Category: safety

commuting, education, encouragement, enforcement, events, safety, transportation

Successful bike-safety events held

photo of Bob McBride helping fit a UD student with a new helmet
BikeNewark chair Bob McBride helps fit a UD student with a new DelDOT-donated helmet.

As has been done for nearly 10 years, BikeNewark worked with partner groups this fall to hold two bicycle-safety checkpoint events on the University of Delaware (UD) campus, adjacent to the two-way protected bicycle lane that comprises the northern east-west portion of the Central Loop of the Newark Bikeways low-stress network. This fall, two-hour events were held on September 23 and October 1, in partnership with the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT), the University of Delaware Police Department (UDPD), and Delaware Commute Solutions.

photo of Mark Deshon giving out some safety information
BikeNewark’s Mark Deshon discusses some safety-info handouts with a UD student.
photo of Chip Kneavel inflating a student's tire
DelDOT’s Chip Kneavel inflates a UD student’s tire on the brick patio area adjacent to Delaware Avenue.


The purpose of these twice-a-semester events is to help inform students about bicycle safety and local safe-bicycling routes, provide minor bike repairs or adjustments, and install free front and rear bike lights and offer a free helmet*, both courtesy of DelDOT.

photo of Amy Reardon talking with a student about Delaware Commute Solutions
Amy Reardon gives a student information about Delaware Commute Solutions benefits.

This fall was a record-breaking season for the free bike lights and helmets given by DelDOT. The October event smashed any previous event’s numbers, as 26 sets of bike lights were installed and 15 helmets were given to UD students. Combined with the initial event in September, this fall we distributed 45 sets of lights and 24 helmets, far beyond what we had ever done before.

photo of Dave Schultz and Mark Deshon installing bike lights
BikeNewark’s Dave Schultz and Mark Deshon install front and rear lights on a student’s bike.

It’s clear that there is always a real need and interest among UD students for the services we offer as a means of fulfilling a commitment to improve bicycle safety in Newark. BikeNewark thanks its volunteers as well as staff from DelDOT, UDPD, and Delaware Commute Solutions for helping make these events such a success.

photo of the BikeNewark tent and volunteer crew
Our BikeNewark tent was prominent on The Green at our September 23 bicycle-safety checkpoint.

*provided one promises to wear it

communication, education, encouragement, engineering, events, infrastructure, projects, safety

What we accomplished in 2024

While 2024 was not the most successful year in terms of being able to promote and effect our missional objectives, we were able to be involved in the community and accomplish the following:

photo of kiosk
One of four information kiosks installed in Newark parks along Newark Bikeways routes
  • Maintained membership of 42 individuals, losing seven former members but gaining seven others.
  • Completed our information-kiosk project, which included installation by the City of Newark in four locations (Phillips Park, the junction of the Hall and Pomeroy Trails, Olan Thomas Park, and Hillside Park) with the addition of Newark Bikeways and City of Newark Area Recreation Amenities maps created by BikeNewark. 
  • Highlighted National Bike Month in May with our annual Bike to Work Day event on the campus of the University of Delaware, in coordination with event partners City of Newark, UD, DelDOT, Newark Bike Project, and Delaware Commute Solutions. About 75 participants attended the event.
  • Partnered with University of Delaware Police, DelDOT, and Newark Bike Project to hold three successful bike-safety events on campus, during which about 70 sets of bike lights were installed, about 20 bike helmets were given and fitted, and bicycle-safety information was distributed.
  • Organized and held six First Friday Rides community events—slow group rides that are meant to encourage those of all ages to enjoy bicycling and practice good group-riding etiquette.
  • Supported A. I. Whoo on its University of Delaware–hosted Newark Outdoor Recreation information project, which involved creation of a website and installation of associated outdoor signage with QR codes. The website utilizes the BikeNewark-created City of Newark Area Recreation Amenities map, which coordinates with the Newark Bikeways low-stress network. 
  • Assisted in the efforts of WILMAPCO and City staff to update the 2014 Newark Bicycle Plan, and a member made presentations to The Newark Partnership and Rotary Club about the update project.
  • Supported the Newark Arts Alliance’s inaugural “Garden Tour by Bike” event with bike-route map.
  • Distributed information and talked with attendees at the annual Newark Community Day in September.
  • Supported John R. Downes Elementary School for its annual Bike to School Day celebration in May.
  • Supported John R. Downes Elementary School during its DelDOT-led day of bike rodeos—practical bicycle-safety sessions for children.
  • Supported the Newark Center for Creative Learning’s Greenfest event.
  • Supported the Delaware State Parks’ trail-information days for White Clay Creek State Park.
  • Members participated in planning committees/discussions for the following projects/topics:
    • South College Avenue gateway
    • Newport-to-Newark off-road trail
    • Newark to Lums Pond bike access
  • Members participated in (and continue on) The Newark Partnership.
  • A member participated (and continues) on the City of Newark’s Transportation Improvement District (TID) Committee.
  • A member participated (and continues) on the City of Newark’s Conservation Advisory Committee.
communication, evaluation, news, projects, safety

Accomplishments in 2023

BikeNewark was busy again in 2023 in a number of areas. Below is a list of our accomplishments during 2023, categorized by type.

Bicycle-friendly status

graphic of silver Bicycle Friendly Community seal for 2023-2027

Helped the City of Newark complete its renewal application to the League of American Bicyclists for “Bicycle Friendly Community” (BFC) status. As a result, Newark became the first city in Delaware to achieve “Silver” status as a BFC. There are only 41 communities nationwide that boast a higher BFC status than Newark.

Projects

Newark Bikeways sign graphic

Completed signage production and installation for the South Bikeway and the Delaware Avenue portion of the Central Loop Bikeway as part of the Newark Bikeways low-stress bicycle network wayfinding project.

Purchased and ordered four information/wayfinding kiosks for the City of Newark staff to install on segments of the Newark Bikeways.

Safety

No Distracted Biking card

Produced a new safety handout—“No Distracted Biking”—to address the problem of local cyclists wearing earphones, earbuds, and texting while biking, adding to our growing cadre of bike-safety materials. It also mentions no biking under the influence of alcohol or other mind-altering substances (i.e., no “BUI”).

Partnered with University of Delaware Police, DelDOT, and Newark Bike Project to hold four successful bike-safety checkpoint events on campus, during which about 75 sets of bike lights were installed, about 25 bike helmets were fitted and given out, and bicycle-safety information was distributed.

Events

2023 Family Bike Fest logo

Organized the inaugural Newark Family Bike Fest, a family-oriented event in June on the University of Delaware campus that included bicycle and civic-organization vendors, games for the kids, a bike rodeo administered by DelDOT, and distribution of local route and bike-safety information.

Highlighted National Bike Month in May with our annual Bike to Work Day event on the campus of the University of Delaware, in coordination with the City of Newark, UD, DelDOT, Newark Bike Project, and Delaware Commute Solutions.

Organized and held five First Friday Rides community events—slow group rides that are meant to encourage those of all ages to enjoy bicycling and practice good group-riding etiquette—involving more than 50 bicyclists.

Participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the completion of DelDOT’s Elkton Road improvements project, which included the off-road paved bike/ped path from the Maryland state line to Gravenor Lane, which is part of the city’s Southwest Bikeway.

Distributed information and talked with attendees at the annual Newark Community Day in September.

Distributed information and talked with attendees at a Newark evening Beer Garden event in October and raffled off a new bike helmet among the registered donees.

Funding and membership

Received grant funding of $6,000 from The Newark Partnership and an additional $5,000 from state Rep. Cyndie Romer to be used for the purchase of information kiosks to be placed along segments of the Newark Bikeways.

Received $2,000 in generous funding from the White Clay Bicycle Club, much of which was applied to the Newark Bikeways wayfinding project.

A few members contributed other amounts in addition to their membership fee.

Increased membership by ten during the calendar year, bringing total membership for 2023 to 42.

Support of other efforts

Supported and co-sponsored our partner Bike Delaware’s “Everyone Gets Home” Summit in Dover in May.

Supported John R. Downes Elementary School for its annual Bike to School Day celebration in May.

Supported the Newark Center for Creative Learning’s Greenfest event.

Supported and participated with Delaware State Parks in five trail-etiquette events.

Members participated in (and continue on) The Newark Partnership.

A member participated (and continues) on the City of Newark’s Transportation Improvement District (TID) Committee.

education, encouragement, engineering, environment, events, infrastructure, projects, safety, transportation

Accomplishments in 2022

One could argue that 2022 was a “slower” year for BikeNewark in terms of progress, but there were a lot of positive happenings with which we’ve either advocated for or been directly involved in that have recently come to fruition. Below is a list of our activity during 2022.

Received $625 in funding from the White Clay Bicycle Club to be applied to the Newark Bikeways project.

Witnessed and helped publicize the completion of the Delaware Avenue two-way protected bikeway, the result of a project BikeNewark (in its prior manifestation as the Newark Bicycle Committee) had advocated for in 2014 with partner organizations Bike Delaware, the City of Newark, DelDOT, and the Wilmington Area Planning Council.

> See excerpt from June 2014 partnership meeting minutes (PDF)

NBC10 News video – November 2022

Helped install new bike racks at John R. Downes Elementary School.

Completed wayfinding-signage production and installation for the Southwest Bikeway as part of the Newark Bikeways low-stress bicycle network project.

Created a new two-page bicycle-safety document, which is both downloadable and available as a handout; it includes a Delaware Avenue bicycle-infrastructure graphic produced by DelDOT, “4 Safety Tips for Bicyclists,” along with ticklers (with QR codes) for a Main Street sharrows video, a Main Street contraflow-lane video, and the Bicycle Friendly Delaware Act. 

photo of County Executive Matt Meyer
County Executive Matt Meyer talks about progress made and big plans for the future.

Highlighted National Bike Month in May with our annual Bike to Work Day event on the campus of the University of Delaware, in coordination with UD, DelDOT, Newark Bike Project, and others.

Supported John R. Downes Elementary School for its annual Bike to School Day celebration in May.

Partnered with Delaware State Parks and the Wilmington Trail Club to complete the installation of wayfinding signage for the Christina Valley Stream Trail.

Reviewed project proposal options for bicycle improvements along the Wyoming Road corridor as part of the City of Newark’s bicycling Innovative Infrastructure Grant it received from the Delaware Bicycle Council.

Began work with the City of Newark on its renewal application for “Bicycle Friendly Community” status.

Executed an order and paid for wayfinding signage for the South Bikeway and for signage that will complete the Central Loop Bikeway. 

Partnered with University of Delaware Police and DelDOT to hold two successful bike-safety events on campus, during which about 40 sets of bike lights were installed, about 15 bike helmets were given and fitted, and bicycle-safety information was distributed.

Partnered with University of Delaware Police and Newark Bike Project in a UD-sponsored event where bicycle-safety information was distributed.

Participated with Newark Bike Project at a Newark Center for Creative Learning fair, where safe-cycling materials were distributed to students and parents.

photo of First Friday riders on Pomeroy Trail

Organized and held three First Friday Rides community events—slow group rides that are meant to encourage those of all ages to enjoy bicycling and practice good group-riding etiquette. 

Supported and participated with Delaware State Parks in trail-etiquette events at White Clay Creek State Park.

Attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony (during which BikeNewark support was cited) for the Charles R. Emerson Pedestrian & Bicycle Bridge over the White Clay Creek, for which we had advocated.

Participated in and hosted a booth at the annual Newark Community Day event.

Increased membership by 52% (added a net of 14 new members) during the calendar year.

Additionally,

  • Members participated in (and continue on) The Newark Partnership.
  • A member participated (and continues) on the City of Newark’s Transportation Improvement District Committee.
  • A member participated (and continues) on the City of Newark’s Conservation Advisory Committee.

commuting, encouragement, enforcement, engineering, infrastructure, news, projects, safety, transportation

Delaware Ave. cycletrack completed

On Thursday, November 10, 2022, DelDOT officially opened to bicycle traffic the completed two-way protected bikeway (a.k.a. cycletrack) on Delaware Avenue. Eight days later on November 18, dignitaries came together for an official ribbon-cutting ceremony.

> See ribbon-cutting article in the Newark Post

diagram of DelDOT-sourced illustration
DelDOT diagram of the two-way protected bikeway infrastructure on Delaware Avenue
photo of paint treatment in conflict zone
Solid green surface treatment in conflict zones

This brought to a close a nearly $8 million project that was first thought about in the 1990s, included as a recommendation in the 2014 Newark Bicycle Plan, and advocated for by BikeNewark’s predecessor entity in 2014.

> See excerpt from June 2014 partnership meeting minutes (PDF)

Protective beveled concrete curbing separating bikeway from vehicle travel lane

The primary motivation for such a project was to provide a safe, legal way for bicyclists to move westbound through Newark’s downtown area. Previously, the only legal way for bicyclists to get from Library Avenue or Kirkwood Highway to South Main Street, West Main Street, or New London Road was to use Cleveland Avenue or East Main Street—both higher-stress options for cyclists, even with the recent improvements to those two major streets.

Bicycle-specific traffic signals in both directions along bikeway

Amenities for bicyclists along Delaware Avenue that were included in this project:

photo of bike signal meaning sign
Bike-signal sign explaining red, yellow, flashing yellow, and green signals
  • a two-way protected bikeway from Orchard Road to the Pomeroy Trail, separated from the traffic lane by a 3-inch-high beveled concrete barrier
  • one-way elevated bike paths on either side of the road from the Pomeroy Trail to Library Avenue
  • separate bicycle-specific traffic signals in both directions
  • green surface paint through intersections and at conflict points (e.g., driveways)
  • bike boxes at the eastern and western ends of the project (Delaware Avenue / Library Avenue intersection and the Amstel Avenue / South Main Street intersection)
photo of bike box on Del. Ave. at Library Ave.
Bike box at Library Avenue intersection

This completion of this project finishes the final segment of the Central Loop Bikeway, the hub of the Newark Bikeways low-stress bicycle network. Wayfinding signage for the Delaware Avenue portion of the Central Loop will be added in 2023.

> See related Newark Post article
> See project history article
> See DelDOT project safety flyer (PDF)

Thanks to these partner organizations—Bike Delaware, DelDOT, the City of Newark, and the Wilmington Area Planning Council—for their support and involvement in the conception and construction of this infrastructure, pretty much a unique feature in Delaware.