This petition is to advocate for the installation and permittance of protected bike lanes and additional signage on Route 1 in Stonington, CT. from Pawcatuck/Westerly border to the Train Station in Mystic, CT. While we see to state and town funding many sidewalk projects, these do nothing for our biking community. Contrary to what is believed, cyclists are prohibited from using the sidewalks and can be ticketed by law enforcement for doing so. This is why bicycle safety on our streets is so important; both state maintained and local roads. This petition supports & promotes the safe traveling of both pedestrians and cyclists who commute via the Route 1 corridor. Pedestrian and bicycle safety infrastructure has been a missing component of our streets and is necessary to decrease car traffic, raise awareness of alternate modes of transportation, and ensure the safety of multi-modal access. 

As many who know the area realize, this stretch of Route 1, specifically, has a socioeconomic need for bike and pedestrian framework. This part of the corridor passes not only by the high school, Stonington Human Services, the police station, and many businesses, it is also situated in an area where several low income housing developments exist. Many of the people who reside here not only want these safety enhancements and protections, they actually need it. Their sole way to transport themselves is either by bike or by foot. 

This is not solely an issue of pedestrian and cycling safety. This is a matter of equality for all members of our local community. Walking and cycling are not exclusively recreational. For some, this is their only mode of transportation, and they deserve to travel unscathed. No person should have this right stripped or should be required to travel out and around their destinations; a direct route should be available for all regardless of chosen transportation method. 

Hand in hand with equality, this is also an issue of sustainability. Without providing safe platforms for walkers, runners, and cyclists, our community is limiting alternate modes of transportation; modes that decrease car traffic and have positive impact on our environment.

Furthermore, pedestrian and bicycle access has been proven to economically impact businesses in a positive way. Businesses in bicycle and pedestrian friendly communities have experienced increased foot traffic with direct correlation to safety infrastructure put in place (i.e. more customers traveling by foot or by bicycle to their business). As a result, businesses in bicycle and pedestrian friendly communities have shifted their focus to ensure that their business is directly located within their community's dedicated cycling or walking paths & identified friendly corridors. 

There are many coastal communities that have multi-modal safety infrastructure already in place. Stonington is behind the ball and playing catch up, which is why these "Share the Road" signs on Route 1 are so critical. They are the first piece of our community's pedestrian and cycling friendly initiatives; a small step, but a big milestone to achieve. If you look to Newport, RI, Provincetown, MA, and Nantucket, MA - all coastal communities with a large draw for tourism - they are incredibly similar to our community, yet they have accomplished much more to support and endorse safe multi-modal transportation access. Within our own community, there has been no shortage of accidents. There is a glaring lack of safety infrastructure, which is partially to blame. An awareness of multimodal transportation alternatives draws attention to the fact that pedestrians, bicycles, and cars use our roads equally to commute. Share the Road signs have been incorporated in so many communities surrounding us; it's time for Stonington to get on board and protect every resident regardless of socioeconomic status. 

As the tourism leader in eastern CT, our roads are overloaded with car traffic that they were never built to handle. For example, Route 27 in Mystic experiences average volume of over 30,000 vehicles per day traveling this corridor. The numbers for Route 1 are assumably comparable since both routes are the two major arteries into downtown Mystic. All the while, there is no parking (just over 600 on-street and off-street spots in downtown Mystic), many vehicles traveling over the set speed limits, and others who have no idea where they are going; distracted and endangering our non-motorized-vehicle road users. The root of the problem for our local landscape is cars. Cars are the reason other users cannot safely use our roadway networks. They are the reason why our roads become overloaded in the spring, summer, and fall months. The answer to this issue is not adding more parking via lots and garages. The answer is providing safe infrastructure so other modes of transportation can be utilized (i.e. walking and biking). Shifting this attitude can convince more people to leave their cars behind and walk more or bike more. However, the framework needs to exist for our community to feel both safe and comfortable doing so.  

If we do not act - or do not push our local and state powers to do so - the cyclist and pedestrian injury and death rates will continue to climb. Currently, we have reached an all-time high on record. It is unacceptable. We have many transportation plans that state our areas of need, however, they have sat collecting dust with no implementation. We also have had many studies and reports follow initials reports, revealing overlapping issues. DOT has a program called Vendor In Place. This program is supposed to assess and include bicycle and pedestrian safety framework in all repaving projects. As we know, this has not been the case. When DOT was pressed to learn why, they responded that they do consider bikes and pedestrians with all projects. There have been many repaving projects in our town. As we all can see, none of them have included bicycle safety infrastructure. 

We are requesting that both community business owners and residents sign and share this petition in support of Share the Road signs to be installed on Route 1 in Stonington, CT from Westerly / Pawcatuck border all the way to the Mystic Train Station (across from the Shell gas station nearing the rotary for downtown Mystic). This will ensure that both pedestrians and cyclists can travel more safely along this corridor. 

Thank you for both your support and for helping us spread the word!