Bike Walk Ambassadors in the Community: 4792 Registered Participants for 2009 Bike Walk Week this year!

Pedestrians and cyclists hit the streets on May 14 from locations across the metro area. Bike Walk Ambassadors were at the forefront of promoting the Twin Cities celebration (and expanded concept) of the national Bike to Work Day event. Preliminary data show it was a great success--a 51% increase in registered participation from last year! Ambassadors encouraged businesses, schools, and places of worship to host events and teams, helping to foster more people-powered transportation. At Battle Creek Middle school, for example, students and teachers biked from school to the down town St. Paul celebration.

The participation profile shows that 65% biked, 18% walked, and 17% biked and walked as a part of a trip. First timers made up 11% of registrants, 22% reported doing “it every now and then”, 37% report doing it in “fair weather”, and 30% report doing it year round.

Thanks to the many hosts and sponsors who enable such a community event to come to life. The partnership list is an impressive collaboration: 494 Commuter Services, Anoka County TMO, ABC Ramps, Bike Walk Ambassadors, The City of Minneapolis, The City of St. Paul, Downtown Minneapolis TMO, Hennepin County, Metro Transit, Minnesota Department of Transportation, St. Paul Smart Trips, and Bike Walk Twin Cities. See a full list of sponsors here.

Similar success was reported across the country. More than 200,000 people biked to work for San Francisco's 15th annual Bike to Work Day. There were twice as many bikes as cars on Market Street during the morning commute. 8,000 bicyclists registered to celebrate Bike to Work Day 2009 at locations in the Washington, D.C., suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia areas - a new record. Marin County, CA enjoyed a great day on May 14 as over 4,300 cyclists participated in Bike to Work Day - contributing to the 36% regional increase over last year. New York City DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan was a bike commuter on Bike to Work Day, leading a commuter ride from Brooklyn's Grand Army Plaza to City Hall.

Read more about the Twin Cities 2009 Bike Walk Week, including Katie Eukel’s blog from the show-stopper breakfast hosted by the Green Institute, attended by nearly 300 bicyclists and pedestrians, and Jamez Smith's blog from an early morning Bike Walk Day event, and see a list of all the Bike Walk Week news coverage. A full report of the week will be available on www.bikewalkweek.org in late June.