URGENT: Call Rep Miller TODAY to help preserve bicycle funding
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John Lindenmayer
Feb 1, 2012, 10:18:13 AM2/1/12
to LMB Region 2, LMB Region 9
Cycling Friends,
URGENT: House Bill Reverses Decades of Progress on Bike/Ped
Take Action:
http://capwiz.com/lab/issues/alert/?alertid=60926721&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id]
It's so much worse than we thought.
Yesterday, the House released its transportation bill, the American Energy and Infrastructure Act. As a Member of the Committee, Congresswomen Candice Miller (Huron, Sanilac, Lapeer, St Clair & Macomb Counties) is in a key position to save dedicated funding for biking and walking. If you live in her district, please contact her today and ask her to vote to preserve biking and walking by supporting the Petri amendment.
When we posted our action alert last week <http://www.lmb.org/index.php/Blog/ask-congresswoman-candice-miller-to-preserve-biking-and-walking.html>, we knew the bill would be bad news for biking and walking. But we didn't think it would go so far as to completely cut every reference to bicycling and walking out of the federal transportation policy.
Why the urgency? House leaders are exerting pressure to completely cut bicycling and walking out of transportation. Lawmakers seem to have gone through line-by-line to gut programs that make streets safer. Some of the more devastating provisions in the bill include:
But we can still save biking and walking in this bill. On Thursday morning, in the Transportation Committee, Representative Petri (R-WI) and Representative Johnson (R-IL) will stand up for bicycling and walking by offering an amendment that restores dedicated funding for Transportation Enhancements and Safe Routes to School. Reps. Petri and Johnson can only be successful if everyone with a stake in safe sidewalks, crosswalks, and bikeways contacts their Representative on the Transportation Committee again today to urge them to vote YES on the amendment!
This is as urgent as it gets! Even if we do win this amendment, there will be a long road ahead. But if we lose here, we risk losing decades of progress.
We know we are asking a lot of you and we thank you for all you're doing to preserve biking and walking.
Please pass this along to all your local contacts-particularly high-level contacts like mayors, school board members and business leaders-and ask them to weigh in too. Thank you so much for your quick action, and we'll keep you posted.
Action Steps:
--
John Lindenmayer
Advocacy & Policy Director
League of Michigan Bicyclists
(517) 334-9100
416 S. Cedar St, Suite A
Lansing, MI 48912
www.LMB.org
Facebook: http://facebook.com/LeagueofMichiganBicyclists
Twitter: http://twitter.com/mibicyclists
URGENT: House Bill Reverses Decades of Progress on Bike/Ped
Take Action:
http://capwiz.com/lab/issues/alert/?alertid=60926721&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id]
It's so much worse than we thought.
Yesterday, the House released its transportation bill, the American Energy and Infrastructure Act. As a Member of the Committee, Congresswomen Candice Miller (Huron, Sanilac, Lapeer, St Clair & Macomb Counties) is in a key position to save dedicated funding for biking and walking. If you live in her district, please contact her today and ask her to vote to preserve biking and walking by supporting the Petri amendment.
When we posted our action alert last week <http://www.lmb.org/index.php/Blog/ask-congresswoman-candice-miller-to-preserve-biking-and-walking.html>, we knew the bill would be bad news for biking and walking. But we didn't think it would go so far as to completely cut every reference to bicycling and walking out of the federal transportation policy.
Why the urgency? House leaders are exerting pressure to completely cut bicycling and walking out of transportation. Lawmakers seem to have gone through line-by-line to gut programs that make streets safer. Some of the more devastating provisions in the bill include:
- Destroys Transportation Enhancements by making the program optional
- Repeals the Safe Routes to School program, reversing years of progress in creating safe ways for kids to walk and ride bicycles to school
- Allows states to build bridges without safe access for pedestrians and bicycles
- Eliminates Safe Routes to School coordinators and bicycle and pedestrian coordinators in state DOTs
- Eliminates language that insures that rumble strips "do not adversely affect the safety or mobility of bicyclists, pedestrians or the disabled"
But we can still save biking and walking in this bill. On Thursday morning, in the Transportation Committee, Representative Petri (R-WI) and Representative Johnson (R-IL) will stand up for bicycling and walking by offering an amendment that restores dedicated funding for Transportation Enhancements and Safe Routes to School. Reps. Petri and Johnson can only be successful if everyone with a stake in safe sidewalks, crosswalks, and bikeways contacts their Representative on the Transportation Committee again today to urge them to vote YES on the amendment!
This is as urgent as it gets! Even if we do win this amendment, there will be a long road ahead. But if we lose here, we risk losing decades of progress.
We know we are asking a lot of you and we thank you for all you're doing to preserve biking and walking.
Please pass this along to all your local contacts-particularly high-level contacts like mayors, school board members and business leaders-and ask them to weigh in too. Thank you so much for your quick action, and we'll keep you posted.
Action Steps:
1) Not sure if your in Rep. Miller’s district? Put in your zip code here:Additional Talking Points:
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/findyourreps.xpd
2) Sign your name to the action alert using the the following link
http://capwiz.com/lab/issues/alert/?alertid=60926721&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id].
3) AND even more importantly, personally call Representative Miller’s office to urge her to support this amendment.
4) Lastly, I strongly urge you to look through your personal rolodex and call any and all bicycling supporters who would be considered influential members of the community such as elected officials, community leaders, business owners, etc to ask them to make a similar call. Please reach out to any riding buddies, shop owners, club leaders, event organizers, etc within her district, but especially those considered to be “grass tops”. This is an all hands on deck moment for bicycling!
DC Office: 202-225-2106
- State flexibility is at the cost of local control - mayors impacted because they can't get the money
- Cutting enhancements isn't a real cut (no less money going into transportation)
- We aren't asking for new $ - just to keep the small sliver we have.
--
John Lindenmayer
Advocacy & Policy Director
League of Michigan Bicyclists
(517) 334-9100
416 S. Cedar St, Suite A
Lansing, MI 48912
www.LMB.org
Facebook: http://facebook.com/LeagueofMichiganBicyclists
Twitter: http://twitter.com/mibicyclists
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