Advocacy

To serve the cycling needs of our communites, all members and friends should be advocates. This includes reporting what we see, supporting cycling organizations and being aware of cycling plans for our communities.

All Eyes & Voices

We can be advocates by monitoring road conditions. Everyone, on every bike ride, on every drive in our County can keep their eyes open for conditions requiring repair, dangerous obstacles and road repairs that have been done incorrectly. Of these, incorrect repair is a common problem because road workers often do not understand what constitutes a danger for bicyclists.

When directing complaints, refer to "Safety Problem & Bicycling Hazard Contacts" below and always copy your email to the County Supervisor and Bike SLO County. This is an effective way to give add weight to your request by enlarging the circle of people aware of the problem and asking questions as its resolution.

Be firm, clear, specific and polite. There are people in Caltrans and the County who are willing to act on your information. Above all, stop depending on others, become an active advocate. Use the information below and email the SLOBC Advocate at advocate@slobc.org to correct or update any phone numbers or linkes provided.

Law Enforcement Non-Emergency Phone Numbers

Call 911 if you are involved in or observe an incident that requires an emergency response.

If you are involved in or witness an incident that does not constitute a 911 response, you can still report the incident to a local law enforcement agency. Listed below are the non-emergency telephone numbers for the law enforcement agencies in our county.

It is suggested that you place these numbers in your cell phone directory in the event that you want to report an incident.

Be prepared to provide some basic information:

• Your location (This is critical!)
• Nature of incident
• Vehicle's description: make, model, color and license number, if possible
• Vehicle's direction of travel

Safety Problem & Bicycling Hazard Contacts

Keep your eyes open for road conditions requiring repair or that present dangerous obstacles. Listed below are the telephone numbers for reporting unsafe road conditions.

Listed below are links to online forms for submitting road maintenance requests.

Organizations

The SLOBC provides support for, works with and/or is a member of the following organizations. We join with these partners to advocate for bicyclists and a better community.

Bike SLO County

Bike Valet

Central Coast Concerned Mountain Bikers

Cal Poly Cycling

Other Organizations

The following are links to organizations of interest to the SLOBC and its members.

• League of American Bicyclists (LAB)
• California Association of Bicycle Organizations (CABO)
• International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA)
• Rails to Trails Conservancy (RTC)
• Adventure Cycling Association

Bike Plans

The County of San Luis Obispo and many of the cities within the county have developed bicycle transportation plans in accordance with the California Bicycle Transportation Act (Streets and Highways Code Section 980-894.2).

The following provides links to the current documents:

Also of interest is the Bicycle Facilities Unit of the California Department of Transportation website.

Protected Intersections For Bicyclists

This is a great video that proposes a concept for addressing bike/car interaction at intersections in cities. It builds on the use of protected bike lanes to protect cyclist in urban contexts. It presents a vision for a safe, clear intersection design that improves conditions for all users.