COVID-19 mitigation efforts have compelled everyone to make sacrifices over the past three months, but PennDOT's partners at the Centre Regional Planning Agency (CRPA), CentreBike, State College Borough, Centre Moves and Centre Region Parks & Recreation thought outside the box to ensure safety messaging during National Bicycle Safety Month wasn't one of the things sacrificed.
“The Centre Region has a passionate community of cyclists working diligently to promote the benefits of bicycling to a wider audience," said Trish Meek, a transportation planner with CRPA. “Failing to celebrate National Bike Month in some fashion would have been a disservice to them and the entire region."
Included in a slate of virtual activities organized by the partners was Bike Month Bingo. A Bingo card with 24 cycling related activities was created for the community to engage in over the course of May's 31 days. Once a participant had completed enough activities to have Bingo, they were asked to send a picture of themselves with their Bingo card to CentreBike so they could be entered into a drawing for one of three $25 gift cards to State College's bicycle shops.
The cycling related activities included several safety related items such as watching a video on bike repair, adding air to bicycle tires, reading the Pennsylvania Bicycle Driver's Manual, performing an ABC quick check or checking the lights on a bicycle. Additionally, four of the blocks on the Bingo card directed participants to visit websites that included safety videos.
Not all activities slated during the bike month celebrations were virtual. The partners also included a family bike scavenger hunt, which encouraged individuals and families to ride their bikes to four of six specified locations and take a photo with the object indicated in the instructions. Participants were then asked to submit their favorite photos to CentreBike so they could be entered into a drawing for a $50 Weis gift card. Participants were also directed to adhere to social distancing guidelines of maintaining six feet of distance between individuals and limiting groups to fewer than 10 people.
The winners of all of the gift cards are scheduled to be drawn June 1, and the total number of participants in the various activities will be announced at www.centrebike.org.
Although National Bike Month is only celebrated in May, biking is a healthy, accessible and affordable mode of transportation any time of year. Visit our Ride a Bike page for more information on biking in PA, including laws, safety tips, and information about our Active Transportation Plan that aims to improve conditions for walking and bicycling across the state.