Published on: Wednesday, May 18, 2022 Public Notices

Celebrate National Bike Month with Takoma Park

 

May is National Bike Month and we’re celebrating at Takoma Park with two bike-related events—Bike to School Day and Bike to Work Day.

Bike to School Day

The 11th annual National Bike & Roll to School Day was Wednesday, May 4, 2022.

Bike to Work Day

Bike to Work Day is Friday, May 20, 2022. Join us at nearly 100 pit stops in DC, MD, and VA for this FREE event for a healthy way to start your day. The first 15,000 who register and attend at a pit stop by bike will receive a FREE T-shirt. Free giveaways, food, and beverages, while supplies last.

Bike-Related Grants

The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) at the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) on April 20, 2022 approved 11 planning and design projects totaling $636,000 in technical assistance through its Transportation Land-use Connections (TLC) program. The City of Takoma Park was the recipient of two of the grants.

  • Takoma Park Metropolitan Branch Trail Upgrade – $60,000
    Takoma Park is responsible for caring for and maintaining a nearly half-mile stretch of the Metropolitan Branch Trail that runs between the Washington, D.C. border and Silver Spring. The existing path is in disrepair, lacks pedestrian-scale lighting to allow for safe passage in the dark, and does not have safe pedestrian crossings to the municipal park and Montgomery College facilities across the street. The stretch of the trail serves as the only major link between the growing networks of bikeways in both the District and Southern Montgomery County. A full trail upgrade is essential to make it comfortable, safe, accessible, and ADA-compliant.
  • City of Takoma Park New Ave Bikeway – District Connector – $70,000
    Building on past support from the TLC Program, this project is part of a larger effort to transform New Hampshire Avenue into a multi-modal corridor. The project will complete the design work for a bikeway that will extend from the Langley Park Transit Center to existing bike lanes on Kansas Avenue in the District of Columbia. TLC will fund 30 percent of the design for one of two possible alignments for bike infrastructure that will run through low-traffic neighborhood roads to create a continuous bikeway facility.
Bike Program Overview

Takoma Park is working to improve and maintain bicycle facilities while promoting a bicycle-friendly culture in the city. Objectives of the Bike Program include:

  • Ensure existing facilities are regularly maintained and improved to meet modern standards of safety and convenience.
  • Plan for future facilities that the City maintains on its properties, parks, and rights-of-way.
  • Leverage Takoma Park’s physical strengths and existing public interest in bicycling to encourage local residents and employees to bike for commuting, errands, and recreation.
  • Educate City, County, and State decision-makers about bicycling in Takoma Park with data and studies.
  • Coordinate with external agencies and jurisdictions on bicycle planning and projects that impact residents, employees, and visitors in Takoma Park.
  • Encourage bicycle education, safety, and ridership for elementary and middle school students through the Safe Routes to School program.
Contact

Housing and Community Development
Phone: 301-891-7119
Email: planning@takomaparkmd.gov