What has MoBikeFed done for you lately?

What has your membership or generous contribution in support of the Missouri Bicycle & Pedestrian Federation’s vision and mission made possible in recent years? 

Missouri's delegation to the National Bike Summit
Missouri's delegation to the National Bike Summit

Statewide  

  • $13 million plus in High Priority Bicycle, Pedestrian, and ADA projects (2009-present): In 2009, MoBikeFed and allied organizations met with the MoDOT Director about the statewide Complete Streets Bill that MoBikeFed had championed for several years. In negotiations, MoBikeFed agreed to change the bill to a Complete Streets Resolution, which successfully passed.  We also agree to lead a coordinated statewide effort to compile prioritized list of the 100 top needs for bicycling and walking in Missouri. MoDOT funded the initial list of 13 projects, totaling $13 million in spending on the most urgent bicycle and pedestrian needs in Missouri, and continues to build other projects on the list. 

See the full list and current funding status: MoBikeFed.org/highpriority

  • MoDOT and the General Assembly adopt a “Total Transportation” approach to Missouri transportation funding, for the first time ever including bicycling and walking on equal footing with all other transportation modes (2005-present): In 2005, MoBikeFed began to systematically work on the single biggest problem facing bicycling and walking in Missouri: The Missouri Constitution bans spending of state transportation funds on bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. The result of years of work on this issue in the background was the introduction of the first-ever Missouri transportation funding proposal to fully integrate bicycling, walking, and trails in the Missouri House and Senate in January 2013.  The measure received overwhelming support in both houses of the Missouri General Assembly in January 2013, which showed MoDOT that this approach has strong support among Missouri political leaders.  The General Assembly bill failed because of the filibuster of just four senators, but the identical constitutional amendment is now set for a vote of the people of Missouri in November 2014.
  • MoDOT introduces its first-ever Long Range Transportation Plan that fully integrates bicycling, walking, and trails (1994-present): The results of a long-term advocacy work by MoBikeFed and our allied organizations across  the state has been a steady improvement in the way MoDOT handles bicycle and pedestrian safety and connectivity in its policies and procedures, plans, and projects.  By far the most significant single improvement in MoDOT’s bicycle and pedestrian policy came in November 2013 with the introduction of a new MoDOT Long-Range Transportation Plan that incorporates interconnectivity of all transportation modes, including bicycling and walking as one of its four major objectives.  Here is a snapshot view of how that policy change happened:
    • In 1990 before the founding of MoBikeFed, MoDOT did not include bicycling or walking in its planning at all. 
    • By 2002, MoDOT including bicycling and walking in a minimal way. 
    • In the 2007 MoDOT long-range plan, the role of bicycling and walking was slightly expanded.
    • In 2013, response to the General Assembly’s endorsement of the Total Transportation approach to Missouri transportation funding, and the planned introduction of the proposed $8 billion, 10-year transportation funding plan in November 2014, MoDOT has comprehensively included bicycling and walking as one of four major emphasis areas in the plan.  MoDOT is featuring and promoting the multi-modal and bicycle/pedestrian elements of its plan as an essential feature—one that has long been missing in MoDOT’s approach to transportation.

MoDOT leadership is now sincerely preaching the virtues of the multi-modal approach and working on our behalf to ensure its success. 

MoDOT Director Dave Nichols at Bicycle and Pedestrian Day at the Capitol
MoDOT Director Dave Nichols at Bicycle and Pedestrian Day at the Capitol

Whether or not the proposal for a 1 cent sales tax for Missouri transportation succeeds, the changes within MoDOT and within the General Assembly’s attitude towards bicycling and walking are permanent.  The only question: How thoroughgoing a change will we be able to manage over the crucial period in the next 365 days? That is where your support will make the difference.

The 180-degree turnaround within MoDOT over the past 20 years is a testament to the long-range vision of MoBikeFed and our statewide allies, our ability to identify and focus on the most important strategic objectives of the long run, our ability to forge key partnerships and alliances with Missouri’s key transportation decision makers, and our ability to deliver a long-term, very important campaign with minimal resources and funding.

  • Stopped proposed bicycle bans (2010-2013): Worked with many allied local and national organizations to put a complete stop to several local and statewide proposed bicycle bans, including two proposals in the Missouri General Assembly that were both thoroughly defeated. 
  • Access on major river bridges (1994-present): Worked with allied local and national organizations for better bike/ped access on major river bridges across Missouri. Successes: Jefferson City, Kansas City (two bridges currently, two more forthcoming), Washington (forthcoming), St. Charles (one bridge currently; one forthcoming), Lexington, Leavenworth, Hermann, Washington (forthcoming), and others.

    The Heart of America Bicycle/Pedestrian Path, crossing the Missouri River in the heart of the Kansas City metro area, was renamed after former MoBikeFed Chair and founder, Bob Watts.
  • Anti-harassment legislation (2010-present): Worked with local communities to introduce legislation banning harassment of and throwing objects at bicyclists and pedestrians.  Effective anti-harassment ordinances have been adopted for four Missouri cities; we are currently working with more cities and state legislators on this issue.
  • Improving national & statewide bicycle touring routes (1994-present): Working with local and national partners, we have worked to improve and promote Missouri’s seven statewide bicycle touring routes.  Highlights:
    • Mississippi River Trail adopted and signed (mid 2000s)
    • Route 66 Bicycle Route added to the Adventure Cycling system and draft/future route to the U.S. Bicycle Route System (in progress)
    • Way of American Genius (Hwy 36) Route created and added as a draft/future route to the U.S. National Bicycle Route System (2012)
    • Transamerica Trail national bicycle route through Missouri is formally adopted into the U.S. National Bicycle Route system with clear signage marking each turn of the route. 
      Bicyclist on Hwy 13 near Bolivar--Hwy 13 could be a key link in a comprehensive
      Bicyclist on Hwy 13 near Bolivar--Hwy 13 could be a key link in a comprehensive statewide bicycle touring route system
  • Katy Trail system extension and expansion (2005-present): Worked with allied groups from across the state to extend the Katy Trail from state line to state line and also make trails connections to all cities along the trail—Hermann, Jefferson City, and Washington.  The Katy has since been extended by 11 miles on the eastern end and work on the 46-mile connect from Windsor to the Kansas City metro area is underway. MoBikeFed led the successful grass-roots effort that led the governor and attorney general to incorporate the 46-mile Katy-Kansas City connection into the settlement with AmerenUE over the Taum Sauk disaster (AmerenUE owns the main portion of the Rock Island Railroad Corridor, where the Katy-KC connection will be made).
  • Statewide trails system census and plan (1995-present): Missouri has one of the best trails systems in the nation—everything from single-track mountain bike trails to the Katy Trail system, to city and state parks trails systems to trails for motorcycles and ATVs. MoBikeFed and many of our partners across the state in the trails arena have recognized a serious deficit, however: Missouri lacks a statewide trails plan. We also lack a central source for trails information. MoBikeFed is proud to be part of the Missouri Trails Alliance, which has worked to create a complete census of all trails in Missouri and is not starting to make that trails information available to the public at VisitMissouriTrails.com. Missouri’s leadership in that area was recognized in 2013 as Missouri was named Best Trails State.  This inspired Governor Nixon to launch his 100 Missouri Miles Challenge campaign—which has now inspired Missourians to bike, walk, hike, ride, and paddle more than one million miles in 2013.

    Governor Nixon intends to continue this successful program in 2014.  It is the highest-level, highest profile campaign, most successful statewide campaign to encourage Missourians to bike, walk, hike, and enjoy the outdoors more, that we have seen in MoBikeFed’s 20-year history. 
  • Complete Streets (2005-present):  MoBikeFed led the effort to introduce Complete Streets as a statewide policy in Missouri, resulting in the General Assembly’s passage of the Complete Streets resolution in 2010. MoDOT has now embraced the idea under the name “routine accommodation.”

    MoBikeFed worked with the Missouri Department of Health in 2009 to help establish the Missouri Livable Streets Initiative that has taken dozens of Complete Streets training session to communities across Missouri and helped to fully engage Missouri’s health community in the effort to promote bikable, walkable communities.

    Missouri has gone from three Complete Streets policies in 2007 to 22 today. In 2000, no Missouri Complete Streets policies existed. 

    Today, more than 1.6 million Missourians live in a city with a Complete Streets policy and more than three million live within a Metropolitan Planning Organization that has adopted a Complete Streets policy. 
    Governor Nixon's 100 Missouri Miles Program recently hit one million miles.
    Governor Nixon's 100 Missouri Miles Program recently passed the one million mile mark. It celebrates the Best Trails State of 2013 Award for Missouri.
     
    In addition, the National Complete Streets Coalition has recognized Missouri policies as among the best in the nation.
  • Bicycle & Walk Friendly Cities (2008-present): In 2008, no Missouri cities held Bicycle Friendly City status.  Now seven Missouri cities are part of the national Bicycle Friendly Community program, and 23 businesses and universities participate as well.  Over one million Missourians live in a community participating in the Bicycle Friendly Community program. We also have our first community to hold Walk Friendly Community status and are working to encourage more communities to join the national Walk Friendly Community movement.
  • 34 legislative successes in Jefferson City (1995-present): We have had new fewer than 34 legislative successes since 1995—31 of them since 2005 when we hired jim Farrell, our Governmental Affairs Representative in Jefferson City. Recent Highlights: Same Roads/Same Rights License Plate in support of bicycling (finally produced in 2013 after a decade of work), Bike Month & Walk to School Month added to state holidays calendar, Dead Red law for bicyclists, safe passing of bicyclists as part of a major update/improvement to basic bicycle law (2005), and others mentioned separately in this document.
  • Our successful annual Capitol Day and Legislators Ride in Jefferson help build relationships (2007-present): Capitol Day helps our members and supporters build relationships with their legislators and the annual Legislators Ride has become a successful partnership of MoBikeFed, Missouri State Parks, and MoDOT.  Participants in our Jefferson City events over past years have included Missouri’s First Lady, the Lieutenant Governor, MoDOT Director, MoDOT Bike/Ped Coordinator, the Attorney General, the State Parks Director, chairs and key members of the House & Senate Transportation Committees, and many others. 
  • Tour of Missouri (2005-2010): MoBikeFed Board and Advisory Commission Members helped steer the Tour of Missouri to the state, serving on initial steering committees and on the Tour’s Board. The Tour soon became Missouri’s highest profiled bicycle event in history, bringing in tens of millions of dollars in annual economic impact to Tour host communities around the state.  MoBikeFed led the successful work to have one million dollars appropriated to continue the Tour for a fourth year in 2010. Unfortunately we were powerless to stop the governor from pocket-vetoing the appropriation by simply refusing to spend the appropriated funds. However, the relationships we built doing this Tour of Missouri work and the successes we had—including the $1 million appropriation for the 2010 Tour—have been key to our advocacy successes since that time.  
  • Safe Routes to School Coalition (2009-present): Established the Missouri Safe Routes to School Coalition, which quadrupled Missouri’s participation in International Walk/Bike to School Day events, helped guide and focus MoDOT’s $15 million in spending in Safe Routes to School area,  and helped create a broad coalition in support of bicycling and walking across Missouri. All this sets up the possibility of creating a new Missouri Safe Routes to School Fund as part of the proposed new $8 billion statewide transportation funding initiative.  Again, our work on this topic over the course of 2014 will determine whether the Missouri Safe Routes to School Fund becomes a reality or not—and your membership and support will help make it happen.
    The Missouri safe Routes to School Coalition
    The Missouri safe Routes to School Coalition
  • Bicycle and pedestrian counts, statistics, and metrics in Missouri are the best ever (1994-present): For years, Missourians have not had a clear picture of how many Missourians bicycle, walk, and use trails, what percentage of trips involve an injury or fatality, how Missourians feel about the bicycle and pedestrian friendliness of their communities, and many other important metrics.

    MoBikeFed has worked to encourage agencies like MoDOT and the Missouri Department of Health of vastly upgrade their information gathering and metrics related to bicycling and walking.  This newly available and powerful information has been absolutely vital in working to convince Missouri leaders to more fully incorporate bicycling, walking, and trails into plans like the forthcoming $8 billion Missouri Transportation Funding Proposal.

National

  • Success building relationships with Missouri’s Congressional Delegation (2002-present): Missouri’s Congressional Delegation is key to national transportation policy and funding. Senator Kit Bond held many key transportation-related committee assignments and was on the group of four who drafted the six-year federal transportation funding and policy law, SAFETEA-LU in 2005 and now Senator Roy Blunt is in a similar position. National bicycle & pedestrian advocacy groups consider Missouri’s Congressional Delegation key to their success on the national level.  Since 2007 MoBikeFed has worked to organize Missouri’s delegation to the National Bike Summit and worked hard to build positive relationship with all of Missouri members of Congress and their staff members. 
    Missouri delegates at the National Bike Summit meet with Senator Claire McCaskil
    Missouri delegates at the National Bike Summit meet with Senator Claire McCaskill in her Washington, DC, office.
  • MAP-21, the newest federal transportation funding bill: In 2012, House congressional leadership in Washington, DC, took on elimination of federal bicycle and pedestrian funding as a key leadership initiative.  Federal bicycle and pedestrian funding is the single largest source of funding for bikeways, pedestrian facilities, and trails in Missouri, so losing this important source of funding would have been disastrous for the state and the nation—and eliminating it was right in the crosshairs, at the very top of the priority list for a few of the very top leaders running the House of Representatives.

    Missouri’s congressional delegation was key in the work to resist the pressure to eliminate the vital bike/ped funding. Missouri’s Senator Blunt took a leadership role in the Republican Party in defending the importance of this funding, and Missouri’s Senator McCaskill stood firm with those in her party who voted to support bike/ped funding.  Encouraging both those Senators to take those positions and stand firm in them took years of relationship building and many hours of work in 2012 by both Missouri and national advocacy organizations.  

    The final result: Federal bicycle and pedestrian funding in MAP-21 was changed and slightly reduced, but not eliminated.  In the face of the major and very public campaign by House leadership to completely eliminate this funding, MAP-21 was a major victory for bicycle and pedestrian advocates in 2012—both national advocacy groups and Missouri’s advocacy groups, including MoBikeFed. Missouri’s Congressional Delegation and MoBikeFed played a key role in that important national victory, and our relationship with members of that delegation made the difference.  

Local

MoBikeFed works to maintain relationships with and cooperation among all of Missouri’s bicycle, pedestrian, trails advocacy groups, clubs, organizations, businesses, and agencies.  We work to coordinate among the areas of Missouri that have strong, established advocacy groups, but we have a special mission to provide support and advocacy information to the remainder of Missouri that lacks specific, organized advocacy groups, as far as we can within our capacity.

  • Created online pages with detailed information, resources, and encouragement for communities and agencies (2006-present).  Detailed information and resources are available in these areas:
    • Complete Streets
    • Bicycle and Walk Friendly Communities
    • Safe Routes to School
    • Anti-Harassment Laws
    • Suggested laws and legislation
    • Top Recommendations for
      • MoDOT and MoDOT districts
      • MoDOT’s 28 Regional Transportation Planning Partners across Missouri
      • Missouri cities

Find these guides on the MoBikeFed web site under the “Campaigns” tab.

  • Fiscal sponsor for Missouri’s first Bike Share System (2012): Acted as fiscal sponsor for the first phase of the Kansas City B Cycle project, making Missouri’s first-ever modern bicycle share system possible. We hope this pioneering and successful project, run by BikeWalkKC, is the first of several bike share systems to be established in Missouri over the next few years. 
    Action 2020 Workshops were a partnership between MoBikeFed and MACOG.
    Action 2020 Workshops were a partnership between MoBikeFed and MACOG, reaching many of MoDOT's regional transportation planning partners across Missouri.
  • Bicycle Education (2011-2012): Our Foundation has acted as fiscal sponsor for a groundbreaking bicycle education program in Kansas City called BLAST.  The program takes a truckload of bicycles to a school PE class, where students received an effective and fund three-hour hands-on bicycle safety course.  BLAST will continue and expand in Kansas City under the leadership of BikeWalkKC.  Springfield has received funding to start a similar program and we would like to see similar programs become available throughout Missouri. 
  • Helped launch BikeWalkKC (2010-2013): Our Foundation acted as fiscal sponsor and incubator for over $600,000 of joint projects and initiatives that launched BikeWalkKC, now one of the most powerful and effective local advocacy organizations in Missouri. We had identified Kansas City’s lack of a central, focused, well-funded, effective local bicycle, pedestrian, and trails organization as the single biggest easily solvable problem facing Missouri statewide bicycle and pedestrian advocacy community.  Kansas City, Missouri’s largest city and second largest metro area, and had been identified as the very worst city for bicycle friendliness of the 50 largest cities in the U.S. Four years later, Kansas City has that powerful, effective advocacy group and is well on its way from worst to first among U.S. cities. Our Foundation’s shared grants, fiscal sponsorship, and ability to serve as an incubator for future grants and projects helped BikeWalkKC to get up, running, and at maximum effectiveness in a far shorter time than is typically possible with such groups.  BikeWalkKC is now a statewide, region-wide, and national leader among metro-area bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organizations.
  • Regional Trails and BikeWay Funding (2006-present): MoBikeFed’s Legislative Platform includes a plank supporting development of regional trails and bikeways systems through local tax initiatives.  Great Rivers Greenway District, which now administers about $30 million annual for trails, greenways, parks, and on-road bikeway systems in the St. Louis region, is Missouri’s most successful example of such a district. MoBikeFed has worked in support of statewide legislation enabling two such trails districts in the Kansas City area (though neither have moved towards the local vote required to actual implement the district yet), and the City-Parks-Arch-Trails tax in St. Louis.  That tax passed the Missouri General Assembly in 2012 and a vote of the people in St. Louis City and County in April 2013.  The new funds will allow Great Rivers Greenway to implement its ambitious River Ring Trails system at double speed, allow a much larger and faster implementation of the regional and city bike plans, and create a large, interconnected, bicycle and pedestrian friendly mall area in downtown St. Louis near the Arch.
  • Missouri’s best cities, towns, and regions for biking and walking (1994-present): MoBikeFed does not have the advocacy capacity to personally visit with every city, county, or regional planning agency in Missouri.  But we do reach out to thousands of officials statewide with information, newsletters, and updates.  And we have established special a relationships with several communities and agencies in Missouri that have served as bellwethers for better bicycling, walking, and trails in Missouri:
  • The Missouri Association of Councils of Government (MACOG): This group consists of every rural MoDOT regional planning partner and together these agencies cover transportation planning for all of rural Missouri. MoBikeFed partnered with MACOG in 2012 to bring two Advocacy Advance workshops to Missouri.  Staff and leadership from MACOG members from around Missouri attended these workshops and our relationship with these agencies from across Missouri has continued to build since that time.

  • Warsaw: Warsaw is one of the best small, rural towns for bicycling, walking, and trails in Missouri and in the U.S.

  • Lee’s Summit: Lee’s Summit has created one of the best Complete Streets Policies in Missouri and is the first city in Missouri to be recognized as part of both the Walk Friendly and Bicycle Friendly Communities program.  Lee’s Summit is now launching an ambitious revision of their entire bicycle-related traffic code.

  • Maryville: Maryville has leveraged several federal grants programs to work towards creation of a complete trails and sidewalk system to connect community schools with nearby neighborhoods and to create bicycle connections to nearby Mozingo Lake.
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  • Nevada: The Healthy Nevada Project, sponsored by Cerner, is turning Nevada into one of the healthiest and fittest rural communities in the nation.  Now Nevada is looking to expand its trails system and on-street bikeways system outward to nearby communities.  MoBikeFed has helped Nevada advocates work towards regional trail connections, including a possible future Katy Trail extension from Clinton to Nevada and beyond.  In addition, we supported the successful regional effort to encourage MoDOT to add bicycle lanes to Hwy 54 between Nevada and El Dorado Springs, an 18 mile stretch. This is one of the very first rural highway bicycle lane projects ever undertaken by MoDOT. 

    Defeating proposals to ban bicycles from our state's roads and highways is among
    Defeating proposals to ban bicycles from our state's roads and highways is among our top priorities
  • Ozark: Local advocates have successfully saved the Riverside Bridge from demolition. Advocates dream is to preserve the bridge as a key regional trails connection.

  • Boonville: Work spanning nearly a decade to save the MKT Bridge in Boonville reached a milestone this year, as the bridge ownership was transferred to the city of Boonville.  MoBikeFed has supported the effort to save the MKT Bridge because it was supported by a broad coalition of local advocates, because it will become an amazing amenity and tourism draw for Katy Trail visitors, and because destruction and removal of the old bridge threatened the legal foundations of the legal agreement that preserves the Katy Trail as a part of a federally railbanked corridor.

  • Pioneer Trails Regional Planning Commission: One of MoDOT’s regional planning partners, Pioneer Trails RPC has been a leader among Missouri RPCs in integrating bicycling, walking, and trails into its entire transportation planning process.  Our Advocacy Advance Training hosted by Pioneer Trails RPC in August 2012, with keynote speaker Senator David Pearce of Warrensburg, helped encourage Pearce, Pioneer Trails RPC, several of our local members and supporters, and others in the community to work together towards completion of the trail system connecting Warrensburg and nearby Whiteman Air Force Base.  Trail scoping and construction is now underway.

  • Katy Trail Merchants and Communities (KatyMAC): KatyMAC is now organizing to work with communities up and down the Katy Trail to work as a group towards Bicycle Friendly Community status.

  • Many others, including Kirksville, Farmington, Columbia, St. Joseph, Springfield, Hannibal, Pleasant Hill, Kaysinger Basin Regional Planning Commission, CATSO, SJATSO, and more.

Organizational

  • MoBikeFed’s membership has doubled since 2008: In our 2008 Vision, we set the ambitious goal of doubling our membership by 2013.  We are now just 57 short of that goal to double membership to 2174 by the end of 2013 and will easily reach that goal by the end of this year. Our next milestone is 3000 members—and we’re on track to reach that level by 2017. 
    MoBikeFed's Vision for Bicycling and Walking in Missouri set our path for 2008-2
    MoBikeFed's Vision for Bicycling and Walking in Missouri set our path for 2008-2013
  • Our online website and social media pages reach over 25,000 visitors each month. Our e-newsletter reaches over 20,000 users.
  • Three annual special events help support our advocacy mission: We now have two bicycle rides and a run that successfully raise funds and awareness for our advocacy mission.  In 2014, these events will provide the same level of support as a federal Safe Routes to School Grant would—at a fraction of the cost in administration and overhead.
  • Work to take our statewide advocacy organizations (Federation and Foundation) to the next levels of professionalism and complete financial stability: Frankly, our recent work to undertake over $600,000 in extremely complex fiscal sponsorship and incubator projects to help get BikeWalkKC off to a running start, while simultaneously continuing to operate our statewide advocacy work at an ever more effective level, have stretched our organizational capacity to it very limits.

    But we have now successfully completed all of those partnership projects and in 2014 we are set to re-focus all of our efforts and energy on much-needed statewide bicycle, pedestrian, and trails advocacy work.  With your help and support, we will make 2014 our most successful and financially stable year ever.

Thanks to your generosity and long-term support, we have been able to very effectively accomplish our Mission and Vision. In 2008, after many conversations with members and supporters across Missouri, we established a very ambitious five-year Vision—one we thought was so ambitious, we would never be able to accomplish it. Now, five year later, nearly every point of that ambitious mission has been accomplished—often with a large surplus.  You can see the results of that effort in the list above.

Now we are in the middle of an ambitious re-booting and re-envision of our statewide mission and vision.  Your ongoing support will help us take statewide bicycle, pedestrian, and trails advocacy, to the next level in Missouri.

Find out more – Help support our work

More about our Vision for Missouri:

   MoBikeFed.org/Vision

 

Become a Key Donor, donating $250 or more to our year-end Challenge Match Campaign:

   MoBikeFed.org/2013FallMatch

 

Join MoBikeFed or make a donation in support of our work:

   MoBikeFed.org/membership

 

What's next?

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