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Not taking no for an answer, local advocates put their creative thinking caps on and launched an alternative grassroots fundraising effort for the much needed repaving. Greenview Data CEO Ted Green and his wife Debbie Green, in conjunction with the Ann Arbor Bicycle Touring Society (AABTS) and the Ann Arbor Velo Club (AAVC) led an effort which to date has raised over $45,000 in private donations to repave portions of Ann Arbor's most scenic and popular bicycling road. On Aug. 5, Ted Green handed the Washtenaw County Road Commission officials a stack of checks totaling about $41,600. "I know it exceeded everyone's expectations and it absolutely floored the Road Commission," Green said. As the tax deductible donations exceeded the original goal, the scope of the private fundraising effort continued to expand to include additional bad sections of Huron River Drive. The original goal was to raise $30,000 in private dollars, which was then double matched by the Washtenaw County Road Commission for the $90,000 total needed to mill and repave the 0.75 miles between Tubbs and Wagner. The group did not stop there however, and went on to set a new goal of raising an additional $12,000 to repave other terrible sections of the road. The goodwill did not stop there however. The Parks and Recreation department kicked in another $50,000 to add bike lanes to the section of the funded project. The Washtenaw County Road Commission then added yet another $30,000 to fully repave a stretch that our additional $12,000 would have only partially repaved. In effect, the original $45,000 in private donations was leveraged to $185,000 of repaving work that would not have otherwise been done for several years. LMB salutes the efforts of our Ann Arbor cycling friends and hopes that this sort of constructive collaboration, generosity and creative thinking spreads to other communities across the state. To learn more about the Huron River Drive fundraising effort, please visit www.greenviewdata.com/community/ or contact Ted Green by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . 
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 08 September 2010 08:54
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 Governor Granholm held a ceremonial bill signing ceremony for the Complete Streets legislation last Thursday in her ceremonial office in the State Capitol. In recognition of LMB's efforts in helping to shape the bills over the past year and advocating for their passage, League Associate Director John Lindenmayer (back row - tallest) was invited to the ceremony and thanked by the Governor and the legislative sponsors for our involvement. Representative Switalski specifically mentioned LMB's Advocacy Day as contributing factor to the successful passage of these landmark bills. LMB was joined at the ceremony by a host of other groups that supported the legislation, including the Michigan Environmental Council, AARP, SEMCOG, Michigan Fitness Foundation, Program to Educate All Cyclists and the Michigan Municipal League. More information on this legislation can be found on our companion website, MichiganCompleteStreets.org. View more photos from the bill signing on the Michigan Municipal League's Flickr page.
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The 24th edition of the Shoreline West Bicycle Tour is now history. The riders are home and sleeping in their own beds. The equipment and supplies needed to run the tour have been strategically packed away again waiting for next year. Riders are slowly realizing they left something valuable behind and contacting the office to see if it was in the Lost & Found. All that is left to be done now is to put the photos up on our Flickr account and the slideshow online. (Watch for these after the first of September.) The ride leadership is already turning our thoughts to next year. We hope you can join us for our 25th Shoreline West in 2011. As a special treat we will offer the ability to do the entire 500 miles of the Lake Michigan shoreline from New Buffalo to Mackinaw City. See you then.
Last Updated on Friday, 27 August 2010 13:11
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These bills made it to the Governor's desk through the hard work of the Michigan Complete Streets Coalition (MCSC), a collection of organizations and businesses led by the League of Michigan Bicyclists.
These bills pave the way for Complete Streets in Michigan. The first bill, HB 6151, will require the Michigan Department of Transportation to plan, design, and construct new roads to accommodate all roadway users including bicyclists, pedestrians and those with disabilities. The second bill, HB 6152, requires each municipality to address current levels of service and state goals to serve all walks of life in their master planning process. The legislation also creates a statewide Complete Streets Advisory Panel in which LMB will be an active member. The Advisory Committee will help draft MDOT's Complete Streets policy as well as model policy language for local municipalities.
More detailed information on the legislation can be found on the Michigan Complete Streets Coalition website. LMB would like to thank all of our Coalition partners for their hard work and dedication and also express gratitude to all of our members who contacted their legislators in support of these bills.
Last Updated on Thursday, 29 July 2010 16:58
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 Today, the League of Michigan Bicyclists (LMB) and Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance (MTGA) submitted a letter opposing a proposed amendment to HB 6151 and 6152 by the County Road Association of Michigan (CRAM). As these Complete Streets bills reach the homestretch of the legislative process, CRAM is seizing this opportunity to attempt changes to Act 51, Section 10k, the only guaranteed source of funding for nonmotorized infrastructure in the state transportation budget. As it currently stands, Section 10k requires (as it has for the past 32 years) that 1% of all surface transportation funding in the state transportation budget be allocated to nonmotorized transportation. Eligible projects can include sidewalks in cities and villages, bike lanes, widened shoulders, trails within the road right of way, campaigns for the safety of cyclists on Michigan roads and public education efforts in all jurisdiction that are eligible for transportation funding. This is not a hardship as jurisdictions have ten years in which to accumulate and spend these funds. It should also be noted that nonmotorized facilities, such as bike lanes and wide shoulders, have been proven to extend the life of our roads by protecting their edges. While CRAM has made it clear from day one that they oppose these bills, they have chosen not to express their opposition publicly and instead have stated both in the House and Senate that they support these bills "in concept only." Their last-minute attempt to tack on an unrelated issue to bills that have seen overwhelming nonpartisan support in both the House and Senate as well as the general public is certainly unfortunate to say the least. HB 6151 and 6152 will soon be up for a vote on the Senate floor, possibly as soon as tomorrow, July 28th. We are asking all Complete Streets supporters to voice support for these bills to your State Senator and express opposition to CRAM's efforts to eliminate mandatory nonmotorized funding in Michigan. A few bulleted concerns regarding CRAM's ammendment are below and the letter of opposition by LMB and MTGA can be read here. Concerns with CRAM Amendment:
Last Updated on Tuesday, 27 July 2010 17:03
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2010 MUP Photos: Our campground was filled with excitement this morning. Riders were up early taking their tents down in anticipation of finishing their week of fun with a ride along Lake Michigan into St. Ignace. This excitement was augmented by a forecast of a 30% chance of showers. As we headed for US 2 and Lake Michigan we were treated to 4 miles of blacktop that had just been laid the day before. Not only was it smooth, but it was downhill with a tailwind. US 2 provided the riders with a 6'-8' shoulder and wonderful views of Lake Michigan. Riders had the opportunity to have lunch or snacks at Epoufette or Brevort. There were many opportunities to enjoy the beaches along Lake Michigan. As we turned off US 2 for the final 6 miles we were greeted by Cheeseman "Hill." This short (1/2 mile), steep hill (12%) was a final challenge before we had 5+ miles of downhill into St. Ignace. Scattered showers hit around noon so some riders were lucky and missed the showers and others were not so lucky. The Little Bear East Arena was a welcome sight as we finished up our tour, found our luggage, took showers, loaded our cars and said our good byes to our new friends.
Last Updated on Tuesday, 03 August 2010 13:43
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* The Committee inadvertently excluded H.B. 6152, the second Complete Streets bill in the package, from their vote today. Chairman Gilbert said the committee will discharge H.B. 6152 out of committee with recommendation to the Senate floor.
Last Updated on Thursday, 22 July 2010 08:44
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"The helmets will be manufactured by Nutcase, a US company that markets for its Asian parent company and specializes in unusual graphics. Current nutcase graphics include a watermelon helmet, flags, bright polka dots and other color combinations designed to appeal to children and adults. The basic helmet is a skate-style design with small round vents that meets the US CPSC bicycle helmet standard. Nutcase was alone among the manufacturers contacted to be interested in producing a helmet for Mackinac Island, a community of 500 residents." Source: http://tinyurl.com/37d5y4y More info: http://tinyurl.com/33jcefw
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 Riders in the 2010 Sunrise Adventure Tour enjoyed wonderful weather and hospitality in Rogers City, Michigan. The traditional visit to the Wooden Boat Show after a wonderful breakfast at St. Michaels Church was again a highlight of the weekend. New this year was breakfast at Onaway State Park and a ride around Black Lake. Of course we visited Ocqueoc Falls and rode along the beautiful Lake Huron shoreline as we visited 3 different lighthouses. Hope you can join us next year.
Last Updated on Thursday, 08 July 2010 13:22
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 After months of hard work and deliberation, the Michigan House of Representatives passed Complete Streets legislation in overwhelming fashion! H.B. 6151 passed with a vote of 85 - 21, and H.B. 6152 with a vote of 84-22. LMB would like to thank Michigan bicyclists for their continued support and testimony on this issue...congratulations! The bills now move on to the Senate Transportation Committee. You can learn more about Complete Streets and follow the progress of these bills on our companion website at www.MichiganCompleteStreets.org.Media:
Last Updated on Wednesday, 30 June 2010 10:00
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Michigan Bicyclist Magazine_Spring2010
Last Updated on Tuesday, 29 June 2010 12:18
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2010-06-29 
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The original bill language would have required MDOT and all cities and counties to adopt Complete Streets policies. The bills, as passed yesterday, have undergone numerous revisions from the original language and now requires only MDOT to adopt a Complete Streets policy, and only encourages locals to do the same. While LMB obviously would have liked to see a Complete Streets mandate written into law for local communities as well, we are pleased with the compromise that was reached and are optimistic that the revised bills have a strong chance of being adopted into law. State Representative Pam Byrnes said it best, “This bill is not what everybody wants, but it’s a good step forward.” We are also extremely pleased that the League of Michigan Bicyclists are written into the bill language to serve on a statewide Complete Streets Advisory Council that would assist MDOT in developing model policies. Visit our companion site, the Michigan Complete Streets Coalition, to learn more about yesterday's committee hearing and the specifics of these bills.
Last Updated on Friday, 25 June 2010 12:25
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MSU students interview LMB's John Lindenmayer on walkability/bikeability concerning the Frandor area in Lansing.
Last Updated on Friday, 25 June 2010 11:28
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Ann Arbor's Community Television Network cable show "Eco Sense," which is about energy and environment will feature the issue of walking and biking with panelists, Eli Cooper of the City of Ann Arbor and Nancy Shore of Ann Arbor GetDowntown Program. Above is a short video promoting biking and walking activities in town, which will be used during the show.
Last Updated on Friday, 25 June 2010 10:47
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Legislative Priorities
