BikeLA received a $17,000 grant for Community Programs from the Southern California Association of Governments. The funds will benefit bicyclists in Los Angeles and Glendale.
BikeLA aims to make LA a more liveable county through biking.
Encouraging people to switch to biking “helps not only climate change in the long run, but pollution in our city which is an immediate problem,” BikeLA’s Local Advocacy Coordinator Margaret Shuttleworth Douridas explained.
California Energy Commission reported that 50 percent of the CA’s greenhouse gas emissions come from its transportation sector.
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Bike Central LA, BikeLA’s newest local chapter, will use the grant for their Operation Elephant program which will provide 400 free digital bike horns.
As the name suggests, these horns sound like an elephant’s trumpet.
They are more similar to an air or car horn than a traditional bicycle bell, Shuttleworth Douridas said. She added that with the city’s lack of protected Bike lanes and other infrastructure, “a little ‘ding ding’ is not going to really protect you.”
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The chapter will be giving out the horns in East Hollywood, Westlake, downtown Los Angeles and Koreatown in July and August. The team will also instruct users how to use the horns for safety while not startling pedestrians.
Operation Elephant follows in the footsteps of BikeLA’s Operation Firefly program which gives out free bike lights and visibility gear.
Walk Bike Glendale, another local chapter, will use the grant for programming that informs the community about safety.
Alek Bartrosouf, a steering committee member, said that the chapter was formed 10 years ago to address safety concerns regarding walking, biking and using city transit.
The group hosts themed bike rides, pastry walks and safety classes to engage with the community in fun yet educational ways.
During guided rides, the group usually welcomes people who “don't feel safe riding on their own because the existing infrastructure is lacking, but they do come out to these bike rides that are social and people feel a lot safer,” Bartrosouf said.
On average, 2,750 bikers are injured in LA each year, and biking in a group is more visible to drivers.
Bartrosouf, who is an urban planner that focuses on transportation, said that he has a personal interest in promoting alternative options for people to get around the city.
He explained that people may prefer to bike because of the high cost of owning a car or one’s desire to be active or support the environment. Whatever the reason, he said, the city’s infrastructure should allow people to get places safely.
In a statement, SCAG wrote that safer streets and connected communities contribute to the region’s environmental, economic and equity goals.
In May, SCAG’s Community Hubs Grant Program awarded 11 community organizations “that improve street safety, with a focus on better outcomes for vulnerable road users most impacted by traffic injuries and fatalities, including low-income families and communities of color.”
