Take Action! Tell Secretary of Transportation that bicycles aren’t a “waste” (Comments: 1)
Author: Jason Crane
Date: 16 August, 2007
Category: Take Action!
From the League of American Bicyclists:
– Transportation Secretary Mary Peters talks about infrastructure problems and travel initiatives.
– Peters cited “bicycle paths” as a prime example of the waste
Last night on the PBS NewsHour with Jim Leher, DOT Secretary Mary Peters was interviewed by Gwen Ifill.
Peters, when asked about a possible gas tax increase, repeated President Bush’s response – No, there can be no tax increase because Congress is wasting the money they already get. Peters cited “bicycle paths” as a prime example of the waste because bicycles are not a transportation use of the gas tax money.
It is disappointing that the administration is attacking Jim Oberstar for his efforts to get the Minneapolis bridge repaired along with raising all the funding for transportation maintenance, by using Oberstar’s support for bicycles as a weapon.
The League of American Bicyclists feels strongly that this should not go without a response and we have sent a letter to Secretary Peters voicing our view. Click here to view our response.
For those of you who feel strongly about bicycling issues, we would also urge you to contact the Secretary to share your personal viewpoints.
To view a copy of the program click here
In case you’d like something to use as a guide, this is the letter I wrote:
Your comments on PBS regarding funding for bicycle infrastructure were very disturbing. I commute to work every day by bicycle in Rochester, NY. We have almost no bicycle infrastructure in most of our city, which makes my commute much riskier than it needs to be.
As a cycle commuter, I feel like I’m doing the right thing for our country and our planet. It saddens me to hear someone like you, who has such an impact on transportation policy, downplay the vital importance of alternative modes of transportation.
It only takes a moment to see that our world needs to change. We can’t keep burning fossil fuels and paving over everything. That’s not the world I want to leave to my two sons.
Please help all of us cyclists by publicly retracting your statement and reaffirming your commitment to cycling.
Thank you.
1 comment to “Take Action! Tell Secretary of Transportation that bicycles aren’t a “waste””