The U.S. Department of Transportation just said, "Spend our money on bikeways and pedestrian projects. Do it!"

OK, they aren't quite as artful as I am, but the federal transportation agency, best known for everybody's all-time favorites of building huge highways, put out a report last week called "Bicycle and Pedestrian Funding, Design, and Environmental Review: Addressing Common Misconceptions." 

Basically, it shoots down all those ideas people have about how federal funding can only be used for road-building. Wrong!

The fine folks at Streetsblog USA put out a quick summary of the report, which I'll summarize here:

Federal funds CAN be used to build protected bike lanes.

Federal funds CAN be used for road diets.

“Highway” funding CAN be used for bike and pedestrian infrastructure.

Vehicle lanes DON’T have to be a certain width to receive federal funds.

Curb extensions, roundabouts, and trees CAN be used on streets in the National Highway System.

Speed limits DO NOT need to be set using average vehicle speed.

Thanks, feds. Read the whole report here.