Triangle-area planners have won nearly $100,000 in grants from the state Department of Transportation to promote walking and bicyling in their communities.

Holly Springs will use a $28,000 grant to develop a plan for providing bike facilities and encouraging cycling in the town. Raleigh will use a $47,500 grant and Creedmoor will use a $24,000 grant to develop pedestrian plans.

The three communities were among 12 cities and towns that received $327,100 in planning grants from the state Department of Transportation.

At hundreds of locations worldwide - including one in the Triangle - cyclists will gather at 7 p.m. Wednesday for a slow Ride of Silence to honor other cyclists who have been killed or injured while riding on public roads.

The local event is in Research Triangle Park, a 6-mile loop starting and ending at the Triangle Life Science Building, 86 T.W. Alexander Drive (corner of NC 54 and Triangle Drive).

Cyclists should arrive early. The group will be escorted by Durham police reserve officers. Helmets are required. Lights are suggested (and required at night by state law - sunset is at 8:10 p.m.). ... [MORE]

These transportation bills were filed on first day of the 2010 legislative session:

- HB 1685 (Cole) TURNPIKE AUTHORITY TOLL ENFORCEMENT CHANGES

- HB 1686 (Cole) BICYCLE SAFETY CHANGES (require cyclists to travel no more than two abreast on the highway, and to go single file when a faster car wants to pass them)

- SB 1129 (Boseman) GAP FUNDING FOR CAPE FEAR SKYWAY BRIDGE (set aside $40 million a year to cover gap between cost and expected toll collections on this Turnpike Authority project)

- SB 1131 (Goss) TURNPIKE AUTHORITY TOLL ENFORCEMENT CHANGES

- SB 1132 (Goss) MOTOR VEHICLES LAW CHANGES

At this hour, the legislature's Joint House-Senate Transportation Oversight Committee is deciding which transportation bills it will push in the legislative session that starts this week. One of them would tell bicycle riders not to travel more than two abreast, and it would have them go single file when cars want to get past them.

And as we speak, two-wheelers and four-wheelers are mixing it up in a parallel online debate (see today's Road Worrier column with lots of reader comment) about the bike bill.  

You can find the text of that draft legislation below (the one whose filename ends in 27) along with draft bills that would tackle predatory towing (... 26) and give the Turnpike Authority more power to collect those electronic tolls in the not-too-distant future (... 30).

Documents:

I'm writing about one proposed bill that could change relations between motorists and bicyclists in North Carolina, and about a second bill that would put new limits on towing operators that remove cars from private parking lots.

If you've had experience with either of these issues, I'd like to hear from you. Please e-mail me and let me know how I can contact you. [See updates, added 5/10/10, below.]

1) With NCDOT reminding North Carolinians during Bicycle Safety Month that "bicyclists share the same rights and responsibilities as other drivers," legislators are considering a proposal to put new restrictions on groups of bike riders when they share the highways with car drivers. ... [MORE]

With 12 days left in the 2010 campaign, 4151 Triangle folks have taken the SmartCommute Challenge.

You simply pledge to try a new way of getting to work or to campus. How hard is that?

The deadline is May 15.  Participants are eligible for bikes, gadgets, $1500 cash and other prizes.

I know from past SmartCommute campaigns that this is how lots of people discover whether taking the bus could be a real option for them. Sometimes, they find the answer is Yes.

This year the three-county campaign also features a Flickr photo contest with $750 for the best pic submitted by folks showing how they bike, bus, walk, carpool or (I'm leaving something out I know) telecommute to work. Oh, or vanpool. I know they don't say telecommute any more - they say telework.

The 2010 SmartCommute Challenge is about to crank up. That means Triangle commuters will get the chance to win cool stuff in exchange for simply promising to experiment with a new way of getting to work.

This is a three-county, month-long campaign for people who commute to jobs or college in the Triangle. To reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality, commuters are encouraged to cut back on driving solo. Alternatives include taking the bus, joining a carpool or vanpool, walking or biking, or "teleworking" from home.

It's pretty easy. Between April 15 (Thursday) and May 15, ... [MORE]

Two Durham cyclists, Pablo Torres and his girlfriend Gabrielle Trapenberg, are raising money for their upcoming Climate Ride, a 300-mile roll from New York to Washington, D.C. They call themselves Latinos por el planeta.

Pablo says he and Gabi are the only two North Carolinians scheduled to join cyclists from across the United States on the five-day bike trip, Sept. 26-30, which is a fund-raiser and a "climate conference on wheels:"

Along the way, expert speakers will educate and inspire Climate Riders and local communities about the science, the policies and the solutions to global warming. Participants will meet knowledgeable renewable energy experts, climate activists, scientists, and leaders committed to making a difference. The ride will finish at the steps of the U.S. Capitol, where riders will have the opportunity to meet with the nation’s government leaders and make a powerful statement about the need for renewable energy and climate change legislation.

They have a lot of training to do, and a lot of money to raise. ...

Saturday is your last chance to take the SmartCommute Challenge -- a good idea on its own merits -- and enter the drawing for prices including a $2,500 check.

So far 10,433 Triangle residents have taken the challenge -- which means they pledge to experiment with some commuting mode other than driving alone to work or school. In other words: bus, vanpool, carpool, walk, bike, telecommute, did I leave anything out?

The idea behind this six-week, three-county campaign is simple and smart. Give lots of people incentives to leave the car at home and experiment with other ways of getting to work, and some of this will stick. Some people will actually change their habits.

Details are online. 

As 26 cyclists set off for a leisurely loop through downtown Raleigh this morning, Jim Trogdon was the guy wearing a blue necktie and pinstripe shirt with his bike helmet.

“I usually wear a tie on Fridays, anyway – on ‘casual day,’ I wear a casual tie,” said Trogdon, assistant adjutant general of the N.C. National Guard and chief operating officer for the state Department of Transportation.

“Because of my tight schedule, I decided to bike to work in my duty uniform, but in a casual manner so I do not get too dirty and sweaty on the way in. And it’s perfect weather for that, cool today.”

It was a modest turnout for an event promoting Bike to Work Week. Many of the participants were bike boosters – city and state government and transportation and environmental officials, outdoor retailers, and retired veteran cyclists who still bike but no longer work.

Rebecca Ferres was a new recruit to the world of bicycle commuting.

“I just started yesterday,” said Ferres, 28, after the 15-minute ride around an 18-block circuit. Thursday had been her first day making the 5.75-mile commute from her home to her office on Fayetteville Street, where she works in the city’s stormwater compliance office.

“There’s a lot of reasons why, but I’m poor! I’m trying to save on gas. I need exercise. Environmental reasons. So there’s a hodgepodge of things. I was very scared when I first started, but I’ve gotten used to it.”