Bike Month is well underway in Newton. The Bike Month display at the Newton Free Library showcases current bike facilities – and many more planned.
This past Sunday, Newton students in grades K-6 brushed up on their bike skills at Newton’s third annual Bike Rodeo at Newton South High School, hosted by Newton Parks, Recreation & Culture with bicycle instructors from Massachusetts Safe Routes to School and volunteers from Newton Safe Routes to School and Bike Newton. The Ligerbots – Newton’s community-minded high-school robotics team – created a practice course. Newton Police Officer Helms brought his police bike to share with students, and Officer Lau and police dog Leo were a hit. Families also reviewed tips for bike maintenance, helmet fit, securing bikes, and rules of the road.
Newton Schools celebrated Bike Month with Walk-Ride-Roll to School Day on May 3 and a student bike safety talk at Lincoln-Eliot School. The Newton Safe Routes to School website has some crowd-sourced bike routes for middle- and high-schools students to bike to school now that the weather is warmer.
Bike Month kicked off on May 1 with the Newton City Council approving the Albemarle Traffic Calming and Bike Lane project, which will create a bicycle connection between Washington Street and the Charles River Bike Path and facilitate biking to the schools and playing fields along the Albemarle corridor. The project is funded by a MassDOT Shared Streets grant and will be installed in Summer 2023.
Bike Newton regularly offers “No Rider Left Behind” group rides to destinations like the Mass Central Rail Trail, to restaurants in Cambridge for brunch, and locally. Find their rides and sign up for their mailing list on Bike Newton’s website.
Mark your calendars for the June 13 initial public meeting for Newton’s Bike Pedestrian Network Plan, which is being developed by Kittelson & Associates. The Network Plan is designed to create an action-oriented road map to make Newton more safe, enjoyable, and accessible for everyone to walk, roll, and bike in Newton.
The next public meeting to review the Newton Highlands Village Enhancement design is May 25, which has a goal to improve accessibility and safety for all users.
Jenn Martin chairs the Newton Safe Routes to School Task Force and is a member of Bike Newton.
