Education - More Hispanic Outreach

On June 10, 2008 we had another session of our Hispanic Outreach Program. The program is to provide bicycle education and awareness to the local Hispanic population. This time we went over to East Windsor in the Twin Rivers Branch of the Mercer County Library. WWBPA Trustee and Secretary Silvia Ascarelli provides instruction on English as a Second Language at the library.

We started with a video (follow this link http://tinyurl.com/6z8jk9
and click on the videos for Ride Smart - It's Time to Start) geared towards the kids in the audience and then Chris Scherer continued with the discussion, both in Spanish and in English. Silvia Ascarelli, Kim Meersma, and Bob Stango were on hand to help with bike helmet fittings as well as helping to answer questions (click on the video below for a sample).


There was a good turnout mixed with kids and parents and after the session they were encouraged to browse through and help themselves to the materials that we had on hand including:

- Our bilingual bicycle/pedestrian map of West Windsor.

- Bilingual brochures and flyers from the US Department of Transportation about bicycle and pedestrian safety.

- Safety equipment, including helmets, front and rear lights, reflective ankle bands, bike vests and reflective tape.

We gave away approximately 20 helmets, several front and rear lights, many reflective ankle bands and some bike vests.

Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.


Written by: Bob Stango

Education at Maurice Hawk Literacy Festival

Kids love to bike, so WWBPA's Chris Scherer had a rapt audience for his talk about bicycle safety at Maurice Hawk Elementary School's Literacy Festival held on April 30 and May 1st.

At the event, children and their parents learned about the importance of wearing a helmet, following the rules of the road, and how to ride safely at night. The kids enjoyed trying on helmets and taking a spin on the stationary bike. More than one parent came up to Chris after the talk to ask about buying a helmet.

As the mom of one of the children in the audience, I can attest to the fact that the kids learned something. During a recent ride, I saw my son hold two fingers up to his forehead to measure the gap between his eyebrows and his helmet. Chris had taught the kids the two-finger rule to test the helmet fit.

Special thanks goes to Chris Scherer for his hard work on preparing the talk and tailoring it to the K-3 level, and for his interactive and fun presentation. Abby Sorrell helped the talks go smoothly and made the children feel welcome. Joe Albanese was indispensable for his logistical support and technical expertise, and Mark Shallcross made wonderful visual aids. I'd also like to thank Halter's Cycles for lending us a stationary trainer and children's bicycle.


Thanks also to Principal Denise Mengani and Asst. Principal Patricia Buell for inviting the WWBPA to come and speak to the students of Maurice Hawk. And thank you to teacher Linda Bugher for organizing the event.

The Maurice Hawk Literacy Festival was an excellent way to reach our community with the WWBPA's message that bikes are fun, safe, healthy, and good for the environment. I hope we can do more such events in the future.

Written by: Catherine Zandonella

WWBPA Receives Proclamation

WWBPA received a proclamation (and some nice words too from council members; click on proclamation below for details) for continuing efforts to improve local bike/ped conditions at the June 23 West Windsor Township Council meeting.

PHOTO - L-R: WWBPA Trustees Susan Conlon, Sandy Shapiro, Ken Carlson, Alison Miller, Michael Ogg (holding the proclamation), Daryl McMillan and Chris Scherer.

Photo by Curtis Hoberman.

Congratulations to our Scholarship Recipients

The WWBPA awarded scholarships in the amount of $500 per student to graduating seniors Adam Schuit (WW-P High School North) and Annemarie Strange (WW-P High School South) for their commitment to the community and efforts to help make it more bike/ped friendly.

Bicycle Collection a Success

Our bicycle collection last Saturday, June 14 was a success with donations of 71 bicycles and 1 sewing machine. Pedals for Progress will transport them to either Africa or Central America, where they will be put to good use. Thanks to all of our trustees and volunteers for coming out for the morning to make this possible.

~ Susan Conlon

National Trail Day- Zaitz Woodland Preserve

On a very hot June 8th, the WWBPA and FOWWOS celebrated National Trails Day by sponsoring a walk in the newly opened trails of the Zaitz Woods Preserve. These trails take visitors through the woods of the 156-acre Park located on Southfield Road through a mixture of upland and wetland forest – something of a rarity in West Windsor and Mercer County. We were joined by 25 hardy local residents, who were undeterred by the 97 degree heat. Once inside the woods, the temperature dropped by about 10 degrees, and made for a pleasant walk on these beautiful trails.

While hiking , we discussed the coming improvements to the trail system, such as the development of new trails, creating signage for the trails, building bridges over wet areas, putting in place a kiosk with informational material, putting in place a bike rack at the parking lot, and building a path from the new parking lot to the trailhead.

Please feel free to explore the trails and stay tuned for trail clearing and trail building events in the near future.

West Windsor Walks- Bear Brook Road

On May 13 during the evening rush hour, we held an educational walk of Bear Brook Road in an examination of pedestrian and bicycle conditions along this heavily traveled commuting route to the Princeton Junction Train Station. Participating in the walk were over thirty local residents,

including those living in the communities of Windsor Haven, the Estates at Princeton Junction, and the Mews at Princeton Junction, as well as Trustees and members of the West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance (WWBPA), Township Council members and the Mayor. This particular walk route was requested by Windsor Haven Board member and resident and WWBPA member, Dan Damon, in response to the dangerous conditions that residents along Bear Brook Road face when walking or bicycling to the train station.

In response to the pedestrian and bicycle unfriendly conditions that we observed, we came up with a series of recommendations which have been shared with the Township administration and will be presented to Township Council. The recommendations can be viewed on our web site http://www.wwbpa.org/.