City of Bloomington to host Third Annual Bike Summit

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Oct. 21, 2013

For more information, please contact:

Vince Caristo, Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator, City of Bloomington Planning Department, 349.3423, caristov@bloomington.in.gov

City of Bloomington to host Third Annual Bike Summit

Bloomington, Ind. - Mayor Mark Kruzan announced today that the Third Annual Bike Summit will be held on Saturday, Oct. 26, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Bloomington City Hall, 401 N. Morton St., as part of the continuing effort to make Bloomington a Platinum Level Bicycle Friendly Community by 2016.

This year, the focus of the Bike Summit will be education. The City will kick off a new education initiative, Civil Streets, which will combine education and enforcement strategies to improve safety and reduce frustrations for all road users. The goal of the initiative is to reduce unsafe behaviors of motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians; reduce frustrations that result from unsafe and unpredictable behaviors; and reduce the incidence of crashes leading to injury or death.

"Tensions among road users and safety concerns are some of the most significant issues relating to bicycling and walking in our community. As we continue to expand infrastructure for biking and walking, it renews questions regarding the rights and responsibilities of road users," said Vince Caristo, Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator. "We need to develop a culture of safety and respect on our streets - to remind people of our shared responsibility for safety, and make sure we all know exactly the type of behavior that's expected."

Bike enthusiasts and community partners are invited to attend the Bike Summit to learn about the new Civil Streets initiative, provide input to inform future education campaigns and engage with other bicyclists. The opening remarks will give an overall assessment on our community's progress towards becoming a platinum-rated, bicycle-friendly community. Breakout sessions will give participants a hands-on opportunity to engage with other bicyclists about Civil Streets-related issues.

"We will need the help of the whole Bloomington community to get the word out about Civil Streets, especially by displaying our key messages on cars, bikes and places of business," said Jacqui Bauer, Sustainability Director.

The Third Annual Bike Summit will take place at Bloomington City Hall, 401 N. Morton St., in Council Chambers.

"The Bike Summit is a great way to bring members of the community together, share experiences, and combine efforts to make Bloomington even better," said Mayor Mark Kruzan. "Becoming ultra bicycle-friendly is much more than bicycling. It's great for our local economy, it will strengthen our community health and wellness, and lessens our ecological footprint - a triple bottom-line gain."

League of American Bicyclists has recognized Bloomington as a Bicycle Friendly Community since 2003. The Bicycle Friendly Community Program is based on a comprehensive evaluation in five areas: Engineering; Enforcement; Encouragement, Education and Evaluation and Planning.

For more information about biking in Bloomington, please visit the City's [biking website|/bike] or contact Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator Vince Caristo at 349.3423.

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