| Dear Carey, What a great start to the month of March. Last week, 15 representatives from across Tennessee traveled to the nation's capital to represent our great state at the National Bike Summit. 
| Delegates to the National Bike Summit, pictured here with Staff from Senator Lamar Alexander's office, came from every major city in the state of Tennessee. |
The Tennessee delegation joined more than 700 advocates from 47 states in asking our elected officials for their continued support of Complete Streets, bicycle safety,and great local projects. Tennessee will host its own Bike Summit on May 14, 15 and 16 in Nashville. Walk/Bike Nashville has done an outstanding job organizing the 2014 Tennessee Bike Summit, so be sure to register for Tennessee's premiere bike advocacy event. President, Bike Walk Tennessee 
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| Photos from the 2014 TN Delegation to The National Bike Summit | 
| Members of the TN delegation paying close attention to the presentation! |
| A DC Bike Ambassador in front of the Capitol |
| The TN Delegation with Senator Corker's Staff |
| A small group from the TN delegation |
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| SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOLS PROGRAMMING YIELDING RESULTS | A recently released study from Bridging the Gaps presents a number of interesting statistics relating to national Safe Routes to School programming. Safe Routes to School seeks to encourage active travel (travel by bicycle or walking) amongst elementary school aged children by providing technical assistance and support to schools in developing and sustaining programs that help children safely walk and bicycle to and from school. A few highlights front the study: - Elementary school participation in SRTS programming increased from 14.2% to 21.8% of schools in the past 7 years
- Rates of student active travel to school, as estimated by school administrators, were 60% higher at schools that participated in SRTS programs
- SRTS programming was more common at schools in the West (33% of schools) than at schools in the Northeast (20%), Midwest (24%) or South (13%)
More information available in the Research Brief Visit the Bridging the Gap website |
| NASHVILLE'S HARDING PLACE PEDESTRIAN SIDEWALK PROJECT MOVING FORWARD | The long planned construction on the Harding Place sidewalks are finally under way! This area has all the conditions that make it ripe for a big sidewalk project. First and foremost, it has people that need the sidewalk to get to their destinations and put themselves in danger on extremely narrow shoulders adjacent to speeding heavy traffic. Additionally, the area combines residential density with destination density, including grocery stores, retail shopping, restaurants, hospitals, healthcare and schools. The three phase plan for the sidewalks was announced back in 2011. Since then, former Commissioner Gerald Nicely met with city, state and MPO officials, as well as representatives of Bike Walk Tennessee, Transit Now Nashville and Walk/Bike Nashville to jointly locate funding sources and move the project forward. The three phases break down as follows: Phase One: Timberhill Drive to Danby Drive. - 3200 linear feet of sidewalk
- Project includes curb and gutter, pedestrian crosswalks and signals
- Anticipated completion by fall 2014
Phase Two: Nolensville Pike to I-24. - 7600 linear feet of sidewalk
- Project includes construction of new sidewalk, curb and gutter, pedestrian crosswalks, pedestrian signals and a pedestrian bridge over Seven Mile Creek
- Project is in the Right-of-way phase - acquiring property and property settlements
- Construction is anticipated to begin summer 2014.
Phase Three: Danby Drive to Nolensville Pike - 5800 linear feet of sidewalk
- Project includes construction of new sidewalk, curb and gutter, pedestrian crosswalks and pedestrian signals
- Construction is anticipated to begin in 2017.
See a map of the enhancement project HERE |
| MEMPHIS RELEASES STATE OF BICYCLING REPORT |
Since 2010, Memphis officials have worked to improve conditions for persons using bicycles and have embarked on an ambitious process to create new bike infrastructure throughout the city. The result of 71 miles of new dedicated bike lanes and shared-use paths are the result of increased bicycle usage (double the usage in 2008) and improved safety (number of accidents reduced by thirty five percent since 2008). The release of this report is coupled with an update to the website including maps and locations of upcoming projects and a new section on the city's Green Lane program. A PDF of the report is available HERE. |
| | COMPLETE STREETS WORKSHOP PRESENTED TO KNOXVILLE CITY COUNCIL
Monika Miller and Caroline Cooley presented a workshop on Complete Streets to Knoxville City Council on February 27th, 2014. The presentation was well received by the Council and they recommended that the city should proceed with developing a Complete Streets Ordinance. Bike Walk Knoxville looks forward to working with city and TPO staff on a task force that will draft an ordinance.
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| | CALL FOR SUMMIT SPEAKERS 
As announced last month, speakers for this year's Tennessee Bike Summit include Nashville Mayor Karl Dean, NYC Department of Transportation Assistant Commissioner, Kim Wiley-Swartz, and Jim Sayer, Executive Director of the Adventure Cycling Association! With these, and other great speakers still to be determined, this year's Summit is shaping up to be the best yet! Call for Speakers: Bike/Walk Tennessee and Walk/Bike Nashville are looking for workshop speakers and presenters. If you work in a field related to bike infrastructure, business, advocacy, or tourism and want to speak at the Summit, let us know! Email Walk/Bike Nashville for more information. And remember, don't forget to register for this years Tennessee Bike Summit and/or Tour de Nash n May 14-17, 2014. |
| RIDE TENNESSEE'S USBR 23 THIS SPRING! |
 As part of the promotional phase of developing USBR 23 in Tennessee the Fat Old Guys On Bikes, the cycle club for non racers in Hendersonville, TN, is doing a supported credit card tour from the KY/TN state line at Mitchellville, TN to Ardmore, Al. No fee, just pay your own expenses. Besides having a good time, the purpose of the ride is to document points of interest, hazards, and facilities along the way. The first night can be spent in the Nashville Downtown Hostel, usually reserved only for persons living more than sixty miles from Nashville. The ride dates are Thursday, April 24 through Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Currently there are twenty nine registered riders, with plenty of room for more. Riders registering before April 15 can become part of the group planning. Anyone interested should email USB...@gmail.com for further details. 
| U.S Bike Route 23 |
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| | | This past December, Hume-Fogg junior Elena Zamora was fatally struck by a tractor trailer while crossing at a pedestrian crossing. Recently, the office of District Attorney General Victor "Torry" Johnson III recommended that the driver be charged with Failure to Yield Resulting in Death, Tennessee Code Annotated Section 55-8-197. The police department has since charged the driver under that section, emphasizing the need to prioritize pedestrian safety. |
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Become a Member of Bike Walk Tennessee today!  |
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