We are thrilled to announce that LACBC and our local chapter Santa Monica Spoke have been awarded multiple Advocacy Awards by the Alliance for Biking & Walking at this year’s National Bike Summit in Washington DC!
After five nominations, last night we took home:
Susie Stephens Joyful Enthusiasm Award – Cynthia Rose, Santa Monica Spoke
Winning Campaign of the Year – Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, Mobility Plan 2035
Cynthia Rose (right) accepts the Susie Stephens Joyful Enthusiasm Award.
LACBC staffers Eric Bruins, Ishraq Ali, Hyeran Lee, and Tamika Butler accept the award for Winning Campaign of the Year for Mobility Plan 2035.
Susie Stephens Joyful Enthusiasm Award This award commemorates Susie Stephens, one of the Alliance’s founders and an enduring inspiration for many members of the bicycle and pedestrian movement. The honor goes to an individual who carries on Susie’s passion for advocating for bicycling as a fun and economical means of transportation, as well as creating a safe biking and walking environment for all.
Cynthia Rose, Santa Monica Spoke
Cynthia Rose rides a Breeze Bike Share bike with Countri Bike’s Jeffrey Tannenhaus around Santa Monica. Photo: Santa Monica Spoke.
From the Alliance for Biking & Walking: “Cynthia Rose, the founder of Santa Monica Spoke, is also known to many in the Los Angeles area as ‘Purple’ (her favorite color) — but her vibrance spans the spectrum of bicycle advocacy. She played a key role in helping launch the first public bike share program in Los Angeles County: Breeze Bike Share, and pioneered the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition Local Chapter program. She is an educator, an advocate and a rider leader, but even her actions are outdone by her joyful enthusiasm. Her bright smile and infectious attitude have invited countless new riders into the movement by making bicycling welcoming and fun. As her nominator summed up: ‘Cynthia truly is an inspiration.'”
Winning Campaign of the Year
This award goes to an organization for a winning campaign, in the last year, which has had the biggest impact on walking and biking. Their victory will dramatically increase active transportation in their state/ community or will dramatically shift the way that walking and biking are considered.
Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, Mobility Plan 2035
From the Alliance for Biking & Walking: “With 300 miles of protected bike lanes, the adoption of Vision Zero and a central commitment to safety, the Mobility Plan 2035 passed by the Los Angeles City Council in 2015 marked a major transformation for big city transportation. Behind the scenes, the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition helped to lead that charge with a thoughtful, strategic and multi-year campaign to increase access and safety for all. Their inside-outside game, rallied the public and LACBC members to engage with their policymakers, brought new partners to table and authentically considered the need of all road users, from bicyclists to bus riders. Read much more about their effort here.”
We would like to thank all of our members, partners, and supporters for making these wins possible! These wins (plus our additional nominations) are recognition of every call to action you’ve responded to, every meeting you’ve attended, every letter or email you’ve written, every public comment you’ve made, every hour of time you’ve volunteered in the office or on the streets, every hashmark recorded for our bike and ped counts, and every bike light installed as a member of Team Firefly, not to mention every mile you’ve pedaled either with us or on our behalf. We hope you’ll to help LACBC and our local chapters continue this work to make Los Angeles County a great place for all people from all communities to ride their bikes everywhere, safely and conveniently, by becoming a member of LACBC and a local chapter or renewing your membership.
Congrats to Cynthia and all the other winners: Living Streets Alliance (Tucson), Fernando Martinez, and Community Cycling Center (Portland). Read more about all the winners on the Alliance for Biking & Walking blog.