Despite threat of thunderstorm and sand storm conditions from time to time, there was a seriously great crowd out @DirtDerby opener tonight.
244 days ago
Get dirty! @DirtDerby starts tonight w/ Ladies night- Women and cx dressing men race free! Beginners $5, Others $10 http://t.co/QEDTLkQl
245 days ago
Yo, ride ur bike! http://t.co/iX6ZlBHZ Austin Bike Culture Calendar Events: 9/22- 9/28/11
250 days ago
Attn knobby newbies: Bicycle Sport Shop starts beginner mountain bike series http://t.co/ZMdkHqZV Includes road trip of great area trails.
252 days ago
Do you bike and vote? Tell our Senators not to gut bike/ped funding
Posted Sep 13 2011 11:36am
League of American Bicyclists mounts e-mail campaign “I Bike, I Vote.”
Since they were elected into power on Capitol Hill last fall, Congressional Republicans have been on a war path to eliminate government spending they consider wasteful. The latest project on the chopping block is the Transportation Enhancements (TE) program which creates safe space on the roads for vulnerable users like cyclists and pedestrians and to a lesser degree highway beautification. In a move to encourage more active transportation, Secretary of Transportation (and former Republican Congressman) Ray LaHood issued a directive that 10% of state road spending that involved federal transportation dollars be spend on TE projects. Now, Republican Congressional leadership is calling for a complete elimination of TE funds from the Transportation Department budget and Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn is threatening to block the entire transportation authorization bill if these funds are not removed.
It is strange that walking and cycling have become partisan, especially since they are representative of conservative values. Not only are cyclists and pedestrians not dependent on foreign oil, but infrastructure for these users cost taxpayers a fraction of that built for cars, help to cut health care costs with healthier citizens and fewer sick days, help address the obesity epidemic that now affects every part of the country without creating a nanny state, and help keep more money in the local economy creating wealth and jobs. Funding infrastructure for the automobile on the other hand does the opposite, is far more expensive to taxpayers, and since the gas tax does not even pay for half the roads built and repaired it means we are all subsidizing drivers whether we own a car or not. I know of no bicycle company that has been bailed out by the taxpayers and no wars have been funded to protect our sources of energy bars. Supporting and encouraging cycling may be the most conservative thing we do as a country.
If all of this is making you blood boil as much as mine, please consider participating in the League of American Bicyclists “I Bike, I Vote” campaign. Just follow this link to send a letter to your Senators asking them to support maintaining full funding for the Transportation Enhancements program. It only takes a couple minutes and you will let our elected officials know these programs are essential for safe roads and energy independence.
League of American Bicyclists mounts e-mail campaign “I Bike, I Vote.”
Since they were elected into power on Capitol Hill last fall, Congressional Republicans have been on a war path to eliminate government spending they consider wasteful. The latest project on the chopping block is the Transportation Enhancements (TE) program which creates safe space on the roads for vulnerable users like cyclists and pedestrians and to a lesser degree highway beautification. In a move to encourage more active transportation, Secretary of Transportation (and former Republican Congressman) Ray LaHood issued a directive that 10% of state road spending that involved federal transportation dollars be spend on TE projects. Now, Republican Congressional leadership is calling for a complete elimination of TE funds from the Transportation Department budget and Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn is threatening to block the entire transportation authorization bill if these funds are not removed.
It is strange that walking and cycling have become partisan, especially since they are representative of conservative values. Not only are cyclists and pedestrians not dependent on foreign oil, but infrastructure for these users cost taxpayers a fraction of that built for cars, help to cut health care costs with healthier citizens and fewer sick days, help address the obesity epidemic that now affects every part of the country without creating a nanny state, and help keep more money in the local economy creating wealth and jobs. Funding infrastructure for the automobile on the other hand does the opposite, is far more expensive to taxpayers, and since the gas tax does not even pay for half the roads built and repaired it means we are all subsidizing drivers whether we own a car or not. I know of no bicycle company that has been bailed out by the taxpayers and no wars have been funded to protect our sources of energy bars. Supporting and encouraging cycling may be the most conservative thing we do as a country.
If all of this is making you blood boil as much as mine, please consider participating in the League of American Bicyclists “I Bike, I Vote” campaign. Just follow this link to send a letter to your Senators asking them to support maintaining full funding for the Transportation Enhancements program. It only takes a couple minutes and you will let our elected officials know these programs are essential for safe roads and energy independence.