Metroped
VA Corporate ID 05804380
MISSION
Many organizations promote fitness. MetroPed takes a different tack. It advocates for removing impediments to outdoor fitness
MetroPed was initially established in 2002 to provide technical support for 'The Safe Crossing Campaign' The SCC was slowly deprecated as the issues were addressed by both State and Local government policy and planning.
MetroPed's Public Restroom Initiative (PRI), was established to shed light on the hesitation some people have to participating in outdoor fitness activities that put them out of range of proper sanitation facilities. The mission scope of the PRI was too limited to handle the massive national and even global support it gained. It was re-established as a stand-alone 503.c3 non-profit corporation call the American Restroom Association.
CURRENT
One of the current impediments to fitness, is the fear of crime. For example, many young women hesitate to walk or jog in park trail systems for fear of being attacked. Some of these women have mitigated this fear by obtaining a small pocket firearm. They take the government mandated proficiency training for certification, and pay for an extensive criminal background check that will allow them to obtain a court issued Concealed Carry Permit (CCW).
Unfortunately, as a well meaning but misguided attempt to reduce gun violence, some municipal Park and Recreation (P&R) Departments will not honor these court issued CCW permits, even on jogging trails that have a well documented history of women being attacked at night. While Metroped recognizes that these P&R policies act as an impediment to fitness, there are other organization that are addressing this issue. Metroped currently provides legislative and technical advocacy support to these organization when their initiatives will reduce a person hesitation to walk or jog when it's related to fear of crime.
Metroped Inc VA SCC ID 05804380