Category Archives: State

Election Survey: California Bicycle Coalition

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10898011_768627483174762_7302232925429568161_nMake Your Voice Heard!

On June 7th, Californians will vote to elect new members of the state legislature and to choose candidates in the presidential primaries. There are 35 races where the California Bicycle Coalition could endorse a candidate. Locally you can get information and give input via Bike The Vote L.A and follow them on twitter @BIKETHEVOTE.  It’s vital that the bike community speak up and come together to elect bike champions to office. Together we gain the political capital in Sacramento to win the ambitious agenda led by the California Bicycle Coalition. With the right people in office, we can win huge increases in bike funding to complete networks of low-stress bikeways, win complete streets policy with teeth, not just simply disjointed projects with bike lanes here and there.

We invite you to be heard and do your part to help get the right people in office.

1. Register to vote now (especially if you’ve moved in the past year)
2. Fill out this survey so California Bicycle Coalition can learn how best to involve you, politically.

The California Bicycle Coalition enables more people to bicycle for healthier, safer, more prosperous communities for all.

California Bicycle Coalition is a 501(c)(4)
Santa Monica Spoke, LACBC and it’s chapters are all a 501(c)3 that can not and do not endorse political candidates.

NON-PROFIT BIKE-VOTE-INFOGRAPHIC

AB 902, Bicycle Traffic Violation Diversion Programs signed into Law!

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The California Bicycle Coalition has been working with lawmakers, including the bills author ur own Assemblyman Richard Bloom in Sacramento throughout the legislative session to get California to allow bicycle ticket diversion programs for adults*. The diversion programs allow the option to reduce fines for people ticketed on bikes. People ticket on bikes will now be able to take a bicycle education class in the same way drivers of motor vehicles have been allowed to opt for “Traffic School”.

We have good news: Thanks to the work done by California Bicycle Coalition - We won!

Yesterday Governor Jerry Brown signed into law Assembly Bill 902, to allow reduced fines for adults who take a bicycle education class. This is huge news and one we have been championing in Santa Monica for many many years. Now with this new law it can further encourage bike riding, make enforcement more equitable, while also helping boosting people’s confidence, knowledge and skills. The California Bicycle Coalition couldn’t have won this bill without it’s members, affiliates and outspoken advocates. We urge you to join the California Bicycle Coalition and help us win more laws that encourage bicycling.

Now that we have won at the state level, implementing diversion programs in Los Angeles and Santa Monica is now in our court. AB 902 goes into effect on January 1, 2016, and it’s up to us and our local partners, advocacy groups and you to make sure that our local police departments adopt diversion programs in our city.

We invite you to support the California Bicycle Coalition, and our local bicycle advocacy. We can only move this work forward with supporters like you!

*Currently only minors can opt for traffic diversion for bicycle traffic tickets.

Call to Action: Bills to transform how California funds bikeways

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Calbike FundingOur California Bicycle Coalition has two hugely important bills that will transform how California funds bikeway projects. Here’s what these laws would do:

  • Implement a Complete Streets policy for state funding: We are thankful to Senator Jim Beall for including sensible complete streets provisions in SBX 1-1 that will make the wisest use of road maintenance funding by including “new bicycle and pedestrian safety, access, and mobility improvements” in every project funded by the state. It calls for sidewalks and protected bike lanes or bike paths in transit-dense areas on most roads with a speed limit over 25 miles per hour.
  • Increase dedicated funding for biking and walking: Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia, Autumn Burke, and David Chiu’s ABX 1-23, doubles the size of the Active Transportation Program (ATP) with a $125 million increase. The ATP is the sole source of state funding dedicated to biking walking and Safe Routes to School projects. Last year, the ATP was underfunded by nearly $800 million for shovel-ready walking, bicycling and safe school access projects. ABX 1-23 also includes a bike network grants program that will support local agencies to build whole networks that connect every destination in communities like yours with an unbroken web of bike paths, protected bike lanes, and quiet bicycle boulevards.

Now we need your help. Contact your state Senator and Assemblymember now to let them know that you support implementing strong “complete streets” policies to ensure that state funding is being spent to build protected bike lanes, increasing the Active Transportation Program, and creating a state program to give cities large grants to build out entire bike networks.

Do you want a California Bicycle License Plate?

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CA bike license plate

The California Bicycle Coalition is pursuing a bicycle-oriented special interest license plate program for motor vehicles in California. Will you please take our brief survey and let us know what you would like most?

Please help set the vision for the bicycle-themed specialty license plate program, and create a popular design, by filling out the survey at calbike.org/licenseplate. Help the California Bicycle Coalition get a sense of how many interested Californians will help us win the license plate campaign.

TAKE THE SURVEY

 

Action Alert – Tell your legislators NOW – more ATP funding!

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The state Active Transportation Program (ATP) is the funding source for creating safe streets, sidewalks, and trails so that Californians can bicycle or walk to wherever they want to go. Local demand for ATP funding far outpaces the amount allocated in the budget, and many communities lack safe routes for biking and walking.

On May 14 (Bike to Work Day in LA and the Bay Area), the Governor released his latest budget proposal. We were disappointed to learn that the ATP did not see an increase in funding. Earlier this spring, the California Bicycle Coalition and 120 organizations statewide called for adding $100 million to the Active Transportation Program.

There is a clear need for increased funding. But despite an increase of more than a billion dollars in available revenue, the governor failed to recognize that need.

On Wednesday May 20th our champions in the Assembly budget committee stepped up and proposed a $25 million increase the the ATP. The California Bicycle Coalition and our partners statewide are rallying in support of the Assembly proposal, and pushing for it to be reflected in the final budget, which will be adopted by June 15.

We have one chance to get the entire Legislature to counter Governor Brown’s proposal and increase the ATP. Help us rally behind our champions in the Assembly so that all Californians can enjoy the freedom of walking and bicycling safely in their communities. Here’s how to help:

  1. Pledge your support at bit.ly/IncreaseATP
  2. Call your Senator and Assemblymember and tell them to encourage legislative leadership to adopt the Assembly’s proposal to increase the ATP.
    Our Santa Monica Representatives:
    •       State Assembly (District 50) Assembly Member Richard Bloom
    •   State Senate (District 26) Senator Benjamin Allen
    Find your representative here: findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov
  3. After you call, email your representatives to follow up, and please be sure to cc increasetheatp@calbike.org