Tag Archives: st. louis

Two wins

Green scored two wins this week, one national and one local.

On the local front, the City of St. Louis passed a Complete Streets policy with a unanimous vote in the Board of Alder[people] — good first step for continuing to create opportunities of active and green transportation in my city!

On the national front, the U.S. Senate voted against the resolution that would have gutted the Clean Air Act, which prompted the following remarks in the Repower America announcement email:

Yesterday, thanks to your hard work, the U.S. Senate did the right thing — voting with the climate science and against a resolution that would have stripped the Clean Air Act’s protections against climate pollution.

The Senate is to be commended for defeating Senator Lisa Murkowski’s disastrously misguided proposal. But the truth is, in the face of the worst environmental disaster in our nation’s history, Senator Murkowski’s resolution never should have even reached the Senate floor.

The fact that we had to work to defeat this legislation is a testament to the continued strength of the fossil fuel lobby. But the fact that we did defeat it gives us fresh momentum for the months ahead, as our nation confronts the costs of our dependence on fossil fuels more directly than ever.

Bike to the refueling station day

Happy Bike to Work Day!  I don’t work on Fridays (and I don’t bike to work given my current job anyway, ahem), but I didn’t want to miss the fun.  I joined my hubby in biking to the Bike to Work Day refueling station at the History Museum in Forest Park.  Fortunately, the morning commute hours were nice and dry, though the clouds are rolling back in now.

Even if you don’t bike to work, bike somewhere!  I’ll be heading back out this afternoon to swing by the library and the Botanical Garden.  Where will your bike take you?

Bike or bust

Last night’s Green Drinks at the Green Center in U-City was kind-of far away, and there was a chance of rain in the forecast, but I’d made up my mind to bike there.  Then I plotted a route and saw that it was 10 miles, one way.  Twenty miles in one night when I’ve been doing very little riding (other than the sitting on my butt in the car variety)?  Gulp.

I gave myself a choice: bike there or don’t go.  Although I hesitated because of the distance, I was really itching to get on my bike.  (Here it is, Bike to Work Week, and I’m stuck on the sidelines.)

Turns out, it was a gorgeous night for a ride, perfect temps to not be cold and not get sweaty.  We encountered a bit of rain on our return ride, but it wasn’t too bad.  And the 20 miles?  They flew right by, no problem!

Open Streets in St. Louis!

Open Streets is coming to St. Louis, with four events from May through October!  The first Open Streets takes place this Saturday, May 1, from 8am to 1pm.  This great event features five miles of city street from Forest Park to Busch Stadium open exclusively for bicycles and pedestrians (i.e., non-motorized traffic), with lots of fun activities along the route.  Click the image above to go to the official website for more details and a route map.

Sadly, I will miss the inaugural event this weekend, but I plan to volunteer at all of the others.  To sign up as a volunteer, visit the St. Louis Regional Bicycle Federation website.  View this Trailnet blog post for more information on volunteering and the event in general.