The Trump Administration and their Republican allies in Congress have declared war on bike lanes, falsely citing them as being unsafe and contributing to traffic congestion. We saw this first hand earlier this year when we were in Washington, DC for the National Bike Summit and attended a rally to Save America’s Bike Lanes. The Department of the Interior under the direction of the US Department of Transportation and the White House planned to remove the 15th Street Bike Lane. Our colleagues at the Washington Area Bicyclist Association sued and a US District Court ruled that the National Park Service and Federal Highways Administration violated the Administrative Procedure Act in their efforts to remove sections of the bike lane. One battle won, but the war continues.
An article in today’s edition of The New York Times documents a pattern that the Administration is acting on its deep aversion to cycling, revoking federal grants for what it calls “D.E.I. bike lanes.” It cites $9.3 million in frozen funding for an ambitious series of bike lanes in Nashville, and a cancelled grant for $11.7 million in Fairfield, Alabama, a majority black city southwest of Birmingham. In Boston, Mayor Michelle Wu is feeling pressure to not add new bike lanes and potential rescinding of $80 million in funding for a plan to redesign Blue Hill Avenue, a major thoroughfare.
Recently, the latest Notice of Funding Opportunity for PROTECT grants came out. PROTECT was created by the previous transportation authorization bill, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, as a way to fund projects “to plan for and strengthen surface transportation to be more resilient to current and future weather events.” In the announcement, they say, “DOT may prioritize projects that repurpose existing specialized travel lanes for bicycles, buses, or pedestrians for general purpose use by all motor vehicles, including single-occupant motor vehicles…”
In July, the Federal Highways Administration removed five evidence-based strategies from its official list of Proven Safety Countermeasures.
Not surprisingly, this anti-bike lanes sentiment is already impacting Hawai‘i. Thankfully, our HI Congressional delegates have demonstrated allyship and a willingness to stand up for bike infrastructure and the proven safety outcomes they deliver. There are a number of important projects including the Ala Pono bridge in Waikīkī and the West Maui Greenway which are reliant on federal funding for construction to commence. We are monitoring these developments.
We have also seen local politicians in Honolulu and the County of Hawai‘i willing to sacrifice the rights of cyclists in favor of cars and trucks and seemingly prioritizing parking over public transit, walking and biking.
Last week, Councilmember Tupola called on her colleagues at the Honolulu City Council to consider “taking some of the bike lanes at night for parking because it’s really that necessary.” She also declined to address the proven safety outcomes of the Pensacola street bike lane, lamenting that it “already took away some more parking.” HBL has reached out and requested a meeting with Tupola for clarification.
At HBL, support from our Members and community allies helps us to monitor these issues. We are engaging with elected officials so that they have the data and information to make smart policy decisions. Please contact Advocacy Director Eduardo Hernandez if you’d like to receive Advocacy Alerts and help us to amplify a voice for safer streets for all.
