Bike Delaware erases first 5 years of its history

Correction: "15 Years Old TODAY"

Bike Delaware has re-written history, declaring a "10 Year Anniversary" as of March 22, 2021

It is said that a lady never reveals her true age. Bike Delaware has taken this advice to heart, chopping five years off the org's true age, thus erasing numerous successful advocacy efforts from 2006-2010.

Bike Delaware was originally founded in 2006, largely on the heels of John Boyle of the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia. He, along with Mario Nappa (past President of White Clay Bicycle Club), established a formal structure that included the Bike Delaware Blog and regular meetings at Wilmapco in Newark. By 2008, a fully functional website (partial archive here) was established, with weekly updates, including meeting schedules, minutes, current projects, DelDOT workshops, member's personal initiatives, pending legislation, and a year-end progress review (annual report). In time, other Advocates would join together to further grow, and develop, what we know today as Bike Delaware. This was for 5 years, prior to achieving 501(c)3 status in 2011.

Some of Bike Delaware's progress from 2006-2010, pre-501(c)3, in no particular order:

• Bike Lanes over the St Georges Bridge
• Stop the encroachment of radial channelizing islands on bike lanes
  
• Right Turn-only lanes to shared bike lane/mixing zones
  
• Route 1 fatals in Rehoboth: Shared bike-bus lane compromise
• Support, demand Junction-Breakwater Trail (expedited)
  
• Bike-Friendly City and State achievements
• Full table setups: Regular presence at tabling events
• Traffic Signal phase change sensitivity for bicycles
  
• Delaware Bicycle Council legislation (3' Passing, Vulnerable Road Users, etc)
• Rally bicyclists to DelDOT public workshops and project meetings
• Interactive Delaware bicycle maps
  
• Delaware MUTCD best practices for bicycling
• Sharrow (shared lane marking) implementation and oversight
• Endorse and assist other orgs and start-ups, e.g. Urban Bike Project
  

Bike Delaware is 15 years old in 2021

Acting in this manner -- ignoring 5 full years of their own history -- is a slap in the face to founding Advocates and their years of volunteering and hard work. Why is this the case? Executive Director (James Wilson) took exception with much of these past efforts, and/or those involved. This latest action of his is abhorrent, to say the least.

1st State Bikes was founded largely to expose Bike Delaware's brand of "advocacy" in their post-501(c)3 era, which is hardly the vision we had hoped for. The following articles about them are noteworthy, and can also be found in the right column of this website:

• Bikeway Networks Nobody Can Use
• 3' Minus Any Shoulder
• 5 Top Priorities: MIA
• Bike Delaware Is Incompetent
• Bike Paths for Ogletown: SOL
• On Land-Use and Open Space
• Project No-Show, No Problem
• Quashing Pedestrian Safety
• Share The Road NOT (Not)
• Sponsored by a Ghost Non-Profit
• WCBC Conflict of Interest?
• Zero Organizational Transparency