With glorious rain, clear skies, and crisp fall air, we are frantically trying to ride our bikes as much as possible before winter sets in! We have a flurry of advocacy opportunities coming up so stay tuned!
Bike Repair Kits Soon To Be In Circulation!
Last month our newsletter included a call for donations to help Bend Bikes add bike repair kits to the Library of Things at the Deschutes Public Library. This collection of items allows library patrons to try out cooking tools, musical instruments, outdoors equipment and crafts. This fills a need for those who wanted to try their hand at repairs as well as providing the necessary tools to people who may not be able to afford repairs.
Thanks to the generosity of Bend Bikes supporters Lucas Freeman, Kim Ely, and Pine Mountain Sports, we were able to set up three bike kits which will reside at each of the Bend branches as well as the La Pine branch. Pine Mountain Sports donated two kits and we purchased the third kit with supporter donations. Henry Abel from Pine Mountain Sports worked with Board Member Jim Elliott to supplement the kits with a patch kit, small pump, shop rag, and chain lube as well as cable ends, and zip ties. With the remaining funds, we set up an account at Pine Mountain Sports to allow the repair kits’ supplies of consumables to be replenished as needed.
The three kits were delivered to Library Collections specialist Le Button on September 27th and will be set up for circulation in the next two weeks. We are excited that every single branch of the Deschutes Public Library now has a bike repair kit for our community to check out and enjoy (the Sisters branch already had a kit!).
(Le Button from the Deschutes Public Library and Henry Abel from Pine Mountain Sports)
Bend Bikes is still accepting donations for this program to allow us to expand the program and resupply the current repair kits as needed. If you are interested in donating to this program, contact Jim Elliott at [email protected].
Draft 5-Year GO Bond Project List Available And TBOC Meeting Postponed
The next Transportation Bond Oversight Committee meeting is postponed to Tuesday, October 5th from 4 – 6 pm to allow City staff more time to develop a more well-thought out draft project list for the first five years of the GO Bond. The packet and draft project package are now available!
Our advocacy team is digging through the draft project list, chatting with community partners over the next day or so, and we will be putting out our full position on Thursday to give folks enough time to pull together any public comment. We encourage folks to take a look and keep an eye out on your inbox as this will be one of the rare times we send a supplemental emailing.
DCLD Listening Sessions for Draft Transportation and Land Use Rules
Folks may have seen the Bend Bulletin’s opinion editorial on the draft administrative rules for transportation and land use brewing at the state level entitled “Editorial: The state is moving Oregonians to Bikeville.” We can only dream of that day. One problematic statement the editorial board makes is that “These rules aren’t being made in secret. They are being discussed in public meetings. But where is the state’s effort to let Oregonians know about rule changes that are so transformational?”
Staff from the City of Bend sit on the Department of Land Conversation and Development’s Climate Friendly and Equitable Communities Rules Advisory Committee with Bend Bikes President LeeAnn O’Neill. The state conducted a series of listening sessions in May 2021 with respect to these rules, with folks from the City, County, and community partners in attendance.
A second series of listening sessions specific to the draft rules that have the Bend Bulletin’s editorial board so fired up are being conducted in late October! Each meeting will give an overview of the draft rules. The rules correspond to Governor Brown’s charge: strengthened planning for transportation options, climate-friendly development areas, parking management reform, promoting electric vehicle charging, reduced overreliance on congestion measurements, and making sure transportation projects are selected to support Oregon’s pollution reduction goals. They also include rules for regionally-designed plans for pollution reduction.
Register Today! Pre-registration is required to help the DLCD identify who their engagement process is reaching. Their intention is to reach a wide range of interests and communities. We encourage registrants to share basic demographic information.
Telephone or computer access is possible at the registration links below.
October 25 6:30 – 8:30 PM Southern Oregon (register here)
October 26 Noon – 1:30 PM Bend, Corvallis, Albany (register here)
October 27 6:30 – 8:30 PM Salem, Eugene, Keizer, Springfield (register here)
October 28 11 AM – 12:30 PM Portland Metro (register here)
While these events are regionally named, all events are virtual and participants are welcome to attend the event most convenient for them.
What Should Bend’s Bicycle Friendly Status Be?
In 2016, Bend was awarded a Silver Bicycle Friendly Community Award by the League of American Bicyclists. The award recognized Bend’s efforts regarding bicycle transportation safety, education, and accessibility, and identified areas for improvement to graduate to gold, platinum, or diamond status. The City of Bend seeks to renew its designation and a part of this process includes gathering input from local folks who ride bikes. Whether you live, work, or play in Bend, if you are familiar with riding bikes around town, the League wants to know about your on-the-ground experience. Complete the 10-15 minute survey by Monday, October 11th to contribute your thoughts. Results are expected to be publicly announced in December.
[Source: League of American Bicyclists]
Bend Bikes Vision: Bike Parking
Imagine in the not too distant future we are closer to our vision of a 15 Minute City. We have our low stress network including protected bike lanes, bike signal heads with detection for bicycles, etc. We are choosing to bike to more and more destinations because it’s convenient, safe, and fun. And when we get to our destination, we have a safe and convenient place to park our bike!
Lately, there has been a lot of talk in Bend about car parking, but what we don’t hear much of is how integral bike parking is to our vision of the city. Creating a balanced transit ecosystem where people can both park cars and park bikes is essential for giving the choice of whether to drive or ride. Some cities are now including bike fix it stations at secure bike-transit centers with Wi-Fi, showers, rentals, and repairs.
(A recent concert at Les Schwab where bike parking filled quickly and people were forced to use the fence.)
Adding more bike parking will encourage more people to bike in the first place when they can see that their bike will be secure close to their destination. More car parking helps make more car commuters–having a free and secure place to park your car at your destination encourages driving and conversely, having a free and secure place to park your bike at your destination encourages biking. People would be much less likely to drive to a destination if they thought that their expensive car was going to be stolen or vandalized when it was parked, yet this is exactly what we ask of bike commuters. Furthermore, cities are starting to include bike parking mandates in developer codes for new buildings, both commercial and residential. In Bend, we can do better than what we currently have, secure and convenient places to park your bike throughout town will benefit everyone! Ask our city councillors to include bike parking mandates in developer codes, ask Bend Parks and Recreation to expand bike parking at all parks, and ask your workplace or neighborhood store to add secure bike parking to their buildings/land to help realize a better Bend.