Spinning Wheels: Cincinnati Bike Month 2013 & Cincinnati Bike Advocacy

The following post comes courtesy of Global Site Plans' The Grid. CNU and Global Site Plans recently teamed up to syndicate Grid content, as its contingent of writers presents a view on the opportunities and issues of urbanization all across the world. CNU will carry select posts from the Grid direct on the CNU Salons.

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 The Month of May in Cincinnati celebrates cyclists & cycling in all forms – ushering in hundreds of events hosted by local bicycling advocates including theCity of Cincinnati, Queen City Bike, Mobo Bicycle Coop and many other bike friendly businesses such as Park + Vine. This year, wheels are spinning, and gears are shifting into place as cycling enthusiasts take to the streets to take advantage of community sponsored events, which work to increase visibility of bicycling and promote cross-collaboration between the city’s many urban cycling groups.

The success of Bike Month, in many ways, is owed to a dramatic shift in changing attitudes & public perception about bicycling, which have taken place in recent years. 

Bicycling advocacy in Cincinnati has undoubtedly reached a critical juncture in its history due to vested support from the City of Cincinnati Bicycle Transportation Program. The ambitious city program, according to the program website “…has successfully implemented many projects, including striping 10 miles of bicycle lanes, installing over 450 bike racks, creating 20 miles of shared-use paths/trails, posting 23 miles of bicycle routes, upgrading 231 miles of streets with bike friendly stormwater inlets, and installing 5 miles of shared lane markings, or “sharrows.”The Bicycle Transportation Plan, approved in June 2010, outlines three phases of development designed to create “445 miles of on-street and off-street facilities” over the course of the next 15 years. Shown below is an interactive map of current bike routes in Cincinnati.

The plan, which is designed to create a “coordinated strategy,” is also being helped even more from the recent development of a Mobile App, (released by the City of Cincinnati), which allows cyclists to report incidents and harassment on the road. The App encourages feedback.

Most enjoyable about seeing the Bike Plan & Bike Month in action is participating in one of many public bike events like the Thursday Night Slow & Steady Ride, which teaches people to ride in an urban environment – taking place weekly on Thursday nights at 7:30PM. For more information on how to participate in Bike Month, please visit their calendar.

How are urban planners and engineers supporting bicycle advocacy in your city? Is bicycling an important part of your daily commute? Please respond with your thoughts.

To read the original post, written by Geoff Bliss, visit Global Site Plans.