Do you have a moment to contact your Federal Rep? Here’s a good reason to do it:
“This is not a time to build [bike paths]. If we are going to invest in infrastructure, invest in infrastructure that actually makes the economy more efficient, such as roads that are needed.”
-Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.), Saturday, Feb. 7, 2009
Dear Friend,
Comments like those above are misguided. Please act now for active transportation funding.
Along with others, like Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), who offered an amendment to prohibit funding for walking and bicycling, Sen. Ensign does not realize that more trails means people walk and bike more and drive less. This translates into less congestion, healthier people, a healthier planet, more money available to our communities, and much, much more.
Moments ago, the U.S. Senate passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan. Unlike the House of Representatives’ version of the bill, the Senate did not explicitly fund Transportation Enhancements (TE), the nation’s primary funding source for active transportation.
However, the Senate and House will work to reconcile their differences “in conference” over the next few days.
We must convince the Senate to protect TE in conference.
Please go here to get started.
This is exciting, because we know we can make an impact: After more than 15,000 of us signed Rails-to-Trails Conservancy’s (RTC) petition to Congress and the president to explicitly fund active transportation in the recovery package, the House allocated $1.35 billion for TE.
Please give a few minutes of your time—I promise, together we can make a difference.
Thank you so much.
Kevin Mills,
Vice-President of Policy,
Rails-to-Trails Conservancy
