The Bicycle Transportation Alliance (BTA) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit

Non-profit organization

Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...

 bicycle advocacy

Cycling advocacy

Cycling advocacy consists of activities that provide greater safety, comfort, and convenience for bicyclists by educating cyclists and motorists, improving road quality on bike routes, establishing more and better bicycle parking, providing legal protections for cyclists by including cycling...

 organization based in Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon

Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The BTA promotes bicycling

Cycling

Cycling, also called bicycling or biking, is the use of bicycles for transport, recreation, or for sport. Persons engaged in cycling are cyclists or bicyclists...

 and the improvement of bicycling conditions in Oregon and southwest Washington through advocacy, programs and events. The BTA has a membership of 5000+ who elect candidates to the board of directors each October. A newly constituted Board is expected to have seventeen members.

The Bicycle Transportation Alliance was formed in 1990. The BTA does legislative work at the statewide and national level and endorses legislation and ballot measures. The BTA successfully lobbied Portland's mass transit company, TriMet

TriMet

TriMet, more formally known as the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon, is a public agency that operates mass transit in a region that spans most of the Portland metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Oregon...

, to accommodate bicycles on buses and prevailed in a lawsuit to uphold Oregon's Bicycle Bill

Oregon Bicycle Bill

The Oregon Bicycle Bill is transportation legislation passed in the U.S. state of Oregon in 1971. It requires the inclusion of facilities for pedestrians and bicyclists wherever a road, street or highway is being constructed or reconstructed and applies to the Oregon Department of Transportation ...

. The BTA produces a bimonthly newsletter, the Cycletter and works to ensure that road projects in the Portland Metro

Portland metropolitan area

The Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA Metropolitan Statistical Area , also known as the Portland metropolitan area or Greater Portland, is an urban area in the U.S. states of Oregon and Washington centered around the city of Portland, Oregon. The U.S...

 area accommodate bicycles.

Advocacy

BTA's bicycle boulevard

Bicycle boulevard

A bicycle boulevard is a low speed street which has been optimized for bicycle traffic. Bicycle boulevards discourage cut-through motor vehicle traffic but allow local motor vehicle traffic. They are designed to give priority to cyclists as through-going traffic...

s campaign is working to create and promote a comprehensive network of low-traffic streets in order to improve safety and increase bicycle ridership.

Programs

Safe Routes to School is a collaboration with the Willamette Pedestrian Coalition (WPC) that seeks to increase the number of children walking and bicycling to school. The partnership provides technical advice and assistance for Oregon communities. The BTA, along with the WPC received a pedestrian safety grant in 2008 from the Oregon Department of Transportation

Oregon Department of Transportation

The Oregon Department of Transportation is a department of the state government of the U.S. state of Oregon responsible for systems of transportation. It was first established in 1969. It had been preceded by the Oregon State Highway Department which, along with the Oregon State Highway...

.

The Bike Safety Education Program brings courses in bicycle safety to 4th-7th grade classrooms. The BTA donates bicycles to cities holding the program so that they may reach more students.

Annual events

The Bike Commute Challenge is an annual challenge to workplaces and individual cyclists to bicycle to work during the month of September. The Challenge started in 1995 and now attracts over 700 participant businesses.

Alice Awards are presented to individuals, businesses, and organizations in Oregon and southwest Washington whose work has promoted the use of bicycles and increased the livability of their communities.

Among the 2008 Alice Award honorees were State Senator

Oregon State Senate

The Oregon State Senate is the upper house of the state-wide legislature for the U.S. state of Oregon. Along with the lower chamber Oregon House of Representatives it makes up the Oregon Legislative Assembly. There are 30 members of the State Senate, representing 30 districts across the state,...

 Floyd Prozanski

Floyd Prozanski

Floyd Prozanski is a Democratic member of the Oregon State Senate, representing the 4th District. Previously, he served as a member of the Oregon House of Representatives from 1995 through 2001, and from 2002 through 2003....

, and the Central Point

Central Point, Oregon

Central Point is a city in Jackson County, Oregon, United States. The population was 17,165 as of July 1, 2009 The city shares its southern border with Medford and is a part of the Medford metropolitan area...

 Police Department Bike Team.

The Providence Bridge Pedal is an annual bicycle ride across the ten Willamette River bridges in Portland. Thousands of cyclists participate in this ride every year.