On the subject of trees and biking, there is a recommendation from the
Governor's Global Warming Task Force to encourage greater tree planting in
urban areas. I just made the connection between this recommendation and the
potentially huge traffic calming effect that greater trees would have along
urban roads. The Wisconsin Urban Forestry Council is proposing a “20 million
by 2020” initiative that would add 20 million urban trees and preserve the
estimated 27 million already in the state.
http://dnr.wi.gov/environmentprotect/gtfgw/templates/FA_urban_forestry.pdf
I live near Proudfit Street, which runs between West Wash and John Nolen Drive
(turning into N. Shore Drive by the Brittingham Boat House. This street is
also highway 151 and is very busy, but the mature locust trees in the median
and terraces greatly minimize what would otherwise be an ugly street with
faster traffic. I believe the traffic calming benefits, and by extension the
bicycle and ped benefits, of trees have been well-established, even by the
staid engineers at AASHTO?
While the public comment period is over, there are many more recommendations
concerning bicycles either directly or, as shown above, indirectly. Hans and
others on this list have been involved in the process and pushing bikes, but
the Bike Fed has been notably absent. The Governor's Task Force has not gotten
a lot of mainstream press, but the breadth of the stakeholder groups involved
is large and the meetings are notable for the high-level decision makers who
are paying attention (e.g., legislators, secretary of the DNR, lead staff from
the PSC, CEOs of power companies, etc.). I would love it if a bicycle advocacy
group in Wisconsin paid more attention to the opportunities of forums like the
task force to "push bikes"....
Pete
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