This morning the League of American Bicyclists awarded Portland with platinum level recognition as a Bicycle Friendly Community, rising from our previous gold level status. The only other city in the US with platinum level recognition is Davis, California. What better reason to get on your bike? Take a spin to celebrate and stop by Ben and Jerry's for the unrelated -but-perfectly-timed Free Cone Day! Read on for more information including biking maps, details from the city's application for platinum status, and--ok ok--the locations of Ben and Jerry's.
The League cited double-wide bike lanes as Portland's most significant recent accomplishment, saying "Their bicycle use numbers
reflect this, having experienced their third consecutive year of
double-digit growth. The city auditor estimates that 16 percent of
Portlanders use the bicycle as either their primary or secondary means
of transportation to work."
Want to start biking? Download the full color neighborhood bike maps from City of Portland and get pedaling to one of our local bike shop couponers! Community workshops on bike commuting are available through the Bike Transportation Alliance, which also hosts a number of resources and tips on how to ride safely.
Shift is hosting a celebration ride starting at the downtown Ben and Jerry's at 5pm. There's also word of a celebration party later this week, check at bikeportland.org for more information.
Ben and Jerry's free cone locations:
SE Hawthorne and 36th Ave
39 NW 23rd Place
524 SW Yamhill (location of the Shift ride)
301 NW 10th Ave
Some of the Portland community highlights, from the League of American Bicyclists (read the full list at their site):
• Portland’s bikeway network includes 270 miles of on-street bike
lanes, bike boulevards, and paved trails; another 40 miles of unpaved
trails offer mountain biking opportunities in city parks.
• Six bike corrals have been installed, each replacing one on-street car parking space with 12 bicycle spaces.
• 400 bikeway destination signs have been installed (with 400 to come) on the bikeway network.
• More than 400 bicycle light sets are distributed annually to
low-income bicyclists by the city, Tri-Met (the transit agency) and the
Community Cycling Center.
• 2,250 elementary students annually receive a 10-hour bicycle safety
course as part of a larger Safer Routes to School initiative. The
course is delivered by the Bicycle Transportation Alliance and has
helped increase bicycling to school by 5% in just one school year.
• More than 9,100 people participated in the 2007 Bicycle Commuter Challenge, including 1,700 first-time bike commuters
• 20,000 participants in the Providence Bridge Pedal make Portland home
to the second largest community bike ride in the United States (after
Bike New York).
• 2,000 hardy riders fill the annual Worst Day of the Year ride in early February.
• The Bicycle Transportation Alliance boasts 3,000 members in the city
and is just one of many advocacy and riding groups that organize
thousands of rides, events and bicycling activities year-round.
• The city boasts 40 bike shops and more than 150 bicycle-related
businesses that provide thousands of green-collar jobs and with an
economic impact of more than $65 million (2005).