How we make change happen

Bike lanes, trails, and sidewalks are more than the asphalt, concrete, paint, and bollards that make them. They represent years and years of work.

Just like bike lanes join up one by one to build a network, advocates win safer streets meeting by meeting, petition by petition, call by call.

Each WABA member who joins the “I Bike, I Buy Stuff” Campaign to remind business owners on Connecticut Avenue that many of their customers bike; each of the Virginians who emailed NPS demanding to improve the Mount Vernon Trail; each Prince George’s County resident who went to their very first WABA advocacy meeting to get change rolling: you’re a key part of the WABA network that makes change happen.

 Here’s some of the change we won by connecting with one another to demand safer streets from our elected officials in 2023:

• A lower speed limit on a stretch of Carroll Avenue in Silver Spring, MD 

• A more bicyclist and pedestrian friendly design for Long Bridge, a glorious, walkable, bikeable link between Arlington and the DC Waterfront

• Bicyclist and pedestrian safety studies in Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties that could be the start for BIG changes to the way Maryland designs and builds its streets

• Plans for a new Virginia Railway Express station in Arlington that will include a bike and pedestrian bridge to DCA and connect to the Mount Vernon Trail…a truly multi-modal plan!

When you help WABA connect the dots that make it easier and safer for people to bike, where they need to go, something magical happens. The world gets bigger! People can go places, meet people, and do things that wouldn’t have been possible otherwise. In just the last six months at WABA, I’ve seen bicycling open up incredible experiences:

• This past fall, WABA had our first ever bike bus training with families from Mundo Verde Calle Ocho School. Now, the school has 60 families biking to school together each Friday. 

• We connected with Food Rescue DC and created a superteam of volunteers on bikes running food rescue missions, using their bikes to do good.

• At the 20th annual 50 States Ride, a little girl accomplished her longest bike ride ever: 2 whole miles on the Metropolitan Branch Trail. 

• We’re investing in Gearin’ Up Bikes, a newly acquired program of WABA that will connect youth to education and job training and YOU to affordable bikes and bike repair through a community bike shop.

Piece by piece we’re transforming our region into a place where more people can access awesome experiences by bike. Here’s to more in 2024!