Robin Urban Smith

Nearly 1,000 transportation professionals, advocates and place-makers gathered in beautiful Long Beach, California for the Pro Walk/Pro Bike conference last week. Streetfilms caught up with attendees to find out what some of the hot topics were. Of course, we couldn't talk to everyone, so let us know what we missed in the comments section.

Riding a bike is a big part of Dr. Jen Petersen's daily routine, and it also plays a significant role in her academic and professional careers. Her 2011 dissertation toward a Ph.D. in Sociology, "Whose Streets? Paving the Right to the City," was largely influenced by riding her bike on the changing streets of NYC. Jen now provides consulting services to help cities and organizations grow while achieving sustainability goals.

Streetfilms teamed up with the Public Policy Institute at AARP to bring you a look at how Arlington, Virginia plans for its senior population using transit-oriented development (TOD).  Arlington has been practicing TOD since the late 1970s, when Washington's Metrorail first began service there, and it's proved very effective in accommodating the population growth of this inner suburb.

New York State is on the verge of undertaking one of the largest transportation projects in the nation: the replacement of the Tappan Zee Bridge. Over the course of 10 years and 280 public meetings, Hudson Valley residents, business owners, elected officials and environmental advocates built a consensus that transit was a vital component of the Tappan Zee Bridge project.

More than 275 people from 20 states and three countries came to the second annual Youth Bike Summit over the weekend of January 13. Organized by pioneering NYC community bike shop Recycle-A-Bicycle, the three day conference was a chance for young bike advocates to share strategies and draw inspiration from the keynote speakers, Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez and Youth Leader Alpha Barry. Said Andy Clarke, President of the League of American Bicyclists: "It's nice to see a movement grow with events like this... inspiring the next generation of bicycle advocates."

Choreographer and filmmaker Gabri Christa commutes to work on her trusty Dutch bike from her home in Staten Island to her office in Rockefeller Center, and to rehearsals and performances all over the city. On her morning commute, she catches the free Staten Island Ferry, meets up with friends, and then hops on the Hudson River Greenway to 48th Street. When Gabri's daughter was young, she used a child's seat to ride with her around Staten Island. Gabri loves that riding her bike keeps her moving, free, and discovering NYC in new ways.

Brooklyn's Kimberly White is just finishing her freshman year of college, and she took some time away from studying for exams and writing papers to star in the second installment of Streetfilms' "My NYC Biking Story" series. Kimberly loves riding her red folding bike in Prospect Park, and she's also got the skills to fix it. She helped start an internship program at Recycle-A-Bicycle and has used that experience to encourage others to get in the saddle. The keynote speaker at the first annual Youth Bike Summit, Kimberly is now pursuing a career in environmental justice.

What's the most effective way to make city streets safer? As Chicago Alderman Mary Ann Smith told Streetfilms, "Signs don't do the job, even having police officers on the corner does not do the job." To prevent traffic injuries and deaths, you need to change how the street functions and make it feel slower for drivers. You need traffic calming.

In the third episode of our Moving Beyond the Automobile series, Streetfilms takes a look at a more efficient way to use cars. Unlike owning a car, which involves a large upfront purchase and low costs per trip, car-sharing allows people to evaluate the full cost of each car trip. When car-share members choose whether to drive, take transit, walk, or bike, the incentives guide them toward the most appropriate mode for that specific trip. Driving half a mile to pick up some milk starts to make a lot less sense.

The first ever Youth Bike Summit brought bicycle advocates of all ages together last weekend in New York City. Organizations from Tucson to Boston participated in the three day summit, attending workshops, presentations, and finding inspiration in their peers. Event organizer and Executive Director of Recycle-A-Bicycle, Pasqualina Azzarello, said that she hopes this summit will be the first of many.