Keep the Jones Falls Valley Safe for Everyone

A map of the proposed relocation site with the floodplain overlay

Baltimore City is proposing relocating the Sisson Street Transfer Station to the Jones Falls Valley. There are numerous concerns around this proposal from adjacent neighborhood residents, stakeholder groups like Friends of the Jones Falls, and environmental advocates concerned about the overlap with the floodplain.

At Bikemore, we believe the Jones Falls Valley can and should be realized as a world-class linear park. We don't believe relocation of a waste transfer facility fits into that vision.

But if the city is insistent on relocating the facility despite the conflict with this vision and community concerns, the corridor must be safe for people of all ages and abilities walking and biking. Safe access for these users must increase.

In fact, that's a vision the Mayor's Office and Baltimore City Department of Transportation has long promised adjacent communities, a promise they have not made good on. Now is the time to make good on that promise, regardless of the outcome of the relocation proposal.

Below is a letter to send to your elected officials. It focuses on the bare minimum safety improvements required for a walking and biking corridor to safely exist with relocation.

To be clear, we think the proposed relocation site is a bad one. So if you have opinions on the relocation proposal itself, please customize the letter to include them.

Bikemore Files Maryland Supreme Court Amicus Brief in Support of Vulnerable Road Users

For decades, Maryland's Boulevard Rule has played a vital role in protecting pedestrians and cyclists by reinforcing their right-of-way when crossing or entering major roads. But a recent appellate court decision (PDF) threatens to upend this longstanding precedent, opening the door for drivers to shift blame onto vulnerable road users, even when those individuals were lawfully asserting their rights.

This shift has serious implications. It risks making our legal system more hostile to the very people Maryland is trying to encourage to walk and bike through increased investments in complete streets infrastructure. If pedestrians and cyclists cannot count on legal protections when harmed by negligent drivers, the promise of safe streets remains out of reach.

That's why Bikemore is standing alongside Delegate Embry to advocate for a legislative fix, specifically, a contributory negligence carveout for vulnerable road users. And it's also why we filed an amicus brief urging the Maryland Supreme Court to hear the appeal filed by the legal team at Kramon & Graham.

Kramon & Graham's attorneys are leading a vital fight to restore the Boulevard Rule and ensure it continues to serve as a meaningful safeguard for people walking and biking. Their appeal asks the Maryland Supreme Court to reverse the lower court's ruling and reaffirm the principle that those entering a boulevard must yield to traffic, including pedestrians and cyclists, already in the intersection. We are proud to support this effort through our amicus filing, which underscores the broader public policy implications and the real-world risks that vulnerable road users face every day.

This is a crucial moment. As Maryland works to reduce traffic violence and make our roads safer for all, the law must reflect the reality on the ground: people outside of cars face disproportionate danger and deserve legal protections that recognize that imbalance.

To better understand how this legal precedent affects injury claims and accountability, we recommend this excellent explainer from Bikemore board chair Juan Carlos, an attorney at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A.

We believe that legal doctrine like the Boulevard Rule must evolve to protect—not endanger—those who are most vulnerable when traveling along our streets and roads. They deserve nothing less.

Read the full brief below:

Polling Shows Baltimoreans Want Safer Streets Infrastructure, Trails, and Transportation Options

Polling conducted by our fellow advocates at The Central Maryland Transportation Alliance and Rails to Trails Conservancy in the weeks before the May primary election shows Baltimoreans want safer streets infrastructure and more transportation options.

• 79% say it's important to have trails in your neighborhood

• 71% say it's important to run MTA buses every 30 minutes or better

• 64% say bike lanes benefit people

• 58% say they'd be more likely to vote for a candidate who prioritizes trails

• 55% say it's important to build the Baltimore Red Line

• A majority want to "Increase the number of dedicated bike lanes in Baltimore City" and "Build the projects in the Baltimore City Bicycle Master Plan."

Digging deeper into the data tells an even more compelling story.

Support for bike lanes is stronger from Black respondents (64%) and Latino respondents (74%) than white respondents (62%).

In addition to ensuring respondents reflected Baltimore's overall demographics, the poll ensured half of city residents were in zip codes adjacent to proposed trail facilities (such as the neighborhoods surrounding Gwynns Falls Parkway, 33rd Street, Chinquapin Run, and the Middle Branch).

Despite this focus on sampling these neighborhoods--places a few oppositional voices often point to as examples of where infrastructure is not wanted--only 4% of respondents oppose the Baltimore Greenway Trails Network.

The message from this poll and the subsequent primary election is clear: Baltimoreans are ready for safer streets infrastructure and transit investments.

They want to see the Baltimore Greenway Trails Network and the Separated Lane Network Plans implemented.

We encourage you to read the full Medium post from Central Maryland Transportation Alliance, which contains the survey methodology and more data on resident desires to re-prioritize our regional funding away from highways and toward biking, walking, and public transit.

Making Art in the Right of Way more accessible

For a long time, the Department of Transportation has run an Art in the Right of Way program. First, let’s break down what that means. 

The Baltimore City Department of Transportation (DOT) controls the Right of Way, which means that they dictate how spaces reserved for the purpose of transportation (aka roads, sidewalks, and trails) are used. This is important because that means any temporary or permanent changes on Baltimore City roadways have to be approved by DOT. It’s why people have to seek out Block Party permits to close down streets to car traffic for an event, why the MTA has to work with DOT to paint red bus lanes, and why DOT has to approve all artwork on our streets.

People have used the Art in the Right of Way program to do street murals, paint trail markers (did you know all of the green oval trail markers are painted by volunteers?), and traffic calming for years.

1 - Reverberations Crosswalk by Graham Projects; 2 - Black Trans Lives Mural by Baltimore Safe Haven; 3 - Gwynns Falls Trail marker

A few years ago, graduate students in MICA’s Social Design program asked the question: “How might we ensure pedestrians and bicyclists are seen and prioritized?” After working on multiple different types of visibility projects from reflective clothing to creatively lighting major roadways, the Made You Look team settled on creating more transparency and best practices on how to install traffic-calming art. Essentially, they sought to make the process of creating art in the right of way more accessible.

With these intentions in mind, they’ve worked with partners in the Maryland Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Administration’s (MDOT MVA) Highway Safety Office (MHSO), public artists, and community members throughout the past couple years on a few traffic calming projects and recently released an “Art in the Right of Way Toolkit.” They’ve also been hosting corresponding workshops open to community members to attend and learn how they can implement traffic calming projects in their own neighborhoods. 

Last week, we attended their Art in the Right of Way Workshop in the company of neighborhood leaders, public artists, and elected officials all looking to learn more about traffic calming art. During this session, the presenters and attendees emphasized the importance of community engagement from project conception to end, using a design thinking process. This means involving neighbors from the very beginning: learning from them what intersections and roads are dangerous for pedestrians, involving them in the design of the new art, and inviting them to participate in a paint day. Many attendees left the call excited to embark on a process of making their own neighborhood art. 

In the Made You Look guide, you can find best practices for: 

• How to decide on location and design of the art through a community participatory process

• How you can obtain an MOU from DOT to do an Art in the Right of Way Project

• How to prepare for installation and how to install your public art

This Wednesday at 5:30pm, they are hosting their last community shareback and closing out their third year of the design program. You can join them at Whitelock Community Farm and screenprint your own reflective streetwear, get bike repairs from BKYE Collective, and check out the new “seasonal turn” crosswalk art at Whitelock & Brookfield!

Hopefully, we’ll be seeing more colorful art that makes our streets safer in neighborhoods all around the city.

Race Pace is Matching Donations!

Baltimore is lucky to have an amazing community of local bike shops that help to make biking in Baltimore fun, safe, and accessible. Whether you're training for your next race, looking to hit the trails, or are just biking around the neighborhood--supporting your local shop means that your dollars support businesses that invest in Baltimore. 

One way that local shops invest in Baltimore is through supporting our work. Race Pace is matching all donations through November 19th up to a total of $2,500. So whether you're learning about our work for the first time, or wanting to make this month's donation go a little further be sure to donate through this link so we can credit your donation towards Race Pace's generous $2,500 matching gift. Thanks for your support!