Bike BetteR
10
What is your favourite place to ride in town?
There is some really nice countryside around here. Bayou
Tortue is a favorite of mine. Some of the residents even have
water fountains built into their mailboxes for cyclists, super
beautiful and happy place to ride.
Why did you get involved in bicycle advocacy?
It is a productive way to give back and help the community that helped me overcome a broken neck.
What would you consider the greatest challenges currently facing Louisiana bicycle advocacy?
Showing the citizens that have never been exposed to cities that you don't need a car to travel around in and how much better their quality of life will be if we move in that direction. It's hard to change an established culture, but the benefits are so tangible and overwhelming it will be possible.
What are YOU doing to tackle that challenge?
To have proof of how great a cycling community would be on a statewide level, we need tangible examples on a local level. I am involved in communicating with city planners, the local government and MPO, and the neighborhood coteries to come up with projects to expand our non-motorized vehicle travel. BikeLafayette had spear-headed the designation of 10% of federal roadway dollars to be spent on bicycle and pedestrian improvements, and now we're finding projects to use that on. I have also started a group of over 60 community volunteers to audit the accessibility of our downtown area and parks for pedestrians cyclists, disabled, and transit. Our city's transportation engineers are giving them checklists so that they know what the problems are that need to be addressed. I am going to start presenting these ideas to several social clubs in our area, and am developing a short film to reach out to the public.
What can other people do to help?
Getting involved on a local level is the biggest thing I see. People interested in all types of non-motorized transportation should be involved, as what's good for pedestrians is also good for cycling. Small easily met projects are the best way to get support for larger projects.