About 25 people braved the threat of rain and participated in this year’s Ride of Silence, sponsored by Bicycle Advocacy of Central Arkansas (BACA) and the Arkansas Bicycle Club (ABC).  The event, which is held across the world, honors those bicyclists who have been injured or killed while riding on the roadways.  The ride left the new CALS Children’s Library on 10th Street in Little Rock.  Bicyclists silently and slowly travelled east on 12th Street using the new bicycle lanes.  The ride ended at the main steps of the State Capitol, where cyclists heard the names of those cyclists killed during the past year and stood in a moment of silence.

Cyclists wore a name tag with the name of cyclist killed.  A number of participants wore a tag honoring Diane McConnell, an avid local cyclist who was active in ABC and BACA.  Linda VanBlaricom and Chris Kupper handed out flowers from Diane’s garden to wear as we carried the memory of Diane and others during the ride. 

The Ride of Silence, held during National Bike Month, aims to raise the awareness of motorists, police and city officials that cyclists have a legal right to the public roadways. The ride is also a chance to show respect for and honor the lives of those who have been killed or injured.

Attend this public AHTD meeting on April 18 from 4-7 p.m. and tell them you want bike lanes striped on the repaved section of Highway 10 from Pleasant valley Road to Ferndale Cutoff Road. If you can't attend, public comment cards will be available at the BACA meeting that same evening and online.

SIGN HERE: https://www.change.org/petitions/the-arkansas-highway-and-transportation-department-ahtd-include-five-foot-bike-lanes-in-the-new-broadway-bridge-plan-3

BACA has joined with the Bicycle Friendly Community Committees of Little Rock and North Little Rock to ask the Mayors of the two cities and the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD) to put bike lanes on the new Broadway Bridge.  

Through discussions with the AHTD, we learned that there is no real likelihood that the bicycle-pedestrian pathway on the new Broadway Bridge will be the width we believe is sufficient to accommodate the various user groups.  We have explored the idea of having five foot bike lanes on both sides on the Bridge (northbound and southbound) in addition to the 16 foot bike/ped path.  

We recognize that many cyclists accustomed to riding in street traffic will very likely use the shoulders next to the motor vehicle lanes as bike lanes, so we would like the AHTD to design the bridge to accommodate those cyclists safely.  While maintaining the current 16’ multi-use path, BACA (Bicycle Advocacy of Central Arkansas), the Little Rock and North Little Rock Bicycle Friendly Community Committees formally ask AHTD for:                        

1) 5’ bike lanes along the entire length of the project, both northbound and southbound.
 

2) Modification of the La Harpe off-ramp to decrease exit speeds and the distance of conflict between through bicycle traffic and exiting motor vehicle traffic.
 

3) Implementation of  appropriate traffic engineering (such as striping, bike lane colorization, warning/yield signs) at La Harpe off-ramp to minimize the danger for through cyclists.
 

4) Installation of a metal railing along the west side of the bridge at a safe height for bicycle traffic.

PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION. https://www . change . org/petitions/the-arkansas-highway-and-transportation-department-ahtd-include-five-foot-bike-lanes-in-the-new-broadway-bridge-plan-3   

Help spread the word and ask others to sign the petition-- our DEADLINE IS APRIL 20, 2013.  Keep up with our Facebook page and here on the website for updates and more information.
 
REMEMBER:  BACA GENERAL MEETING APRIL 18TH, U.S. PIZZA IN HILLCREST, 6:30 P.M.

We have learned that the Highway Department (AHTD) plans on making the multi-use path on the new Broadway Bridge only 16 feet wide. We believe that the proposed width is inadequate to handle the variety of non-vehicular users of the Bridge, including bicyclists, pedestrians, strollers, in-line skaters, and wheelchairs. The original design proposed a 20 foot bike/pedestrian lane and some planners believe that the lane should be at least 24 feet. In addition, some people have expressed concern that the proposed off ramps are dangerous due to high speed. Without adequately wide bike lanes, bicyclists will bike on the vehicular road itself, in the shy zone, subjecting themselves and motorists to a dangerous situation. The AHTD is holding a design public hearing on Thursday, March 28th, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Arkansas Transit Association, 620 West Broadway Street, North Little Rock. Please plan on attending. Review the designs and advocate for wider bike/ped lanes and safer exit ramps on the bridge by filling out the comment card.

On February 26, 2013, BACA sent a letter to Scott Bennett, Director of the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department, Jim McKenzie, Executive Director of Metroplan and Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola. Copies of the letter were sent to the highway commissioners and Jeremy Lewno, Little Rock's Bicycle Pedestrian Coordinator. The letter stated that the section of the River Trail being repaired at North Street and LaHarpe was extremely dangerous, forcing bicyclists to ascend up to Cantrell and make an almost 90-degree turn onto the narrow bridge over the railroad tracks. If the cyclist is unable to make the turn, the cyclist will end up going onto Cantrell, with cars zooming by at 35 to 45 miles an hour.

We requested that Directors Bennett and McKenzie and Mayor Stodola meet with representatives of BACA at the site to show them the dangers and to offer suggestions on how to improve the situation. 

Director McKenzie and Mike Fugett, Assistant Chief Engineer of Design with the AHTD, responded quickly to our request. Representatives of BACA along with Director McKenzie and Casey Covington of Metroplan, Mike Fugett, Kim Sanders, James Dean and Steve Mitchell of AHTD, Jeremy Lewno and Jon Honeywell of the City of Little Rock, reviewed the plans and discussed what could be done to improve the hazardous conditions at North Street and LaHarpe Bridge.

The AHTD agreed to widen the path to from the cement pathway now in place to the utility box (see picture) for almost a 14 to 16 foot pathway.  The sharp 90-degree turn will be eliminated and the pathway will gently ascend and turn to the east and west onto the five-foot sidewalk before the LaHarpe bridge. The contractors are expected to resume work on Monday, March 11 and complete the work within two weeks.

We discussed the very dangerous situation on the LaHarpe bridge and urged extending the sidewalk to the white line on Cantrell (see picture). Unfortunately that is not part of the AHTD’s current project and it appears that getting the sidewalk widened will require further advocacy work. The AHTD and Metroplan agreed to put reflective posts along the white line on Cantrell to warn motorists to stay out of the “shy zone” and provide some protection to bicyclists riding on the sidewalk. This is a temporary measure and in our mind not sufficient to remedy the dangers associated with riding on the sidewalk.  

We appreciate the AHTD and Metroplan responding to our request and listening to our concerns.  Dialog is important and we want to continue to work with the AHTD, Metroplan and the cities to improve bicycling in Central Arkansas. However, the response to our concerns that we continue to hear is that the problem with the River Trail in Little Rock will be solved with the proposed trail behind Dillard's. WE CANNOT WAIT. Completion of that trail will take years. In fact, the city apparently has not yet taken action to acquire the land behind Dillard's. More and more people are bicycling and we cannot recommend the use of the LaHarpe/North Street/Episcopal Collegiate School portion of the River Trail as safe. We are currently proposing that the City put up warning signs on that portion of the Trail.  

The next BACA meeting will be held April 18 (location to be announced) and our featured speaker will be Jim McKenzie, Executive Director of Metroplan. Metroplan has been supportive of improving bicycle infrastructure in Central Arkansas, and Jim McKenzie has a lot of information about matters of concern to bicyclists. We need to have an especially great turnout of BACA members and supporters to show Jim McKenzie that a large number of Central Arkansas citizens support improvement of bicycle facilities.  Stay tuned for more details on the meeting and other BACA activities.

General Membership Meeting
February 7th at 6:30 p.m 
Oyster Bar, 3003 W. Markham
Little Rock 

There is lots of news for bicyclists. Hear what has been happening of interest to bicyclists in Central Arkansas. Meet the new Little Rock bicycle-pedestrian coordinator, learn of the latest developments concerning bicycling in Central Arkansas, and find out about the new state-wide advocacy organization and what we can do to improve bicycling in the state during this legislative session. 

Special Program: Welcome Alan Ley, Bike Bentonville’s director of outreach and advocacy and hear why Bentonville was awarded bronze status as a League of American Bicyclists bicycle friendly community, and what it is doing for bicyclists. 

As always there will be good friends and good food. Come see old friends, meet new ones, and help make Central Arkansas bicycle friendly. Get Bike LR and NLR bumper stickers. We hope to see you on February 7th. 

GET INVOLVED!!

Do you like to ride your bicycle in Central Arkansas? BACA has been working hard for over 10 years to improve opportunities and facilities for bicycling. Let’s keep the momentum going. Please join us in making Central Arkansas bicycle friendly. 

Here are some of the volunteer opportunities that are available – we need your help!. If you are interested in helping in any of the following (or in any other way) please e-mail judy atlanskygould@comcast.net or call 501-225-5343. Compensation may be available for some of the activities.

• Staffing tables at events
• Meeting/greeting at meetings
• Writing articles for the newsletter
• Monitoring legislation - national, state, local
• Attending City Council meetings
• Developing promotional/informational materials about BACA/bicycling for distribution
• Developing/producing PSAs for radio and TV
• Fundraising
• Serving on the Board of Directors

If you haven’t been to a BACA meeting lately, please come on February 7th and hear about all the new and exciting developments. If you’ve never been to a BACA meeting, please come and learn how you can be part of your local bicycle advocacy movement. 

For more information about BACA see: www.bicycleadvocacy.com and follow us on Facebook.

Hope to see you February 7th.

Thanks,
Judy Lansky
Acting President, Bicycle Advocacy of Central Arkansas

Map to Oyster Bar for those that are new or can't remember. :)

Willa Williams and Bernadette Rhodes from NLR Fit2Live have developed a 3-foot passing law educational campaign (yard signs, bumper stickers, billboards), which will be launched January 15, 2013. (See graphics to the left and below)

 From Bernadette about the sign design:
"You’ll notice that it includes the NLR and Fit 2 Live logos and lists the Fit 2 Live website. We are going to include information about the NLR Bicycle Friendly Community Committee on the Fit 2 Live website and include a rotating banner on the homepage about the 3-foot campaign. We didn’t want the graphic to become too busy, that’s why it doesn’t say “Bicycle Friendly Community Committee” on the graphic itself."

Also, NLR Fit2Live has purchased more Fix-it stations and the city needs input about where to install them: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/DYSGF89 

AND, they've purchased 88 (eighty-eight!!) bike racks to install throughout NLR. They're working on a survey and an application for businesses to complete in order to have one installed nearby. Watch for more updates.

From Jeff Caplinger at NLR Parks and Rec.
nlrpr.org

UNPAVED and NATURAL SURFACE TRAILS - I heard from our work crews this morning - "After a combination Master Naturalist/Burns Park Mountain Bike Group workday, the Red, Green, Blue, White, and Orange Connector trails have all been cleared of downed limbs and are ready for travel! We did not clear the Yellow Trail because it is so wet at the moment. On Saturday while we were working we had all users groups on the trails—bikers, equestrians, joggers, hikers, and dog walkers. This thing is coming together!

AMN plans to work on Pfeifer Loop sometime next week (probably Tuesday or Wednesday). Will let you know when that one is clear. We hear it is a disaster area, but I haven’t looked at it yet."

Thanks to the Central Arkansas Master Naturalists and the Burns Park Mountain Bike Group for the quick trail clean up and look forward to their report on the Yellow and Pfiefer trails.

BIKE REPAIR STATIONS - NLR is to receive three new bike repair stations. Help decide where they need to go by completing the survey shown here:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/DYSGF89

(By David Koon, Arkansas Times)

Diane McConnell, who'd been rendered unconscious since a Nov. 11 accident in which she was hit by a car while riding her bicycle in the Heights, died Tuesday.

On the day of the accident, McConnell was riding her bike home after attending the "Pop Up Main Street" event near downtown. The secretary of the Arkansas Bicycle Club, she'd been an avid bicyclist for decades, taking classes and wearing her helmet and fluorescent vest to try and stay safe.

The day was clear and bright. Approaching the gentle curve on Kavanaugh a block off Cantrell just before 2 p.m., a Ford Fusion came up behind McConnell, then started to pass on the double yellow. We'll probably never know what really happened — whether she was clipped or spooked or just took an unlucky spill at just the wrong moment — but witnesses told police that McConnell's bike fell into the passenger side of the car. According to the accident report, she made contact at the passenger's front door handle of the Ford, then scraped along the side to the rear fender. At that point, she was caught up in the rear wheel of the car and run over.

Since the accident, bicyclists who knew McConnell — some of whom have had their own close calls with cars — have been speaking out...(more)

The City of NLR sent the first of a new series of email notifications today regarding temporary trail closures:

============
EMERALD PARK - There have been rumors going around that Emerald Park is closed.  The whole of Emerald Park is not closed, just the center portion while a trail gets rerouted and paved connecting the two current paved portions on the west and east end.  This portion of the park and trail will be closed indefinitely (at least 2-3 months depending on the weather).  A map of the closed portion is available here: http://nlrpr.org/trails

The paved trail will be called the Highland Trail and the unpaved portion will remain known as the Emerald Park Trail.  Once completed the Highland Trail will be ADA accessible and the old trail bed will be available for off-road bicycles and hikers.

====================
ARKANSAS RIVER TRAIL - In addition to the trail work in Emerald Park, we will also be doing improvements/repairs to sections of the Arkansas River Trail due to soil erosion and tree roots.  We will send out notifications of when these sections of the Arkansas River Trail will be closed and whether or not a detour is available.

====================
FUTURE NOTIFICATIONS - Notifications of these trail closures will be sent via an email blast and posted to our trails' Facebook page (http://facebook.com/ExploreTheNorthTrails).