Metro Update

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This morning Metro Council voted to create a BPAC by a unanimous vote on third reading. It didn’t involve the theatrics of the previous meeting but there was still a little drama which was totally unnecessary. Once again, it was created by the greenways group. Assuming the current Mayor signs the bill it will be law for the next Mayor to appoint members and implement.  I think that the role of greenways in the transportation system needs a total rethink. I hope  the next Mayor and council will agree but I’ve got some ideas of my own.   Carey

Metro Council voted unanimously to create a BPAC

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Last night, Metro Councilvoted unanimously to create a Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Commission. The bill must pass on third reading at the next council meeting and be signed by the Mayor.  Several unfriendly amendments were offered but after some parliamentary maneuvers were defeated by a  resounding 28-7 vote. That speaks volumes about this effort.  The sponsor, Freddie O’Connell, did an outstanding job presenting the bill and making the argument for reestablishing a BPAC.

Sean Parker, Bob Mendes, Emily Benedict and Colby Sledge were eloquent while speaking against the amendment and for the bill. Sean really led the charge against the hostile amendments. Angie Henderson and Zach Young were a great help in the effort. Other co-sponsors were Tonya Hancock, Ginny Welsch, Erin Evans, Burkley Allen and Delisha Porterfield. Thank them all if you get the chance.

A shout out to Wesley Smith and Meredith Montgomery of Walk Bike Nashville for all their help. A special thanks to David Kleinfelter, a founder and former President of WBN who kept me from doing too many stupid things. Peter Robison and Katherine McDonnell of the Vision Zero Committee were also very supportive.

Thanks to Lindsey Ganson who fought the good fight when the greenways mafia tried to remove e-bikes from greenways. That’s when I started thinking about doing this.

Carey

Council meeting on BL2023-1882 https://youtu.be/JnoaVcKY4mU?t=4912

Carey's Newsletter

The Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission bill, BL2022-1449 was deferred until February 2023 after we had a discussion with Diana Alarcon, Director of NDOT. She believes that the Vision Zero task force, which has not yet been appointed, will fulfill the same purpose as a BPAC.

Councilman O’Connell the lead sponsor agreed to defer the bill after Ms. Alarcon promised to create a sub-committee to the VZ task force for biking and walking that would include members who are not on the task force.

I am skeptical (as you might guess) but we agreed to the proposal to give NDOT an opportunity to prove they’re serious.  The first marker is who they appoint to this Task Force. I know several particularly good people who have applied and should be appointed.

BCycle eBikes Removed from Parks

Walk Bike Nashville members are big fans of bike share and e-bikes (nearly 100 people told us about their love for e-bikes) and many rely on them to move through the city. Last week, the community was surprised to learn nine BCycle stations would be relocated at the request of Metro Parks, upsetting many users and drumming up questions about bike share access in Nashville. We want to know why Metro Parks has called for the removal of BCycles from our parks and greenways. 

https://www.walkbikenashville.org/why_bcycle_is_leaving_our_parks?locale=en

Discussion with Diana Alarcon

I had a good discussion with Diana Alarcon [Director of Nashville Department of Transportation] today about the dockless bike share included in the contract with Bird, Lime and Spin. She has asked for a moratorium on the rollout for bike share. We did not agree but she does not want to add to the “chaos” downtown. I suggested a compromise and she agreed to consider a partial roll out but not including downtown. We’ll see how that goes.

I’m writing because she mentioned she is still getting push back from Parks and the Greenways Foundation. She made it clear to Crownover [Amy P. Crownover, Executive Director] that greenways are part of the transportation system and not just “linear parks”. That must have been a hell of a conversation. Alarcon alluded to the political clout they have and she has heard from council members who are negative about e-bikes on greenways. I can guess who that is.

My point is we need to stay ready to keep fighting this battle. I cannot figure out what is wrong with those Greenways people. NDOT is going to move the BCycle docks out of parks onto ROW. They will still be used on the greenways so what’s the point. BCycle is now under a one year sole source contract with NDOT. She is clearly considering a new RFP for scooters and bike share. We’ll need to keep monitoring that situation.

Thanks for everyone in sticking with this issue and I wish it wasn’t necessary. Stay tuned for more developments in the near future.

Carey

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. 615-828-6551

Happy Bike Month!

A quick update, Bcycle stations are back open in Metro Parks! This is in large part thanks to the emails and advocacy of volunteers on this list.  An especially BIG thanks to Carey Rogers but thanks to everyone who came to a meeting, who wrote their Council Members, it really made a difference!

MORE GOOD NEWS! Bcycle has also launched a program to increase access to their bike share system. In partnership with Nashville Public Library, their new initiative Books & Bikes for All, allows NPL patrons to borrow a BCycle pass for up to a week of free, unlimited 2-hour rides. Additional information about the pass program is available online here.

Lastly, I hope to see everyone Saturday at the Tour de Nash. Registration is open until 11pm tomorrow/Friday so it isn't too late to register.

Let's keep riding all the e-bikes on all the greenways!

Lindsey Ganson, (she/her)

Director of Advocacy and Communications

Walk Bike Nashville
C: (347) 244-3792 

Working for a more walkable, bikeable and livable Nashville.

Moratorium on the Implementation of Dockless bikes

Yesterday the Metropolitan Transportation Licensing Commission considered a request from NDOT Director Diane Alarcon to put a moratorium on the implementation of dockless bikes.   MTLC deferred the request for one month. The Cooper administration has a contract for a minimum of 250 dockless e-bikes and the companies could implement up to 375.  Right now the number is zero because NDOT postponed them anyway probably because of that damn parks “study”.  BCycle has about 175 docked e-bikes and hopefully will have more soon. NDOT is now in charge of the BCycle contract.

I made the motion for the deferral and requested a meeting with Ms. Alaracon.  The motion passed unanimously. The commission also wants her to come and explain the traffic study she is using as a reason to block bike share.

If she had appeared I was going to propose some kind of compromise that might have included fewer e-bikes outside of downtown. Maybe in some specific area like Mid-Town or East Nashville or wherever. Obviously you couldn’t do something like that without the approval of the district councilmember.

I  assume I’ll get the meeting with her. I hope WBN will also be invited.  I know she meets with the lobbyist for the scooter companies and that’s ok.  I want her to begin thinking I need to meet with advocates before I do something. We don’t have money or power so we need to be loud. Ask your council member to communicate to Alarcon we want bike share now.

If you have ideas about how to implement a compromise propsal let us know. Something is better than nothing and right now I hope for something.

Thanks to Matt Haskell and Nicole Williams for coming to speak yesterday. Thanks to all of you who communicated with the commission. Thanks even to David Kleinfelter who wrote a great email even if he accused me of being a socialist from Inglewood.

Carey

Bike Riding Socialist from Inglewood

Comments from A Conversation about Electric Bikes -, March 9, at 1 p.m.

The A Conversation about Electric Bikes webinar is detailed on https://fogebike.blogspot.com/2022/02/conversation-about-ebikes.html   

In addition to the panelist Michael Briggs (Metro Planning) moderated and Elese Daniel gave the Nashville BCycle. I listened to the Webinar and copied the Chat Comments from the audience. I remembered only the stuff that my be important to our crew.

Ash Lovell, told al  the general marketing info. The most interesting was that eBikes has exploded three times in volume from 2019 to 2021 while conventional bicyclists have slightly declined.

Dr. Chris Cherry, gave the bicyclist perspective. He said they found eBikers on average ride slower that conventional bicyclists (I saw that data from UTK in 2016 and nothing more recent. ). He also said there isn't any meaningful statistics on ebike safety. 

For a more interesting exchange read the Chat Comments

Register for our zoom webinar. It is today at 1pm!

There's still time to register for our zoom webinar. It is today at 1pm!

 

I will be part of this panel discussion about e-bikes with Nashville BCycle, People For Bikes, Vanderbilt University and UT Knoxville. This "Conversation About Electric Bikes" is a free event and open to everyone. Invite your friends! Link to register here: https://nashville.bcycle.com/nav/events

 

What is an e-bike? What are the benefits of e-bikes? Are e-bikes allowed on greenways in Nashville? Today's Zoom webinar will be a lively discussion of these questions and more, with ample time for questions from the audience.

Hope to see you there!

 

Lindsey Ganson, (she/her)

Director of Advocacy and Communications

Walk Bike Nashville
C: (347) 244-3792 Best number while we work remotely

Nashville Parks Board Meeting 3/1/22 from Carey Rogers

The Parks Board met today to consider the recommendation from the Greenways Commission about a request from BCycle that was made last July. That’s more than six months. I don’t believe the word “Bcycle” was mentioned once during the meeting. It is unclear if any of them understand the reason this all started.  I am not impressed with the Parks staff, as you probably know, but this was a horrible example of how a public board should make decisions. I don’t blame the board members.

People for eBikes

Testimonials from people who currently ride ebikes in Nashville. Sent to the Metro Greenways Commission. by Walk Bike Nashville 2/24/22

Nashville Greenway Endorsement sent February 24, 2022

Dear Metro Nashville Parks and Recreation Board Members,

We are writing today to ask that you endorse the Greenways and Open Space Commission’s recommendation that there be no changes to current e-bike law. 

 

Along with the 15 Council Members who wrote the Board this summer, we also ask that you approve the BCycle request to operate in Metro Parks.  

Waste of City Resources

Hi all, 

Not sure what is needed from me but a bit of context that we can perhaps share to support our belief that this is a pretty mindless, wasteful discussion:

1. I ride my non-electric road bike on the greenways. I can confirm that it is possible to ride over 25 MPH on a road bike for extended periods of time. The only thing preventing me from riding 25 MPH on Greenways (at least in sections) is the posted speed limit. The bike is good for it. My e-bike tops out at 20 MPH - so yes, my road bike is significantly faster.
   
   
2. It's almost impossible to tell that my e-bike is in fact an e-bike. And if I turn off the pedal assist, it's no longer an ebike. So this makes the ban almost completely unenforceable.
   
   
3. I ride my e-bike to work every day, and I also use it to tow my ~80-lbs worth of children. If I'm not mistaken, towing your kids in a trailer is more or less exactly the kind of activity the greenways are designed for. Without the e-bike, getting my kids up hills that are more than a few percent incline becomes quite difficult, and I'm an avid cyclist. If I struggle getting them up Nashville's hills, that doesn't bode well for the rest of the population. 

So I'm aligned with everyone here and am happy to support as needed. For all of the reasons I stated above, 

this is a mindless discussion and a waste of city resources because it's a law that is both unenforceable and counterproductive.

From an email by a member of Nashville e-bike Group

Difficult to answer? Maybe the wrong question.

From Walk Bike Nashville Feb 22, 2022 newsletter --

After a long process, a "study," and many, many meetings, the Greenways and Open Space Commission decided today to do another study before recommending any policy changes regarding e-bikes on greenways.

Maybe the reason why the Commission can't get an answer is because they are asking the WRONG question. The objective for the Commission is keep the greenways safe. That has to do totally about the person riding the bike and not about the bicycle he or she is driving. DOT does not regulate by the car a person drives on the road. They regulate by how the driver travels on the road. It has a century of that experience. Why has everyone lost that competence on the greenways?

Conversation about eBikes

All – Please join us online for A Conversation about Electric Bikes on Wednesday, March 9, at 1 p.m. With all the questions surrounding possible regulation of e-bikes, Nashville BCycle and Walk Bike Nashville are convening a panel of national, regional, and local transportation experts and advocates to discuss and bridge any understanding gaps. 

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The panel includes Dr. Chris Cherry (University of Tennessee), Ash Lovell, Ph.D (PeopleforBikes), Lindsey Ganson (Walk Bike Nashville), and will be moderated by Michael Briggs, AICP (Vanderbilt University). Learn more about the panelists and register for the event here. Best, Elese Daniel (she/her) Nashville BCycle | General Manager

Metro Greenway Commission Meeting February 9th

Metro wants an eBike study amid greenway concerns

https://fox17.com/news/local/metro-recommends-another-study-amid-concerns-over-ebikes-and-greenway-infrastructure

Nashville Greenways are a hot commodity for runners, walkers, and bikers alike. 

My quote (Tom Evans) to the ebike group has been precisely what Lindsey Ganson with Walk Bike Nashville told Fox17,  “E-bikes just allow more people to bike! An e-bike rider just gets an extra boost to keep up -- not to speed down a greenway. Really, when it comes down to it, it’s not the type of bike, it’s the rider on the bike.”

Making Personal Stories for eBikes

FROM CAREY:

Thanks to Ben and Tom for the stories. I’m convinced we need to make this as personal as possible since talking to people about class 1 and class 2 makes their eyes glaze over.

The best thing you can do right now is  make contact with the Greenways Commission members.  Email them and tell your story because they need to hear us.  Some of them probably can’t  be convinced but we should try.  We’re quietly trying to make a few personal contacts via people who know the members.

How I Use My eBike

How I Use My eBike

I have been riding a bicycle for eighteen years starting at the young age of sixty-three. During that period, my favorite times were on multi-week bike tours. I have traveled across National Parks, across multiple states, and from the US to Montreal. Until recently, I averaged over five-thousand miles every year and worn out three road bikes. However, my needs have changed.

Nashville Greenway Trails

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