Quad States Trails of St. Joseph, Inc. Meeting

Greetings All,

It was truly great seeing all of you this evening and I thank you for showing your support.

Quite often now, Ill be sending emails that include press releases or making announcements to a much larger group than the original Quad States St. Joseph Google Group. The Google Group worked for a while but unless one is a member of the group one does not receive posts made on the site. So Ive expanded the coverage by posting information on a page here at the Missouri Bicycle Federation website. Rather than reaching a few people each week now news and information pertinent to Quad States Trails of St. Joseph Inc. and Saint Michaels Meadow Trail Foundation Inc. are reaching thousands of people. This is easier than composing several emails to several different individuals, groups and organizations. I can refer people to a page having much greater exposure. The posts will also include graphs and pictures rather than text only. Ill be forwarding information to the St. Joseph Bicycle Club also as they have expressed an interest. The St. Joseph Bicycle Club is an established group in St. Joseph who have blazed paths around St Joseph’s streets and Buchanan County’s highways for many years. Some of which include head-on collisions and t-bones with unwitting automobile drivers seemingly unaware that a 2K pound moving object made of metal and plastic could cause severe injury or death upon contact when striking a bicycler or pedestrian.

The meeting tonight was not structured and no official agenda was discussed because I knew there were people coming to hear about the Tour of Missouri and there just isnt too much to tell at this time. The March 5^t meeting bringing all the LOC committees together in Jefferson City will provide more information. Quad States Trails of St. Joseph, Inc. meets on the Third Thursday of each month at City Hall on the first floor next to the elevators.

In March, along with updates from the St. Joseph Stage LOC for the Tour of Missouri, I'll include a power point presentation showing the bike/ped byway that will connect us with Kansas City and North to Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska. This will be a larger and detailed version of the power point presentation I gave last June defining the various regional and multi state trail and byway projects that cross this area and how Quad States Trails of St. Joseph fits into this plan.

Brent Hugh announced the Missouri Bicycle Federation's 10 year plan this week to develop a world class bicycle pedestrian plan for Missouri. Quad States Trails of St. Joseph Inc., and Saint Michael's Meadow Trail Foundation, Inc. will follow this plan of development. I was recently elected a Board Member of the Missouri Bicycle Federation at the last MBF meeting and will be working closely with Brent Hugh in this program. I think a ten year plan is feasible for St. Joseph to develop a network of paths and byways people can use to get from point to point by using self-powered forms of transportation. Safely. If you want to get involved in this program please contact me.

Two bills were introduced this week at the House. The ,Safe Streets, house bill 2205 and the ,Complete the Streets, bill 2206. The following are links to the internet :

http://www.house.mo.gov/billtracking/bills081/biltxt/intro/HB2205I.htm

http://www.house.mo.gov/billtracking/bills081/biltxt/intro/HB2206I.htm

I'll be announcing the hard surface path that will connect Weston and St. Joseph this up-coming month. We have a map of the bicycle pedestrian byway completed and are ready to publish it. A bike/ped group from Kansas City Metro and Saint Michael’s Meadow Trail Foundation, Inc. will be working together to complete the hard surface byway from Kansas City through Platte County to St. Joseph. If you want to get involved in this program please contact me.

Thanks again for all your support this year and I hope to see all of you more this year.

Wes Revels
President, Quad States Trails of St. Joseph, Inc.
President, Saint Michael’s Meadow Trail Foundation, Inc.
Board Member, Missouri Bicycle Federation