HomeMy WebLinkAbout09-14-10 South Bend named as a Bicycle Friendly Community
Office of the Mayor
NEWS RELEASE
September 14, 2010
2 p.m.
South Bend named as a Bicycle Friendly Community
Contact:
Mikki Dobski, Director of Communications & Special Projects, 235-5855 or 876-1564 or
Chris Dressel, Bicycle Coordinator, 235-9371
In an elite quality-of-life measure, South Bend today became the first community in northern
Indiana to be designated a Bicycle Friendly Community by the League of American Bicyclists
for its “remarkable commitment” to promoting bicycling.
The designation places South Bend among 158 communities in 43 states (four in Indiana) for
their demonstrated ability in providing safe accommodation for cycling and encouraging
residents to bike for transportation and recreation. Together, they represent the top one-half of 1
percent of the nearly 30,000 incorporated U.S. cities.
“This award is presented only to communities with remarkable commitments to bicycling,” said
Bill Nesper, director of the Bicycle Friendly America program for the League of American
Bicyclists, one of the largest U.S. membership associations of cyclists. “It is great to see the
bicycle-friendly bar being raised in communities across the nation.”
“We’re proud of this
national recognition of
the progress we’ve
made in South Bend
with the development
of trails along the St.
Joseph River and bike
lanes in our city
streets,” said Mayor
Stephen J. Luecke. “We will continue to work with our partners in the bicycling community,
such as the Bike Michiana Coalition and Bike the Bend, to increase bicycling alternatives and
make South Bend a more livable community.”
Photo: Mayor Stephen J. Luecke, surrounded by bicycling advocates and South Bend Bike Coordinator Chris Dressel, announces
that South Bend has been designated a Bicycle Friendly Community by the League of American Bicyclists.
Earlier this year, the first Bike the Bend drew nearly 1,800 recreational bicyclists to the streets of
South Bend, Mishawaka and St. Joseph County. South Bend also became Indiana’s leading city
for commuting by bicycle, according to 2008 U.S. Census statistics.
South Bend was among 18 new Bicycle Friendly Communities, which were chosen from 48
first-time applicants. South Bend received a bronze designation in its second time applying,
where larger cities like Baltimore, Md., and Knoxville, Tenn., received the designation after
three applications.
“The most exciting thing about this round of awards was seeing communities that had
implemented past feedback, improved their communities, and achieved a Bicycle Friendly
Community designation,” said Andy Clark, League president.
Currently, South Bend has established 52.4 miles of bicycle routes within the city. The network
consists of 12.7 miles of multipurpose trails, 15.8 miles of striped bicycle lanes and 23.9 miles of
designated on-street routes. For more information, visit www.SouthBendIN.gov/bike
The Bicycle Friendly Community program provides incentives, hands-on assistance and award
recognition for communities that actively support bicycling. South Bend’s application was
prepared by Chris Dressel, the City of South Bend’s bicycle coordinator, with support from
Michael Divita, a planner with the Department of Community of Economic Development, and
members of the Bike Michiana Coalition.
South Bend joins Bloomington, Carmel and Indianapolis/Marion County as the only Indiana
communities with the designation. All are designated at the Bronze level, except Bloomington
which today was awarded a Silver designation. Communities designated for the first time today
(all at the bronze level) are:
?Baltimore, Md. ?Fayetteville, Ark. ?Menlo Park, Calif.
?Carbondale, Colo. ?Golden, Colo. ?Oakland, Calif.
?Chapel Hill, N.C. ?Gresham, Ore. ?San Antonio, Texas
?Charleston, S.C. ?Houghton, Mich. ?Sanibel, Fla.
?Concord, N.H. ?Huntington Beach, Calif. ?Santa Clara, Calif.
?Durham, N.C. ?Knoxville, Tenn. ?South Bend, Ind.
The three-year designation (up for renewal in July 2014) is based on a detailed application that
provides a comprehensive picture of a community’s commitment to bicycling through
engineering, education, encouragement, enforcement, and evaluation/planning. Communities
must demonstrate achievements in each of the five categories for designation. Communities with
more significant achievements receive superior awards.
Three communities – Boulder, Colo., Davis, Calif., and Portland, Ore. – are designated at the
Platinum level, 10 at the Gold level, 28 at the Silver level and the rest at the Bronze level. Only
six Midwestern cities are ranked above the Bronze level. Also today, the League of American
Bicyclists announced a new program to designate Bicycle Friendly Universities.
In the last eight years, commuting by bicyclists in communities designated as Bicycle Friendly
Communities has grown by 70 percent, according to the League. An estimated 2.29 percent of
South Bend commuters traveled to work by bicycle in 2008 – a percentage that exceeds national
averages, including for Bicycle Friendly Communities, according to the Census Bureau’s 2008
American Community Survey. In addition, the total number of South Bend residents who used a
bicycle to get to work (993) surpassed every other Hoosier city except Indianapolis. Among
th
Midwestern communities, South Bend ranked 6 for bicycle commuting.
The League of American Bicyclists promotes bicycling for fun, fitness and transportation, and
works through advocacy and education for a bicycle-friendly America. The League represents
the interests of America’s 57 million bicyclists, including its 300,000 members and affiliates. For
more information, visit www.bikeleague.org or
http://www.bikeleague.org/programs/bicyclefriendlyamerica/communities/
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