The Pitch’s Carolyn Szczepanski has a great profile of Matt Urlaub, the KCAI student responsible for the bike art at 43rd and Main and elsewhere around Midtown. I had the pleasure of meeting Matt a couple months ago.  He’s a great guy doing some really cool work.  I can’t wait to see his student show in May.

Governor Nixon has once again put the Tour of Missouri on the chopping block, despite the fact that it has a huge return on investment – more than a $30 million economic impact from a $1.5 million investment of state tax dollars.  With the state facing a $700 million budget deficit and local communities in great of the Tour’s infusion of tourism activity, it should be a no-brainer to make an investment with such a high ROI.

Join Support the 2010 Tour of Missouri on Facebook and spread the word.  Then stay tuned for an upcoming advocacy campaign.

Fortunately the Kansas City, MO City Council recognizes the important impact of the Tour, and it just passed a unanimous resolution of support calling on the Governor not to kill the Tour.  The resolution was introduced by Councilmember Beth Gottstein and co-sponsored by Russ Johnson, Jan Marcason, Terry Riley, Bill Skaggs, John Sharp, Kathy Jolly, Cindy Circo, Melba Curls, Ed Ford, and Mayor Funkhouser.

Read Resolution #100205

Today is a National Day of Action in support of your delegates to the National Bike Summit.  Please call and/or email your Congressional representatives.  It’s easier than you think, and doesn’t take much time.

Get all the details at the Missouri Bicycle and Pedestrian Federation.

This year the Missouri delegation has a record 11 people here in DC.  We’ve also adopted Doug Polson of the Johnson County Bike Club, the only delegate representing the entire state of Kansas.

Today at the National Bike Summit, Google is announcing the long-awaited addition of bicycling directions to Google Maps.  KC coverage is really good.  They have most of the BikeKC network, even though it isn’t signed yet, plus all of the suburban trail systems. Google plotted this route from Swope Park to Downtown, which is pretty close to how I do it myself.

In Google Maps, just click on the “more” button in the upper right to get started.

Continue reading ‘Google Maps gets bike directions, including KC’

Tonight Columbia, MO Mayor Darwin Hindman received a lifetime acheivement award at the National Bike Summit. Hindman was an early champion of the Katy Trail, and the 70-plus mayor still bikes daily.

The Missouri Department of Transportation recently started the process of developing a bicycle and pedestrian plan for the MoDOT Kansas City District.  The goal is to identify some key issues and needs, and then start identifying specific corridors and locations for construction.  And most importantly, start budgeting for bike/ped improvements on the state highways in and around Kansas City.

While it might sound kindof mundane, it’s actually a very significant development for MoDOT.  And it will result in actual construction of new facilities and improvements to existing roads. The core team developing the plan includes MoDOT engineers, local government agencies, and bike/ped advocates.

Stay tuned for more details on opportunities for public input.  The whole process is moving quite quickly, and will result in a final plan around June of this year.

We’ll be Washington, DC this week with the Missouri delegation to the National Bike Summit, including meetings with Senators Bond and McCaskill and Congressmen Cleaver and Graves. The agenda includes Complete Streets, Safe Routes to School, and better funding bicycling and walking as transportation modes. And I hear there might finally be a Kansas representative attending the Summit this year.

National Virtual Lobbying Day
Mark your calendars for March 11th, when bike advocates from across the country will be calling their Congressional reps in DC. More details to follow.

Watch this space for updates and photos, and be sure to follow KCBike.Info on Twitter.com/kcbikeinfo and Facebook.com/kcbikeinfo.

On March 11th there will be a screening and panel discussion of Contested Streets, a powerful documentary showing how modern cities can be redesigned to put people first, not cars. Two local streets will be selected for further study of how to re-imagine them as “green streets” designed for human livability.

Panelists include KCMO City Councilmember Jan Marcason and a group of urban planners and landscape architects.  This is a must-see event for anyone interested in bicycle/pedestrian issues, sustainability, urban development, etc.

Designing Streets for Living
Thursday, March 11th, 5:30 p.m.
American Institute of Architects – Kansas City
1801 McGee Street, KCMO 64108 in the Crossroads District

The event is sponsored by the Kansas City Design Center, the American Institute of Architects – Kansas City, and the Mid-America Regional Council. Boulevard Brewery is proving free refreshments.

Download the event poster (PDF)

Uncertainty over federal transportation funding has caused MoDOT to delay opening bids on several projects, including the bike/ped retrofit on the Chouteau Bridge over the Missouri River. Hopefully the delay will be short-lived and not impact the scheduled construction start in May.

The nearby Heart of America Bridge retrofit is not effected, as the construction contract has already been awarded.  Construction is still scheduled to begin this spring.

Congress is currently debating a extension of the current system while they work on a sweeping revamp of the entire transportation funding system.

The Star has details of the local projects facing  possible delays.

Streetsblog Capitol Hill has more background information on the federal situation.

MoDOT press release.

State Senator Jolie Justus has introduced a bill to add bicycles to the list of items in the annual back-to-school tax holiday. The goal is to make it a little easier for students to have safe, affordable, and healthy transportation to and from school.  The idea came from Family Bicycles on Wornall.  MoBikePed has more details.