Editors: This was originally published in Issue 154 of our quarterly Tube Times magazine.
Heading into the New Year we caught up with a few colleagues and member-volunteers to see what’s revving them up about biking in SF and the work of your SF Bicycle Coalition in 2016…
Melyssa Mendoza, Member-Volunteer
There are a lot of great bike-y things to look forward to in 2016, including more Women Bike SF gatherings and the bike share expansion. I’d also like to see bike lanes, such as Valencia, safer and free from ride-share services. Greater membership diversity is also important to me – the more the merrier!
Margaret McCarthy, Interim Executive Director
Getting even more members involved in our on-street outreach. Our Bicycle Ambassadors donated 1,000 hours of time helping out other people who ride and spreading the word about our work at Service Stations and special events all over SF in 2015, and we’d love to do even more in 2016. Join us!
Ramon Solis, Member-Volunteer
I am so pumped for more bike lanes, especially the one on Page Street. Really, I’m down for anything that makes my neighborhood on the west side of town more bike-friendly and accessible. (Sunset District, represent!)
Brian Wiedenmeier, Development Director
Total street transformations beginning on Polk Street, Masonic Avenue and Second Street when construction finally starts on these projects.
Bonnie Walton, Event Planner
We had great wins for Market Street in 2015, and I’m excited for continued improvements and smarter enforcement by the SFPD on this vital route for people who bike.
Jean Kao, Member-Volunteer
I’m psyched for more bike lanes next year. The extended lanes on Folsom Street and Division have made my commute so much more relaxing. Bring it on! I’m also excited about increasing the number of families and (oh-so-stylish) women commuting. I’m proud to live in a town where anyone can ride.
Francisco Grajales, Program Coordinator
I am most excited about expanding our Bike It Forward program and getting bicycles into the hands of more San Franciscans in 2016.
Paul Valdez, Member-Volunteer
I am excited about the continued enhancements being made to our streets, such as the demonstration project of the first raised bike lanes on Market Street. I look forward to many more bike lanes connecting our precious neighborhoods, so that more people of all ages can safely and comfortably bike our streets.
Meghan Arnold, Member-Volunteer
Having experienced effective bike share in my travels, I can’t wait to see how the expansion to a real system here gets both residents and tourists wheeling around San Francisco. Safety in numbers rings true when cycling is normalized as part of the public transportation ecosystem.
Janice Li, Advocacy Director
Flexing our members’ political muscle in the very exciting November 2016 elections. Who will be our new Supervisors in Districts 1, 9 and 11? Who will be the most bike-friendly candidates when incumbents stand for reelection in Districts 3, 5 and 7?
Erin Durkee, Technology Coordinator
I’m really excited for our second year of Women Bike SF. We engaged almost 700 people last year and we’re only getting better at connecting women, trans* and femme-identified individuals in our community to the joys and freedom of biking.
Christopher “X” Budz, Events Intern
I’m pretty thrilled about the Bay Area Bike Share expansion. I teach international students, many of whom are in the city for several months to a year — not long enough to invest in buying a bike. A lot of them are looking forward to better, more affordable access to bicycles.
Tracy Chinn, Development Manager
I ride through the Wiggle every day on my commute from the Inner Sunset, and I am so excited for the recently approved redesign. I’m looking forward to a safer left turn from Scott onto Fell and slower car traffic, as well as green landscaping, sidewalk extensions and safer pedestrian crossings.
Maggie Robbins, Member-Volunteer
The coming of separated bike lanes (elevated and/or parking-protected) is really exciting. From leading rides with newbie cyclists, I know that this kind of infrastructure is necessary to make people feel more at ease taking to the streets of SF on two wheels.