The League of American Bicyclists kicks off National Bike Month TM by awarding 11 communities its prestigious Bicycle Friendly Community designation. Among the communities receiving the League's Bicycle Friendly Community designation, the standouts are Boulder, Colo.-which was granted the League's gold-level BFC award-and silver-level award winners Gainesville, Florida; Olympia, Washington; and Tucson, Arizona. The League has yet to bestow its highest-level platinum award to any communities.

Bronze level awards were awarded to Ashland, Oregon; Auburn, Alabama; Carrboro, North Carolina; Longmont, Colorado; Mountain View, California; Portage, Michigan; and Rockville, Maryland. An Honorary Mention was given to Milpitas, California.

The newly designated communities join 27 others previously given the designation to recognize their commitment to providing safe accommodation and facilities for bicyclists, and for their efforts to encourage bicycling for fun, fitness and transportation. Please visit www.bicyclefriendlycommunity.org to learn more about the awards process and view the recently published highlights on the 2003 award-winning communities, as well as the results of the League's recent International Symposium on Bicycle Friendly Communities.

Andy Clarke, Executive Director of the League of American Bicyclists, congratulated the winners and said, “What better way to kick off this year's National Bike Month than celebrating cities such as Boulder, Colo., that show what's possible. Given the choice, people will and do ride their bikes. Bicycle Friendly Communities are special places, with a heightened sense of community spirit and an uncommon devotion to improving their quality of life. With political commitment, focused investment in infrastructure and policies, and broad community involvement, cities and towns can become better places not only to bicycle but also to live. The rewards for residents are huge: greater opportunities to lead active lifestyles; improved air quality, and increased travel choices.”

League staff and reviewers consider several factors before granting a community BFC status, including:

  • The physical environment for bicycling — on-street facilities, trails, parking etc.
  • Education programs to promote a “share the road” ethic among bicyclists and drivers
  • Promotional initiatives to persuade people to ride or ride more often
  • Enforcement of traffic laws for both motorists and bicyclists
  • Future plans and evaluation techniques to improve conditions further

In Boulder, an extraordinary ten percent of all resident trips are made by bicycle, as are 16 percent of all commuting trips. Nearly seven percent of residents view bike commuting as their primary mode of travel to work, according to the Census. Boulder recognizes and supports its bicyclists by investing $4.5 million (19 percent) of its approved 2003 transportation budget on bicycle mode operations/maintenance and enhancement initiatives. Thanks to many years of political and financial support, 78% of Boulder's arterial streets are equipped with bike lanes and multi-use paths receive formal inspections twice a week.

In terms of educational and promotional efforts, the “Courtesy is Contagious” public outreach campaign, launched by GO Boulder/City of Boulder in June 2002, has been a tremendous success. The campaign employs print media and a team of ambassadors to exchange ideas and information with the community. The program's goals are to reduce the number of bike and pedestrian-related injuries, and to create more active and livable neighborhoods in Boulder by increasing bicycle and pedestrian trips.