Bike/Walk Alliance for Missoula

42Ride Pedals Challenge to Benefit Alliance for Biking and Walking

Washington, DC - June 19, 2009 Forty-two bike enthusiasts taking off this month across the country, are pedaling a challenge to people along to way to support grassroots biking and walking advocacy. The 42Ride, sponsored by 42BELOW Vodka, wants tweeters to follow the ride on Twitter. If 100,000 sign up as followers on Twitter, 42BELOW will make a $42,000 donation to the Alliance for Biking & Walking, 42 cents per person. Learn more at www.PeoplePoweredMovement.org/42below

Tips For New Bike Commuters

Bill Schneider at New West has a good list of tips for people who want to learn how to commute by bike. He's been riding for more than 30 years but recently asked other folks why they don't ride. In response, he created the list at this link. With gas prices rising again, make sure to share this with your friends!

New bike lanes on Stephens

Good news on a busy road: the Montana Department of Transportattion (MDT) has repaved the section of Stephens between Brooks and Mount and added nice new 5 foot wide bike lanes! To do that, MDT narrowed the "travel lanes" from 13 feet wide to either 10 or 11 feet. The result is a nicer passage way for cyclists on this important north-south route. Thanks to Doug Moeller (the new MDT district director) and his crew for making these changes -- and to BWAM members and Bob Giordano at MIST for requesting the lanes.

Bike Lanes: Orange Street

As many of us know, Missoula has some bike lane issues. There are critical gaps in the system and at times maintenance could be better. There’s one gap BWAM and others are trying to close on Orange Street, between the bridge over the Clark Fork River and 6th Street (where bike lanes resume on Stephens). With prodding from BWAM and others, the City and MDT has painted a "fog line" 4 feet from the face of the curb on Orange Street. This has created a symbolic division for cyclists without providing any of the legal protections afforded by a designted bike lane. While this may be better than nothing, we continue to advocate for 5 foot bike lanes, especially when more permanent lanes are striped later this year. BWAM sent a letter to MDT.

At issue now is a very firm statement by MDT that the motor vehicle travel lanes will not be reduced below 10'. This will preclude the establishment of two 5' bike lanes on this section of Orange St. Options that have been mentioned and are under examination:

1. Leave the fog line markings and live with the current situation.
2. Remove the fog line and paint "sharrows" on the road and add additional bike route signs to help educate all travelers that this is a shared road.
3. Provide and mark one bike lane northbound, shifting lanes as necessary to provide 2 10' northbound, 11' center left turn lane, 10' inner southbound, and 13' outer southbound with "sharrows" and signs to indicated a shared lane.

We need to provide a united voice to the City and MDT regarding the best way to encourage safe cycling through this important corridor. Please share your thoughts by sending them to Bike/Walk Alliance for Missoula 3Pteam@bikewalkmissoula.org

7th Annual Ride of Silence

UPDATE: Thanks to the 20 cyclists who attended the 2nd Missoula Ride of Silence. We consider the ride very successful with great cooperation from most of the motor vehicle drivers who passed us during the ride.  Most drivers allowed a significant safety space as they went by.

BWAM is organizing the Ride of Silence in Missoula for the second year. The Ride Of Silence is an International free ride that asks its cyclists to ride no faster than 12 mph and remain silent during the ride. There is no brochure, no sponsors and no registration fees. The ride, which is held during Bike Safety month, aims to raise the awareness of motorists, police and city officials that cyclists have a legal right to the public roadways. The ride is also a chance to show respect for those who have been killed or injured.

The Missoula Ride of Silence will begin in Caras Park at 7:00 PM. Please arrive by 6:45 PM. The ride will last approximately 1 hour. For more details click to MIM Social Network Events.

Click for more information about the world wide Ride of Silence.

The Missoula Greater Downtown Master Plan is nearing completion.

Working together, Bike-Ped advocates achieved a small goal at the Missoula Redevelopment Agency board meeting on Wednesday, March 18! Representatives from BWAM, MIST, MAST, Bike-Ped Board and UM Transportation voiced their concerns about the Broadway Street language in the Greater Missoula Downtown Plan to the MRA board and were heard! After an extended discussion, the MRA board members passed a resolution to support the Downtown Plan with the exception that the Broadway Street language be changed from the specific 4-lane option to a continued public discussion provision. Thanks to the MRA board members for listening to our concerns and taking appropriate action. The public comment meeting previously scheduled for April 7 has been moved up to probably May. Keep informed on developments, and plan to come.

BWAM Member goes CarLESS!

Lewis Kelley has committed to being without a car for the next year. Follow his blog to see how he navigates Missoula via biking, walking, and transit.

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