September 1, 2003 Volume 14 No. 3 Issue #54

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From the Chairman:
Summer’s gone, kids are back in school, the lazy hazy days of Summer ire behind us & we gear up for serious endeavors like Bike/Ped Advocacy. This is our 54th edition of ‘Pedal Power.” A few of us wrote, edited, printed, folded, stapled, labeled, stamped & mailed this so you will have copies before our next meeting on Sept. 8. We know that close to 90% of our 125 members get most of their info about Bike/Ped stuff from this publication, so that is why we work so hard to get our facts straight & get it to you. Please take the time to read it, mark your calendars & join us at some of our/your events. This edition covers many topics: the chance of losing TEA-21 federal funds, tight SHA/MDOT budgets, improvements on US#1 in front of IKEA, rides - including one with our County Exec, the Bike/Ped caucus, CPABC Web-Site, Bike/Ped improvements, & more...

We’ve tried to figure out our new Governor & Sec of Transportation & admit they don’t appear supportive of our Bike/Ped needs. Funds are tight but we want them to realize that Bike/Ped facilities don’t cost much if done with new or re-construction projects. Bike/Ped/Street Scope/Safe Routes to school projects give a tremendous return for the investment & go directly to those who don’t have autos or have to walk. We agree with this administration that pedestrian safety is a top concern. We’ve met with Neil Pedersen, new SHA Administrator, and will try to work together to keep Maryland moving in the right Bike/Ped direction. Our goal here at CPABC is to create a seamless multi-nodal transportation system serving everyone in our diverse communities. Other areas of the country manage to do it & Maryland should not lag behind. We made progress but have a lot more to do. Please join us! Believe or not, it’s very enjoyable & rewarding work. Hope to see you at one of our CPABC meetings (next one’s Mon 9-8) or on one of our rides.

Thank you all for your strong support!

Bill Kelly, Chairman

Ride with Prince George's County Executive Jack Johnson

Please come ride with our County Executive Jack Johnson Friday, September 5, 8:30 AM at beautiful Lake Artemesia in College Park. We’ve found that if you can persuade your government official to take a bike ride with you and see the community “over the handle bars” they can get a different outlook than from a car. We’re fortunate to have our new County Executive agree to get to know us on this short ride. We will also talk about bike/Ped facilities and see how we can work with him on his “Livable Community Concept.” We are so fortunate to have so many Bike/Ped advocates available to work with our dedicated elected officials. We want Jack Johnson to meet these talented folks and let him know he is fortunate in having this group available and so willing to work with him and his County Government/Elected Officials to make/continue Prince George’s Co. as a real model to follow. We are also asking that the County Executive meet with us later in the Fall for a longer meeting/discussion so we can lay out better plans on his “Livable Community Concept.”

So if you are available please joint us on Friday Sept. 5 at 8:30 AM. Lake Artemisia’s Parking Lot can be reached off of Kenilworh Ave., south of the Beltway Exit 23 B to Pontiac St. Right/west to 57th St. into Berwyn Rd. to the parking lot adjacent to the Metro/CSX tracks. Hope to see you there. Light refreshments will be served.

bike4breastcancer proudly presents the 2003 Greenbelt Pink Ribbon Bike Ride

Sylvia Lewis and the Greenbelt folks are holding their 2nd bike4breastcancer ride on Saturday October 4, at 9:00 AM starting at the Roosevelt Youth Center in Old Town Greenbelt (Southway c& Crescent Rd). Cost is $25 and proceeds go toward breast cancer research. There are 4 rides: a 2 mile ‘white’ ride to Greenbelt Lake, a 10 mile ‘yellow’ open farm country ride through the agriculture center; a 20 mile ‘blue’ open fields route to the Patuxent Wildlife Refuge, and a 40 mile ‘pink’ ride on the WB&A trail (on-road & off road, BARC, wild life, old Bowie, NASA Goddard).

A fun family type of ride that all riders can enjoy!

For more info: 301/474-3635 or sylvialewis@bike4breastcancer

Status of TEA-21 - Transportation Enhancement for the 21st Century

A big question everywhere is “will federal funds be available to continue Bike/Ped projects?” The House Appropriations Committee passed a measure July 24th to eliminate funding for the popular Transportation Enhancements Program from the 2004 federal transportation budget. This program dedicates a small portion of each States s annual federal funding to community-initiated projects such as multi- use paths, bike improvements, sidewalks, streetscaping and renovation of historic transportation structures. Since 1991, over 16,000 projects have been constructed with these funds. More than half of these TEA-21 funds have gone to safer Bike/Ped projects. All major bicycle organizations are contacting Congress to keep these much needed funds. Amendments are slated to be introduced when Congress returns in September to rescind the TEA-21 eliminations. The crux of the change is, instead of being mandatory to distribute funds with all multi-modal transportation projects, states’ contribution to Bike/Ped projects would be voluntary - and much less likely to happen.

Write-call-e-mail your Congresspersons for their support on TEA-21!

For more on this go to www.americabikes.org

Is Maryland Spending Enough on Their Highways?

In following the TEA-21 story, other questions on our SHA/MOT come up. A recent report from the General Accounting Office says Maryland does not spend enough to build and maintain its roads. We all know about everyday grid-lock. According to the report, the state spent $510 million in 2,000. That’s $250 million less than national average and roughly half 1991’s two-decade high of $990 million. So, where are spending our highways funds? We certainly have not spent much on Bike/Ped facilities and don’t see much new rail/bus transportation projects. But the state spent nearly $2 Billion the last few years adding more parking spaces to BWI airport. Where this money comes from is not fully known to us. Is it transportation funds or is capital improvements funds? We do know that Governor Ehrlich took nearly $500 million out of the state’s transportation fund to balance the general fund. Will the Governor put. this $500 million back? We all agree more money is needed in our transportation fund, but a small portion, of it needs to go to Bike/Ped/Bus travel. We have neither the space nor the monies to build our way out of traffic congestion.

Slow Pace on Local SHA Projects

We’ve been following 3 State Highways (SHA) projects for the last year. First is the intersection of Powder Mill Rd (Mb 212) & Cherry Hill Rd in Beltsville. This busy crossing is adjacent to High Point HS, 2,200 students, and is a direct link between Montgomery and PG counties and was rebuilt with no full bike lanes, and half its crossways and sidewalks. We questioned this ‘Bike/Ped improvements.’ Renovation there will be starting on September 8. Another project is at University Blvd (Route 193) and Metzerottt Rd in College Park. When SHA improved auto access to the new Comcast Center at the U of M they built new lanes over the bike lanes, leaving no place for bike/ped travel. SHA agreed to narrow the five 12’ auto lanes to 11’and return a Bike/Ped shoulder. No word on starting date. The 3rd project is repaving of the roadway on Route 197 in Bowie between Powder Mill Rd and Old Bowie/Laurel Rd. This road is a popular Bike/Ped corridor, most of it between Laurel and Bowie with adequate 4’ shoulders. Two miles were repaved this summer. Though greatly appreciated, new edge lines were misapplied. Instead of a 4’ shoulder on each side, one is 4’ and the other is 2’. Apparently the center line was misplaced. We have asked SHA to reapply it correctly. Not an easy task but we expect SHA to correct their mistakes.

CPABC Still Unsure of Governor Ehrlich’s Support of Bike/Ped Travel

We are still trying to figure out where Governor Ehlrich stands on Bike/Ped travel. We’ve been asking if we can expect his support in keeping Maryland Bike/Ped friendly and have NOT obtained an answer after nearly 8 months. We met with his new Secretary of Transportation, Robert Flannagan, at the Md State Bike/Ped Advisory meeting in August, and are not happy with his statements. He said that Maryland is well behind in building roadways such as the ICC and needs to put nearly all its efforts in building more roadways. When asked where that leaves Bike/Ped, he said pedestrian safety was of great importance to the Governor and himself and they were looking to reinstate some of those safety programs. We really did not get an answer to where the bicycle fits in. The Governor also took nearly $600 million out of the transportation fund to put it in the general fund, leaving transportation short of the funds it needs build the ICC, let alone Bike/Ped improvements. We will keep trying to get Governor Erlich’s attention.

Merge Stahl Warren Injured

We are saddened to report that Merge Stahl Warren had a serious bike accident earlier this summer. Marge, the new bride of our good friend and WB&A Trail Founder, Morris Warren, sustained serious injuries during a triathion in Colonial Beach, Virginia. She was struck by an ambulance, breaking her leg, ankle and shoulder, and needs a tong convalescence. She is currently at the Crofton Convalescent Center, 2114 Davidsonville Road Crofton, Md. 21114. Cards and visits welcome. Keep Marge and Morris in your prayers and we’ll keep you posted on her recovery. She’s already talking about going to Australia in 2004!

CPABC Chairman Bill Kelly meets with New Administrator of SHA

Your CPABC Chairman met with Neil Pedersen, newly appointed Administrator of the State Highways Administration (replacing Parker Williams) in August. We have worked with Neil since 1988 on Bike/Ped issues. He has always tried to work with us and has included Bike/Ped components where possible. He now states that he will do whatever he can, within the Governor’s Guidelines, to keep promoting Bike/Ped issues as administrator. He claims that pedestrian safety is at the top of his list to improve and make pedestrian travel safer in Maryland. He has said that budget restraints make non-automotive travel harder to implement but believes in allowing Maryland residents alternate means of travel. We hope to meet with Neil again, in September with the Bike/Ped Folks of Maryland... Meeting set for 9-25-03 at 8:00 AM

Midnight Memorial Ride Saturday September 13
Larry Black is hosting another night bike ride downtown. Washington at night is a very pleasant and fun place to cycle. The group will be meeting at the 555 Pa. Avenue, NW. Folks are asked to use Metro and to return from one of the many

For further info check www.bikel23.com

WE NEED TO USE OUR NEW BIKE RACKS ON OUR BUSES!

CPABC, with many other groups, were quite successful in having 1,440 of our DC/Md/Va WMATA Metro buses equipped with bike racks on the front bumpers. We are very proud of this great accomplishment. But we are not yet seeing enough bikes on them as they travel around our communities. Montgomery Co installed their bike racks several years ago and it took a long time for bikers to understand how the racks work and use them. We are finding that there is reluctance to using the racks. First it’s not clear how the racks work and second is there a charge to use them? We are asking Bike/Ped groups and publications to print more articles on how-to-use the racks. So we are going to take our own advice and try to get the word-out. The Stainless Steel Racks are folded-up on the front bumpers on all Metro Buses in the Washington Metro Area. There is no cost to use the racks other than the $1.20 bus fare. You and your bike position yourself at the bus stop so the bus driver can see both. After the bus stops, step to the front of the bus and, if the rack is folded-up, hold your Bike with your right hand and grab the loop handle in the middle of the rack with your left hand and swing the rack down. Lift your Bike onto the rack, placing its wheels in the trough with the front wheel toward the S bar. Raise the spring-loaded S bar up and over the front tire and place it on the top of the tire near. Simple & fun! No bike has ever fallen off the any of these racks country-wide.

For further Metro bike: 202/637-7000 or www.wmata.com

CPABC Fall Ride is Sunday October 26

Our CPABC Fall Ride/Tour is Sunday October 26, leaving REI at 9 AM. We will continue with the unsupported concept of just meeting and riding. We did this for our Spring Md 500 and the ride turned out very well. We’ve done 15 years of these rides and find the work for supported rides overloading. So show-up and enjoy a peaceful ride through our beautiful County. We’ll stop in downtown College Park for coffee, bagels, and chat to see what you’ve done over Summer. Mark your calendar!

PROPOSED ON-ROAD” ADDITIONS TO COUNTYWIDE TRAIL PRIORITIES

Jim Titus, who serves on the BTAG and is a roller blade skater, sent us these proposals to make Route #50, #29, #3 commuter type corridors similar to route 66 in Va. Sounds good!

Proposed Trail: US-SO from the Anacostia River to the Patuxent River
Rationale: Most of the county trails are in some sense feeder trails. We need some major corridor trails into which they can feed, to make it reasonably feasible for people to bicycle commute into Washington. A trail along US-So could serve as the trunk line” that connects WB&A, Rt-3, Cabin Branch, and other mid-county trails into DC. Such a trail would be similar to the Martha Custis trail along Rt 66 in Arlington, which provides the W&OD trail users with a straight shot into Georgetown. Such a trail would also add length to many existing trails. depending on which side of the road it ran, it might also be a reasonably green trail - or a relatively quiet trail. Consider 4 segments separately, with the following suggested priorities:

1. New Carrollton Metro/Md-410 to Cheverly Metro. This should be the highest priority because, when combined with other planned trails, it would connect the WB&A trail to Cabin Branch and on to DC. With this segment (including the proposed park trail from Buena Vista to New Carrollton), the master plan would have an off-road trail from bC to Annapolis. This trail would also serve local bicycle traffic and better connect to the local metro stations for neighborhoods along Rt 50.

2. Md-3 to New Carrollton. This can be considered as one segment or two sub segments. The priorities depend largely on the level of interest of Bowie.

   a. Md-193 to New Carrollton Metro. This section would collect Folly Branch and Annapolis Road trail traffic with a short ride on Md-193. It would also provide a rationale for extending Folly Branch trail farther north. Assuming the proposed Buena Vista connector trail for the WB&A uses preferred route over USSO/I-495 flyover, US-SO trail would probably have at-grade crossing at MLK and follow ramp to flyover into Metro, and then take Ardmore-Aardwick to East-West to get back to US-SO right-of-way.

   b. Md-3 to Md-193. This section would provide a direct route from new Bowie to New Carrollton and DC, picking up both the new Md-3 trail and the city trail system at Md-193.

3. Md-3 to the Patuxent River. As with the WB&A, what we do would probably depend on Anne Arundel County. The County would have many reasons to extend such a trail Eastward, including increased access to the County’s Md-3 trail, and the prospect of bike tourism from DC.

4. Cheverly to the Anacostia River. Similarly, this would depend on what DC wants to do. If we ever get to the point where we have a system of feeder trails leading up to DC, or look like we are close, the Md delegation would probably have to help us get funding for a trail to downtown. Many possible routes exist for such a trail.

WABA’s Bike D Bike Ride on Saturday September 20

Mark your calendar for WABA’s giant bike ride, Bike bC-2003, Saturday September 20. Join thousands of cyclists on a 12 mile Family Ride or the 30 mile River Ride for a 100% car-free tour of the monumental spaces, river fronts, and neighborhoods of Washington, DC. Proceeds from this tour go to support the advocacy efforts of the Washington Area Bicyclists Association(WABA), who has been working since 1972 to make the Washington area More Bike/Ped Friendly. The ride starts at 10th and Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Registration is limited to the first 10,000 participants who register. Registration is $40.00

For further info call WABA at 202/628-2500.

Visit the WABA Web-site www.waba.org 

IKEA Bike Lanes on US#1 Completed - A Model to Follow
We are pleased to announce that the new state-of-the-art bike lanes are finished on US#1 in front of our new mega IKEA store. The original old four lane highway was expanded to six lanes each way, with a raised 16’ grass center/medium, with 16’ curb lanes striped at 11 for autos and 5’ for safe Bicycle travel, with sidewalks on both sides. “Pocket Lanes” were also installed to allow straight throughout Bicyclists a safe place to travel when crossing right-hand turning lanes. SHA has installed Bicycle signs to ask the motorist to be aware of Bicyclists and yield to their travel. This section of US# us just over mile long and is a model for the rest of US#1 to follow from the Beltway to the U of M. This portion of US#1, inside the Beltway, will remain two lanes each way but will have 16’ curb lanes. The City Council of College Park voted recently in favor of building a US#1 that will have Bike Lanes, raised medium and allow all users to travel safely on this busy roadway. The section inside the Beltway is not funded yet and it will be years before we see any construction there.

We thank IKEA and their generous contribution of $10 million dollars to SHA to fund a US#1 highway the way new and reconstructed highways should be built. We have the increased traffic but have a beautiful furniture store, with a great 240 seat cafeteria, and a nice addition to our community.

Maryland House of belegates Bike/Ped Caucus Meeting Shortly to discuss Upcoming Bills

The Maryland Bike/Ped Caucus which was formed earlier this year under the able leadership of Delegate Justin Ross(Greenbelt) and its nearly 40 House Members and 7 Senate Members will meet next month to discuss upcoming Bike/Ped legislation for the coming 2004 legislation session. CPA BC has been quite successful over the past fifteen years in developing and passing Bike/Ped legislation that has improved Bike/Ped Travel in Maryland. Before Bike/Ped legislation was passed sidewalks and Bike Lanes were not even considered in highway construction. Since legislation was passed, in the 1990’s, we are now seeing sidewalks and Bike Lanes, such as we have on U5#1. Make no mistake we would not be seeing Bike Lanes and sidewalks on US#1 if these laws had not been passed in the 1990’s with a strong assist from your CPABC Coalition. We are asking the Bike/Ped Caucus to review the existing Bike/Ped Laws and encourage their enforcement. We have found the Legislator has done an excellent job passing the needed Bike/Ped laws but there is a breakdown on the enforcement of these important laws. Delegate Justin Ross tells us he will be working with us to enhance and improve Bike/Ped Travel in Maryland. We are all aware that transportation funds are scarce and we are going to have to work even harder to keep ahead of gridlock.

Will keep you posted of the 2004 Annapolis Legislative Session starting in January 2004. Mark you calendars for our 7th Annual Bike/Ped Symposium in Annapolis on Wednesday February 4, 2004.

Schedule of Events - Poll 2003 Schedule of Events
• Fri. Sept. 5, 8:30 AM, Ride with County Executive Jack Johnson - Lake Artemesia
• Mon. Sept. 8, 7:30 PM, CPABC Meeting - College Park REI
• Sun. Sept. 7; OHBTC Indian Head 100 Southern Md. Century www.ohbike.org/century 
• Sat. Sept. 13, 9:30 PM Downtown Moonlight Monument Ride larry@bike123.com
• Tues. Sept. 16, 1:00 PM Washington COG Meeting in DC - Mike Farrell 202/962-3760
• Sat. Sept. 20, 9:00 AM WABA’s District Ride (Bike DC) 202/628-2500 waba
• Thurs. Sept. 25, 8:00 AM Meeting with SHA Administrator IKEA US#1 & Beltway
• Sat. Oct. 4; bike4breastcancer Bike Ride, Greenbelt, Md. 301/474-3635
• Fri. Oct. 10, 10:00 AM MBPAC Advisory Committee - Baltimore MDOT
• Sun. Oct. 26, 9:00 AM CPABC Fall Bike Ride www.cpabc.org
• Mon. Dec. 1, 7:30 PM CPABC Meeting College Park REI www.cpabc.org
• Wed. Feb. 4, 2004 Annapolis Symposium No. #7  www.cpabc.org
 

Previous newsletters:

• #52 - March 2003
• #51 - December 2002
• #50 - September 2002
• #49 - June 2002
• #48 - March 2002
• #47 - December 2001
• #46 - September 2001