Bikes Belong is pleased to announce grant awards to eight great projects in our Spring 2012 Community Grant cycle as well as two recipients through the Bikes Belong Foundation Research Grant Program. These awards support innovative bicycle projects and studies with the common goal of putting more people on bicycles more often.

The Bikes Belong Grants Program is funded by our Employee Pro Purchase Program. Many thanks to the following participating members and their employees for making these awards possible: 

• Cannondale
• Fuji
• Giant
• Shimano
• Specialized
• Trek

Indianapolis Bicycle Planning Summits (Indianapolis, IN)

INDYCOG, the bicycle advocacy group serving Indianapolis, is partnering with the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) to help five underserved urban neighborhoods develop bicycle infrastructure plans that improve current bike routes and add more to serve key destinations. This $10,000 Bikes Belong grant will fund planning summits in all five neighborhoods. The City of Indianapolis has committed to incorporating the results of these community-led events into their master bicycle planning document.

Open Streets: Jackson (Jackson, MS)

Bike Walk Mississippi will host the state’s first open streets event – in which city streets are close to motor vehicles so people can walk, bike, rollerblade, and enjoy - this autumn in an effort to boost walking and bicycling in the capital city. Bikes Belong’s $4,000 grant will provide seed funding for an initiative that is expected to engage partners from the business, government, and non-profit communities and make Jackson a healthier and more bike-friendly city.

Pilot Bike Corrals (Hoboken, NJ)

Complementing its ongoing investments in bike lanes, bike parking and a bicycle repair station, the City of Hoboken will use a $5,000 grant from Bikes Belong to install three pilot bike corrals holding 12 to 24 bicycles each. The corrals will be located in high traffic areas and will build on city plans to put bike lanes on 80% of its streets by the end of 2012.  

Three Sisters (Grand Junction, CO)

When the value of land slated for development plummeted in the last recession, the Colorado Plateau Mountain Bike Trail Association (COPMOBA) partnered with Mesa Land Trust to make the most of the situation. Bikes Belong’s grant of $5,000 will help the organizations finalize the land purchase and develop trails on the Three Sisters property. This new network, adjacent to Grand Junction’s Lunch Loop trail system, will provide much-needed beginner-level trails and advance the bike path development that will link these trails with downtown.

ZAP Twin Cities Bicycle Commuter Program (Minneapolis, MN)

Commuter Connection, St. Paul Smart Trips, and the University of Minnesota will use this $10,000 grant from Bikes Belong for an innovative project to track and reward bicycle commuter trips in the Twin Cities downtown areas and the university district. Using RFID technology and ZAP readers, the project will enlist 625 initial riders, record their commuter travel, and provide incentives for choosing to bike. The University of Minnesota plans to conduct an assessment of the program’s impact on the health and well-being of the participants.

BMX Track Grants

Bikes Belong is awarding $2,000 to each of the following BMX projects:

• Aztec BMX Track Relocation and Rehabilitation (Aztec, NM): The City of Aztec will relocate their track to a safer, more accessible location that connects to an existing trail system.
• Farmer City BMX Track Revitalization (Farmer City, IL): Farmer City BMX will use grant funding to convert the starting hill from dirt to asphalt and improve erosion control.
• Tri City BMX (Kearney, NE): Tri City BMX will hard-surface the three corners of their track, drastically reducing maintenance time and improving safety.