Winter is descending upon Montana and so are our legislators for their week-long “mini-session” the week of January 13. Along with other interim committees, special budget meetings and other activities, the interim transportation committee will be meeting on Monday, January 13 from 9 am till 3 pm in room 152 of the capital. The agenda is quite extensive and subject to change. The major issues and scheduled times will be Traffic Safety Systems and Policy (10:00 am), Bicycle and Pedestrian Pathways (1:00 pm), and Electric Bikes in Montana (1:30 pm). There is short time on the agenda for these important topics and we will mainly be looking for committee direction on continuing the workgroup. (See the notes form the first workgroup meeting here ). Chairman Sen. Vance has asked that any public comment be quite short and include any ideas directly related to ideas to generate revenue, especially from the bike community. We will also be asking for an action plan on the shared use path revenue being generated by the check off on vehicle licensing which has almost reached its $50,000 startup goal. This voluntary program could be better publicized and promoted – there actually has been little or none done and Montanans have shown great support!
The meeting is scheduled to be streamed and you can listen to it here. Again, remember that times are approximate. Be assured that BWMT and others will be there to present and react and you will find us outside the room prior to the meeting. You can communicate both to returning legislators as well as any candidates about the importance of active transportation infrastructure and safety for bicyclists and walkers. Bringing it up as a question about their understanding and position on these issues does make a difference!