Here is a report from CAT
Director, Steve Schmitt, on 1 weeks activities at CAT:
Thursday March 22
We had 11 Genesis Bicycles
ride leaders and ride leaders-to-be join CAT, $25 membership paid by Genesis Bicycles
($275). 7 are returning LCIs and 4 will be receiving their LCI certification
April 5-7 here in
Spence Szczesny joined CAT
and started a Road One class, also working on a recycled bike. LCI Scott Slingerland teaching.
Doug Rocklyn, a Senior at
Peter McElroy donated two
bikes, started work on another bike he owns that he wants to commute on, and
upgraded his mom's membership to family.
George Maguire and wife Diane
Reynolds renewed their family membership in CAT. (Mechanic class graduates.)
they are attending Road One testing Saturday and LCI Seminar in April.
Joe Blanco renewed (Road one
and basic mechanic class grad). going on to LCI seminar in April.
The Valley Mountain Bikers
joined CAT as a non-profit organization for $50.
Long term CAT member Eugene
Gallagher of Walnutport renewed.
John Tocada made his monthly
$50 payment for his bicycle commuter facility membership.
Schweizer family paid
membership for son Frankie and $15 for basic bike ed class.
CAT deposited $565.
Glenn Toth, CAT member and
owner of Cogan Blueprint
pledged $200 to sponsor
Celebrate the Bicycle Day in Charlie Brown's Clearing (was set for Sunday May
20, but now the date is up in the air again).
Jeff Riedy, husband of CAT Board member Wendy Riedy, made 6 new large CAT logo with arrow signs for the meetings on March 23 for LANTA riders. The Riedys donated all materials and time and the signs are already in use on Thursday evenings and Saturdays at the CAT Office/BBC.
Friday, March 23
Approximately 100 people
attended the two meetings for LANTA riders to discuss the importance of public
transportation with our regional leadership.
Including LANTA Director Armand Greco, State Reps. Steve Samuelson &
Doug Reichley, Bethlehem City Council Member, Magdalena Szabo, Easton City
Planner Carl Manges, CareerLink Mobility Manager Dan Yelito; Dan Hunter
and Pratima Agrawal from Lehigh Valley
Beyond Oil; Dan Laxar & Al Wurth from the Sierra Club; Carrie Kauffman of
Gifted Cleaning; Angel Ackerman from the Bethlehem News; Peter Christine from
LEPOCO and The Lehigh Valley Monthly Meeting (Quakers); Judy Pabuda from the
Regional Association for the Blind & Visually Impaired; Robbie Graves from
the Center for Independent Living; Kurt Derr representing State Senator Lisa
Boscola; Gary Birks from State Rep. Julie Harhar's office; Virginia Savage,
Regina Beck and Rusty Hadesty from Lehigh County; Northampton County Executive
John Stoffa; Gayle Howland from the Monacacy Houses and the Monacacy Towers,
Arlene Martinez from the Morning Call; and Ismael Arcelay, Special Assistant to
Ed Pawloski, the mayor of Allentown.
An open discussion between
the LANTA riders and the regional leadership explained the current situation at
the State level, the counties and the cities regarding public
transportation. More than 40 people
joined CAT with a provisional membership requesting more information about the
Save Our Service campaign, annual membership fees at CAT and opportunities to
volunteer. One LANTA rider, Amy Frey,
paid her $25 annual membership fee.
Already one volunteer from the meeting has come into the office and
started blockwatch cleaning activities and wants to work for better busing and
to earn a bike.
Saturday, March 24
PENNDOT public relations
representative Ron Young renews CAT membership by paypal.
Frank Pavlick spent 4 hours
sorting bikes and triaging what needs to be done in the area of recycling.
Long time volunteer John
Hoffer stripped bikes and took 10 frames away to recycling.
Spence Szczesny continued his
Road One class, working on his new used bike.
Frank & Steve assisted.
LCI candidates George
McGuire, Diane Reynolds, Betty Kelly and Yves Eynard took the Road One
Testing. Betty and Yves are to be
Genesis Ride leaders so Genesis will be billed the $70 for their testing. George and Diane are also LCI candidates but
will be paying their Road One testing fees themselves $35 apiece. Donalee Frary, Wheelmen ride leader, paid
her CAT membership (Road One Testing fees waived as is done for any Wheelmen
ride leader). Northampton County
Community College Fitness Director Sherri Bollinger (also Phys. Ed. teacher and
bike club leader for the college) passed her Road One testing, too. LCIs Scott Slingerland and Anne Felker
assisted Steve Schmitt in the testing process.
The new LAB video "Enjoy the Ride" featuring CAT Board Member
and LCI Selene Yeager was used as the training video for the first time in Road
One Testing in the
Kate, a friend of CAT member
Dan Hunter, came in to start her Road One class.
Very long term member Ed
Krick renewed his membership and donated a bike.
Neighborhood teens Paul and
Heather worked picking up the bus stop to earn heather a new used bike.
Monday, March 26
The Lehigh Valley
Transportation Study technical committee adopted the new Bike/Ped Safety Plan
as rewritten by CAT Director Steve Schmitt and the leaders at CAT. The new plan recommends the shared-use
marking agreed to by consensus of the region's bicycle leadership in place of
the door zone bike lanes previously recommended in the report. The new plan also states biking and walking
are desirable and efforts to stop the decrease in both activities are important
and why. The new plan also emphasizes
education as the way to increase biking and walking and specifically mentions
CAT programs and activities.
An expert on safety from
PENNDOT in
CAT deposits $265.
Tuesday, March 27
Express-Times runs story
about LVTS meeting quoting exchange between Steve Schmitt and Gary Modi of
PENNDOT.
Bethlehem City Council Parks
subcommittee passes new ordinance written by Steve Schmitt to prevent cars,
motorcycles and all terrain motorized vehicles from driving on the Lehigh Canal
Towpath and the
Hannae Pavlick volunteers to
work as secretary in the CAT office starting tomorrow.
John Bestel volunteers to
work in office. He will coordinate the
Ride the Right Way Day.