Earlier this month, Senator Carolyn Branagan of Franklin County introduced a bill that would require people to register bikes and pay an annual fee for the privilege.  Here's a nice article from VTDigger that asks some pointed questions about what such a bill would accomplish and whether it is needed.  

We've been getting lots of questions from supporters about this bill.  What's the point of registering bikes?  Why was this bill introduced in the first place?  And most important, is the bill going anywhere?  Read on for answers!

The League of American Bicyclists has launched a new initiative called "Bike Walk Action."  This national coalition of state bike-walk groups (like Local Motion) has come together to shape federal policy related to walking and biking.  Check out their latest federal bike-walk policy update webinar at this link.  It is from Caron Whitaker, a national expert who has been lobbying on our behalf on Capitol Hill for years.  

Grants are now available through VTrans for Vermont Communities to make their streets and roads work better and be safer for walking and biking! Projects can include planning, design and construction of infrastructure projects for a number of facility types, including scoping, design, construction and even a "small projects" category - new this year and intended to implement necessary safety improvements like signs, pavement markings, crossing enhancements or on-road bike facilities through striping...

A message from Frank Koss, Chief of Police for the Hinesburg Police Department

As part of the Governor’s Highway Safety Program, Hinesburg Police obtained a speed monitoring device that helps us determine the speed on the roads when we are not around. This device records the date, time and speed of the vehicles on monitored roads. Our volunteer takes this information and provides graphs and lists that can help us target especially unsafe and dangerous driving. What we found was startling...

VTrans just released its first-ever report on the Vermont Bike Ped Program, which invests millions of dollars every year in improvements for walking and biking around Vermont.  The report is concise and readable, with an overview of how funds were spent and details about specific projects around the state.  It's a must-read for anyone who wants to understand what the opportunities are for getting improvements for walking and biking built in your community...

download the full report

Over the past six months, Local Motion has invested hundreds of hours in educating lawmakers and advocating for change in Vermont's laws related to bike safety and driver responsibility.  We've been working closely with Rep. Mollie Burke and Rep. Willem Jewett (huge thanks to both!) to find ways to make our roads safer for everyone. 

In the 2016 session, four key measures passed the House and were sent up to the Senate:

On Town Meeting Day, Burlington voters overwhelmingly rejected an advisory question calling on the City to retain four lanes on North Avenue between the Route 127 interchange and Shore Road, paving the way for the pilot project to move forward. The pilot will test a new road design for North Ave to improve safety for people driving, walking and riding, with four vehicle lanes with no bikes lanes changing to two vehicle lanes plus a center turn lane and bike lanes in both directions.