Interbike and Bikes Belong helped add 3.2 miles (5.1 km) of additional bike lanes and bring a student bicycling program to the city's Ward 5 area with a $50,000 joint grant they made to the city two years ago.
The efforts complete phase one and phase two of the grant-funded project that Interbike and Bikes Belong outlined a year ago when they announced the two-year grant program. Interbike kicks off in Las Vegas next week.
“With the support of Interbike and local Las Vegas community leaders, the new bike lanes and bike incentive programs have taken a strong hold in Ward 5,” said Bikes Belong President Tim Blumenthal. “With a few basic improvements, this Las Vegas neighborhood is already much more bike friendly and eager to develop its bike infrastructure.”
The 3.2 miles of bike lanes installed in Ward 5 with the Interbike/Bikes Belong grant connect several main community facilities, including numerous elementary schools, parks, community centers and churches.
This year, the grant is supporting the installation of the Boltage system, an innovative program to encourage bicycling and walking in two Las Vegas schools. Students at Wendell Williams and Matt Kelly Elementary Schools, both serving low-income neighborhoods in Ward 5, will receive tags to attach to their helmets, bikes, or backpacks that will track their participation by “zapping” them as they pass the solar-powered reader. Students will receive participation incentives like stickers, wristbands, and granola bars and can also enter weekly raffles for additional prizes.
The next stage of the grant implementation will include hiring a program coordinator to encourage the community to bike more often and to manage the Boltage system.
“We have worked closely with Bikes Belong the past two years to put our grant to work in Las Vegas, and together we have achieved many goals,” said Andy Tompkins, Interbike show director. “One of the components of the Bikes Belong/Interbike partnership is a commitment to improve cycling infrastructure in the show's host city. This grant has done that and we're happy the kids in Ward 5, and other cyclists in the area, have better places to ride.”
This Interbike/Bikes Belong Las Vegas effort is one of many projects associated with a 10-year, multi-million dollar alliance between Interbike and Bikes Belong, initiated in 2007 to get more Americans nationwide riding bicycles.
The Interbike 2010 trade-only events begin with OutDoor Demo (September 20-21, 2010 in Boulder City), followed by the Interbike Expo, September 22-24 at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas.
