The Taiwan Bicycle Exporters Association (TBEA) has signed on for another three-year, $150,000 investment in the Bikes Belong Foundation. Since 2010, the group has contributed $150,000 to Bikes Belong. This will bring the total to $300,000 by 2015.
The investment will again go toward the Foundation’s Green Lane Project, a campaign to catalyze the creation of world-class bicycling facilities in the U.S. The initial TBEA funding helped expand the Green Lane Project into the key program it is today.
“The TBEA shares Bikes Belong’s vision of a world where anyone can enjoy the simple pleasure of a bike ride,” said Tony Lo of Giant Bicycles and the TBEA. “The Green Lane Project is especially important because it helps create a new audience of bicyclists, those who are interested in riding but concerned for their safety.”
The Green Lane Project will work with six U.S. cities poised to be national leaders in installing green lanes: Austin, Chicago, Memphis, Portland, OR, San Francisco, and Washington, DC. A green lane is a name for a growing family of modern bikeways that are part of the roadway, but protected from traffic.
“Advanced bikeways like green lanes are something that could really move the needle for bicycling participation in America,” said Bruno Maier, vice president of Bikes Belong. “By making bicycling safer and less stressful, we can appeal to the ‘interested but concerned’ and inspire a whole new generation of bicyclists.”
