Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Ebikes topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Town and county approve $47,000 Pathways bike‑safety package after Friends of Pathways presentation
Summary
Friends of Pathways outlined survey results and a six‑part plan to reduce e‑bike conflicts on pathways, asked for $47,000 in additional funding; the county and town each approved budget amendments split by formula (county $25,380; town $21,620) to expand education, an ambassador program and targeted enforcement.
The Jackson Town Council and Teton County commissioners approved a budget amendment to expand a community e‑bike safety program after a multi‑month report from Friends of Pathways and OPS Strategies.
Brian Schilling (Pathways coordinator) and consultant Alex Norton presented survey results and a workshop that gathered nearly 1,300 responses, identifying speed as the primary safety concern and flagging age‑related issues among youth. "Ninety‑five percent" of survey respondents had experienced an issue with an e‑biker at some point, the consultant said, and staff emphasized that those responses reflect experience, not constant prevalence.
Friends of Pathways and partners proposed short‑term actions across three pillars — education, enforcement (framed as encouragement) and engineering — and prioritized six feasible initiatives: expand youth and parent bike‑skills education (including a discounted Pedalace online subscription), require minimum equipment/safety standards, launch a Pathways ambassador program, adopt consistent pathway regulations across jurisdictions, add low‑cost intersection treatments and install targeted signage/centerlines in congested school and park zones.
Jim Rooks of Friends of Pathways highlighted school outreach and a local count: "there's about 225 e bikes at the middle school," and described a proposed ambassador program and an expanded school curriculum. The group said existing municipal allocations cover roughly $25,000 and asked for an additional $47,000 to scale programming; Friends also reported about $95,000 in other committed community funding and ongoing fundraising.
Presenters said many elements could launch quickly if funding were available — "like tomorrow," Rooks said — to align with the coming school year. Council and commission members asked staff and law enforcement about enforcement roles; presenters said the plan relies primarily on existing policing and school‑resource personnel for situational enforcement plus ambassador support rather than large new staffing increases.
Commissioner Probst moved to direct staff to bring a $47,000 budget amendment for Pathways bike safety; Commissioner Carlman seconded. The motion was amended to split the county/town shares according to the agreed funding formula (county $25,380; town $21,620). Both bodies approved their respective budget amendments unanimously.
