennessee bicyclists made a good showing in the Home | National | National Bike Challenge this year ranking #32 overall, up from #48 last year. 548 riders participated in logging their miles ridden representing Bike Walk Chattanooga, Bike Walk Knoxville, Walk/Bike Nashville, Nashville Slow Riders, and Memphis Hightailers. Thanks to everyone who participated.

 


Walk to School Day around the State
Cities around the State celebrated Walk to School Day earlier in October. In Memphis, the selected spotlight school was Treadwell Elementary. In 2013, the City of Memphis, Livable Memphis, Safe Kids Mid-South, and Safe Kids Worldwide worked with FedEx to make safety modifications at Treadwell Elementary, a school in Memphis with one of the highest rates of pedestrian injuries. On October 1, community leaders and city officials gathered with students and teachers to celebrate the ribbon-cutting for the new infrastructure. See the results in this video.

Memphis Task Force at Treadwell Elementary School (Memphis, TN)
Memphis Task Force at Treadwell Elementary School (Memphis, TN)


TN Bike Summit, Save the Date: April 23-24, 2015

  
The date of the forth annual Tennessee Bike Summit has been finalized. So mark you calendars for April 23-24, 2015! The Summit will be hosted by Knoxville this year, so you won't want to miss it
 
Get more information HERE.
 
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Bike Walk Tennessee was formed in 2009 and is a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation.  Contact us at bikewalktn@gmail.com.