New effort aims to improve biking & walking in suburbs

In most suburban communities, getting around on a bicycle and on foot is often difficult and sometimes treacherous. As a result, many people who would like to bike and walk more often tend to avoid doing so.

The good news is that we can change this.

We can create suburban communities that have high-quality, low-stress bike lanes, sidewalks and multi-use trails that could connect you to local shops, work, school and neighboring communities.

These communities can become places where you feel safe and comfortable getting to any destination you chose by bike or by foot.

But it'll take some work. 

To help us get there, we’re excited to announce the launch of Bike Walk Every Town, our new advocacy training program for the suburbs.

Bike Walk Every Town is designed to mobilize and support grassroots leaders from across the region. We’ll give you the tools and access to resources you need to improve biking, walking and transit in your community. 

The program begins in September and October with our Suburban Advocacy Summits hosted in each suburban region.

The summits will offer tools to help you develop an advocacy campaign, direction and assistance in advocating for better walking and biking policies, and opportunities to network with other like-minded individuals in your region.

Change starts with you. If you’re up for the challenge, we invite you to register for one of our free kick-off Summits to be held throughout the region. 

• North Shore: Saturday, September 23
• West: Saturday, October 7
• Northwest: Saturday, October 21
• South: Saturday, October 28

To register or to learn more, visit activetrans.org/BikeWalkEveryTown or email Maggie@activetrans.org.