Decisions are Underway, Ask Congress to Protect Funding for Sidewalks and Bikeways

An overwhelming majority of Americans—including large majorities of both Democrats and Republicans—support federal funding for bicycling and walking. It doesn’t have to be a partisan issue.

Senators and Representatives are meeting now to create a final transportation bill, and we need your help to protect the hard-fought Cardin-Cochran agreement. Without this agreement, states will be able to use bicycling and walking funds towards more highway lanes. Contact your Senators and Representatives today to ask them to preserve this bipartisan agreement so that communities can access funding for Safe Routes to School, bicycling and walking.

Just two months ago, the Senate passed a transportation bill that included the Cardin-Cochran agreement. This bipartisan compromise would ensure that local governments and school systems are able to access much-needed funds to make bicycling and walking safer and more accessible. Your local leaders—mayors, city councilors and county officials—know what your community’s transportation needs are, and the Cardin-Cochran amendment helps ensure they can compete for funding to make those improvements.

Funding for bicycling and walking has popular support—a recent Princeton survey found that 83 percent of Americans support federal funds for sidewalks and bike lanes. Local elected officials across the country want to respond to their constituents, and need federal funding to build sidewalks, bike lanes, and crosswalks.

Will you help us get the message to Congress? You can help in two ways:

Ask your Senators and Representatives to maintain the Cardin-Cochran agreement, which gives local governments a voice in transportation planning.
Ask your mayor or other local elected official to send a letter of support to your Senators and Representative for the Cardin-Cochran agreement. A sample letter with instructions is available in Word or PDF format.

Thank you for standing up to tell Congress that Americans support funding for bicycling and walking.