This is Portland at its finest: An art contest to create new bike lane characters that’s hosted by the Bureau of Transportation with the aim of getting more young people to read and ride bikes to the library.
Read that last sentence again and think about how many things have to be working right for something like that to happen. (Hints: A great education/encouragement program at PBOT’s Active Transportation Division; streets safe enough for to make neighborhood cycling a viable option for many young people; and a strong, community-supported library system.)
PBOT launched their ‘Bike to Books’ bike lane art coloring contest on May 1st. They received 196 entries and judged them for originality, creativity, and whimsy.
Here are the winners…
First Place
Each of these designs will be installed on a Portland street by PBOT maintenance crews. A city spokesperson tells us the locations haven’t been determined yet, but will likely be near the library branch of each individual artist. How cool is that?!
Second Place
All of these kids will receive four passes to the Lumberyard Indoor Bike Park (including rental gear!).
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Third Place
All these kids will receive a helmet from Portland-based Nutcase.
Honorable Mentions
No prize but honor and 15 seconds of fame for these guys.
Learn more about the Bike to Books program on PBOT’s website.
— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org
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The one with the butterfly wings is just too freaking cute.
These were great! What a fun idea.
Gotta love the thought and imagination that went into these designs, like “Bike Portland,” which is based on the Portland city flag. PDOT will have a ball translating these designs into real world versions. Nice job, everyone! Thumbs up for this!
Women want more figures that look like women. Wonders never cease.