Northampton BFC Feedback 2008
Feedback on Northampton’s application to be designated a Bicycle Friendly Community
The Bicycle Friendly Community review committee was impressed with the potential
and growing commitment to make Northampton a great place for bicyclists. The
Honorable Mention given by the reviewers reflects their view that some of the key
building blocks of creating a bicycle friendly community are in place but that significant
measures remain to be done.
Some of the highlights of the application were expansion of the trail network with
emphasis on connectivit y, “Do the Math” campaign, use of unique pedal-powered trash
collection and the formation and efforts of the Safer Streets Taskforce. Northampton is on
the road to being a Bicycle Friendl y Community, and these efforts show the ambition to
make Northampton into a world-class cycling city.
The most significant measures the city should take to improve cycling in the community
are:
• Create and implement a comprehensive bike plan and continue to close gaps in
the cycling network. Also, expand the encouragement, education, and
enforcement programs to increase usage. Set an ambitious, attainable target to
increase the percentage of trips made b y bike in the city.
• Implement a Safe Routes to School program that includes bicycling and
encourage all schools to get involved. In Arlington, Virginia every school in the
County was visited by a team with representatives from Department of Public
Works, the Police and Schools to access conditions for walking and biking to each
school. A list of problems and solutions was developed measures were identified
to address problems. Short-term projects such as painting crosswalks were done
right away while larger construction projects are on-going. Funding is available in
the federal transportation bill, SAFETEA-LU, among several other sources at
both the federal and state levels. See www.saferoutesinfo.org for more
information.
• Establish a Bicycle Advisory Committee that coordinates with the city and
bicycling advocacy community.
Reviewers provided the following suggestions to further promote bicycling:
Engineering
• Hiring a full-time bicycle and pedestrian coordinator would greatly increase the
amount of work that can get done in the community. Current efforts could be
complemented by a full-time staff person devoted to making the community
bicycle-friendly.
• Increase the number of arterial streets that have wide shoulder or bike lanes.
Continue to expand the bicycle network and increase network connectivity
through the use of bike lanes, shared lane arrows and signed routes. On-street
improvements coupled with the expansion of the off-street system will continue to
increase use and improve safety. These improvements will also increase the
effectiveness of encouragement efforts by providing a broader range of facility
choices for users of various abilities and comfort levels.
• Ensure that new and improved facilities to accommodate bicyclists conform to
current best practices and guidelines – such as the AASHTO Guide for the
Development of Bicycle Facilities.
• Adopt a Complete Streets policy. Every street should accommodate bicyclists,
pedestrians, motorists and transit users of all abilities and ages.
http://www.completestreets.org/
• Set up additional trainings for city staff and area consultants on bicycle facility
design and planning. Consider a membership to the Association of Pedestrian and
Bicycle Professionals www.apbp.org for city Bicycle and Pedestrian Staff.
Training opportunities and the listserv provided by this organization are excellent
resources.
• Increase the amount of secure bicycle parking throughout the community – in
addition implement a regulation that requires bike parking. The Chicago DOT
used a federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) grant to provide
indoor bike parking in Loop offices and parking garages. For more information on
this project see http://www.chicagoareaplanning.org/cmaq/default.asp
• Work to improve the access to public lands for mountain bicyclists as well as the
connectivity of the bicycle network to these open spaces.
Education
• Improve the reach of the community’s bicycle safety campaigns. Use valuable
information from the League’s Ride Better Tips in your outreach education and
encouragement efforts. See the Ride Better Tips pages at
http://www.bikeleague.org/resources/better/index.php , PSA’s
http://www.bikeleague.org/programs/bikemonth/psas.php and the downloadable
Bicycle Safety Tips for Adults video at
http://www.bikeleague.org/programs/education/shortversion.wmv
• Continue to improve bicycling education opportunities for children and adults. BikeEd
can be integrated into motor vehicle violation diversion programs, Safe Routes to School,
as well as motorist education classes for city employees.
Encouragement
• Expand encouragement efforts during Bike Month. Have the Mayor and/or the
City Council proclaim May as Bike Month.
• Encourage local businesses to promote cycling to the workplace. During Bike to
Work Week set up a commuter challenge or bike to work pit stop. For more
information on encouragement ideas please visit
http://www.bicyclefriendlycommunity.org/tech.htm Olympia, Washington holds a
Bike Commuter Contest during Bike Month and encourages people to participate
in the month-long Contest to see who can ride the most number of days or miles
in the month of May. The growth in participation has been stunning. Olympia also
offers city employees a $2 per day incentive for commuting by bike (as well as
for walking, riding the bus or carpooling). Each year, approximately 50 to 60 of
the City's 600 employees participate in the Bicycle Commuter Contest.
• Develop a series of short (2-5 mi.) loops rides around the community and provide
appropriate way-finding signage. Integrate these rides into local bike map.
• Use bicycling and bicycle tourism as an economic development tool. As you have
in your application the city is looking at code modifications to increase bicycling,
“By attracting bicycle enthusiasts and simultaneously encourage non-sedentary
behavior of its residents.”
• Look for new and innovative ways to incentivize bicycling. See your BFC
application and work to implement these great ideas.
Enforcement
• Ensure that police officers are aware of the Share the Road message and have
general knowledge regarding traffic law as it applies to bicyclists. Host
Enforcement for Bicycle Safety seminar
http://www.bicyclefriendlycommunity.org/popup/enforcement.htm. This is a great
continuing education opportunity for law enforcement.
• Encourage police officers to use targeted enforcement to encourage motorists and
cyclists to share the road. This could be in the form of a brochure or tip card
explaining each user’s rights and responsibilities.
• See the video put out by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA)http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/portal/site/nhtsa/menuitem.810acaee50c6511
89ca8e410dba046a0/ Here are some Law Enforcement Products
Law Enforcement's Roll Call Video: “Enforcing Law for Bicyclists”
Enhancing Bicycle Safety: Law Enforcement’s Role (CD-ROM Training)
Evaluation/Planning
• Work to improve data collection methods on bicycle usage and crash statistics and
evaluation of this data.
• Evaluate the bicycle usage and crash statistics to produce a specific plan to reduce
the number of crashes in the community.
• Work with mountain biking community to develop a plan for off-road access and
increase opportunities for single-track riding within the city