South Coast Bikeway Alliance

The South Coast Bikeway Alliance was started informally in the summer of 2011 and was formally incorporated in 2014. The committee has representatives from each South Coast Bikeway community plus representatives from UMass Dartmouth, the YMCA South Coast/Voices for a Healthy South Coast, and Mass in Motion Fall River and New Bedford. The committee is supported by SRPEDD's Bicycle and Pedestrian Planning Program and typically meets on the second Tuesday of each month at the James Arnold Mansion. The alliance serves as a way to coordinate bicycling efforts between communities and to coordinate changes in South Coast Bikeway routing that may arise over time.

The goals of the South Coast Bikeway Alliance include: -Develop an off-road bikeway connecting the South Coast communities. -Investigate on-road connections between communities -Develop a wide support network for bikeway initiatives in the South Coast region -Find innovative funding and labor sources for bikeway development -Share information about procedures and issues that arise in each town during the bikeway development process. -Lessons learned regarding rails with trails, bike path-water crossings, etc. -Advocate for bicycle and pedestrian facilities and accommodations at all levels of government. -Lobby our state elected officials (Representatives, Senators and the Governor) by attending office hours, writing letters and visiting the state house. -Write letters in support or disapproval of national legislation -Support local bike committees in each community -Organize semi-annual regional bike events that promote awareness of bicycling and walking and physical fitness.