Contributor

Andy Clarke, President, League of American Bicyclists

Andy Clarke is President of the League of American Bicyclists, the nation's oldest national bicycling organization founded in 1880. Andy has been the chief staff officer of the League since his appointment as Executive Director in 2004, prior to that he served as the State and Local Advocacy Director - he was also the League's Government Relations Director from 1988 to 1990. Under Clarke's leadership, the League's education program has grown to include 1,500 certified League Cycling Instructors; the Bicycle Friendly Community program has reviewed more than 250 applications and made 96 awards; and the League's membership stands at 25,000 individuals and more than 300,000 affiliated members in 600 local clubs and 150 advocacy organizations.

Prior to joining the League in 2003, Clarke served as Executive Director of the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals, and has worked for the Rails to Trails Conservancy and Bicycle Federation of America (now the National Center for Bicycling and Walking). While at APBP, Clarke worked on-site at the Federal Highway Administration as part of the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center team. He has served variously as Chair of the Transportation Research Board's Bicycle Transportation Committee, Chair of the America Bikes Coalition, and a founding steering committee member of the Safe Routes to School National Partnership and Complete Streets Coalition.

Clarke grew up in the United Kingdom where he earned an undergraduate law degree from the University of Birmingham. He started his career in bicycle advocacy as the part-time bicycle campaigner for the environmental group Friends of the Earth, where he also served for three years as the Secretary General of the European Cyclists' Federation. Andy is a regular bicycle commuter and recreational rider.