BOULDER, CO (BRAIN)—Bikes Belong awarded $62,500 in grants to fund five projects and two research studies as part of its fall grant cycle.
The Atlanta Bicycle Coalition received $10,000 to help pay for a connection between two segments of existing bike lanes along a well-ridden corridor near Georgia Tech University.
Another $10,000 grant went to the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition Fund to lead community outreach efforts in the planning and design of three crosstown bikeways. The project will help the city by the bay work toward its goal of 20 percent bicycling mode share by 2020.
Livable Memphis, in partnership with the city of Memphis and the Historic Broad Avenue Business District, will use its $10,000 award to construct a two-mile separated bikeway connecting Overton Park wit the Shelby Farms Park Greenline. The segment will link two parks, a low-income neighborhood, multiple businesses and a local community center.
Portland, Oregon’s Community Cycling Center won another $10,000 to revitalize a vacant lot in the mixed-income New Columbia community in North Portland to promote bicycle skills and physical activity for children. The money will fund a skills course, pump track and bike repair center.
A $5,000 grant will help fund engineering and design costs for a 3.5-mile bikeway to run along the western side of downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan, connecting two major trails and providing safe cycling access to businesses, residential areas and Grand Valley State University.
The final $17,500 went to fund two research grants: $10,000 for Upstate Forever to measure the impact of the Swamp Rabbit Trail development on nearby communities in Greenville, South Carolina. The money will pay for researchers to examine real estate values, interview business owners, real estate agent, transportation professionals and local government officials and conduct trail user surveys. University of Minnesota researchers will use a $7,500 grant to survey businesses within a quarter mile of select Nice Ride stations to gauge the impact of Nice Ride usage levels to local business activity in the Twin Cities.
The Bikes Belong Grants Program is funded by its Employee Pro Purchase Program, members of which include Trek, Specialized, Fuji, Giant, Cannondale and Shimano. Bikes Belong has funded 236 grants in 46 states and the District of Columbia since its community grants program began in 1999.
