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6th Annual Portsmouth Criterium - September 21, 2010 What's Next for bike access on the Memorial Bridge? Local Bicycle Routes - Get From Here to There by Bike! 8th Annual Seacoast Bike/Walk to Work Day a Success Ideal weather on Friday, May 21, 2010 helped make Bike/Walk to Work Day a great success! Hundreds of commuters took to the streets of the Seacoast aboard their bikes and visited one of the eight commuter breakfasts from Market Square and Pease to North Hampton, Stratham and downtown Exeter to Durham, Dover and Lee. There is still time to get involved this year, with New Hampshire's state-wide Commute Green NH (May 15 - June 25), extending the celebration to those who carpool or take public transportation in addition to walkers and cyclists. If you ride, walk, carpool or take public transportation to work an average of once a week (6 times) before June 25th, you could win a stay for two at the Omni Mount Washington Resort in Bretton Woods or four pairs of roundtrip tickets on the Amtrak Donweaster. Go to www.bwanh.org for more details!
The fourth annual Corporate Commuter Challenge event winners board saw some familiar names as well a surprise. For the third consecutive year Papa Wheelies Bicycle Shop was the Small Company winner (1-15 employees). The Deep Submergence System Unit at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard took the Medium Workplace honors (16-200 employees), and the University of New Hampshire faculty and staff overpowered Timberland with sheer numbers to dethrone the three-time winners in the Large Employer Division (200+ employees).
The event has seen some success stories, including Gary Cilley of Madbury. Cilley, who works at the University System of New Hampshire office in Lee, says he was so inspired by Durham's Bike/Walk to Work Day event in 2008 that he started biking daily in good weather that summer … then got raingear … then a new bike … then some panniers so he can pick up groceries at the Market Basket on the way home. He's hooked now, he says, last year he biked more than 3,100 miles. Major sponsors of this year's Bike/Walk to Work Day were the Timberland Company, Rockingham Planning Commission, Strafford Regional Planning Commission, Papa Wheelies Bicycle Shop, Smuttynose Brewery, and Fast Girl Productions. Additional support and in-kind contributions came from Popovers Bakery, Bailey Works, Tenants Association at Pease, St. Anthony's Bakery, Billingsgate Deli, UNH Department of Kinesiology, UNH Office of Sustainability, Town of Durham, Gus' International Bike Shop, Old Salt Restaurant, Phillips Exeter Academy, Exeter Area Chamber of Commerce, and Tradeport Pizza. Memorial Bridge Rehabilitation in Jeopardy? At the Public Information Meeting for the NH-ME Connections Study on May 6th, 2010, the consultant team presented results of the most recent bridge inspection for Memorial Bridge and the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge. The inspection showed even greater deterioration of the steel truss members than anticipated, particularly on Memorial Bridge. Based on the extent of this deterioration, officials from the NH Department of Transportation indicated that a rehabilitation of the existing bridge would be far most costly and require replacement of far more of the structure than originally anticipated. NHDOT's recommendation is that the bridge structure be replaced on its existing piers/abutments, rededicated as a memorial to Servicemen killed in WWI, and designed in consultation with historic preservation groups, bike/ped representatives and other stakeholders to ensure a context sensitive new design. Bob Landry of NHDOT noted that a rebuild option also improves the ability to widen the flanking walkways on the bridge and turn them into multi-use bike/ped paths, as has been done with the similar Hawthorne Bridge in Portland, OR. Together with planned solid decking on the lift-span roadway, this will be a tremendous improvement for cyclists. While NHDOT Commissioner George Campbell stressed that the bridge remains safe for travel at posted weight limits, Commissioner Campbell and State Senator Martha Fuller Clark indicated that the State of NH sees a need to move as quickly as possible to begin work on the bridge, given earlier estimates of remaining life for the bridge of 1-3 years. Campbell and Clark announced that New Hampshire would step up to the plate and fund the capital construction costs for the replacement of the Memorial Bridge, given the recent adjournment of the Maine State Legislature prior to appropriating funds for the project. Maine DOT Commissioner David Cole has stated that Maine is interested in replacing Memorial Bride with a bike/ped only bridge, and replacing the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge with a new 4-lane structure. SABR, the NH Seacoast Greenway Committee, the Eastern Trail Management District, and other advocates for non-motorized transportation have spoken out against a bike/ped only bridge, as eliminating automobile access across Memorial Bridge would have tremendous adverse impacts on businesses in Kittery. SABR continues to believe that a bridge providing safe accommodation for all modes is critical to the economies of both Portsmouth and Kittery. Numerous Kittery residents at the meeting urged fellow Mainers to contact their representatives in Augusta and stress the importance of fixing Memorial Bridge ASAP. For more information go to: "Three Foot Rule" Becomes Law in NH! Governor John Lynch, in a public ceremony at the State House on July 18, 2008 signed House Bill 1203 into law.This law is designed to update NH laws and policies concerning many aspects of bicycling. HB 1203 was sponsored by Rep. Gene Anderson of Grafton County. The Bike-Walk Alliance of NH has been active in raising awareness of the need for the bill's provisions. SABR also submitted testimony on the bill. |
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