Policy to Practice: Planning for Bicycles

Where: Aurora Hills Community Center, 735 18th St., Arlington, VA 22202
When: 4:00-6:00 pm on 18th November 2010
Includes demonstration of a Capital Bikeshare station.
Please join us for Happy Hour after the session.

Approved for 2.0 AICP Credits
Free and open to the public, RSVP required
RSVP to Sonali Soneji preferably by email: sonalisoneji2@gmail.com or call: 703-867-6042

Bicycling as a mode for commuting and recreation has made great strides in recent years in the Washington metro area. Recently approved policies and implementation of innovative solutions to provide infrastructure for bicycles have helped promote this mode of transport. The new partnership between Arlington, VA, and Washington, D.C., has helped the region to launch the largest bikeshare program in the country. Three speakers will discuss the importance of various facets of transportation planning that help programs to achieve success: Policy Development; Implementation and Infrastructure provision; as well as Marketing and Community Outreach. The session will conclude with a demonstration of a Capital Bikeshare bike station near Pentagon City Metro station.

Jim Sebastian will discuss integration of bicycle infrastructure with urban planning and development, and innovative bike lane design. Mr. Sebastian is a Supervisory Transportation Planner at the District Department of Transportation (DDOT), Washington D.C., where he manages the Bicycle, Pedestrian and Transportation Demand Management Programs.
Paul DeMaio will speak about planning and launching of Capital Bikeshare, including how station locations were determined, the RFP process for the program, and expansion plans. He will also touch on the history of bikesharing and different models for provision of service. Paul DeMaio is the founder of MetroBike LLC, a company that assists organizations in implementing bike-sharing programs, and writes The Bike-sharing Blog, an international news resource about the field.

Chris Eatough will discuss increasing bicycle use for transportation through encouragement and education of the community, as well as the activities and structure of BikeArlington and the impact of the program. Chris Eatough, program manager for BikeArlington, has an engineering background and was a professional endurance mountain bike racer, winning six 24-hour solo world titles and five US 24-hour national championships. He also has extensive experience as a mountain bike coach and product tester.