Carroll County Bicycle Advocacy Committee
By Bruce Cohen - July 17, 2015
The first Westminster Bike Party!The rumblings of bicycle advocacy in Carroll County started last fall when Rosemarie Martin approached us. Her husband, Arthur “John” Martin, Jr. was struck and killed by a cement truck in 2010 and she has been involved in a long legal dispute with the State of Maryland and Carroll County over the intersection design since.
In May we organized a Ride of Silence in John’s honor and had almost fifty cyclists attend. After the ride, we urged the need for advocacy in Carroll County, for citizens to stand up and work with county and local government to get the appropriate infrastructure and policies. Carroll County is at the cusp of understanding that bicycling is key for attracting business, and Carroll County Tourism already publishes bicycle tours for tourists. Now it is time to provide citizen input and demand for more trails, safer roads, and voice.
Last Wednesday, July 8th we held our first advocacy meeting at the Carroll County Library to gauge interest. The cyclists who attended the meeting came prepared with their vision for Carroll County and simply needed a little push to get started.
Since July 8th:
- Cyclists at the meeting decided to move forward with a Carroll County bicycle advocacy committee – unofficial name.
- The Committee sent a letter to Mayor Utz urging bicyclist-input on future use for the Wakefield Valley Golf Course as well as requesting a meeting to discuss other initiatives to make Westminster a better place for families to ride.
- We met with two county commissioners about the future of bicycling in the county and how advocates and county government can work together to create better conditions for cyclists, especially with off-road trail development
- The first Westminster Bike Party and a second one planned for mid-August.
If you live or ride in Carroll County and would like to become involved with advocacy, please email me.
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