We heard great news from an audience member who attended today's State of the City speech by Mayor Sam Adams. In this important address, the Mayor announced that he is committed to finding the money for Safer Routes to Schools (SRTS) and other bike projects.

When asked by this audience member if the Mayor intended to fund the bike projects called out in his 100 day list, the Mayor replied that he has received the PBOT budget and intends to craft his own budget to include funding for bicycle boulevards and a cycle track, and that he was going to find the money to make sure that SRTS does not see a reduction to its budget of the past two years.

This is great news for school children throughout the city, and for all cyclists. First, it means that the highly effective SRTS program will remain intact and well-positioned to improve our students' health, safety and well-being. Second, committing to this program and these projects acts as a reminder that bicycle and pedestrian education programs should be considered core services for a healthy, thriving community, even during tough economic conditions. Finally, by reinstating funds to programs and projects that focus on bicycle and pedestrian issues, the Mayor shows he is still willing to consider these issues a priority.

We would like to thank the Mayor for making this promise today - it's a positive step forward. We would also like to thank the folks at PBOT for also recently making clarifications that have identified sources of funds for the bike projects. But, because it's our job to see a process through from start to finish, we'll continue to watch the budget discussions closely to make sure that this promise is kept.

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