Summit Awards: It is time to vote

First, thanks to all of you for putting in your nominations for Person, Program and Project for the Silicon Valley Bike Summit Awards 2019. We received many nominations from both Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties celebrating great work done in the past year around biking.And now, the exciting part begins! It is time to  vote to choose the most deserving Person, Program and Project for these awards! Voting will be open until Friday, July 12 and the winners will be awarded at out 9th Annual Bike Summit on August 1, being held at Mountain View Community Center.Below is a quick introduction of the nominees and the detailed bios are in the voting link here.

Nominees for Bicycling Professional of the Year: (Five nominations in this category) -Ed Solis, the head behind bringing VivaCalleSJ to the Bay Area, an event that temporarily closes miles of streets in the city for vehicles, bringing together communities to explore city streets like never before. Robert Neff, a well-informed thought leader in Palo Alto, helping to collaborate with bicycling groups for better biking infrastructure. Bryan Han, the brain behind starting family bike rides in Foster City, another way to build community, promote safe bicycling and have fun! Peter Bennett, project manager and driving force behind the San José Better Bikeways Project. And Sonia Elkes, founder of San Carlos Bikes, involved in organizing rides, valet bike parking, education, and more.

Nominees for Program of the Year: (Six nominations in this category) -There is Safe Routes to School Program of San Carlos District and Bike Month at Reed Elementary, both programs working hard to develop a range of bike-friendly programs for school kids. Team Asha biking program, getting more people on bikes, particularly to train for triathlons, 100km and 100 mile rides. Bike Palo Alto, an annual event that highlights Palo Alto’s great bike routes and provides activities and information to demonstrate how biking for local trips can be easy and convenient. Vision Zero Daly City, the first city in San Mateo County leading the way to draft a Vision Zero Action Plan. Lastly, there is Resilient Neighborhoods training that embeds Safe Routes to School in social science, health and science.

Nominees for Project of the Year: (Two nominations in this category) -East Palo Alto Highway 101 bicycle and pedestrian bridge, a long-time project bridging the gap between two sides of the city connecting communities to schools, jobs, parks, and community centers. Better Bikeways, San José, a growing network of protected and bike-friendly calm streets. A project that completed 10 miles of connected bikeways in a time span of just one year!With all the above said, do put in your time to vote for these nominees and help us identify the most laudable candidate in each category.May the best win!