cyclegram nov/dec 1992

8/16/2019 Cyclegram Nov/Dec 1992

1/6

New sletter of the Bicycle Coalition of the Delaware Valley

Of ic er s of the Philadelphia Police Department s bicy-

cle patrol pose with their 21 -speed Schwinns.

Coalition Helps City Police

Get Bicycle Patrol Rolling

Philadelphia Police have trainer. Th e Coalition also

s tarted bicycle pat rols in donated pol ice-on-bike

Center City with help from

manuals and videos.

the Bicycle Coalition. Police cite many benefits

In a letter to the Coalition, of bik e pa tr ol s: fa st er

Ce nte r Ci ty response time

D i s t r i c t

Police say the new

in congested

C o m m a n d i n g a re a s; b e tt er

Off icer Lt .

bicycle patrol access to

W i 1 1 i a m g ives thema alleys, parks

Schmid wrote, special edge in and plazas ;

Because of the fighting rime b e t t e r

help of . . .yo u r i n t e r a c t i o n

o r g a n i z a t i o n , downtown. with the

the Pol ice public than

Department's Bicycle Patrol

patrol cars; wider coverage

is now a reality. than foot patrols; and quieter

Coalit ion member Gihon app roac hes to surprise

Jorda n worked with police criminals.

for more than a year to help Bi ke pa tro ls also hav e

institute the program and is

econom ic advan tages

now the of f icers ' b ike (Continued on p.2)

PATCO Agrees to Tryout

For Bike on Rail Program

It took two years, but the Coalition inally

convinced the agency to let bikes on trains.

After two years of

Coal i t ion lobbying, the

PATCO High-Speed Rail

line will open a one-year trial

b ike-on-ra i l program in

November.

The program gives the

Delaware Valley the most

New Jersey Transit trains

from Lindenwold to Atlantic

City. The PATCO line also

will provide a crucial

nighttime link for cyclists

over the Delaware River and

a fast connection between

the New Jersey suburbs and

bic yc le- ac ce ssi ble rail Center City Philadelphia.

network in the nation.

For a permit application,

Although the PATCO line

write to Robert G. Schwab,

is only 14 mi les long, i t

PATCO General Manager,

provides a cr i t ica l l ink Adminis t ra t ion Bui ld ing,

between SEPTA lines and

Lindenwold, NJ 08021.

City Agencies: Connect Trails,

Improve Facilities for Cyclists

The Fa i rm oun t Pa rk

Commission and the City

Counci l Transpor ta t ion

Commit tee have each

released an ambitious plan

for a citywide network of

bikeways.

The two agencies have

submitted the plans to the

Bicycle Coalition for review

and comment.

The Fairmount Park plan,

the more detailed of the two,

calls for a 12-foot bike path

on the median of Roo.-

Boulevard in the .;ast

and entire

r

systems

for F-

~

nd Cobbs

Creek parks. The plan also

calls for improving existing

t ra i l s and c omple t ing the

Valley Forge Trail.

I t a l so places a h igh

priority on building a bicycle

t ra i l connector a t the

W issah ickon Fa l l s

in terchange, where the

Wissahickon Trail meets the

M anayunk Tow pa th and

Kelly Drive.

The Faim~ount ark plan

proposes tying together the

c i ty ' s f i ve m a jo r pa rks

through a network of

connect ing recrea t ional

(Continued on p.2)


2/6

Upcoming vents

Monthly Meetings

and focus on in te rna l

Genera l mem bersh ip

business . The publ ic is

me et in gs are held the welcome.

second Monday of each

The

next board meeting

odd-n um bered mo nth is Dec. 14.

from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at

ycZegram Deadline

the offices of Clean Water De ad lin e for the

A ct io n, 1 51 8 W alnu t J a n u a r y I E e b r u a r y

Street in Center City. C y c l e g r a m i s Nov. 30.

Take the elevator to the D ea dli ne s a re the last

13 th flo or , w ith yo ur Monday of odd-numbered

bicycle, if you prefer. months.

T h e n e x t g e n e r a l

Mailing Party

membership meet ing is M ail ing par t ies are

Nov.

9

scheduled for W ednesday,

Co al i t i on board Nov.

5

and Wednesday,

me et ings are held the Dec. 30. Cal l 215-545-

second Monday of each 335 0 to confirm dates ,

even -num be red mo nth times and location.

Cvclearam. NovemberI ecember 992 13 2

Coalition Helps Bicycle Patrol Roll

Co ztinued por n

p.1)

police can outfit between 15

and 20 officers on bikes for

the cost of one police car.

Schmid wro te tha t the

patrol has given police that

'special edge' we needed in

the center city area.

The patrol m embers

Sgt. Walt Livingston and

officers Tanlmy Sperber, Joe

McCabe , Dan Dutch and

Larry Aust in ide 21-

speed Schwinn Paranlount

mountain bikes.

With the patrol .

Philadelphia becomes one

of about 400 U.S. cities with

police on cycles.

Amon g those with a hand

in c rea t ing the pa t ro l :

Schrnid, Sgt. Bob Orr. Capt.

John Col l ins , Inspec to r

Frank Pryor , Depu ty

C o n l m i s s i o n e r T h o m a s

Seamon and Commissioner

Richard Neal.

Also p lay ing a pa r t :

C o r e s t a t e s B a n k a n d

Fraternal Order of Police

Lodge

5

pitched in to buy

the bikes and Gold Medal

Sport ing Good s provided

accessories.

T h o m a s J e f f e r s o n

hosp i ta l p rov ided hea l th

advice and Tim Carey of the

Philadelphia Bicycle Club

and Lee Rogers of Bicycle

Therapy helped train police

in safe riding and mountain

bike skills.

City A gencies Plan Improvements

Continued rom

p.

1 )

trails, including a Roosevelt

Boulevard b ikeway . The

report notes that a system of

clear, easy-to-follow trails

will enable cyclists move

throughout the c i ty with

ease.

The creation of a well-

organized bicycle system

will also improve the quality

of l ife in Philadelphia by

decreasing congestion and

improving air quality, the

park report says. In fact.

s tud ies have found tha t

people would be willing to

use b icyc le rou tes more

frequently if they were easy

to fo l low and p rov ided

connection to ma jor areas of

the city.

T h e C i t y C o u n c i l

Transportation Comnlittee

has p repared a repor t

Cycle gram is publish ed bimonth ly by the Bicycle Coalitio n of the

Delaware Valley, P.O. Box 8194, Philadelphia, PA 19101. The

Coalition is a volunteer, non-profit organization working to improve

conditions for bicycling throughout the tri-state area, promoting

bicycling for transportation and recreation, and dedicated to a

balanced transportation system. Coverage of an event not sponsored

by BCDV does not constitute an endorsement. Cyclegram may

be

reproduced

in

whole or in part provided prominent credit is given to

the Bicycle Coalition of the Delaware Valley.

Cyclegram is printed on recycled paper using soy ink.

Board of Managers John Dowlin, N ancy Drye, Bob Noland, Sam

Spofforth, Fred Ulmer, Ro b Waterland and Noel Weyrich

ex

oficio).

Executive Director Sue McNamara 2151545-3350)

President Noel Weyrich 215/232-7543)

Vice President Fred Ulmer 2151527-6287)

Secretary Rob Waterland

2151854-8137)

Treasurer Nancy Drye

215P87-9242)

Editor Bill Shralow

2151627-1566)

Membership Director

Bob Noland

2151483-6547)

Committees

Auto-free: Jeff Abraharnson 2151662- 17 12 )

Bike Lanes: Noel Weyrich 2151232-7543)

Rail and Transit: Noel Weyrich 21 5/232-7543)

Traffic Safety: Bob Noland 2151483-6547)

Long-range Planning: Sam Sp ffo rth 215P87-1724)

Wu catiodSa fety Infom~ ation: ally Berriman 21.51272-5139)

BCDV is affiliated with the League of Am erican Wheelmen.

A

cover ing t ranspor ta t ion

issues for the ent i re c i t )

with 22 major s t ra tegies .

inc lud ing one ca l l ed

Encourage Bicyc l i s t s .

This section recommends

initiatives fo r developing

a

bikeway ne twork .

increasing bicycle facilities.

promoting employer-based

ameni t i e s fo r b ike

c o m m u t e r s , p r o m o t i n y

sa fe ty educa t ion , and

con ~ple tion f the Fairmount

Park recreational trails.

The City Council repon

notes that social acceptance

of bicycling as a 'true fonn

of t r anspor ta t ion ' i s

continua lly increasing. As

inlprovements to enhance

sa fe ty , secur i ty and

c o n v e n i e n c e e n c o u r a g e

more b icyc l i s t s , soc ia l

acceptanc e will no longer be

a bam er issue.


3/6

Around the World

O n Two Wheels

may ma

Announcing the CycleIR ecycle Calendar for 1993.

Compiled by an international coalition of bicycle

advocacy groups, including BCDV , this beautiful, easy-

to-read calendar features photographs of people around

the world using bicycles as both practical and

recreational vehicles.

It also illustrates the strides advocacy groups have

made in gaining bicycle access~b~litynd acceptance.

To get your copy, please send 10.00 to:

Blcycle Coa lition of the Delaware Valley

P.O. Box 8194

Philadelphia, PA 19101 8194

Coalition s 1991 Election Survey

Is Praised in National Magazine

The Bicycle Coal i tion 's regarding the Coal i t ion 's

1991 Philadelphia election stra teg y of extr acti ng

stra teg y was giv en promises f rom candidates

prominent play as a mod el and following up when they

of smar t lob byi ng in the reachoffice .

August edition of Bicycling T h e m ag az in e pri nte d

Magazine. f ive que st io ns f rom the

N e l s o n P e n a ' s B i k e C o a l i t i o n ' s Fa l l 1 9 9 1

Advoca te co lum n quo ted ques t io nna i re fo r

Coa l i t ion Presid ent Noel Phi ladelphia mayoral and

Weyr ich ex ten s ive ly C i ty Counc i l cand ida tes .

Continued on p.

5 )

Cvclearam

NovemberIDecember 992

p.3

Letter from the President

It Will Take Plenty of Effort

To Make Plans ear Fruit

y Noel Weyrich

Over in England they

happen.

have a great expression

There is no shortage of

fo r "Ge t go ing " They

creative thinking in these

sav . "G e t on

t w o d o c u m e n t s .

I

had

your bike " nev er heard

I thought of

o f a b ike

this expression

t r a i l

wh ile go ing proposed for

over the

the median

Fairmount Park

of Roosevelt

and City

B o u l e v a r d ,

C o u n c i l

b u t s u c h a

bicvcle nlans. t r a i l would

r 7

both re leased

in draft form last month.

I f we play ou r cards

right, these two plans will

se t the agenda fo r the

Delaware Valley Regional

P l a n n i n g C o m m i s s i o n

bicycle-pedestrian plan.

Tha t p lan , se t to be

completed in the next 18

m o n t h s o r s o , w i l l

basical ly guide bicycle

development in the entire

region through 2015 and

beyond.

And if we all "get on

our bikes ," these plans

will become reality.

That ' s the dif ference

between regu lar plans and

plans that happen, you

know. A fai led plan is

usually one that everyone

liked but no one broke a

swea t fo r . Tha t ' s the

Bicyc le Coa l i t ion ' s

cha l l enge : To b reak a

swea t on beha l f o f the

reg ion ' s cyc l i s t s and

make the regional plan

prov ide an

e x t r a o r d i n a r y l i n k a g e

b e t w e e n l o w e r B u c k s

County and the Northeast

p a r k s . P e n n y p a c k a n d

Tacony Creek. The City

C o u n c i l p l a n l i s t s a

variety of employer-based

a m e n i t i e s f o r b i k e

c o m m u t e r s t h a t c o u l d

provide important models

for the region.

It is heartening to see

our f r i ends in C i ty

C o u n c i l a n d t h e p a r k s

consider these and other

proposa l s . Bu t I a l so

know too well that ideas

are a

dime a dozen, and

that, frankly, these things

don't stand a chance of

becoming rea l i f the

C o a l i t i o n d o e s n o t

continue to grow bigger

and stronger.

We 've a l ready

q u a d r u p l e d o u r

menlbership to 800 in the


4/6

w l e a r am November/Decem ber 1992 p 4

horo

by Ken Yamviak

Sue Mc Nama ra, an artist who lives in Center Ciry, is

the new1executive director of the Bicycle Coalition.

Coalition Gets New Exec Director

The Bicycle Coalition has

a new executive director,

Sue McNamara of Center

City.

McNamara replaces Jeff

Abrahamson, who held the

post for two years.

M c N a m a r a h a s b e e n

involved with the Coalition

for the past thr years. She

is a graduate student in the

ceramics residency program

at the University of the Arts

at Broad and Pine.

Before r e tu rn ing to

schoo l th i s f a l l , she had

worked for thr years at the

University of Pennsylvania

as coordinator of summer

programs for h igh school

students.

Previously , McNamara

taught second grade a t a

public school in Camden,

N.J. and also taught rt at a

school for disabled children.

Ab r a h a ms o n . wh o

recen t ly jo ined an

inves tmen t f i rm as a

computer analyst, directed a

membersh ip d r ive tha t

s we l l e d t h e C o a l i t i o n ' s

ranks from 160 to more than

8 0 0 me mb e r s in t h e t wo

years he served as executive

director.

Letter from the President

Making Plans Blossom Takes Sweat

Continuedfiomp. 3

p a s t t wo y e a r s a n d wo n

some significant victories,

b u t we ' v e g o t t o k e e p

g r o wi n g t o me e t t h e

challenge of seeing all these

plans to implementation:

I wrote this last fall and

I ' l l write i t again: If you

went traveling this summer

and saw bicycle anlenities in

o the r c i t i e s tha t l e f t you

d iscouraged abou t th i s

a rea ' s r e la t ive b icyc le -

unfr iendl iness , you must

understand that nothing you

saw e l sewhere happened

without a concerted effort

by local cyclists.

And nothing will happen

here without the same kind

of concerted effort. Help us.

Call and off er to volunteer.

Get your friends to join.

Tomorrow is ours if we

get on our bikes r-day.

Coalition Lobbying Pays Off

As PennDOT Rethinks

Delaware Avenue Bike Lanes

Persistent lobbying by the

Bicyc le Coa l i t ion has

prompted PennDOT to send

its Delaware Avenue road

des igne r back to the

drawing board.

Fol lowing a September

meeting with representatives

of the city and the

T h e C o a l i t i o n t h e n

n o t i f i e d P e n n DOT i n

Augus t tha t i t wou ld

cons ide r f i l ing a f ede ra l

lawsuit to block the project

i f i t d id not include safe

p r o v i s i o n s f o r n o n -

motorized vehicles.

Federa l t ax

Federal PennDOT had

dollars will pay

A dm ini str ati on , 80 percent of the

P e n n D O T ignored pro jec t ' s cos t

ins t ruc ted the

Coalition pleas

and federal law

designer for the

for more than

s t a t e s t h a t a i r

Delaware Avenue

qual i ty , energy

I m ~ r o v e m e n t o e f f i c iency and

Proiect to review NOW,he the needs of the

theplan s and see agency has sent

s

c i a 1

if bicycles can

itS

designer d i s a d v a n t a g e d

accon~modated, mu st be

accord ing to back to the cons ide red in

William Moyer drawing board such projects.

assistant secretary to

The Coalition

.

f o r

bike lanes.

i s a l so seek ing

engineering. the sup po rt of

The coa l i t ion

state and federal

ha s b een pre ssi ng f o r lawmakers Rpresenting the

bicycle lanes on each side of ar ea . T h e $1 7 m illion

the road when i t rebui lds pro jec t wi l l rebui ld

Delaware Avenue next year. D el aw ar e A ve nu e fr om

P e n n D OT h a s r e s is t e d R e e d S t r e e t i n S o u t h

Coalition appeals for more Philad elphia to Richm ond

than 10 months.

Street in Kensington.

Don t forget to send enclosed postcard

Please take a minute and

f i l l ou t the enc losed

pos tca rd to Ph i l ade lph ia

Po l ice Con ln l i s s ione r

Richard Neal and then mail

it off.

T h e p o l i c e d e p a r t me n t

has worked with the Bicycle

Coalition of the Delaware

Valley to make police on

bicycles a rea l i ty in

Philadelphia (see story on p.

1).

We're often sending out

cards to officials who have

done something, or not done

something, to impede the

cause of cycling. Let them

know we appreciate it when

something goes right.


5/6

Cvclearam Novem berIDecem

ber 992 p 5

Last Minute Cash from Suburban Counties Averts SEPTA Cuts

A quick infusion of cash doz ens of oth er agen cies

promoted off-peak ridership.

East and Fox Chase l ines

from suburban counties has testified at a SEPTA hearing

SEPTA proposed ending

and v astly cutting service on

averted a SEPT A plan to that proposed service cuts wee kend se rvic e on the otherlines.

reduce or eliminate evening would be counterpmductive. Nor ristow n, Ch est nu t Hil l

and weekend service on its Philad elph ia city officia ls

regional rail lines. arg ue d tha t

SEPTA

could

C~alifioIl raised in National Press

Just days before a S EIT A

b o a rd v o t e S e p t .

24

t h e

suburban counties agreed to

fund SEFTA with $300,000

more than requi red by a

fo rm u l a t h a t c o n s i d e r s a

recent ridership decrease.

Earlier in September, the

B i c y c l e C o a l i t i o n a n d

save money wi th be t t e r

m a n a g e m e n t a n d b y

p ro m o t i n g o f f -p e a k

ridership through programs

such

s

Bike-on-Rail.

Coalition President Noel

Weyr i ch t es t i f i ed tha t

SEPTA can 't justify service

c u t s b e c a u se i t h a d n ' t

Continuedfiomp. 3 )

T h e q u e s t i o n s i n v o l v e d

issues such s a city bicycle

advisory committee, bicycle

routes and impmved bicycle

parking. Those issues are

n o w p a r t o f c i t y

transportation initiatives and

plans.

P e n a n o t e d t h a t a

Bicycl ing reader ' s survey

found that 83 percent wish

that local governm ent would

support cycl ing more. He

added that "Wishing won't

c r e a t e a g o o d r i d i n g

envi ronme nt , i n f luenc ing

politicians will."

COMMUTER OF THE MONTH:

Maintenance Man Larry Monroe

Name Larry Monroe

Age 50

Residence 15th and Carpenter

streets. Philadelphia.

Job Janitor. University of the

Arts

Broad

and Pine.

Years b icycle commuting

Eight.

Commuting frequency Every

day.

Distance

About a mile and a

half each way.

Route Broad Street

Reasons for s tart ing I

just

love to ride

m y

bicycle and fig-

ured I could start everyday by

doing something

I

elljoy.

Seasons you ride All. usual-

ly ride in the rain. don 't ride in

the snow.

I

don't wear any spe-

cial foul weather clothing.

Bike A basic Murray (1 -speed

with coster brakes).

Parking I

park my bike in the

Great Hall at the University.

It's a large, beautiful room that

is really the centerpiece of the

school.

Home storage

I n

the kitchen

of my apartment.

Any special gear None.

Biggest commuting gripe

Broad Street is a busy road, but

it's okay to ride on if you watch

out for the cars and people

opening car doors. The road is

wide enough, however, to

accomodate the traffic, parked

cars and bicycles, if you are

careful.

Most memorable b icycle

com m u t i n g exp er i en ce

A

long time ago, I ran into a car

on 15th Street. Someone had

called out to me, "Hey Larry "

and I looked over to wave. A

car had stopped in front of me.

I

hit it and went flying over my

handlebars. I wasn't hurt and

the driver of the car was very

nice. t just reminded me of

how you really have to pay

attention to what you are doing

when you're in the road.

Advice to people who would

like to begin commuting to

work by bicycle It's a great

thing to do.

Most e njoyable thing about

bicycle comm uting I 've k e n

riding a bike to get around

since I was a little kid. I don't

see why people stop doing it

when they become adults.

Besides king fun, it keeps you

in shape

p oto y

en

Yanoviak


6/6

embership

Name

Address

City State ip

Telephone

I am voluntarily setting my m embership d ues at the

following level:

1$100 $50 $35 $25

other ($10 limited incom e)

Amount enclosed:

Please also send me

Delaware Valley Comnturers' Bicycle Map

( 5.75/ 5.25 members)

Bottle Bill T-shirt (LIXL, an or blue)

( 61 5members)

Total enclosed:

c5

M ak e Check payable to Bicycle Coalition and send toM em -

bership BCDV P.O. Box 8194 Philadelphia PA 19101.

Inside .

City police start bike patrol w ith Coalition's h elp ............... . 1

PATCO agrees to trial bike-on-rail progra m

p.1

......................

...............

ity agencies plan big improvem ents for cycling

p. 1

...

Letter from the President: Only sweat make s plans a reality

p.3

PennDOT finally bends on Delaware Avenue bike lanes ..p.4

Coalition has new e xecutive director

...................................

.4

Com mu ter of the Month .5

Don t miss

an

issue.

~ryou're not already a

mem ber, join now with the form at left and put your money to

work improving bicycling in the Delaw are Valley

Your membership includes a one year subscription to

Cyclegram, discounts at almost every bike shop in the Dela-

ware Valley, invitations to C oalition special eve nts, as well as

expert help from the Coalition's touring, racing. and commut-

ing advisors, and the chance to turn your love of cycling into

positive action.

Coalition members are commuters, recreational riders,

messengers, touring cyclists, and others w ho supp ort clean air

and a healthier urban/suburban e nvironm ent.

Join us Help us win safer roads, the right to bike to work,

and respect from motorists and gove rnmen t.

Bicycle Coalition of the Delaware Valley

P.O. Box 8194

Philadelphia, PA 19101

Forwarding and Return Postage Guaranteed

Address Correction Requested

BULK RATE

U.S. POSTAGE

PHILADELPHIA PA

PERMIT N0.2683

cyclegram nov/dec 1992

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