Baltimore, MD

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2025

Project Category: Bike Audits

Description: Unsafe street conditions made walking and biking difficult in Mount Clare, especially for older adults navigating fast traffic and limited cycling infrastructure. Mount Clare Community Council organized a volunteer-led bike audit to document these risks and bring resident experiences into local planning. Volunteers completed intersection traffic counts, ride-along audits and walk audits that captured how speeding and driver behavior affect daily travel. New virtual meeting equipment also expanded access, drawing more older adults and retirees into neighborhood discussions. The findings helped advance a planned cycle track on Pratt Street and informed a broader neighborhood plan with additional cycling improvements. One participant age 50-plus said the audit encouraged him to start biking and speak out about the need for traffic calming after seeing the dangers firsthand.

Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.

Ottawa, OH

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2024

Project Category: Bike Audits

Description: Ottawa lacked safe biking routes, leaving older adults and families without secure options for active travel. Volunteers rode key corridors to flag hazards and propose quick fixes, shaping a grant application for a new bike path and plans for downtown bike racks. The effort sparked lasting engagement: a task force formed to push improvements, and residents who once had no outlet for their passion for biking are now driving change. One volunteer said that she is excited to see more bike parks in the community as well as other necessary amenities.

Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.

Santa Fe, NM

AARP Community Challenge Grant Year: 2024

Project Category: Bike Audits

Description: Santa Fe's lack of protected bike lanes left older adults and residents without cars navigating unsafe routes, including a highway between apartments and a shopping center. To address this, Bike Santa Fe completed six audits and shared findings with city leaders, influencing a bond-funded redesign and prompting supplemental funding for bike and pedestrian upgrades. Three audited sites are now slated for improvements within two years, and presentations helped officials and residents visualize safer connections for biking and walking.

Project description was created using generative AI and then reviewed for accuracy.