As you probably know, a number of people originally involved with the CivicCamp-sponsored engagement surrounding the City's Comprehensive Cycling Strategy has come together this past July to organize a more long-term advocacy initiative.  A "Calgary Bicycle Advocacy" google group was set up, a steering committee was formed, projects were discussed.  One of the main immediate issues was the relationship between this group and Bike Calgary.

I'm happy to report that the board of directors of Bike Calgary has endorsed our suggestion that the Calgary Bicycle Advocacy task forces should work under the banner of Bike Calgary.  In practice, this means that the Steering Committee is now formally the Advocacy Committee of Bike Calgary, reporting to the board of directors, and the four task forces (Infrastructure, Promotion, Research, and Fundraising) are subcommittees of said committee.  Everything else stays the same, except that the website is now moved to bikecalgary.org/getinvolved.  This will allow us to use Bike Calgary's resources, an will lend our efforts the legitimacy that comes with being part of a respected non-profit society with a history of productive work on behalf of Calgary's cyclists.  The committee involves representatives (so far) from the Good Life, the Bike Root, and the Elbow Valley Cycling Club.

The Steering Committee/Advocacy Committee is now working to identify and formulate a number of priorities which we'll promote to aldermen and city administration in advance of November's budget deliberations. The Promotions Task Force has drafted a little promotion campaign to inform the general public about the Cycling Strategy and about how making Calgary more bike-friendly will benefit Calgarians: bikecalgary.org/bikeplan. The Research Task Force has kept busy collecting research articles and resources to support the points we'll press on both fronts (to aldermen and to the public).  It'll help that Bike Calgary is now a member association of the Alliance for Biking and Walking with access to their resource library.  And everyone, led by the Infrastructure Task Force, has been collecting ideas for mid- to long-term projects such as the community bike map of Calgary.

So things are moving, but of course we could always use more help. Please check in on BetterMeans if you have a chance and share the link to bikecalgary.org/getinvolved in your networks.