A Bicyclist-Friendly Massachusetts

During April's Earth Day we asked bicyclists to join us in trading a car trip for a bike ride. The more car trips we convert to bicycle trips through our advocacy, the smaller our collective carbon footprint becomes. 

We’ve been shining bright across the commonwealth this winter with our #LightsBrigade program. From the South Coast to the Connecticut River Valley to the North Shore, we’ve been handing out free sets to lights to cyclists across the commonwealth. We’re thrilled to announce, for the first time, we’ll be extending the program through the summer!

Starting this spring, #LightsBrigade by Bkin will be shining across Massachusetts. Thanks to the generous support of Bkin we will be able to pass out lights to more cyclists who need to #BrightenUp, helping them ride safer on warm summer nights. 22 News WWLP reported on the program expansion and the future is looking bright for this popular intiative.

If you would like to volunteer to host a #LightsBrigade event, please reach out to bikeinfo@massbike.org. We are always looking for volunteers from across the commonwealth to help us make sure every rider is bright.

Our 30 Days of Biking Challenge has been so much fun and we've enjoyed sharing our daily trips on Facebook & Instagram. Everyone who logged 30 days of rides in April on the MassBike Love to Ride Group was entered to win a Rover Rain Cape from Cleverhood. 

We're shifting gears a little with our May Bike Challenge: Bike to Work, Bike to School, Bike Before Your First Meeting.

In May, we're challenging you to commute one day a week by bike or to take a bike ride before your workday starts once a week to simulate a bike commute. Log your trips on the MassBike Love to Ride Group to be entered to win some MassBike prizes.

The House of Representatives is scheduled to begin debate on April 26th on the Fiscal Year 2022 budget that begins on July 1st. 

Over 1100 amendments have been filed for consideration, including several important bike-friendly amendments that we hope will be adopted.

Amendment #1039: Commuter Transit Benefits (Rep. Vitolo)

• This amendment aligns Massachusetts law with federal law on commuter pre-tax benefits, and expands the tax deductions for monthly transit passes to include RTAs, and will provide benefits for a bikeshare membership, for buying a bike including electric bikes, for bicycle improvements, repair, and storage.

Amendment #164: Mass in Motion (Rep. Sabadosa) 

• This amendment supports healthy eating and active living through the Mass in Motion program by increasing funding for Mass in Motion to $1 million in the FY22 state budget.

Why take action?

Both Amendment #1039 and #164 are crucial to MassBike’s work, as we strive to encourage more bike commuting to work as we come back from the pandemic, and we partner with Mass in Motion communities throughout Massachusetts to support community bicycling initiatives including our mini-grant program which was funded through this program.

Taking action is easy, and your representative wants to know what you think:

1. Find your Representative by following this link: https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator
2. Request that they add their name as a co-sponsor to amendments #1039 and #164, which would help create a greener, more equitable and more sustainable bike-friendly Massachusetts.
3. Say thank you! And let us know how it went by emailing us at bikeinfo@massbike.org

Links:

• News link to #LightsBrigade
• MassBike Love to Ride Group
• Find your Representative