The AASHTO Bike Guide


After almost nine years working with the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) on the development of the U.S. Bicycle Route System, we are pleased to announce that AASHTO will be submitting a series of guest posts, provided by Lloyd Brown and Zach O'Connor on a quarterly basis. This first in the series concerns the Guide for the Development of Bicycle Facilities -- the go-to book for planners, engineers and contractors. The release of the latest version of the Guide was highly anticipated and provides new facility designs and guidance that has been favorably tested over the past several years. 


Transportation officials across the country from local to state levels are responding to the demand for bicycle infrastructure.  AASHTO believes in all modes of transportation. From roads to rails, water and bikes, we are committed to all forms of transportation. We embrace the multi-modal approach, and want to assist agencies planning for multimodal travel.

Surprised that an organization known for its dogged support for the interstate system would be interested in cycling? You shouldn?t be. After all, as a cycling advocate, you already know that more than a quarter of the U.S. population over the age of 16 rides a bicycle. This mode of transportation is important and growing in popularity. Bikes are a convenient, environmentally friendly, energy efficient and healthy choice for travel. Members of Generation Y, adults age 18-33, are moving toward urban areas where they rely less on driving and instead look for alternate modes of transportation -- like cycling.



The Guide for Development of Bicycle Facilities, or the AASHTO Bike Guide, was released over the summer this year as an updated tool for builders and designers. The guide provides assistance on ways to incorporate bicyclists into the roadway environment. The multi-modal approach of AASHTO looks at integrating with transit, shared paths with pedestrians, as well as on-road facilities.

The Bike Guide was due for an update; the previous edition was published in 1999. Biking in America, especially in urban and suburban areas, has developed rapidly since the late 1990s. Growing to around 200 pages, the Bike Guide examines aspects of design such as lanes, intersections, and other basic elements needed in bicycle infrastructure.  We've improved the publication with updated information that is relevant for 21st century planners. For example, information regarding attachments and travel lane measurements can inform designers and planners on different forms of bicycle travel.


State Departments of Transportation are encouraged to utilize the Bike Guide when developing bike routes and, in turn, the U.S. Bike Routes system. While the bike guide mostly references facilities in urban and suburban interfaces, 80% of the U.S. Bike Route System will be on rural roads, state highways, or long trails. The guide can be utilized for these routes as they focus on common themes in all environments such as safety and signals. With the development of the U.S. Bike Route System and other facilities, we can develop our nation's growing demand for bicycle infrastructure.

We're hoping to have more recent updates to the publication as methods and design aspects evolve.  While bikes become a vital mode of transportation for travelers and commuters, we will continue to develop new standards and practices for bike facilities. For more information or to purchase your own Bike Guide, visit the AASHTO bookstore.

Zach O'Connor is the Communications Coordinator at AASHTO. A recent graduate of American University, he is a proud self-proclaimed transportation nerd. Lloyd Brown is Director of Communications at AASHTO, you can follow his blog "Talking Transportation" for more info.  


Top image courtesy of AASHTO, bottom photo by Curtis Corlew

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BUILDING THE U.S. BICYCLE ROUTE SYSTEM (USBRS) is posted by Ginny Sullivan, USBRS coordinator at Adventure Cycling, and features news and updates related to the emerging U.S. Bicycle Route System. The USBRS project is a collaborative effort, spearheaded by a task force under the auspices of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). Members of the task force include officials and staff from state DOTs, the Federal Highway Administration, and nonprofits like the East Coast Greenway Alliance, and Mississippi River Trail, Inc.

Source: http://blog.adventurecycling.org/2012/12/the-aashto-bike-guide.html

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Klöden Ignites Another Fire in Trentino

No matter how many times I write it this spring, I’ll never tire of typing the name Klöden and the word ?WIN? in the same sentence! Team RadioShack‘s 35-year old German wonder bested another field of quality contenders in the opening 13.4-kilometer Time Trial of the Giro del Trentino today, clocking 15:24 on the course [...]

Source: http://www.teamradioshack.us/kloden-ignites-another-fire-in-trentino/

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Top 10 Most Popular Blog Posts Ever, 2012 Edition

The Adventure Cycling blog has been going strong for over 3 years now. Thank you to all of our readers, members, and other supporters for your online engagement! For fun, we thought we'd round out the year with a listing of our top 10 most popular blog posts ever (according to web visits) since we kicked things off in July 2009. Enjoy!

10. Interbike Roundup Part 1: New 2012 Touring Bikes -- In this post, Josh Tack reviewed four 2012 touring bikes (for different touring styles), which he previewed at the 2011 Interbike trade show in Los Vegas, NV.

 9. Touring Cyclists Always Welcome Camping -- This GeoPoints Bulletin post heralded news of the Virginia State Park System's new policy that ensures long-distance touring cyclists will always have a spot to pitch a tent in their parks, even when designated spots are filled. We'd love to see more of these kind of announcements in 2013!

 8. Our Trail Angel Flies Away -- Executive Director Jim Sayer commemorates our friend, and long-time supporter of traveling cyclists, June Curry. She was known to many as the "the Cookie Lady," and  from 1976 nearly up until her death, she provided hospitality to many of the thousands of cyclists who traveled the TransAmerica Trail. Our annual June Curry Trail Angel Award is named in her honor.

 7. The Cycling Eight -- It gives us immense joy to see this post in the top ten. Written by Heather Andrews, a summer intern and friend of Adventure Cycling, this post presents her first short documentary video, which captured the lovely story of a group of young women who embarked on a bike tour in August 1940 with no experience and heavy bikes, but fully loaded with the spirit of adventure!

 6. 10 Things You Absolutely Need for a Long Distance Bike Tour -- A contribution from our friends Ryan McAfee and Michelle Cassel of America ByCycle, the title really says it all. This is a fun post that is even better when read back to back with their second top ten story (see #4)!

 5. A Fat Year: Touring on a Surley Pugsley -- This has been a very popular guest post by Nicholas Carman. Watch for most posts by him in 2013!

 4. 10 Things You Might Think You Need for a Long Distance Tour, but Don't -- America ByCycle's excellent companion post to #6.

3. 2nd Annual Adventure Cycling Photo Contest Winners -- Our annual Bicycle Travel Photo Contest attracts hundreds of photographers and submissions each year. (Some submissions end up in our annual Bicycle Travel Calendar.)  For fun, check out the 1st annual winners, and last year's winners in the 3rd annual winners post.

 2. Surly Long Haul Trucker -- Posted by Joshua Tack on July 18, 2009, we're always amazed that this post continues to show up in our monthly web stats as one of our most popular. But, it's really no surprise, given the popularity of this bike amongst touring cyclists and Josh's special knack for very readable, informative, and entertaining bike reviews. If you've ever considered a Long Haul Trucker, this is a good place to start for more information. Special note: Josh recently re-joined the Adventure Cycling staff after a 6-month respite to tour from Alaska to Mexico. He is one of our longtime bloggers, contributing to Touring Gear and Tips, and a columnist for Adventure Cyclist magazine (see "Fine Tuned").

 1. U.S. Bicycle Route System 101 -- The most popular blog post of all time lays out the basics of one of our most important programs, the creation of an official U.S. Bicycle Route System. This project has blossomed over the last 5 years with 40 states now working to establish U.S. Bike Routes (USBR), relying on hundreds of volunteers and supporters across the country. In the last two years, 8 new routes have been established: USBR 20 and USBR 35 in Michigan, USBR 45 in Minnesota, USBR 1 in Maine and New Hampshire, and USBR 8, 95, 97, and 87 in Alaska. These are the first new U.S. Bike Routes to be established since 1982! Read the 101 post for how this important project was reignited in 2003, and stay tuned for more great news on this front.

Again, thank you for your support and engagement with our blog and all our social-media communities: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. Learn about other great ways to connect with Adventure Cycling online at www.adventurecycling.org/connect.

Wishing you and yours the very best in 2013!

Illustration by Luke McDonnell.

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NEWS, NETWORKING, AND NEW MEDIA is posted by Winona Bateman, Adventure Cycling's media director, and highlights cool media (articles, videos, photos, etc.) and meet-ups related to Adventure Cycling and bicycle travel. Writing a story about bicycle travel or Adventure Cycling Association? You can contact Winona via email: pressATadventurecyclingDOTorg. Visit our media room, view our news releases, or follow us on Twitter.

Source: http://blog.adventurecycling.org/2012/12/top-10-most-popular-blog-posts-ever.html

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TdF Stage 13 ? The Mighty Col d?Aubisque

Today?s 13th stage, a short mountain course starting in Pau, climbing over the mighty 1,709 meter Col d?Aubisque and finishing in Lourdes, France, saw many of the general classification contenders taking a bit of a break over the 152.5-kilometer, or 95 mile trek. After such a grueling first 2 weeks it was well deserved, even [...]

Source: http://www.teamradioshack.us/tdf-stage-13-the-mighty-col-d%e2%80%99aubisque/

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Tour De Wallonie ? Team Radioshack Bounces Back

After facing a great many challenges during the Tour de France earlier this month, Team Radioshack (RSH) needed to demonstrate they could still field a squad ready and able to compete at the front of the peloton. The team did just that in the five stage Tour De Wallonie, which concluded today in Thuin, Belgium. [...]

Source: http://www.teamradioshack.us/tour-de-wallonie-team-radioshack-bounces-back/

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Team RadioShack Moves 3 into Paris-Nice Top 10 after Stage 6

In Friday’s race of truth, the individual time trial at the 69th running of Paris-Nice, Tony Martin of HTC-Highroad, as expected by many, laid down a devastating effort over the 27 kilometer course, beating the next competitor by a full 20 seconds and scrambling the general classification from the previous day’s posting. However, Team RadioShack [...]

Source: http://www.teamradioshack.us/team-radioshack-moves-3-into-paris-nice-top-10-after-stage-6/

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