For the fifth
year in a row, Washington leads the nation as the most Bicycle Friendly
State. The 2012 ranking of Bicycle
Friendly States was announced by the League of American Bicyclists in honor of
National Bike Month.
“We’re
encouraged to see significant progress in top states like Washington,
Minnesota, Colorado and Massachusetts,” said Andy Clarke, president of the
League. “But, as the scores clearly
highlight, there’s much work to be done in critical areas like infrastructure
and funding. Overall, we see states—and
especially state Departments of Transportation and state legislatures—lagging
behind cities and the expectations of local cyclists, despite the many
well-documented benefits of a more active lifestyle.”
The 2012 Bicycle Friendly States Ranking marks the launch of an updated and improved evaluation process. Throughout 2011, the League held Bicycle Friendly America listening sessions across the country to understand the successes and shortcomings of the program. Based on public input, the Bicycle Friendly State survey was revised to give a clearer picture of a state’s accomplishments and next steps towards becoming more bike-friendly.
The 2012 Bicycle Friendly States Ranking marks the launch of an updated and improved evaluation process. Throughout 2011, the League held Bicycle Friendly America listening sessions across the country to understand the successes and shortcomings of the program. Based on public input, the Bicycle Friendly State survey was revised to give a clearer picture of a state’s accomplishments and next steps towards becoming more bike-friendly.
Even with a
revised survey, Washington once again set a high bar in 2012. The state scored 4’s and 5’s (5 is the
highest score) on the League’s report card, receiving top scores for Education
and Encouragement, and Evaluation and Planning.
The report also makes recommendations for improvement. One recommendation for Washington includes
developing a comprehensive strategy for working with law enforcement on
bicycling issues, including training for officers and targeted enforcement of
bike safety laws. Other recommendations
are to continue to increase bicycle ridership and to fully fund and implement
the state bicycle plan, which was adopted in 2006.
Strong and
active bicycle advocacy at the state and local levels contribute to Washington’s
top ranking. An improved distracted driving law and a vulnerable user law were passed due largely to the efforts of Bicycle
Alliance of Washington, Cascade Bicycle Club, and other bike groups. The Bicycle
Alliance has also been instrumental in expanding bicycle skills training in
schools around the state with its Safe Routes to School program.
“Thanks to
the League of American Bicyclists for this award. This honor comes with much
responsibility for the state, bicycle advocates and others to continue to
strive for complete streets ordinances in every community and Safe Routes to
every school,” stated Barbara Culp, Executive Director for Bicycle Alliance of
Washington. “This is a call to anyone
who rides a bike to hold your city, county and state officials accountable to
an even more bike-friendly state.”
The Bicycle
Friendly State announcement was preceded last week by the League’s announcement
of its latest Bicycle Friendly Community designations. Tacoma
and Snohomish are the newest Washington communities to receive this
designation. In all, ten Washington
communities have earned a Bicycle Friendly Community designation.
Click
here to see how Washington scored in the five evaluation categories. Learn more about the League’s Bicycle
Friendly State program at www.bikeleague.org/states.
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