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In 1929 the North Carolina General Assembly approved legislation giving bicycles the legal status of vehicles on North Carolina highways, creating a positive environment for bicycling in our state. With the growth in bicycling in the 1970s came the establishment of the North Carolina Bicycle Program, now the Division of Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation. 2005 Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) placed more emphasis on creating safe transportation alternatives for bicyclists and pedestrians. This section highlights the achievements for bicycling and walking in North Carolina.
- Bicycle legally defined as a vehicle by the NC General Assembly
- Bicycling Highways system initiated with development of the 700-mile Mountains to Sea route
- Governor proclaims the first North Carolina Bicycle Week
- First bikeway demonstration project funded by the federal government in North Carolina
- North Carolina Bicycle Facility and Program Handbook receives award
- North Carolina Board of Transportation adopts nation's first comprehensive Bicycle Policy for planning, design, maintenance, and construction of bicycle facilities
- NC Department of Transportation signs first bicycle route
- First incidental bicycle facility projects included as part of Transportation Improvement Program (TIP)
- First bicycle facility planning and engineering workshop held
- First statewide poster contest and awards program implemented
- First state-funded bikeway built and dedicated
- Created and implemented bicycle law enforcement program
- Bike Along '83, a cross-state event, undertaken as first phase of Governor's Outdoor Events
- First statewide safety education campaign "Bicycles Are Vehicles" undertaken
- NC Board of Transportation adopts first Bicycle TIP schedule
- Initiated effort to require bicycle safety education in schools
- Bicycle considerations formally incorporated into departmental review process for highway and bridge construction projects
- NC Board of Transportation increases Bicycle TIP funding to $500,000
- NC Board of Transportation adopts revised and expanded bicycle policies
- NCDOT creates Office of Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation
- First year of Governor's Highway Safety Program funding to implement local bicycle safety programs
- NC Board of Transportation increases Bicycle TIP funding to $2.2 million
- NC Board of Transportation sets aside $500,000 for pedestrian projects
- NC Bicycle Facility Planning and Design Guidelines published and adopted by the Department
- NC DOT implements policy for providing incidental pedestrian facilities in highway improvement projects
- NC DOT develops greenway policy to incorporate local greenway plans into highway planning process
- NC Board of Transportation allocates $1.4 million annually for pedestrian facility construction
- Computer-assisted-design technology first utilized for in-house preparation of project construction plans
- Grant to fund Bicycle Safety Education Specialist position secured
- NCDOT raises the bicycle and pedestrian office to Division status
- First Walkable Communities Workshop sponsored
- Through continued funding from Governor's Highway Safety Program, Basics of Bicycling instruction underway in half of NC's counties
- Engineering squad created to partner with localities to design and construct bicycle facilities and to provide bicycle and pedestrian design elements of highway construction projects
- School Crossing Guard Training Program initiated
- Co-sponsored inaugural "Cycle North Carolina" cross-state ride from Murphy to Manteo
- Created database of and analyzed reported bicycle and pedestrian crashes for 1995-98
- NC Board of Transportation increases Bicycle TIP allocation to $6.0 million
11/05/07
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