Our advocacy work at the local, state, and federal levels is focused on improving infrastructure, passing laws to protect people walking, biking, and rolling, and addressing barriers that communities face when trying to improve conditions for active modes.
Our Philosophy of Advocacy
- To advocate for projects and policies that support our mission and vision
- To keep people walking, biking, rolling, and using transit as the primary focus when reviewing projects and policies, making suggestions for changes, and advocating for those changes
Our Approach to Advocacy
- Base our recommendations on research and practices from credible and effective sources; industry standards/sources
- Collaborate with our partners and not fear from offering a dissenting voice, if it aligns with our philosophy of advocacy
- Expect to compromise
- Keep our advocacy work separate from our grant-funded work. (Time is tracked; funded by non-grant revenue)
- To publicly post our statewide legislative priorities
- Follow State and Federal lobbying laws
2025 State Legislative Priorities
Stop-as-Yield (also known as Idaho Stop) - Stop-as-yield allows a person on a bike to cautiously make a turn or proceed through a stop sign without stopping when there is no other traffic present at the intersection. When there is traffic present, people biking must stop as normal. Allowing stop-as-yield would make bicycling easier and more intuitive for Vermonters. Studies currently indicate that there is no correlation between stop-as-yield laws and improvement or deterioration in safety. Stop-as-yield is legal in at least 10 states.
Bicycle Use of Pedestrian Signals - The “leading pedestrian interval” refers to the time during which pedestrian signals are active and parallel car traffic still has a red light at a signalized intersection. The leading pedestrian interval allows pedestrians to establish themselves in the roadway and increase their visibility to drivers. Leading pedestrian intervals are typically 3-7 seconds in length. This legislation would allow a person on a bike to proceed through an intersection during that 3-7 second leading pedestrian interval, instead of having to wait for the green light. Like stop-as-yield, this provision allows a person on a bike to get away from the intersection before cars begin moving. Bicycle use of pedestrian signals is legal in California and in Burlington, and likely in other places.
Funding for Active Transportation Infrastructure - State grant programs make it possible for towns to construct the active transportation infrastructure needed to make their streets safer and more economically vibrant and make it possible for their residents to use affordable means of transportation like walking, biking, rolling, and transit. These programs are underfunded, creating a bottleneck in project completion and a disincentive for towns to undertake active transportation projects. While costs are a key focus for legislators in the 2025 session, these grant programs are largely federally funded. Decisions about how much funding we allocate to them are ultimately about how we distribute the federal transportation funding Vermont receives, and have little or no effect on the State's overall budget.
Fund E-bike Incentives - Vermont's first-in-the nation e-bike incentive program has been underfunded since its inception. With little to no promotion, it has run out of money before the close of each fiscal year. This program provides a rebate for low-income Vermonters to buy an e-bike or e-cargo bike for transportation purposes. As affordable electric transportation, e-bikes and the rebates needed to support their adoption among low-income households are an essential component of a just climate transition in Vermont.
Educate the Public on Safe Passing - In the 2024 legislative session, Vermont passed a requirement that people driving give at least four feet of clearance when passing vulnerable users like people walking, biking, and rolling. Local Motion would like to partner with the State on a comprehensive and high-visibility education campaign focused on previous and expected changes, such as safe passing, stop-as-yield, and bicycle use of pedestrian signals.
Fund Public Transit - The Legislature should provide funding to Green Mountain Transit to enable the reversal and prevention of service cuts, and identify and enact new, sustainable sources of funding to ensure accessible public transportation throughout the state.
2024 State Legislative Outcomes
- We changed Vermont’s vulnerable user passing law to require that drivers give at least four feet of clearance when passing people walking, biking, and rolling
- We fixed Vermont’s definition of “pedestrian” so that it includes people using manual wheelchairs and other assistive devices, which ensures that these users are extended the same legal right-of-way as other pedestrians
- We removed Vermont’s requirement that people use sidewalks when present, recognizing that sidewalks are often impassable for people using walkers and wheelchairs
- We protected Vermont’s e-bike incentive program from being eliminated
- We started a conversation in the Statehouse about making it legal for people on bikes to treat stop signs as yield signs when no other traffic is present, and allowing people on bikes to cross on pedestrian signals—both of which will be studied over the summer and return as topics in the 2025 session
- We advocated for VTrans' Carbon Reduction Strategy to fund bike and pedestrian projects and transit, and got 2/3rds of the funding allocated to those categories
We want to know what legislation you want to see passed for walking, biking, and rolling.