Is my city a good candidate for PB? 

Although PB is only practiced in a handful of US cities, we believe that as the process gets more efficient and well known, more cities will jump on board. Any city with the necessary elements can do PB, and it often boils down to an available budget and resolve.

Here are some questions to answer to figure out if your city is ready for a PB:

• Do I have a budget to allocate? 

  • Ideally you are either a decision-maker with authority over a budget, or you know one. Either way, the only absolutely necessary things needed to run a PB are a budget to allocate, and the approval of the allocator. If this isn’t you but you think your representative or department would be interested, then you can ask them to sponsor a PB. Feel free to put them in touch with us and we can talk them through it.

• Is there already civic engagement in my city? 

  • One of the main things that helps PB thrive is a population that is ready to get involved. It can be anything from PTAs to political organizations to bicycling clubs. If your community-members are getting together regularly, then they could help make PB a success. 

• Are there representatives in my city who care about participation? 

  • The truth is that not all leaders believe that their populations should get involved in decision-making. For example in New York approximately 35 city council members provide PBs to their population, but there are still ~15 that do not.