Los Angeles Bike Academy Executive Director Damon Turner coaches young athletes as part of the many neighborhood services of the South Los Angeles nonprofit. PHOTO CREDIT: Science in Sport

Each year, PeopleForBikes supports transformative bike projects and advocacy efforts across the U.S. through our Industry Community Grants program. Many of those projects, like Apache County's pump and skills track in Arizona, Los Angeles Bicycle Academy’s youth programs, and the Lodestone XC mountain bike park in Kearns, Utah, are creating safe and inclusive spaces for the next generation of riders.

In 2017, Chief Judge Michael Latham in Apache County, Arizona, decided to convert a juvenile detention center into a teen resource center to give the county’s youth a safe place to gather and recreate. The center, called the LOFT, provides a technology space, rooms for music and games, a sound recording studio, and an education room, along with a lounge, kitchen, and enclosed outdoor courtyard. Soon they’ll have another amenity: a first-class pump and skills track. Thanks to a PeopleForBikes Industry Community Grant and other support, the pump and skills track is currently under construction in the community’s existing skatepark. 


“When will it be finished?!” is a question LOFT Manager Kyle Mayer has to answer almost daily, he says. The track will serve the growing demand for youth bicycling opportunities in Apache County. The local high school recently started a mountain bike club, with residents donating bikes to families who can’t afford them, and LOFT is also working with IMBA to improve existing mountain bike trails in the region. The new pump and skills track will give Apache County youth a safe and accessible place to practice their skills and connect with the local community.

The Los Angeles Bicycle Academy (LABA) was founded by former amateur racer and long-time community leader Damon Turner to support his local community and improve diverse representation in the sport of bicycling.


The Academy’s vision is simple: “We’re passionate about bicycles. We believe that bikes offer a simple solution to many of our communities’ complex problems. Bikes are great for your personal health and for the health of our environment. Bikes can help you save money on transportation, and bikes can provide you with endless miles of fun with your family and friends.” Among the many services the Academy provides are periodic family rides that give local youth the freedom to explore their neighborhood and their parents the confidence that they can do so safely.

“Getting involved with LABA was a turning point for me. I learned countless lessons — not just about bikes, but about community, patience, and persistence,” says Academy member Fareed Mumin. “I also grew closer to the amazing community that supports LABA. I started participating in Wednesday night rides which deepened my love for cycling and strengthened my connections within the cycling community. I also encouraged my little brother, little sister, and a few friends to enroll in LABA’s earn-a-bike program. To this day, they still ride the bikes they earned through LABA.”

“LABA isn’t just a bike program — it’s a community, a space for growth, and an incredible resource,” says Mumin. “I’ll always be grateful for the experiences I’ve had there and for the opportunity to share that with others.”

The Los Angeles Bike Academy family ride took members to a nature center in a nearby neighborhood. PHOTO CREDIT: Los Angeles Bike Academy

In Kearns, Utah, just west of Salt Lake City, local high school student athletes on the West Granite Composite mountain bike team have thrived under the coaching of NICA’s Rochelle Bartschi. Unfortunately, unlike teams in the wealthier districts to their east, the team can’t ride to trails for practice and their parents are likely working or lacking an extra car to transport them around. That will all change when the Lodestone XC mountain bike park is finished next summer. Supported by a PeopleForBikes Industry Community Grant, Trails Utah is building a cross-country style bike park on 12 acres of land accessible to thousands of families in the area. The new park’s design maximizes the number of fun, flowy trail miles designed to build fitness while also providing riders with a rewarding, circuit-type experience. The park includes skill areas, bermed turns, drops, and other trail features suitable for helping youth advance their mountain bike skill level.

“What’s really cool about the project is that this park serves a low-income area that’s really underserved,” says Trails Utah Executive Director Sarah Bennett. She says the local kids have really embraced the park, with 20-40 youth showing up every weekend to volunteer to help get it built. “The park just exudes this awesome spirit of inclusion,” Bennett says, citing the community of riders of adaptive bikes and the attention trail builders are giving to features that will challenge and support people with disabilities.

Weekends at the Lodestone Community Park are exciting events for area youth who can’t wait to get a great cross-country mountain bike park and come out in droves to help build it. PHOTO CREDIT: Trails Utah

Communities across the country are demonstrating the transformative power of bicycles to bring people together, create opportunities, and improve lives. From Apache County’s pump and skills track to LABA’s inspiring programs and the Lodestone XC mountain bike park in Kearns, these projects showcase how investments in bike infrastructure and advocacy can ignite passion, foster inclusivity, and strengthen community bonds. With every trail built, bike donated, and skill shared, these efforts are laying the foundation for healthier, more connected communities where everyone — regardless of age, ability, or background — can experience the joy and empowerment found on a bicycle.

PeopleForBikes Industry Community Grants Are Supporting Youth Bicycling Nationwide

It seems like electric bicycles (e-bikes) are everywhere these days. On bike paths, rolling along in bike lanes, and parked at your local schools. They are a growing part of the daily lives of millions of Americans, providing an affordable transportation option, a great opportunity for exercise, and wonderful experiences exploring the outdoors. For kids not yet old enough to drive a car, e-bikes also offer a degree of independence and the freedom to ride with friends. As a parent heading into the holiday season, you may be hearing about how great it would be if your kid had an e-bike of their own, perhaps coupled with the timeless plea, “All my friends have one...”


You may have also heard about community concerns around safety and e-bikes.  Young riders are often more inclined to take risks and may be less familiar with the rules of the road. Whether your child should join their ranks is a question that requires some serious parental consideration and a bit of investigation. To help you on that journey, PeopleForBikes pulled together some helpful facts about e-bikes, what they are, and how they are regulated.  


First, and most importantly, you should know that not all things called “e-bikes” are suitable for young riders. Unfortunately, “e-bike” is often used as a generic term referring to any vehicle with two wheels powered by an electric motor. This includes some fast, powerful devices that are actually electric mopeds or motorcycles. In most places, these faster “e-motos” are considered motor vehicles, just like cars, and require a valid driver’s license, registration, and insurance to operate on public streets.  Definitely not something you want to give to your young non-driver. 


The only electric vehicle you should consider allowing your child to operate is an electric bicycle, also called an electric-assisted bicycle. In most places, an electric bicycle is a legally defined type of vehicle with specific limitations on its motor power and speed. Under federal law, electric bicycles must have working pedals, motors of less than 750 watts, and can go no faster than 20 mph on motor power alone (without pedaling). Almost all states now have similar laws, and 43 states further define electric bicycles into three distinct classes according to their capabilities:


"Class 1 electric-assisted bicycle" means an electric-assisted bicycle equipped with an electric motor that provides assistance only when the rider is pedaling and ceases to provide assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 20 miles per hour.

"Class 2 electric-assisted bicycle" means an electric-assisted bicycle equipped with an electric motor that is capable of propelling the bicycle without the rider pedaling and ceases to provide assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 20 miles per hour.

"Class 3 electric-assisted bicycle" means an electric-assisted bicycle equipped with an electric motor that provides assistance only when the rider is pedaling and ceases to provide assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 28 miles per hour.


These legal distinctions are important. Because true electric bicycles are slower and less powerful, they are regulated like bicycles, while those other, faster “e-bikes” are considered motor vehicles and should not be operated by kids who are not licensed drivers. 


Your state may also have other requirements for electric bicycles. They are usually subject to bicycle-specific equipment and operation laws (like needing reflectors or lights at night) as well as the rules of the road that apply to all vehicles used on public streets. States may also have minimum age requirements for operators of electric bicycles, or require that riders under a certain age wear helmets (which is always a good idea!).

Electric bicycle laws are different in every state and can be confusing for riders. PeopleForBikes works to make riding an electric bicycle easy and accessible for all. Find your state's specific rules.

So, if lots of things are called “e-bikes,” how do you know the one you’re buying is an electric bicycle? That can be a bit complicated. Some of the “e-bike” products are hard to distinguish from true electric bicycles and could even be labeled or advertised as one of the three classes of electric bicycles. Some can easily be modified to exceed the motor power and speed limits of an electric bicycle by selecting an “unlimited” mode setting on the controls, by cutting a wire that limits power and speed, or by changing the setting in a smartphone app used to control the device. As with other big ticket items, there is just no substitute for fully researching a product before you buy. Here are some tips to help you separate the electric bicycles from the ‘e-bikes’ you don’t want:


If it looks like a motorcycle or mini-moto, it just might be. Many products have motorcycle or “moto inspired” styling or look like gas powered minibikes or dirt bikes in order to appeal to younger riders. That’s a possible red flag, so dig deeper.

Virtually all of these products are advertised online. What does the manufacturer’s website say about their products? Are the motors claimed to be more powerful than 750 watts? Is the top speed stated as exceeding 28 mph or “28 mph+”?  Is there an “unlimited” or “unlocked” mode? Does the vehicle lack pedals or require that they be added as an option? Again, any of these signs can indicate that the product is not an electric bicycle.

Some products have lengthy legal disclaimers on their websites in an effort to make it your responsibility that their product isn’t an electric bicycle. Sometimes this language is used when describing “unlocking” the device’s power and speed capability (you assume all risks). If it can be easily unlocked, it’s probably not an electric bicycle. Beware of statements like “sold as a Class 2 e-bike.” Is it, or isn’t it?

What does social media have to say about the product and how it is being used? Do reviews or posts by users talk about the product being excessively fast, easily and frequently modified, or used unsafely? That product might not be right for your family.

Buy your electric bicycle at a local bicycle shop in your community. Major U.S. manufacturers of electric bicycles that are sold at local bike shops follow federal regulations on electric bicycle motor power and speed. Plus, they’ll let you test ride the product so you can verify its capabilities and ask questions before you buy.

Is the product certified to applicable safety standards like UL 2849 or EN 15194? These standards ensure that the electrical system and battery are safely designed and of high quality. Avoid products that do not claim these safety certifications.

It should go without saying, but don’t be pressured into buying a particular product because it’s cool and “all the other kids have them.” You’ve probably heard that one before.


If you do buy an electric bicycle for your child, that’s not the end of your journey.  Make sure they understand the rules of the road, know how to safely charge and operate their new electric bicycle, and always wear a helmet. In addition to the Owner’s Manual provided by the manufacturer, PeopleForBikes and our partners offer a free online safety training course for new riders called E-Bike Smart. When purchased wisely and used appropriately, electric bicycles can be an amazing form of transportation, recreation, freedom, and fun for youth and adults.

When you pass a group of kids on bicycles, it’s hard not to smile — there’s something innately joyful about the sight. There’s also an underlying assumption that everything about the act, from the socialization to the time spent outdoors engaged in physical activity, is good for them. New research affirms that gut feeling.

Published on October 12, 2023, in Frontier in Sports and Active Living, a new study from researchers at Loma Linda University (LLU) reveals the positive impact of cycling education on the psychosocial well-being of students. The research is the result of a collaboration between LLU and the youth cycling nonprofit Outride, examining the impact of Outride’s in-school cycling programs on the mental health of middle schoolers. 

"Our findings were incredibly encouraging,” says Dr. Sean Wilson, LLU professor and senior author of the study. “A large proportion of students had a positive learning experience and continued interest in cycling,” 

“As a learning organization, we really want to understand how bicycling can improve the lives of youth in their communities,” says Dr. Esther Walker, senior research manager at Outride. 

Anonymous surveys were collected before and after the program in 20 schools in North America, with psychosocial well-being quantified using the WHO-5 Well-Being Index and the Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC-17-Y). The former is a short, five-item, self-report questionnaire that assesses positive well-being and primarily assesses for depression, while the latter is a widely used measure of psychosocial functioning, with lower scores representing greater well-being. According to the study, participation in R4F was associated with improved psychosocial well-being among middle school youth in the United States. 

“It was really encouraging to see such a positive student response to a cycling-specific physical education program,” says Fletcher Dementyev, a research fellow at LLU and first author of the paper. “This result motivates us, and hopefully others, to continue investigating and developing cycling as a pathway to improved health and well-being in adolescents.”

“By providing access to bikes, a safe environment to learn to ride, and the confidence to ride independently, we can really help to create healthy pathways,” says Walker. “As youth are facing worrying levels of physical inactivity and mental health challenges, finding those activities that get them excited to participate is really important.”

PeopleForBikes’ 2022 Bicycling Participation Report reflects this trend: While 49% of youth ages 3-17 rode a bicycle at least once in 2022, ridership among younger Americans has continued to drop since 2016.

“Our program data shows that access to bikes at home, as well as safe places to ride, is not equitable across the student population,” said Walker, noting that programs like R4F, which take place during the school day and provide all necessary materials, gives everyone the opportunity to learn a skill they can use throughout their life. "While bicycling can certainly contribute positively to one's day-to-day life, to see large-scale improvements, we need changes in policy and reductions in systematic disparities in access to nutrition, health services, safe environments, and beyond.”

As school systems, educators, policymakers, and healthcare professionals work together to address the mental health challenges facing today's youth, this study provides valuable insights into the potential of cycling programs to enhance the mental well-being of young people across the U.S. University-backed research is showing the benefits that come along with getting more kids on bikes. Communities should listen.  

Interested in learning more? Follow Outride on Instagram and Facebook to stay up-to-date with their work to improve the well-being of youth through research-backed cycling programs.

Research Highlights the Positive Impact of In-School Cycling

PeopleForBikes is pleased to announce the award of a three-year grant from The JPB Foundation to support the Better Bike Share Partnership (BBSP), a national collaboration focused on improving social and racial equity in shared micromobility systems across the United States. Better Bike Share Partners — the City of Philadelphia’s Office of Transportation, Infrastructure, and Sustainability (OTIS); the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO); and PeopleForBikes — will carry out this work together.

“Shared micromobility means more options for people in need of reliable transportation,” says Tangier Barnes-Wright, PeopleForBikes’ senior partnership and program manager. “When done equitably, it results in significant social, health, economic, and sustainability benefits for lower-income and BIPOC communities. I am excited to continue our support of organizations that are breaking down barriers to using shared micromobility for these groups.”

This is the fifth grant supporting the work of the Better Bike Share Partnership since its inception in 2014. The new funding will assist a second round of Living Lab grantees, which will address barriers preventing the use of shared micromobility in low-income and BIPOC communities nationwide. Grant funds will also finance the Transportation Justice Fellowship to continue supporting professional development for people of color working in the transportation field, as well as NACTO’s shared micromobility roundtable, mini-grants, and a robust storytelling platform.

“Over the last nine years, the Better Bike Share Partnership has been instrumental in addressing issues of equity, access, diversity, inclusion, and justice in the shared micromobility industry. Through grants, research projects, written guidance, presentations, and technical assistance support, BBSP has helped cities and operators implement bike and scooter systems that help folks travel to much-needed resources,” says Waffiyah Murray, Indego program manager at OTIS. “The City of Philadelphia is honored to be a partner in this work, serving as a living example of how BBSP best practices are successful when implemented in an intentional and meaningful way.”

“With more than a half-billion trips in the U.S. since 2010, shared micromobility is an important and growing transportation option in hundreds of cities across North America,” said Cary Bearn, senior program manager for biking at NACTO. “Because of the Better Bike Share Partnership, equity is a central part of the conversation about shared micromobility. NACTO is excited to continue collaborating with PeopleForBikes and the City of Philadelphia for another three years to support cities and operators in making sure these popular systems are equitably serving low-income areas and communities of color.”

The Better Bike Share Partnership plans on disseminating final reports for its first Living Labs cohort by the end of the year. Applications for the new cohort will open in early 2024. In the meantime, the partnership is working with the North American Bikeshare and Scootershare Association (NABSA) to revamp its Workforce Diversity Toolkit. BBSP will also continue to cover the work of its current grantees, as well as relevant research in the shared micromobility space at www.betterbikeshare.org.


About the Better Bike Share Partnership
The Better Bike Share Partnership is a collaboration funded by The JPB Foundation to increase access to and the use of shared micromobility systems in low-income and BIPOC communities. The partners include The City of Philadelphia, the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO), and PeopleForBikes. Learn more at BetterBikeShare.org.

PeopleForBikes is the U.S. bicycle industry’s trade association and a national advocacy nonprofit representing more than 325 bicycle industry supplier members and nearly 1.4 million individuals. Through our three areas of influence — infrastructure, policy, and participation — we accelerate the construction of safe, fun, and connected places to bike; advance pro-bike and pro-bike-business legislation; and reduce barriers to access and welcome more people to the joys of riding a bike. Our goal: Become the best place to ride a bike in the world. Join us at PeopleForBikes.org.

About the National Association of City Transportation Officials

NACTO is an association of 96 major North American cities and transit agencies formed to exchange transportation ideas, insights, and practices and cooperatively approach national transportation issues. The organization’s mission is to build cities as places for people, with safe, sustainable, accessible, and equitable transportation choices that support a strong economy and vibrant quality of life. Learn more at NACTO.org.

PeopleForBikes Receives Grant to Keep Shared Micromobility Equitable

On any given Wednesday during the school year, you can find a pack of more than 150 kids bicycling to Alameda Elementary School in Portland, Oregon. The bike bus, as it's known, represents roughly 33% of the entire school and according to parents and onlookers, it’s a joy-filled, active transportation event that you can’t help but want to be a part of. In their free time, kids practice their bike skills to participate and on Wednesday mornings, they rally their parents to be on time.

This particular bike bus is the brainchild of Sam Balto, or Coach Balto to his students, a physical education teacher and safe streets advocate that leads the charge in a neon vest with pop music blasting alongside him. Passionate about safety and the well-being of our youth, Balto started his teaching career in Boston in 2015. That same year, he launched his first walking school bus, leading a group of ten kids along a route to school. He’s been passionate about Safe Routes to School and active transportation “buses” ever since.

“After that day, I saw the joy of kids walking to school and how different that was than all other days,” says Balto, noting the immediate behavioral change the students underwent. “I also realized that relying on volunteers [to run the buses] is not a sustainable or equitable model.”

When Balto moved to Portland, he started another walking school bus, again taking note of how successful it was but also what a great need there was for volunteers and other forms of institutional support. When the pandemic hit — accompanied by bus driver shortages and a desire to stay outdoors — bike buses took off around the world, with viral videos surfacing in Barcelona, San Francisco, and even nearby Hood River, Oregon. Inspired, Balto decided to form a bike bus for Earth Day 2022.

“We started with 75 kids and one route,” says Balto. “It was a huge success and we decided to keep doing it, so I reached out to parent volunteers to see if they could keep doing it for the rest of the year.”

Volunteers are a crucial part of any walking or bicycling school bus, as they help ensure the bus stays together, everyone moves safely, and that cars keep their distance. Once the parent volunteers assured Balto they were on board, the bike bus began to grow, adding another route and a bigger catchment zone to make it easier for kids and families to join. That first year, the bus grew from 75 to 120 kids in just six weeks.

“Because it was being done consistently, families were able to plan for it,” says Balto, noting that a weekly activity helps justify a parent’s investment from a time and monetary perspective. “Kids were asking for new bikes so that they could join.”

In 2023, the bike bus became a year-round weekly institution and has only been canceled once due to weather (and in that instance, it became a walking school bus). As a whole, Portland’s bike infrastructure is relatively good and the bus route primarily traverses low-stress neighborhood greenways. The element of critical mass and again, its predictability, have helped keep students safe and area residents prepared. In fact, most neighbors come out and cheer the students on.

For Balto, as with many volunteers that participate in bike buses, the outcomes make the effort worthwhile. Not only do parents report that kids look forward to school more on bike bus mornings, but they also share how bike buses help make everyone in the household more physically active. Others note how active transportation buses can help reduce truancy and increase focus and confidence amongst its participants, something that supports outcomes from research done by Outride on youth bicycling. 

“The biggest thing is just the joy that the kids have,” says Balto. “Not every kid will be on a sports team and have that experience, but the bike bus is like a team where everyone plays an important role.”

Coming out of the pandemic, parents have also really loved seeing their kids be a part of a community. The bike bus is not only a way for their kids to be active but also ensures they’re part of something bigger than themselves. When compared to driving your child to school — a largely solitary act that does little to get them excited for the day ahead — the bike bus always wins. Even with so many parents on board, however, Balto has long recognized the need to pay them for their time. 

Transportation funding, unfortunately, isn’t as flexible as many Safe Routes to School advocates (Balto among them) would like it to be. When Balto and others started looking into how they might reallocate unused funding to financially support and grow the bike bus movement, they realized they were up against tremendous barriers. To grow the movement and make it more equitable, the system would need to change. Introducing a state bill made the most sense.

Thanks to the videos Balto posted on Twitter and the attention his efforts were garnering nationally, he was able to connect with more experienced politicos. They in turn connected him with Representative Khanh Pham, who represents District 46 on Portland’s outer southeast side. When Blato and Rep. Pham met in September 2022, she was immediately receptive, agreeing on the spot to write a bill that would bring more flexibility to student transportation funds.

“Passing legislation to make it easier for students to bike, walk, and take transit to school is an initiative that solves so many overlapping challenges,” says Rep. Pham. “It's a public health initiative, it’s education policy, it's climate action, and ultimately it's community building by encouraging neighbors, parents, and students to spend time together.”

Coincidentally, another Oregon legislator, Representative Hoa Nguyen, whose district borders Rep. Pham’s, wrote an almost identical bill. Having been an attendant at her school, Rep. Nguyen saw firsthand how a walking school bus led to a 30% increase in student attendance. Nguyen also noted how teachers saw a significant decrease in disruptive classroom behavior from students, largely because they were able to expend some energy on their morning walk to school.

The legislators joined forces and ultimately decided to call their combined bill (HB 3014) the “Bike Bus Bill.” The bill itself is relatively basic: If passed, school districts across Oregon will have more flexibility with how they spend their state transportation dollars, letting them organize things like bike buses and walking school buses in addition to traditional buses and carpool lines. 

"Currently, these funds can only be used for traditional yellow school buses or in some cases, school-owned vans," says Rep. Nguyen. "But that isn’t always the best option for all students. With the passage of HB 3014, districts will be able to request reimbursement  for alternative transportation options like crossing guards or coordinators to lead walk and bike buses."

The bill would have the greatest impact on those households that don’t own a vehicle and that live close to their schools — too close for a bus route — but face dangerous obstacles in traveling safely.

The “Bike Bus Bill” will make it easier to organize bike buses and pay the volunteers that are indispensable to their success. (Photo credit: Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)

Last month, when the Oregon House Committee on Education held a hearing for the bill, Reps. Pham and Nguyen, Balto, and some 27 other advocates, students, and parents showed up to give live testimony in support of the bill. Rep. Pham drew attention to the “epidemic of traffic violence” our students, especially those from lower-income communities, are facing every day and how the bill would help them safely cross short-but-dangerous distances to get to school. Others pointed out that owning and maintaining a car is out of reach for many and how active transportation solutions can help cities meet their carbon reduction targets. 

“The first time I rode the bike bus I was overcome with a sense of community. I felt like I was biking on an ocean of joy. Every student should be able to feel what I did,” said Alameda Elementary student Isla, speaking at the hearing. “Safe Routes to School programming and investments are a cost-effective game-changer for reducing daily driving…the passage of HB 3014 will improve the climate and encourage people to get active.”

For Balto, the bill is a testament to the creative possibility bikes can offer and the power of community-led initiatives. “[The bill] is about providing a more direct service to school communities,” says Balto. “It breaks through the noise and is all about the joy of children.”

The Bike Bus Bill continues to progress through the Oregon legislature — a work session is currently scheduled for the end of the month and it's hard to say when, if at all, the bill will become law. Whether it does or not, Balto will continue leading his bike bus every Wednesday and supporting others who want to emulate his efforts in their own communities. 

“I don’t have a choice but to keep going — when kids want these things and are advocating for them, that’s student-led education,” says Balto. “They’re the ones picking what they want to see and do and we should all capitalize on that and support it.”

Mention Flint, Michigan, and many immediately think of the Flint water crisis, a human-made public health emergency caused by dangerous levels of lead in the local water. Before that, it was known as the birthplace of General Motors, then later for experiencing substantial economic decline when several of the company’s auto plants closed in the ‘90s. For Chad Schlosser, however, who has deep roots in the area, Flint never lost its appeal as a great place to live. He moved to the city’s Mott Park neighborhood for its safe, affordable, and family-friendly appeal.

“My grandmother grew up in this neighborhood in the 1920s, and it was such a magical, fun place to be,” says Schlosser, who has three kids in elementary school and currently serves as President of the Mott Park Association. “I want kids to keep feeling that.”

The Mott Park Association was founded in large part to help neighbors take care of Mott Park, a centrally located, almost 100-year-old park that was built with three tennis courts at its heart. As the city changed, becoming less affluent, much of it fell into disrepair. Around 15 years ago, Flint essentially abandoned all of its parks and recreation, making maintenance largely dependent on a fleet of volunteers. At Mott Park, Schlosser and other volunteers kept the park alive with the help of local group Keep Genesee County Beautiful. They often found themselves raking leaves from crumbling tennis courts that never got used, slowly envisioning what the space could be.

“Tennis is seen as an affluent, white sport,” says Schlosser, noting that Flint is a majority-minority community. “Not that people with melanin can’t play tennis — we just wanted to diversify our offerings to better suit the community.”

The Mott Park Association’s former president and Nancy Edwards, the recreation programs and grants officer at Keep Genesee County Beautiful, came up with the idea of converting one of the tennis courts into a bike park or bike garden, essentially a designated area for children to learn how to bike and play. To gauge resident interest, the association sent around a poll in 2019 proposing different ideas, including one for a basketball court. While most people felt anything positive would be great, the bicycle park got the most support.

“No one was against the bicycle park,” says Schlosser. “Some folks were indifferent, so didn’t donate, but no one was actively against it.”

In 2020, the Mott Park Association started working alongside Keep Genesee Beautiful to begin fundraising. As part of that effort, they applied for a PeopleForBikes’ community grant, which was awarded in June 2021. More Michigan-based organizations signed on to support the project and with funding secured, the association began to plan the bike park. For the park’s design, they chose to work with the Flint Public Art Project, a local public arts organization best known for murals throughout the city (it completed some 120 in the span of five years). Importantly, the artist ultimately chosen to commission the piece, Mike Cobley, was a Flint native.

Flint native Mike Cobley was chosen to design and install the bike park's surface mural.

“We wanted to include Flint landmarks in the piece and a lot of the things Mike drew are well-known in our city,” says Schlosser, listing the library, farmer’s market, and stadium to name a few. “He even put Mott Park in it. The idea was that kids would be able to ride around and have fun seeing themselves in Flint.”

To ensure it was long-lasting, the park required new asphalt and paint that could withstand all seasons of weather. A local asphalt company resurfaced the tennis court in late summer before Cobley and an assistant came in and beautified it. The bike park had its grand opening on October 18, 2022, with the mayor and Mott Park’s local councilperson in attendance. While the fall weather meant that the court will likely not be used to its fullest until the upcoming spring and summer, the neighborhood kids already love it.

“We had about probably 50 or 60 people down there for the grand opening,” says Schlosser, noting that kids can use bikes, scooters, and roller skates in the park (basically, anything without a motor). “It’s winter now, so there’s not a lot of use, but springtime is a great time for learning to ride bikes.”

Neighborhood kids have already begun using the bike park, which offers a safe, beautiful area for them to learn and play.

There are no sidewalks in the park itself and those in the surrounding area are in poor condition. The new bicycle garden offers a safe place where children can feel free to learn and play, developing an early relationship with bikes that will hopefully carry through to adulthood. While the project hit a few hiccups (most related to the rising cost of materials with inflation), Schlosser is proud to have taken a community-driven idea and seen it through to something beautiful that everyone can be proud of.

“I don’t want our kids to grow up and think, ‘Flint was rough but I survived,’” says Schlosser. “I want them to feel that this is an awesome place to grow up with some beautiful green spaces and fun activities. The bike park is helping people to see that Mott Park is a great place to live.”

Topics

First Time Bikers

PeopleForBikes at Work on First Time Bikers

News

PeopleForBikes Industry Community Grants Are Supporting Youth Bicycling Nationwide

Should You Buy Your Kid an E-Bike?

Research Highlights the Positive Impact of In-School Cycling

PeopleForBikes Receives Grant to Keep Shared Micromobility Equitable

How a Bike Bus Inspired a State Bill

A Bicycle Garden Grows in Michigan