Battery2Beach - Brief

04.12.10
THE MISSION

The Battery2Beach Route (B2B), the new

foundation of a Charleston area regional bicycle
connectivity plan, will cover 24 miles from Isle of
Palms through downtown Charleston to Folly Beach.

The route will be marked by distinctive signage and

be safe enough for inexperienced bicycle riders to
use without anxiety. It will “connect the dots”
eastward and westward from the ends of the
Ravenel Bridge, linking six towns and cities,
numerous historic sites, parks, schools and
businesses; enhancing quality of life, commerce and
tourism.

THE CAMPAIGN
The B2B organization is to b a partnership including public officials, community leaders and volunteers; all kinds of people
pitching in, and an organization that promotes friendly rivalry and communication between municipalities.

Marked by the B2B insignia (now being designed) and driven by periodic B2B rides and other events, it will enlist people
in the six municipalities (B2B “hubs”) to work in teams to achieve the B2B route. Representatives of each “hub” will
periodically gather as a B2B Council to compare notes on progress and offer mutual assistance. Charleston Moves hopes
to offer assistance to participating municipalities in seeking funds. We will provide periodic public updates on progress.

News, updates and dialogue will be constantly maintained through social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) and by a paid
marketing campaign that includes promotional messages on thousands of beer coasters provided by New Belgium
Brewery and its Fat Tire Ale. Window stickers will be supplied to merchants who support the B2B Route campaign.
 THE ROUTE - DETAILS
Phase #1 (East Cooper) - All that needs be done for much of the way East of the
Cooper is to re-stripe roads and place signs. Sullivanʼs Island is seeking “Bicycle-
Friendly Community” status. Improvements to the Ben Sawyer causeway in
Sullivanʼs Island and Mount Pleasant are on the drawing boards. (Mt. Pleasant
Town Council members and staff are working with County Councilman Dickie
Schweers to secure necessary funding.) The Coleman Boulevard bridge over
Shem Creek is a narrow bottleneck that will have to be dealt with. The bike/ped
lane over the Ravenel Bridge is the keystone of the B2B Route. The initiative will
suggest a direct route across the peninsula with an alternate route to the Battery
and White Point Gardens.

Phase #2 (West of the Ashley) The route from Charleston to Folly Beach is more challenging but utterly worth the effort. It
involves your (our?) own plan to add a cantilevered bike/ped walkway to the Legare Bridge and the much-discussed
project to build a safe crossing over the five-point intersection at South Windermere. Most importantly, it also involves re-
thinking Folly Road.[1] It will also tie in with other bike and pedestrian resources such as the West Ashley Greenway and
the West Ashley Bikeway.

B2B HUBS
B2B “hubs” will be set up in each of the towns (a total of six). Each is comprised of a B2B team leader (local councilman?
Mayor?) and local B2B enthusiasts. It is these teams that will work to make B2B happen locally, solving specific local
challenges. Organization of these “hubs” has begun.

These teams will also send representatives to a core B2B "master group" where friendly competition among the hubs will
be encouraged while neighborly assistance is doled out.

One member of the B2B core management group will be responsible for recruiting and managing the members of each of
these “hub” teams. Each will enumerate the challenges faced in its specific municipality and develop a strategy to cope
with it.
RIDING EVENTS
On May 16, a flashmob bicycling event will be staged to KICK OFF the B2B campaign. From the two ends of the B2B
route, two groups will converge at the Battery. Having met at the Battery, the aggregated group will quickly move to a
party location for a B2B rally. There, participants can sign-up for teams. B2B wristbands and temporary tattoos will be
sold. The party location will be chosen with the help of New Belgium Brewing, and the New Belgium/B2B coasters will be
unveiled. The Battery2BeachBlog will be unveiled, and attendees will be enlisted to B2B social media accounts in order to
drive traffic to the blog.

In September 2010 (?) there will be a bigger, more highly-staged event. Again, moving from each end of the route, the
group will pick up bands of node supporters including mayors and other officials.

B2B BLOG
Prompted by Facebook and Twitter messages and by the messages on the Fat Tire coasters, people go to the blog to
sign up to show their support, to get info, to buy B2B goodies, to learn about the next (one every month?) B2B flashmob
ride.

(Coasters could also be mailed to a central location to register a count of support. It may be possible to persuade a
sponsor to contribute a fixed sum for each coaster received.)

EARLY TRACTION FOR THE BATTERY2BEACH INITIATIVE

The initiative already has the verbal support of all of the communities along the route, and of early sponsors New Belgium
Brewing, Half Moon Outfitters, The Trek Store and the Bicycle Shoppe.

Sullivanʼs Island and Mount Pleasant are joining Charleston in seeking certified Bicycle-Friendly City status. Both have
expressed enthusiasm for the B2B Route as a major component of their bicycle friendly initiative.

The Coastal Conservation League has partnered with us to consult on the project and to supervise research work being
undertaken to support it,

New Belgium Brewing (brewers of the popular Fat Tire Ale) have signed on to work with us on a beer coaster campaign
which would put our B2B campaign on thousands of beer coasters.
Half Moon Outfitters donated $1,000 and we have received a $5,000 matching grant based upon a recently completed
drive to raise a comparable sum.

The Trek Store of Mount Pleasant has generously donated a hybrid bicycle for which we are selling raffle tickets. The
winner will be selected at our celebration event to be held next month.

ABOUT CHARLESTON MOVES

Charleston Moves grew out of an organization called the Charleston Bicycle Advocacy Group (CBAG).
Later, maturing, it took on the name Charleston Moves, with an expanded vision about smart urban
planning with an emphasis on alternative forms of transportation. We have always worked in the
background by challenging politicians and bureaucrats to “think beyond the auto,” a key badge of honor
for the group was its instigation of a broad-based drive to secure a bicycle & pedestrian lane on the
Ravenel Bridge. This has become a very popular centerpiece for the community for enjoyment,
exercise, and for travel between Charleston and Mount Pleasant without the need for a vehicle.
Battery2Beach is an initiative of Charleston Moves. It is comparable in scale and import to the earlier
Ravenel Bridge drive.

HOW WILL WE DO IT?

The work of Charleston Moves is being shouldered entirely by volunteers. In this initial phase of the B2B initiative,
expenses are associated with marketing and event production. Charleston Moves contemplates the possibility of re-
establishing paid staff to administer the B2B drive and to plan and organize other community activities.