News & Events

Recent ABAC highlights

In the past year, ABAC has advised and worked on a wide range of projects and initiatives:

• Sponsored a zoning warrant article that adds guidelines for safe and orderly parking of bicycles in town. Town Meeting approved the article on April 28, and Arlington’s bicycle-parking requirements are now specified in Section 8.13 of the Zoning Bylaws.
• Hosted bicycling skills classes in Arlington.
• Organized the annual BIKE-Arlington Tour, a casual 8-mile bicycle tour around town, on May 18. Members of the Arlington Police Bicycle Unit also supported this fun and informative community event.
• Advised on bicycle transportation issues related to the current Mass Ave corridor study in East Arlington.
• Hosted an information booth at Arlington Town Day, where ABAC members distributed bicycle-related information and discussed local bicycling issues with the community.
• Worked with the Department of Public Works to provide basic maintenance on Arlington’s 3-mile stretch of the Minuteman Bikeway. Also worked with Arlington Green Streets to cut back and remove invasive weeds along the bikeway. For more information on the Minuteman Bikeway, see the website at www.minutemanbikeway.org.
• Participated in various events hosted by the Massachusetts Bicycle Coalition (MassBike), including Massachusetts Bike Week and Bike Night.
• Represented Arlington at the National Bicycle Summit in Washington, D.C., organized by the League of American Bicyclists in March. Met with U.S. Representative Edward Markey to encourage support for federal Transportation Enhancements funding for local-area bicycling, pedestrian, and transit improvements.

Future plans

ABAC is planning to organize a number of community events in 2004, including a winter social at the Whittemore-Robbins House for local-area cyclists, the annual BIKE-Arlington Tour in May (which is now part of a larger alternative-transportation fair), and an informational booth at Arlington Town Day in September. ABAC is also assisting the Arlington Open Space Committee in preparing a management plan for the Minuteman Bikeway, advising on proposed improvements for Arlington Center (especially related to improved bicycle parking and better bikeway connections in the center), and researching grant-funding options for various projects.

If you are interested in local bicycling matters, please attend an upcoming ABAC meeting. ABAC usually meets monthly on the first Monday night in Arlington Town Hall.