WASHINGTON (BRAIN) — While it remains to be seen what impact the presidential election will have on the industry long term, many local counties and states were given the green light to move ahead with funding for new bike facilities. Twenty measures addressing bike funding were on the ballot and in total, Americans approved $4.7 billion of local funding on Nov. 8.
"I think the outcomes were outstanding overall, especially in communities in California where two-thirds of votes are required," said Alex Logemann, state and local policy analyst for PeopleForBikes, who compiled a full list of measures with full details at the PeopleForBikes website.
In California, Los Angeles County passed Measure M, which will raise the sales tax rate by half a cent to fund a massive investment in the county's transportation infrastructure over the next 40 years. The plan includes $3.9 billion in investments for bike infrastructure. Santa Clara Valley also passed Measure B, which will generate $250 million for bike infrastructure. And Stanislau County passed Measure L, which will dedicate $50 million from $480 million in new funding to bike projects.
Other measures, in Monterey County ($40 million) and Santa Cruz County ($100 million) were leading towards passage with most of the votes counted.
Other success stories were in Atlanta, Georgia, which approved a sales tax increase of .4 cents for five years to raise $260 million for infrastructure; $213 million would be spent on bike and pedestrian projects, including work on the Atlanta Beltine trail.
In Grand Haven, Michigan, a proposition to provide dedicated funding for bike paths around town, passed. Funding will be generated by property tax of 45 cents per $1,000 valuation for 20 years; generating about $300,000 annually.
Austin, Texas passed Prop. 1, which will generate $720 million for transportation, of which $120 million would go to bike and pedestrian projects.
Still, other measures didn't make it. A measure in Broward County, Florida, to raise the sales tax rate to fund transportation improvements including bike lanes, complete streets and traffic calming, was defeated. The tax was expected to generate $100 million over 30 years.
Bike-eligible funding in propositions in Washington County, Utah; Sacramento County, California; and Teton County, Wyoming, all were defeated.
For a full list of measures and outcomes, go to peopleforbikes.org/pages/vote-for-bikes.
