E-Bikes, Ride & Dine, Empire State Trail Success, and More!

Happy Summer!!

We hope you are enjoying the warmer weather and hitting the trails and the road when you can! Looking for people ro ride with? Check out the sampling of group ride calendars across the state below - and check out our searchable cycling club database to find a group close to you!

Thank you to everyone who joined us at our inaugural Ride & Dine event last month - we were so happy to be able to bring together important voices in bicycle advocacy and look forward to more rides like this!

Also below you'll find important legislative updates, funding opportunities, great news on the economic benefits of NY's longest multi-use trail, and some thoughtful information about e-bike sustainability.

More details below!

In this Issue

Group ride calendars across the state
Quick advocacy actions & funding opportunities
State & Federal Legislative Updates:
- Stop Super Speeders NYC Pilot
- Funding for NYS trails
- New NY Transportation Committee Chair
- Surface Transportation Reauthorization
Ride & Dine and Walk Bike Roll reflections
NYS Empire State Trail turns 5! New study finds it generates over $1.87 billion and sees 9+ million visitors annually.
E-Bikes and Sustainability: Carbon Emissions, batteries, and second-hand options.

Upcoming Rides

Looking to join a group ride? Here’s a sampling of ride calendars statewide. Check out our bicycling resources page to search for more cycling groups in your area.

Onondaga Cycling Club hosts rides 7 days/week, start times vary morning and early evening. Calendar here.
Suffolk Bicycle Riders Association (Long Island) hosts rides 7 days/week, start times vary morning, midday, and early evening. Calendar here.
Westchester Cycling Club hosts rides consistently Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, occasionally on weekends. Start times tend to be early evening with some morning rides. Calendar here.
Rochester Deaf Cyclists hosts rides 4-5 days a week, find updates on their Facebook page.
Rochester Cycling Club calendar is accessible through their meetup group.
Massapequa Park Bicycle Club hosts rides 4-7 days/week, start times vary morning and early evening. Calendar here.
Mid-Hudson Bicycle Club hosts rides 4-7 days/week, start times vary morning and early evening. Calendar here.
NY Cycle Club hosts weekend trips, social gatherings, and community activities for cyclists across New York City and the surrounding region. Check upcoming rides here.
Buffalo Cycling Club hosts rides 3-4 days a week, starting in the morning and early evening. Calendar here.
Mohawk Valley Bicycling Club holds rides 3-4 days a week, mostly starting early evening. Group ride page here.

Quick Actions &
Funding Opportunities!

The League of American Bicyclists is opening their “Show Congress” micro-grant program for a new round of applicants! These grants help state and local advocacy organizations (League members) put on educational and experiential active transportation events with their elected officials — ribbon cuttings, rides, bike expos, candidate forums, and more. Generously supported by Sarah's Basket, Dan Langenkamp, and others. Funding ranges from $500-1500. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. The application is here. Check out more details here.

NYC residents: be part of an exciting e-bike health study by New York University and NYC Department of Transportation. The study explores how e-bikes may influence physical activity, transportation choices, and health outcomes among New York City residents. As part of this research, they are surveying residents’ transportation habits, biking experiences, and perceptions of e-bike use. Fill out the survey here.

Show your support for NYSDOT’s Boston Road project, which will develop a roadway concept in Larchmont and Mamaroneck to improve sidewalks, improve pedestrian crosswalks, upgrade traffic signals, and improve traffic flow. The proposed design creates a dedicated lane for left turns and separate lanes for through traffic, helping cars move more smoothly and predictably. Left-turning vehicles can share the center lane, which frees up space for bike lanes without needing to widen the road. Find more information about the project here. If you would like to show your support, email US1comments@vomny.org.

Ride & Dine Fun!

The NYBC Big Wheels Ride & Dine provided a wonderful opportunity for connection, conversation, and celebration of the movement for safer, more accessible streets and better cycling of all kinds.

The Ride & Dine was made possible through the support of generous sponsors and partners. We extend our sincere thanks to our Carbon Sponsor, Upway; our Aluminum Sponsors, AKRF and New York Bike Lawyers/Flanzig & Flanzig LLC; our partners at Bike Tarrytown for organizing the ride; and Project MOVER for providing courtesy bike-share bicycles for ride and conference attendees. Their support make this gathering possible and strengthened New York's growing movement for safer streets.

Interested in participating as a partner or sponsor for future Ride & Dines or arranging a ride to benefit NYBC? Reach out to us at nybc@nybc.net

The next major event for NYBC is the May 17-19, 2027 NY Bike Summit in Albany - mark your calendar and click through to find out more about our last amazing NY Bike Summit in 2024.

NY’s Empire State Trail Turns 5: Preserving the Environment, Boosting Local Economies

The 750-mile Empire State Trail recently turned five years old, and a study by Parks & Trails NY documents its huge impact on NY's economy! The trail has generated $1.87 billion in total economic output and sees 9+ million visitors annually.

Excitingly, 61% of trail visitors are on bike, which contributes to reduced car travel and offers a safe opportunity for cyclists to get in plenty of miles without having to worry about car traffic. Some riders decide to do the full 750 miles! On top of that safer riding, another plus of the trail is that less car travel means less gas emissions, and a cleaner environment.

Our Empire State Trail demonstrates how multi-use trails are so effective in connecting communities, encouraging folks to explore outside, boost tourism to small towns, and strive towards a greener NY. Read the full Study

E-Bikes and Sustainability: Carbon Emissions, batteries, and second-hand options.

E-bikes are a great transportation option for anyone looking to replace their car for short trips, help make commuters’ trips more manageable, for seniors looking for a way to continue to exercise outdoors, and to mitigate carbon emissions. E-bikes are a smart choice for those who want to minimize their carbon footprint, but have you considered the full lifecycle of sustainable e-bike use? Check out our latest article where we dive into stats on CO2 emissions, tips for making sure you dispose of your e-bike safely, and explore resale and second-hand options with your local bike shops and Upway, who generously donated to our Ride & Dine event this year. TLDR: We love e-bikes as long as they are ridden safely, legally, and responsibly!

State & Federal Legislative Updates

New York State Updates

Stop Super Speeders Pilot for NYC! Stop Super Speeders passed this session as a New York City pilot program mandating speed-limiting technology for the most egregious repeat speed offenders. The New York State Safe Streets Coalition, which NYBC co-chairs, played an important role in advancing this legislation, with critical leadership and advocacy from our partners at Transportation Alternatives and Families for Safe Streets. We will work to expand this pilot over time so that communities across New York can benefit from this proven safety tool.

No change on e-bikes for now. The late state budget blocked additional regulations that had been proposed on safe, legal e-bikes. NYBC and the NYS Safe Streets Coalition will continue to advocate for common sense policies that regulate dangerous e-motos and other high-speed devices, while preserving access to safe, low-speed, legal e-bikes as an affordable mobility option. You can read more about our position here and we’d love to hear from you about

More funding for trails. There was also positive news in the budget for funding for parks and trails - read more by our friends at Parks & Trails NY about support in this year’s state budget for New York’s parks and public lands.

New Transportation Committee Chair Coming: Also of note for Albany watchers - Assemblyman Magnarelli of Syracuse lost his primary to County Legislator Mo Brown. Incoming Assemblyman Brown is a big supporter of safe streets - he introduced the Onondaga County 3’ bill and is a regular cyclist. Also importantlly, Assemblyman Magnarelli is the chair of the NYS Assembly Transportation Committee, which means that next session there will be a new chair. NYBC will be working to educate all the incoming members about the importance of safe streets and cycling!

Thank you to those of you who joined our February and May Advocacy Days and contacted your legislators - we could not do this without you!

Federal Updates

USDOT moves away from safety: The U.S. Department of Transportation recently removed three important elemeents from their Proven Safety Countermeasures website: bike lanes, road diets, and speed management! The data is crystal clear that these countermeasures save lives. Cyclists need to make our voices heard that we expect our federal government to look at the data and work to keep all road users safe. Especially if you live in a "red" disctrict, please reach out to your congressperson and let them know that you want the USDOT to protect all of us. You can read more from the League of American Bicyclists about this move by USDOT

Surface Transportation Reauthorization is the most important legislation at the federal level for funding, policies, and safety measures that support bicycling, walking, and active transportation. It is passed once every five years or so and defines federal funding for the next cycle.

This March, NYBC coordinated the NYS advocates at the National Bike Summit lobby day in Washington, DC. We advocated for three important issues, and we are pleased to report they are all in the House version of Surface Tranporation! Unfortunately, not all the news in the House bill is good, and the Senate version has not yet been released, leaving much uncertainty and much work to do.

Read more from Caron Whitaker at League of American Bicyclists about how our advocacy helped protect the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP), Safe Streets for All (SS4A) and dedicated funding for Vulnerable Road User projects.

Those of you who joined us on the Ride & Dine on June 1 got the chance to know Caron!

Leading the Movement for a Bike-Friendly New York!

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Our mailing address is: PO BOX 8868 ALBANY, NY 12208
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