The Fifth Annual NJ Bike & Walk Summit, presented by the New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition (NJBWC), will be held at the Bloustein School’s Special Events Forum, Civic Square Building, 33 Livingston Ave., New Brunswick, N.J. on Saturday, Feb. 8 from 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
The NJ Bike & Walk Summit is the state’s annual gathering of biking & walking advocates, community advocacy leaders, city and suburban planners, environmental and green team members, cycling enthusiasts, bike shop owners, bicycle and walking club members, recreational riders, health and wellness experts, community policy makers, traffic engineers, state legislators and those interested in the many benefits that walking and biking can bring to a community.
New Jersey ranks as the nation’s second worst state in pedestrian and bicyclist road fatalities, with 27 percent of all road fatalities recorded. NJBWC advocates for safer streets by supporting grassroots efforts throughout the state.
Three national speakers will participate in this year’s event:
- F.K. Day, executive vice president and co-founder of the global bicycle components company SRAM and president of World Bicycle Relief (WBR). WBR seeks to empower people by providing bicycles around the world, including Southeast Asia and Africa;
- Jeff Miller, president and CEO of the Alliance for Biking & Walking, who will discuss the latest trends in biking and walking federal spending and safety data, including numbers for New Jersey; and
- Dr. Peter Furth, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Northeastern University and internationally recognized expert on transportation systems, who will speak about how towns can create bicycle networks that reduce riders’ exposure to traffic stress.
More than 20 panel sessions and demonstrations are planned, exploring topics including:
- Creating a bicycle friendly community
- Organizing fundraising events
- Starting a community bicycle education program
- A demonstration of red light cameras, infrared detectors, and other innovative traffic control and counting devices.
This year’s event is expected to draw more than 250 attendees from New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York City. Registration is open to the public, and includes access to all of the day’s events, a light breakfast and full lunch. Online preregistration is available for $50 at njbwc.org/summit-2014. Day-of registration is $65.
The New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition is the state’s advocacy organization working to create safer places to bike and walk and ultimately, create more livable communities. It is presently leading a campaign to expand bicycle access across the George Washington Bridge, including eliminating the 171 steps on the north path. NJBWC is also campaigning to include bike lanes and sidewalks on the rebuild of hurricane-damaged Rt. 35 at the New Jersey shore.
For more information on NJBWC’s work, please visit njbwc.org or contact Dorothy Le at Dorothy.Le@gmail.com.