Take the twelve minutes and watch this video put out by the Chicago Bicycle Program geared towards their city’s bus drivers and cyclists.

Share the Road – Buses and Bicycles from Chicago Bicycle Program on Vimeo.

Via: Treehugger.

A couple of questions:

• I don’t know any riders from the area, are the public transportation buses as accommodating as they appear to be in the video – can anyone share their experience?
• Is the video effective – have you spotted something you didn’t know before that now makes you feel more understanding towards your fellow bus driver or cyclist counterpart?
• Does the city of Boston and/or MBTA have any equivalent bicycle educational videos for their staff? If not, should they?

Share the Road – Buses and Bicycles from Chicago Bicycle Program on Vimeo.

Dear MBTA, and Boston cyclists watch this. Do what it says. That is all.

PS. Lets make some of these for Boston.

Traffic Enforcement for Bicyclist Safety from Chicago Bicycle Program on Vimeo.

If it isn’t obvious already, I’ve been gathering a list of cities I’d love to live in. NYC, Portland, Seattle, Austin…

And Chicago just made the list.

It really should be on there already; my best friend is at UChicago, and she’s always telling me about her incredible vintage finds. But her horror stories of the Windy City weather also had me clutching my radiator in icy fear, not to mention pictures of the Tour Da Chicago. Boston’s cold enough for me, I thought, and even Kanye couldn’t lure me out to Chi City.

But apparently, the cyclists out there are among the nation’s best. Or at least the couriers are.

And they’re some of the nicest, too. Looking the farthest thing from a genuine courier, I slyly infiltrated a NACCC party Saturday night at Harper’s Ferry, PBR Tallboy in hand, Baileyworks thrown over my shoulder. Good thing DJ Mayhem [a.k.a. Jason] was on the decks [until a random metal band started playing], Geekhouse was in attendance, and I managed to bump into Meghan, one of the funniest girls to throw a leg over a top tube. All of which resulted in me actually getting drunk. And dancing.

And even making new friends! Turns out Meghan was hosting four couriers from Chicago, and in a weird turn of events, I was already Facebook friends with one of them. The only out-of-towners I met this past weekend, they were the antithesis of the judgmental hipster courier stereotype. And milling outside Harper’s Ferry after we all got kicked out, bike in hand, I even got asked if I had ever raced my bike ‘cross – possibly the last question I ever expected during NACCC.

No surprise, then, that Chicago was already earning big points in my book by the end of the night. Sunday morning, lacking any official NACCC volunteer status, I took Jason up on his generous invitation to hang out at Superb, one of the race checkpoints. Tom was acting as a dispatcher and as couriers flowed in and out, I snapped pictures furiously. Bikes of all shapes and sized rolled through, couriers dressed in everything from Sidis to Chucks, and maps and crumpled manifests were pulled out of Ortlieb, Chrome, and Baileyworks bags.

With open roads and random manifests, there was no way to tell who was winning. And it wasn’t until later that night, at the Middle East Downstairs, that I learned that Chicago had not only taken both top male and female courier wins, but that a female courier from Chi City had won best overall. And while I didn’t get a picture of this history-making champion, I was fortunate enough to already call Nico, the top male courier for 2009, a [new] friend.

Which makes Chicago that much more appealing. And late Sunday night, goodbye hugs were dispensed, and promises to get in touch if I ever visit Chicago were made. True, the likelihood of getting my butt over there [along with a bike] before full blown winter is slight to none. But I’ve got that city in my sights; and with a track just north of the city, I’m finding it hard not to book a flight to Chi town, stat. I’ll see you guys soon, though. I promise.

[Thanks to Jacobs, Croth, BBMA, and all the volunteers and sponsors that made this year's NACCC an awesome success!]

The first one is not technically in Boston, but it sounds pretty freaking sweet, and as a Midwesterner I can vouch that Chi-town is an amazing place.

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More info on this here.

Job Announcement: Transportation Options Marketing Director, Active Transportation Alliance consultant to the Chicago Department of Transportation

The Active Transportation Alliance
The mission of Active Transportation Alliance is to make bicycling, walking and public transit so safe, convenient and fun that we will achieve a significant shift from environmentally harmful, sedentary travel to clean, active travel. We advocate for transportation that encourages and promotes safety, physical activity, health, recreation, social interaction, equity, environmental stewardship and resource conservation.

Definition and Purpose
Chicago has worked to establish a 250-mile bikeway network. The next step is to market and promote bicycling. The Transportation Options Marketing Director will work to implement two “Best Practices” marketing programs identified in Chicago’s Bike 2015 Plan that help to achieve the plan’s main goal: “To increase the number of bicycle trips so that 5% of all trips less than 5 miles in Chicago will by bicycle by 2010.”

Transportation Options University Marketing Program – This program uses publications, workshops and on-site intern coordinators to encourage 300,000 students, faculty, and staff at Chicago’s five largest universities and colleges to replace automobile trips to and around campus with bicycling, walking, and public transit.

Individualized Marketing Program – This targeted marketing program provides customized marketing to individuals who are most likely to change their travel behavior, replacing automobile trips with bicycling, walking, transit, and carpooling.

Qualifications
· Bachelor’s degree in Marketing or related field.
· General understanding of bicycling, walking, and public transit use in urban environments.
· General understanding of social marketing principles. Candidates must have a minimum of two year’s work or four year’s volunteer organizing experience or undergraduate degree in Marketing or other relevant area.
· Knowledge of Windows based computer systems, including Microsoft Word, Excel, and e-mail software. Experience working with Adobe Creative Suite is helpful, but not required.
· General understanding of travel survey methodology, analyzing demographics and statistical analysis.
· Willingness to commit to Active Transportation Alliance mission and goals.

Supervisory Responsibilities
· Recruit, train and supervise transportation coaches, student interns, and volunteers.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities
· Design, manage and evaluate the University Marketing program by overseeing student interns at each participating campus and building relationships with campus contacts.
· Provide support to interns, supervisors, and university transportation council members.
· Oversee the design and printing of publications for university use (i.e. student cycling booklets, maps, event promotions and marketing materials).
· Design, manage and evaluate the Individualized Marketing program by coordinating neighborhood partnership building, materials production, and participant reporting.
· Secure participant incentives and resources for overcoming barriers to active travel.
· Oversee creation of community-relevant marketing and encouragement materials.

Address cover letter explaining the candidate’s interest in the job, qualifications and resume to:
E-mail: rob@activetrans.org
No hard copies, phone calls or faxes please.
See www.activetrans.org for more about the organization and its programs.

Start Date: May 15, 2009

Term: This is a full-time position dependent upon funding. Federal funding is in place for approximately 18-24 months.

Salary and Benefits
$35,000 – $40,000 per year depending upon experience and skills. The Active Transportation Alliance offers a progressive benefit program that includes health, dental, and retirement options.

Deadline
This position is open until filled.

The Active Transportation Alliance is committed to providing equal employment opportunity for all persons regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, marital status, political affiliation, sexual orientation or gender identity, disability, sex or age.

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The next is a little closer to Bean town.

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Executive Director
East Coast Greenway Alliance

About the East Coast Greenway: The East Coast Greenway is the nation’s most ambitious long-distance urban greenway trail project. The Greenway system includes a 3000-mile spine trail stretching between Calais, Maine and Key West, Florida, passing through 15 states and the District of Columbia and linking 25 major eastern seaboard cities. It will be complemented by a series of alternate routes totaling another 1500 miles. Our vision is for a 100% off-road trail that is safe and inviting for people of all abilities and ages to enjoy. Currently the spine route is 21% off-road. ECG is one of the 16 national trails designated a National Millennium Trail in 1999. Please visit our web site at www.greenway.org for more information about the Greenway and Alliance.

Position Overview: Direct the development of a significant public greenway trail system. The East Coast Greenway Alliance is a 17-year old, not-for-profit, currently headquartered in Wakefield, RI, that spearheads development of the 3,000-mile long East Coast Greenway. Serve as CEO with overall responsibility for leading organizational growth and managing day-to-day operations. Have critical responsibility for fundraising to sustain the organization and develop the project. We seek a person with genuine passion for our vision of creating and promoting a shared-use urban trail system between Maine and Florida, to take the Alliance and the Greenway to a new level of success.

Principal Responsibilities:

Fundraising: Chief fundraising officer for the Alliance. Develops and executes annual fundraising strategy to sustain the organization.

Organizational development and management:
Support Board of Trustees Chair in managing Board and its standing
committees: Finance & Personnel, Governance, Development, Marketing and Trail Council and various ad hoc committees. Financial management including monthly financial oversight, check signing, contract administration, annual budget development and quarterly reforecast, overseeing annual audit and 990 process.

Program development and management
Initiate and oversee major program areas including Trail Program, Communications and Marketing Program, including media, web site, newsletters and other publications, special events, brand development and management.

Qualifications: looking for a dynamic leader with passion for our mission and at least 5 years proven success in a senior leadership position to take a 17-year old national urban greenway organization to a new level of success. Critical skills include fund raising, ability to attract media attention, non-profit management including fiscal management and forging new strategic partnerships. Must demonstrate a proven track record of organizational management skills.

Education and experience:
Bachelors degree required, masters degree preferred in planning, resource management, community development, organizational, project, program or non-profit management or a related field. Prior trail program management or bicycle-pedestrian advocacy experience. Proven ability to raise funds, especially from individual and corporate donors. Proven non-profit leadership experience preferred including management of staff, budgeting, financial management, grant administration, strategic planning and board development and management, coalition building.

Workplace: Must be on the East Coast of United States.

Compensation: Commensurate with experience.

Reports to: Board of Trustees of the ECGA

Desired start date: August 1, 2009.

Application: Please submit a cover letter with salary requirements, resume, and three writing samples in one PDF document to chuck.flink@greenways.com or mail to Chuck Flink, Chair, Board of Trustees, ECGA, c/o Greenways Incorporated, 5850 Fayetteville Road,
Suite 211, Durham, NC, 27713. All applications will be acknowledged
with an email reply. The position will be open until filled, and interviews will take place on a rolling basis. No telephone calls please!

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If you have a job posting you want listed here, simply use the contact form and drop me an email.

Everyone knows that bicycles are sweet. They keep you in good shape, allow you to experience nature in a direct way, and they are a great way to reduce our carbon foot print (bikes don’t run on oil). Which is why it is great news that New York City’s Transportation Alternatives and the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation have been selected as the first recipients of REI/Bicycle Friendly Communities Grants of $15,000 each. This new grant fund, administered by the Bikes Belong Foundation and made possible with support from Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI), helps aspiring, committed Bicycle Friendly Communities become great places to ride.

Transportation Alternatives (TA) will use their award to support a comprehensive citywide bike parking initiative designed to increase bike transportation in New York by giving cyclists safe, convenient places to park and store their bicycles. TA will conduct advocacy work for “parking spot swaps” and legislation mandating bicycle access to commercial buildings. The grant will also back a bike-rack design competition organized by the NYC Department of Transportation, TA, and city art museums.

Chicagoland Bicycle Federation will use their funding to produce the first of a series of Sunday Parkways events in Chicago, modeled after Ciclovia in Guadalajara, Mexico, and Bogotá, Columbia. With a goal of “transforming communities by invigorating their lifelines—their streets—every weekend from June through October,” Sunday Parkways promises to dramatically increase ridership in the city of Chicago by creating a car-free community celebration that other U.S. cities can adopt.

(video is of Bogota)

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