2024 in Retrospect

 

Riders on the 2024 Holiday Ride gather at Kersting Court

2nd Annual Holiday Ride 

Active Sierra Madre's 2nd annual Holiday Ride took place on Sunday December 22, starting at Sierra Madre Elementary, circling through town, and ending at Kersting Court in time for those who wanted to participate in the Candlelight Walk. A number of participants got into the spirit of the season decorating their bikes with colorful lights, which created a festive atmosphere for the ride. There's really nothing like gliding through quiet streets, spreading holiday cheer, and enjoying the many holiday decorations on people's houses along the way. 

 

Looking Back, Looking Ahead 

2024 was filled with a number of accomplishments. Our group continues to grow (our email list is close to 60!) and many participated in our official and unofficial rides. April's Community Ride was cancelled due to inclement weather, but rescheduled for October and was a lot of fun! We will be working with the city community services staff to schedule a spring ride AND a fall ride next year! The city also took posession of 5 e-bikes for use by city staff, commissioners, and elected officials. We will be continuing to work with the city to find opportunities to provide programming for folks to try them and see the potential of e-bikes as everyday transportation. One of our goals is more bike parking in town, and we worked with city staff to start with bike racks in our local parks. Implementation will depend on the vagaries of the city budget, but we encourage city staff to look for grant opportunities to fund such projects. Finally, and certainly not least, 2024 saw the return of Metro bus service to the city, with Line 268 once again serving Sierra Madre, connecting the city with the Sierra Madre Villa station to the west and El Monte Station (both Metrolink and bus stations) to the south. Next year the city plans a redesigned shuttle bus service to replace the old Roundabout. Route details are still being worked out, but it will provide another transit connection to our neighboring cities. Meanwhile the Micro Metro service will continue to serve Sierra Madre, so the combination of fixed route transit and microtransit will provide improved transit options for our residents. Further out, the city will be updating the transportation element of its city plan and there will be opportunities to provide input on improvements to street design to make our local streets safer for all road users. Looking ahead to the new year with great anticipation!

2nd Annual Holiday Ride 12/22

 

2023 Holiday Riders in front of Sierra Madre Elementary

2nd Annual Holiday Ride! 

Join friends and neighbors for the 2nd annual unofficial "Holiday Ride," Sunday 12/22, 5:30PM - 6:30 PM.  We will meet in front of Sierra Madre Elementary at 5:30PM and enjoy a festive roll through downtown and the surrounding area of town.

Hot Links: 

• US Department of Transportation highlights the importance of active transportation as a climate strategy. The fate of such federal climate efforts is in doubt with a new administration in Washington. Fortunately, local governments have a primary role to play implementing safe road designs and encouraging active mobility like walking and biking. 

• Author Jessica McKenzie is interviewed in the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists about her new book on the environmental impact of lithium mining. Here, too, encouraging alternatives to driving can help reduce the environmental impact of EVs. As she puts it in the interview: "There’s already about 1.2 billion cars on the roads worldwide. Rather than trying to swap them for 1.2 billion electric cars, if we can turn that into half a billion electric cars, plus a whole lot of bicycles and subways and walkable neighborhoods, we’ll all be way better off." 

Community Ride Recap

 

Riders of all ages heading out on our Community Ride in October!

Community Ride a Big Success! 

An estimated 40 riders of all ages participated in Sierra Madre's second annual Community Ride, which featured a scenic trip around our beautiful town. The weather was perfect and everyone had a great time! Thanks to Mayor Kriebs and City Council, who all participated! Shout out to the community services and PD staff for city support, and Active SGV and Unchained Bicycle Garage for vendor support. We are in discussions with the city to expand the ride to two times a year, one in spring and one in fall. Stay tuned and let me know if you're interested in helping with next year's rides! 

 

Active Transportation is Climate Action 

The US Department of Transportation (USDOT) has released a "National Blueprint for Climate Action," which features some great ideas that cities can implement to reduce emissions, and highlights the importance of active transportation (walking, biking, and other micromobility solutions).