INCLUSION OF BIKE LANE IN ROAD IMPROVEMENTS
in New Mexico - 2023
House Bill 408
Sponsors:
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Rep. Dayan Hochman-Vigil
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Rep. Elizabeth "Liz" Stefanics
Introduced into 56th Legislature - State of NM - First Session, 2023
Feb 14, 2023
INCLUSION OF BIKE LANE IN ROAD IMPROVEMENTS
Legislative Summary - as of Feb 22, 2023
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Requires a protected bicycle lane be incorporated when making a roadway improvement within the limits of a municipality with a population of at least 10,000.
What is a protected bike lane?
A protected bike lane is a bike lane adjacent to a roadway but separated from motor vehicles by a physical barrier. Nearly all bike lanes currently implemented in New Mexico lack these barriers. Most rely on paint to delineate the bike lane. PAINT IS NOT PROTECTION. Only physical barriers can prevent motor vehicles from intruding into a lane and colliding with cyclists.
Why do we need protected bike lanes?
Safety: Albuquerque is in the top two dangerous cities for pedestrian and cyclists in the nation. Protected bicycling infrastructure significantly reduces the risk of injury and death of cyclists by preventing motor vehicle drivers from colliding with them and increases the comfort level of cyclists and makes bicycling more attractive to a wider fraction of the population. They encourage new riders.
Environment: The transportation sector is the largest contributor to climate change. Every bike we get on the road, is one less automobile contributing to this crisis.
Congestion: Every bike removes one car from the road, thereby decreasing congestion.
Business: Adding or improving bicycling infrastructure has been proven to have a positive
economic impact on nearby retail and food service businesses.
Health: Bicycling offers well-documented health benefits including reduced risk of cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and improved mental health.
Social Justice: Bicycling is a low-cost, accessible means of transportation that many low- income communities use out of necessity, yet these communities are frequently underserved by the inequitable allocation of bike infrastructure resources.
Please contact the following Representatives and let them know that you support the bill:
Chair, Representative Dayan Hochman-Vigil - (D) 505-986-4327 dayan.hochman-vigil@nmlegis.gov
(Rep Hochman-Vigil sponsored this bill. Call and email letting her know you appreciate her efforts).
Vice-Chair, Representative Harry Garcia - (D) 505-986-4233 hgarciad69@gmail.com
Ranking Member, Representative Cathrynn N. Brown - (R) 505-986-4227 c.brown.nm55@gmail.com
Representative Micaela Lara Cadena - (D) 505-986-4210 micaela.cadena@nmlegis.gov
Representative Art De La Cruz - (D) 505-986-4236 art.delacruz@nmlegis.gov
Representative Jason C. Harper - (R) 505-986-4709 JasonHarperNM@gmail.com
Representative Jenifer Jones - (R) 505-986-4227 Jenifer.Jones@nmlegis.gov
Representative Patricia A. Lundstrom - (D) 505-986-4249 patricia.lundstrom@nmlegis.gov
Representative Willie D. Madrid - (D) 505-986-4436 willie.madrid@nmlegis.gov
Representative Randall T. Pettigrew - (R) 505-986-4220 randall.pettigrew@nmlegis.gov
Representative G. Andrés Romero - (D) 505-986-4842 andres.romero@nmlegis.gov
Bulk Email: If you don’t have the time to email individual members of the committee, you can send a bulk email.
However, note that many in the legislature filter out bulk emails and the bulk email will not have the same impact of one sent to each individual member. Here is the bulk email list:
dayan.hochman-vigil@nmlegis.gov, hgarciad69@gmail.com, c.brown.nm55@gmail.com, micaela.cadena@nmlegis.gov, art.delacruz@nmlegis.gov, JasonHarperNM@gmail.com, Jenifer.Jones@nmlegis.gov, patricia.lundstrom@nmlegis.gov, willie.madrid@nmlegis.gov, randall.pettigrew@nmlegis.gov, andres.romero@nmlegis.gov