Bike to Work Day
<bt>The Loudoun County Office of Transportation Services will hold local festivities for the region's Bike to Work Day Friday, May 18.
The event features early morning pit stop celebrations along the W&OD Trail in Leesburg and Sterling for bike riders on their way to work. The pit stops include Raflo Park in Leesburg, from 6-9 a.m. and at Orbital Sciences Corporation in Sterling, from 6:30-9 a.m. Both pit stops offer free food, giveaways and raffles from local businesses.
A total of 25 pit stops will be held throughout the region, including one for AOL employees at its Dulles campus.
Among the bicycle commuters will be riders taking part in a flag relay in honor of Loudoun County's 250th anniversary celebration. A small group of Loudoun County employees will bring the U.S., Virginia, Loudoun County and 250th Anniversary flags from Alexandria to Loudoun County.
The final portion of the flag relay takes place on May 19, in
conjunction with the 250th celebration.
Bike to Work Day is free and open to new and experienced bicycle commuters. Register at www.waba.org or 202-518-0524. The first 6,500 who register will receive a free Bike to Work Day T-shirt.
For more information about local Bike to Work Day activities, contact the Office of Transportation Services at 703-737-8044.
<sh>Party Canvass Scheduled
<bt>The Loudoun County Republican Committee will hold its 33rd State Senate Party Canvass, May 19, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. There are two locations: for Loudoun voters, Stone Bridge High School, 43100 Hay Road, Ashburn; for Fairfax voters, Rachel Carson Middle School, 13618 McLearen Road, Herndon.
Candidates John Andrews and Patricia Phillips are vying for the right to face incumbent Sen. Mark Herring (D-33) in November. For more information, visit the LCRC Web site, www.loudoungop.com.
<sh>New Stoplight
<bt>Supervisor Bruce Tulloch (R-Potomac) has lobbied the Virginia Department of Transportation and has obtained funding for the design and construction of a stoplight at the intersection of Winding Road and Algonkian Parkway near the communities of Broad Run Farms and Countryside in the Potomac District.
<sh>Trail Improvements Finished
<bt>The Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority (NVRPA) announces that work had been completed on a number of safety enhancements along the 45-mile W&OD Trail.
These enhancements include rumble strips to alert trail users of impending intersections; upright, fluorescent, advanced warning signs; multiple warning messages pressed into the pavement at increments leading up to an intersection as well as other improvements.
The W&OD connects Shirlington to Purcellville with a 45-mile asphalt trail and Vienna to Purcellville with 32.5 miles of crushed stone and dirt bridle paths. Along its 45- mile expanse, the trail encounters approximately 70 intersections.
For more information visit www.NVRPA.org.
<sh>Reduce Mulch Fire Hazards
<bt>The Loudoun County Fire Marshal’s Office has confirmed that at least 18 fires reported in April 2007 involved wood mulch as the first material ignited. A recent fire at the Homestead Village Suites hotel in Sterling was caused when mulch that was placed in a decorative border ignited and then spread into the building, causing approximately $30,000 in damage.
The Virginia Department of Forestry has produced an educational guide on the prevention of mulch fires that is available on the Web at www.dof.virginia.gov.