Tell Sean Duffy: Bike Lanes Are Infrastructure, Not “DEI”

A bike lane is not “DEI.” It is transportation infrastructure that gives people a safer way to reach work, school, stores, parks, and appointments without always climbing into a car.

But Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is turning basic infrastructure into another front in the Trump administration’s culture war. While announcing a new round of $1.73 billion in federal BUILD grants, Duffy mocked spending on “DEI bike lanes and climate change” and boasted that the funding had been redirected away from what he called “Biden-era DEI pet projects.”

There is nothing wrong with programs that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion. But bike lanes are not that. They are infrastructure. 

They are roads designed to give cyclists a safer place to travel. They can help workers commute, children reach school, customers visit local businesses, and families get around their neighborhoods.

And the need for safe infrastructure has grown dramatically: Annual U.S. bicyclist fatalities increased by nearly 78% between 2003 and 2022.

Saving lives is not “DEI.” It is part of Duffy’s job.

Bike lanes also expand transportation choices for people who cannot drive, do not want to drive, or cannot afford the considerable expense of owning and maintaining a car.

Safe bicycling infrastructure can help families keep more of their hard-earned money by making it possible to replace some trips involving gasoline, parking, and other vehicle expenses with inexpensive bicycle trips. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also says communities designed to encourage walking and biking can promote physical activity, improve local economies, and reduce air pollution.

That matters for our health. CDC says transportation improvements can create opportunities for physical activity, improve environmental health, and help prevent traffic injuries and deaths. The agency specifically identifies bike lanes as one roadway measure that can improve safety for cyclists.

It matters for our climate, too. According to EPA’s latest published sector figures, transportation produced 28% of U.S. greenhouse-gas emissions in 2022, the largest share of any economic sector. Giving people safe, practical alternatives to some car trips is one commonsense way to reduce fossil-fuel use and climate pollution. 

Bike lanes do not force anyone out of their car. But removing safe cycling infrastructure can force bicyclists into mixed traffic, making roads more dangerous for cyclists and motorists alike.

Secretary Duffy should be expanding Americans’ transportation choices, not using “DEI” as a political insult for projects he dislikes. Please sign the petition telling Secretary Duffy to stop using “DEI” as an excuse to attack bike lanes and other clean transportation investments.

The petition to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy reads: Stop labeling bike lanes and other clean transportation investments as “DEI pet projects.” Evaluate transportation grants on their actual merits and support safe biking, walking, and public-transit infrastructure that can improve health, lower household transportation costs, strengthen communities, and reduce the pollution driving climate change.

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Source:

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/transportation-secretary-sean-duffy-dei-bike-lanes_n_6a5534bde4b0ac1765eee520