Issue #48 / July 2010
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Celebrate LivableStreets 5th anniversary!
 Join us for good company, street games, music, yummy food and drinks, advocacy awards, and great raffle prizes. It's a community celebration of our efforts to create safe, convenient and affordable transportation for all in the Boston metro area, and a time to recognize amazing members, volunteers and supporters.
Entry includes food, unlimited street games, and raffle ticket:
Members: $15. Additional donations greatly appreciated.
Non-members: Join at the door ($50) and enjoy the party for free.
Volunteer your way to free admission - we have a dozen volunteer shifts. Sign up in
advance at volunteer@livablestreets.info and enjoy the rest of the party on us.
If your business would like to partner with LivableStreets on this very special event and receive a number of special partner benefits please contact Jackie Douglas at 617.621.1746 or jackie@livablestreets.info .
For more info , click here >>> |
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Action e-lerts _____________________________________________________________
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Better Bridges: MassDOT public meeting Tues, July 13
 Do you want the bridges across the Charles River to be safe, accessible and rebalanced for bicyclists, walkers, transit riders and drivers? Come to the MassDOT public meeting on Tuesday, July 13, and speak up. This is your chance to tell MassDOT why you want Better Bridges in and out of Boston. For more information on LivableStreets Better Bridges campaign, and to read about why your fellow community members want better bridges, click here >>>
What: MassDOT Public Meeting for Highway Division District 6 Bridge Projects
When: Tues, July 13, 2010, 4:00 - 5:30 PM
Where:
State Transportation Building,MBTA Conference Room, 10 Park Plaza, Boston
For more info, click here >>>
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Support safe streets today
 Speed kills. When a pedestrian is struck by a vehicle going 40 mph, there is a 90% chance of death. When the vehicle is going 20 mph, this is reduced to 5%.
Support the House Bill H.4728 that would
lower the prevailing speed limit in urbanized areas from 30 mph to 25 mph. The bill was reported favorably out of the Joint Committee on Transportation and House Ways & Means (thank you to everyone who took action in March), and is currently in the House Committee on Bills in Third Reading awaiting further action.
You can create safer streets today by contacting Chairman Vincent Pedone by phone (617) 722- 2410 or by email ( Rep.VincentPedone@hou.state.ma.us ) and advocate for the passage of this bill. Say that you support H.4728.
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People for Bikes
Bikes Belong is collecting 1 million names in support of better biking Imagine one million people across the country speaking out for bicycling with a united, powerful voice.
Every day, millions of Americans ride for their health, for the environment, for their communities, and for the pure joy of bicycling. But until now, only a fraction of riders have stood up to help improve bicycling in America.
Peopleforbikes.org is going to change all that. Bikes Belong is sending a unified message to our elected leaders, the media, and the public that bicycling should have their full support.
Bikes Belong is a national group working to put more people on bicycles more often.
LivableStreets Alliance was a recipient of a Bikes Belong REI/Bicycle Friendly Community Grant Award in 2009 to support our work on key initiatives with the City of Boston's Bikes Program, which is helping the city establish policies for safe street design and expand bicycling infrastructure.
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Announcements _____________________________________________________________
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Thank you Ride4BobZeeb organizers, riders and supporters who raised $5,000 for LivableStreets
The 1st annual ride to benefit LivableStreets took place on Sunday June 20th, and was a huge success. Over 100 people rode from Auburndale park in Newton through Wayland, Weston and Concord under sunny skies. The ride was a memorial to the life and spirit of lifelong cyclist and environmentalist, Bob Zeeb, who would have appreciated LivableStreets' mission to make the streets safer and more accessible for cyclists.
Too many cyclists have been killed due to a lack of proper bike infrastructure as well as a dearth of education for motorists and cyclists about what their responsibilities are. LivableStreets is working on all fronts to help turn the Boston region into a world-class biking region.
The Ride4BobZeeb raised well over 5,000 dollars. We want to thank everyone who participated and who helped to make this event a success. We look forward to growing the event next year and hope you will all come back and ride again!
Ride photos are now posted on the ride4bobzeeb.org website.
Thanks,
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Welcome summer interns Cynthia and Matt
Cynthia Lin
 Cynthia joined LivableStreets Alliance in June, and is currently spearheading and coordinating the volunteer and outreach facet of LivableStreets' Better Bridges campaign. She is out on the bridges and at community events raising awareness about the possibilities of our Charles River bridges to safely accommodate all forms of transportation. Cynthia is also co-organizing the LivableStreets Street Party on July 22, and researching innovative methods to promote and support Boston's public transportation system. She has been awarded a Posse Summer Leadership scholarship to intern at LivableStreets this summer.Cynthia is a senior at Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania, pursuing a degree in the Growth and Structure of Cities with an Architecture and Environmental Studies concentration. Her interest in understanding the forces that shape the quality of urban space and life within cities and the built environment led her to study abroad in Copenhagen, Denmark. Cynthia's enthusiasm and passion for bicycle culture and support for alternative modes of transportation is continuously developing and she has high hopes for that her hometown Boston will one day be recognized as a leading model for other cities.
Matt Rizman
 Matt is working at LivableStreets Alliance this summer, building partnerships with local businesses to support LivableStreets' advocacy and fundraising campaigns. He is also helping promote grassroots advocacy for LivableStreets' Better Bridges campaign, and working to increase LivableStreets' visibility in the Boston area. Matt was awarded a Summer Intern grant from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, where he will be a sophomore in the fall.Matt is a teaching assistant in a local public elementary school, and expects to major in Political Science and Urban Studies. His interest in urban planning and development was first discovered when he was eight years old, when he learned how to play SimCity on his computer. Passionate about promoting sustainable living and making economic opportunities more accessible to all, Matt also enjoys running, exploring the city, eating, and following his hometown Boston sports teams.
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Job postings
City of Cambridge, City of Boston, and City of Gloucester are hiring!
The Boston Transportation Department is seeking an enthusiastic and highly motivated city planner to work on projects that will realize the City's vision to create streets and public spaces that are vibrant, multi-modal, sustainable and technologically advanced. Please contact Vineet Gupta at vineet.gupta@cityofboston.gov if you are interested.
The City of Cambridge is seeking an Assistant City Manager. Principal responsibilities include directing and coordinating the City's physical planning and development efforts in affordable housing, zoning and land use, urban design, neighborhood and open space planning, transportation, environmental planning and economic development. The position takes a major role in directing sustainability policy. For more info, click here >>>
The City of Gloucester is seeking an ex
perienced P.E. to administer their Engineering department, supervising staff on multiple public works projects. Under the supervision of the DPW Director, the P.E. will serve as resident Engineer on assigned projects, review contractors' work for compliance, coordinate with other agencies, make public presentations, and prepare and review engineering plans, specs and designs. Qualifications: P.E. required; B.S. in Civil Engineering; 10 years related experience, including municipal engineering or an equivalent combination of education and experience; excellent administrative and organizational skills. Qualified applicants should submit resumes to
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Recent activity
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Velo-City Global conference in Copenhagen
 In June, LivableStreets Alliance's Director, Jackie Douglas, joined 1,000 people from around the world in Copenhagen to meet, learn, discuss and share best practices about urban street design and bicycling. The conference was held in Copenhagen, Denmark -- the 'City of Cyclists' where almost 40% of people commute by bicycle every day.City of Boston transportation planner Charlotte Fleetwood, City of Cambridge Bicycle and Pedestrian Planner Cara Seiderman, Northeastern University Engineering Professor Peter Furth, and MAPC Transportation Planner David Loutzenheiser also attended the conference.
Come to the LivableStreets' StreetTalk on Wed, August 4 to hear stories and see photos from the conference and travels around Denmark, Netherlands, and Sweden. More details coming soon.
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'Cities for Cycling' Streetfilm with LivableStreets
 'Cities for Cycling' is a project of the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) to document, promote and implement the world's best bicycle transportation practices in U.S. cities. During Bike Week 2010 in Boston, experts from transportation departments across the country came to Boston to talk about infrastructure in their cities and how they accomplished innovative change. Streetfilms was there to document the event. Watch the 3:40 Streetfilm that includes footage from Mass Ave bike lane press announcement and interview with LivableStreets Jackie Douglas.
Through public presentations, private meetings with city officials, and bike ride audits, the 'Cities for Cycling' road show is poised to become an informative, powerful tool for governments.
NACTO is also in the process of developing a dynamic, on-line Urban Bikeway Design Guide that will showcase the engineering techniques being deployed by NACTO members to make bicycling safer, more comfortable and more convenient.
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Musings on transportation, health, and livable communities
Steve Miller's blog
This blog explores how our transportation system can be structured to improve our lives by creating more livable streets - making it easier to earn a living, buy our necessities, stay healthy, participate in supportive families and communities, be active citizens, be creative and enjoy ourselves throughout the life cycle.
Latest posts:
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_____________________________________________________________ Thank you to our Sponsors:
 and Supporters: Harpoon Brewery, Taza Chocolate, Regina Villa Associates
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