Portland bike box

Rob D’Amico with the League of Bicycle Voters is asking that all Austin cyclists contact the Austin City Council to support bike boxes, sharrows, painted bike lanes and Bikes May Use Full Lane signs.

This Thursday, City Council agenda (item 29 and item 30) contains a little $97,000 item that carries a lot of weight for the future of bicycling in Austin. To put it simply, the item authorizes a study by transportation professionals to evaluate the use of sharrows (shared lane markings), bike boxes, painted bike lanes, and most importantly, Bikes “May Use Full Lane” signs.

Although there has been a lot of research on most of these facilities (except perhaps for the signs), a local study is important to develop criteria for use, and in the instance of sharrows, is part of a process required by the feds to approve their use. The study’s cost is covered by bike bond money from the year 2000, so it’s not taking away from the city’s general coffers. But unfortunately, there have been a few rumblings questioning the study and/or cost.

That’s where you come in. Here are a few simple steps in order of priority:

1. Send an email to the City Council

Write the council now at http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/council/groupemail.htm and tell them:

a. Why bicycling is important to you and our city (e.g. meets goals of Mayor’s fitness council, curbs greenhouse gases for climate protection, makes our city more livable, etc.)

b. Why the study is important (e.g. these facilities will propel Austin forward in its efforts to encourage bicycling and make it safer)

c. These items were approved by the Street Smarts Task Force and are high priorities for Austin bicyclists.

d. Please also include the “ready-to-go” bicycle facility items on the recovery stimulus package, which would invest in our ability to provide affordable, sustainable and environmentally friendly transportation.

2. Send a copy of that e-mail to City staff.

Copy your Email to council before you send it and email the same as a cc: to important city staff:
annick.beaudet@ci.austin.tx.us; rob.spillar@ci.austin.tx.us; howard.lazarus@ciaustin.tx.us;michael.curtis@ci.austin.tx.us

3. Call the City Council

If you have the time, a phone call would help as well. Here’s the contact info for all the council members. They all serve at-large so you can call any of them or all of them. Just ring their office and tell their staff your are calling to support Item #29, the CTR Bicycle Study and Item #30, the bicycle facilities on the economic recovery stimulus list.

Mayor Will Wynn- (512) 974-2250

Place 1 Councilmember Lee Leffingwell- (512) 974-2260

Place 2 Councilmember Mike Martinez- (512) 974-2264

Place 3 Councilmember Randi Shade- (512) 974-2255

Place 4 Councilmember Laura Morrison- (512) 974-2258

Place 5 Councilmember Brewster McCracken- (512) 974-2256

Place 6 Councilmember Sheryl Cole- (512) 974-2266

4. Sign up to support the items at Thursday’s meeting

Sign up in support of the item for Thursday’s council meeting. (You may sign up simply as a supporter, or to speak. Speaking will only be necessary if the item is pulled from the “consent” agenda. The meeting starts at 10 a.m. Thursday at City Hall, but you may sign up in the city hall lobby kiosks as early as Wednesday.)