by Bike Courier | Jan 25, 2017 | Advocacy
Metro Louisville is designing a comprehensive plan to replace our previous plan – Cornerstone 2020. Metro hired a consultant whose survey of residents in the county and the surrounding counties yielded interesting information. The findings have tremendous implications for Louisville. Findings: – Highest priority when deciding where to live – Quality of the Environment and Access to Sidewalks – Least satisfying aspect of transportation – Ease of bicycling along major streets, Ease of walking along major streets, quality of public transit – Percentage of residents who agree with the statement “I would like to live in a place where I did not need a private vehicle.” (see the third statement on the posted image) Central Louisville residents – 55% East Louisville residents – 47% West Louisville residents – 51% Residents of surrounding counties – 31% When 31% of the residents of the surrounding counties want to be able to live without a personal vehicle, Louisville should respond. Over ten years ago another consulting firm hired by Louisville reported that we must make it possible for citizens to live easily without a personal vehicle. And cities around the world are limiting car access downtown. If Louisville is to be competitive in attracting residents and businesses we should act immediately by simultaneously: – concentrating TARC service in the area where it will be most possible to live easily without a car, downtown and surrounding old neighborhoods. ‘Beyond the Watterson’ is hopelessly car dependent, that is a battle we are not going to win soon. As ridership increases centrally, extend the service in concentric rings. – repairing sidewalks working from downtown outward – converting downtown...
by Bike Courier | Jan 24, 2017 | Advocacy
Largest (3,000 – 5,000) public rally in Louisville’s history. The following is the address delivered by Jackie Green – community centered transportation and land use advocate. Good morning. You should see yourselves from this perspective. You are many. You are beautiful. The peace and justice that we seek cannot be created on an Earth that cannot support all of life with dignity and equality. Earth has been under assault for 100 years. And as the assault accelerates government refuses to pursue peace, justice and a stable Earth. So here we are, demanding change in the way we treat Earth and each other, demanding change from our governments, our industries, our institutions. If our demand is to be taken seriously, if our demand is to have any integrity, we must ourselves change. As Gandhi put it “We must be the change we wish to see in the world.” We must change as individuals, as family units, as communities. We must cease our personal participation in the assault on Earth. In our change is the power to force change upon our governments and institutions. They respond to power, particularly the power of the dollar. And we spend on average 40% of household income on housing, transportation and utilities. Our power to force change, our power to assault or to heal is found in that 40%. As one who quit flying in 1993, and quit car ownership in 1999. I urge you, as you travel home today, to contemplate the power of your dollar spent on housing, transportation and utilities. Here is a bicycle, no ordinary bicycle, but an agent of change, like TARC buses, like shoes, a tool of resistance – resistance against tar sands, pipelines, refineries, emissions, offshore drilling, fracking, oil spills, Wall St, and military intervention. An instrument of peace and healing. An agent of change. “Be the change.” Thank...
