Springbike is a Springfield, Missouri area club whose purpose is to promote enjoyable safe cycling for its members and community.
Listed below are three areas (National, State, and Local) in which you can be an advocate in promoting the mission of Springbike while promoting safe cycling for our community!
NATIONAL: The current transportation bill expires September 30. The House passed a $1.5 trillion bill on July 1 titled the Investing in a New Vision for the Environment and Surface Transportation (INVEST) in America Act. The bill offers meaningful investments that would enhance and expand bike and mobility networks, leverage bikes as part of a solution to climate change and focus on bicycle and road safety through dedicated funding and research. While the House passed a reauthorization bill as one part of their infrastructure package, the Senate has not. It seems likely that Congress will authorize an extension of current funding levels until they agree on a new bill, possibly in 2021. People for Bikes [https://peopleforbikes.org/blog/moving-forward-for-federal-transportation-infrastructure-and-recovery-funding/] and League of American Bicyclists [https://bikeleague.org/league-vocabulary/advocacy] provide advocacy for bicycling and information for you to use. Contact your congressman and senators and let them know that you support more emphasis on bicycle mobility and safety [https://mobikefed.org/content/2010/03/contact-your-missouri-elected-officials].
STATE: Missouri Pedestrian and Bicycle Federation [https://mobikefed.org/] is working to make Missouri a better and safer place to walk and bicycle. One of their initiatives is to maintains the service of a lobbyist to keep up with legislative activity and promote measures to benefit walking and bicycling. Explore the website for advocacy resources and information.
LOCAL: The City of Springfield is currently updating its comprehensive plan. This plan outlines how funds will be spent over the next ten to twenty years. Most of the trails in Springfield are a direct result of priorities set in Vision 20/20, the last major plan update 20 years ago. Keep up with the latest activities and engage in the process at https://www.forwardsgf.com/. A specific plan that is underway now is the Grant Avenue Parkway Project which is to redo the corridor south of downtown to encourage walking and bicycling within and along the corridor. Engage at https://grantavenueparkway.com/. If you wish to be more involved, request to join a commission or board at https://www.springfieldmo.gov/723/Boards-Commissions. Many similar opportunities are available for those not in Springfield in your home municipality and county. Ozark Greenways [https://ozarkgreenways.org/about-us/mission/] works in Greene, Christian, and Polk Counties with government agencies, utilities, and other advocacy organizations to build a trail system that connects and enhances our community including safe and accessible connections to the trail system.
