Meeting Summary May 9, 2024
Attending: Hultgren, Serazo, Clark, Taylor, Valentine
The meeting began shortly after 7 pm in the lobby of the Nash-Zimmer Transportation Center.
Preparations for the 4th grade bike education program were reviewed. Serazo has set up a spreadsheet logging when volunteers have signed up to assist in the day programs. The later days still need more volunteers, since they include a neighborhood ride which will require accompanying adult riders and traffic control at intersections. The equipment and supplies have been ordered and are being received, but there won’t be enough time between the delivery of the trailer and the start of the program to get the trailer wrapped before the program starts.
Hultgren said he had talked with Bill Thorne about what remains to be done to start the Cycling Without Age program. These are (1) the summary of the routes and each route’s characteristics (length, time, etc.); (2) recruiting pilots and formally training them; and (3) setting up a scheduling system to match pilots with passengers. Scheduling via Google Docs or Picktime was briefly discussed.
Hultgren listed a number of actions called for in the recently adopted Mansfield Bicycle/Pedestrian Master Plan that Bike Mansfield could help with. These included the evaluation of mountain bike use in Town parks and preserves; a network analysis of the Town’s bike routes and analyzing “stress levels” of routes and roads; lobbying for the recommended appointment of an Active Transportation Coordinator; helping to publicize the bike commuting facilities in Storrs Center; assisting with PR dealing with bicycling in Town; resuming the bicycle workshops at the MCC; forming a “complete streets team” and assisting with writing a complete streets plan for the Town; coordinating bicycle regulations and activities with UConn; analyzing and gathering data for recommending focused enforcement on Mansfield roads and trails for bicyclists and pedestrians; working with the Town DPW to prioritize some of the future projects listed in the plan; researching what should be done to regulate e-scooters in Town.
Upcoming events were noted and discussed: The May 15th ride of silence, the May 19th Lions Club picnic and car show, and a June 1st kids bike safety event at Freedom Green. Bike Mansfield representatives for these events were set
The meeting concluded at approximately 7:45 pm.
Lon Hultgren, Sec-Treas
Bike Mansfield