House to Vote on Bike Bill Today?

There's a rumor that the House of Representatives will call the Bike Bill, Senate Bill 502, for a vote today. The House gavels in at 11:30.   Wouldn't that be nice-- a Bike Bill passed during Bike Month! 

It wouldn't hurt to ask your State Representative (not your State Senator) to vote yes on SB 502 with a short statement about why it's important to you. Look up your State Representative here: Find Your Legislators .

Here's what we sent to members of the House:
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Dear Representative:  

As the Executive Director of Bike Walk Connecticut, I urge you to please vote YES on The Bike Bill, SB 502.  This bill has broad bipartisan support and was approved unanimously in the Senate on May 7. 

In brief, SB 502 remedies outdated laws as follows:

• Our current laws are outdated and conflict with best practices and principles of modern, safe bikeway design. SB 502 includes enabling provisions that will let DOT and towns use the modern, best practices for safe, efficient bikeway design that are found in the most dynamic, prosperous cities in the country and the world. 
• Our current laws regarding bicyclists riding “as far right as practicable” and passing slower moving cyclists (and other road users) are outdated and ambiguous, leading to misunderstandings and highly variable enforcement.  Proposed language in SB 502 includes model language recommended by the League of American Bicyclists and the Uniform Vehicle Code.

Bikeways are a highly cost-efficient means of moving traffic.  Being bike-friendly has now become essential to competitiveness.  In fact, not being bike-friendly is a competitive disadvantage.  Please vote Yes on SB 502 to let Connecticut move forward on active transportation and a first-rate network of bikeways. 

Thank you!