The Atlanta Bicycle Coalition and PEDS — two of the Southeast’s leading organizations dedicated to sustainable transportation advocacy —recently announced they have formally merged as of June 17, 2021, according to a press release. This merger comes after the two groups first entered into talks in February of this year.
By joining forces, the two organizations will gain efficiencies that will bolster advocacy to reclaim Atlanta’s streets as safe, inclusive, and thriving spaces for people to ride, walk, and roll.
Over the years, the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition and PEDS have partnered often to achieve milestones that make the city a safer, more convenient place for people to walk, use wheelchairs, bike, scoot, skate, and ride transit throughout Atlanta.
In 2019, the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition expanded its mission beyond bikes to include all forms of sustainable transportation, further aligning the two organization’s advocacy efforts. In 2020, PEDS served as a critical partner to the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition’s successful Vision Zero campaign, which propelled the City of Atlanta’s Vision Zero legislation adoption — the resolution that reduced the default speed on Atlanta’s local streets to 25 mph with the goal of zero roadway fatalities.
Additionally, for twenty-five years, PEDS led the way to prioritize pedestrians by advocating for safe sidewalks, including a campaign that urged the city to take financial responsibility for sidewalk maintenance. PEDS has also focused on sidewalk closures in construction zones, which influenced the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition to advocate for solutions that keep multimodal lanes open for people to safely bike, scoot, and use wheelchairs in areas with ongoing construction.
In the next year, the merged organization will unveil a new name in alignment with the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition’s new strategic direction.
Information: AtlantaBike.org/peds-merger.
About the Author
