San Francisco embarrasses LA with speed cam warnings, and last remaining US Tour winner gets Congressional Gold Medal

July 10, 2025 / / No comments
Day 191 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

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In news that should surprise absolutely no one, a new report from San Francisco shows just how many motorists drive at dangerous speeds.

As California’s first city to install speed cams, San Francisco issued almost 132,000 warnings to people caught on camera driving 11 mph or more over the posted speed limit since the cams were installed in March; actual speeding tickets will start being issued next month.

That’s just four months, and in just 50 locations throughout the entire city of over 800,000 people.

Which suggests that there are a hell of a lot of people who didn’t get caught —  or maybe didn’t get caught yet — simply because they did their speeding in some other location.

But that’s still about 132,000 more warnings than Los Angeles has issued, since the City of Angels continues to drag its feet on installing speed cams.

After all, we don’t want to interfere with anyone’s God-given right to use a heavy right foot on an open stretch of roadway.

Or one that’s not, for that matter.

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Congratulations to Greg LeMond, as America’s last remaining Tour de France winner finally received a long overdue honor by becoming the first cyclist to be awarded the Congressional Gold Medal.

He’s also just the tenth athlete honored with the Congressional medal, joining such sporting notables as Joe Louis, Jesse Owens, Billie Jean King and Jack Nicklaus.

LeMond became the first American to win the Tour in 1986, then came back to win twice more in 1989 and 1990, after overcoming a near-fatal shotgun blast to the gut.

Conspicuously not honored were ex-Tour de France winners and notorious dopers Lance Armstrong and Floyd Landis, the latter of whom has largely been forgiven after owning up to his actions, and the former who just refuses to go away.

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Amazon Prime Days continue to dominate the news, as numerous sites urge you to buy more bike stuff to help pay off Jeff Bezos wedding and buy his new wife another new yacht or two

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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

A New York judge has ruled that the city’s mayor is free to rip out a protected bike lane in Brooklyn, lifting a previous injunction preventing the removal.

But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

An Ontario, Canada teenager was charged with reckless driver and violating the province’s bike helmet law, after the 17-year old was struck by a driver while riding salmon and without a skid lid, which is required for any bike rider under 18.

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Local 

Listeners to public radio station LAist’s AirTalk program share their joyous memories of riding a bicycle through the streets of Los Angeles while growing up, and question whether those days are gone forever.

 

State

The former owner of one of the nation’s first ebike stores describes how she went from Orange County bike shop owner to founding the Bellemont Project to promote ebike safety.

Fullerton caves to the Hallmark-ization of America, hosting its 3rd Annual Christmas in July Bike Ride on Friday, July 26th.

Chula Vista becomes the latest city to crack down on ebike riders, adopting what leaders say is the strictest ebike regulations in San Diego County.

Seriously? A beauty salon owner in San Diego’s Rancho Peñasquitos neighborhood called for the removal of a new bike lane, saying the loss of curbside parking will put her customers in needless danger by making them walk cross the street. Never mind that the bike lanes are there to improve safety for everyone. Or that if it’s not even safe to cross the damn street, the problem isn’t the bike lanes. 

Sacramento is building an entire new bridge to replace a never-opened bike and pedestrian bridge connecting two major pathways, after the city’s engineer of record refused to sign off on the construction because the bridge wasn’t built to contract specifications.

 

National

Streetsblog examines the GOP’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” and finds what it calls five of the ugliest transportation policies, including the unceremonious death of the bike commuting benefit, along with just about every a number of other green policies.

People For Bikes credits itself with halting dozens of harmful bike bills in “a critical year for bicycle legislation,” including anti-bike bills in New York, Illinois and yes, California.

Tragic news from Arizona, where a 75-year old man died from his injuries, over a year after he was struck by a driver while riding his bike, with the cops blaming him for allegedly turning in front of the driver.

The US version of The Sun says “certain road users” in a “major US state” no longer have to come to a complete stop at a stop sign. Except they’re actually talking about bike riders in the “major state” of New Mexico, which ranks all the way down at 36th in population. And it’s not like many motorists come to a full stop, anyway. Or any, for that matter.

A Denver TV station warns its viewers after a retiree was scammed out of $2,000 using Zelle while trying to sell an old bicycle on Facebook.

A new report from a Denver attorney group revealed that most of the city’s bicycling collisions occurred between 8 am and 9 am, and 4 pm and 5 pm, and on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

A Colorado attorney and cycling safety educator tries to clear up confusion over that state’s Stop As Yield Law, which allows bike riders to treat stop signs as yields and red lights like stop signs, as long as it’s safe to proceed. Count me among the confused, since I didn’t think Colorado had adopted the red light portion of the law.

This is why people keep dying on our streets. A Birmingham, Alabama man is facing reckless manslaughter charges for killing two people in separate collisions, first crashing his car into an ATV ridden by a 13-year old boy, followed by fatally running down a 30-year old woman riding a bicycle just five months later.

 

International

A new London campaign is urging elected officials to make bicycling more accessible and inclusive, under the banner Dare to Dream: A Bike for Every Londoner, even as the city has some of the UK’s most dangerous streets for bike riders.

The family of a 71-year old London man called for the “immediate deployment of speed and road traffic cameras” at the “notorious” intersection where he was struck by a driver while riding his bike, dying five days later, adding “no one should suffer this heartbreak.”

Over one hundred people are preparing for an “epic” 290-mile ride from Cleckheaton to London to remember the late Member of Parliament Jo Cox, who was assassinated in 2016, as well as marking the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage in the UK.

 

Competitive Cycling

Defending champ Tadej Pogačar won the day on Wednesday by finishing second in the time trial, 16 seconds behind winner Remco Evenepoel; the second-place finish was enough to put Pogačar in the yellow jersey with a 42-second lead over Evenepoel, with Frenchman Kévin Vauquelin third in the GC standings, 59 seconds behind.

Two-time champ Jonas Vingegaard had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day, dropping more than a minute off the pace and saying afterwards he just didn’t have the legs and had no excuse for his performance.

Canadian cyclist Michael Woods says it’s crazy that officials haven’t mandated protective gear and other safety policies for cyclists; he calls for protecting riders by lowering speeds, decreasing peloton size, reducing distraction, and rethinking the relegation system — or they may have to race in hockey gear.

Velo examines what’s changed with racing bikes over the past decade, comparing Chris Froome’s Pinarello F8 with Pogačar’s Colnago V5Rs.

A Florida man says he finished the Race Across America, aka RAAM, to keep a pledge with his father that if he didn’t quit the race, his dad would stick with his treatment for stage 4 prostate cancer.

 

Finally…

Now you, too, can become the official Bike Path Mayor — or maybe your cat can, anyway.

And you can put your tush on a weird-looking saddle for the low, low price of over $360.

But only if you live in Europe.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: General / Tags: , , , , , , ,

Density boosts bike & walking rates, Metro protects parking over bike riders, and buy bike stuff to pay off Bezos’ wedding

July 9, 2025 / / 4 comments
Day 190 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

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If you build it, they will walk.

And bike.

A new report on transportation mode share from Streetlight Data shows a direct correlation between increased urban density, and bicycling and walking rates.

In other words, the closer things are together, the more likely people will walk or bike to them, as well as being more likely to use transit.

According to Government Technology,

“Both [walking and biking] are impacted by the availability of transit, because transit makes it possible to get to your destination on a trip that could involve both walking and transit,” (Martin) Morzynski (of Streetlight Data) said. “The availability of transit will impact this data. The availability of access to transit.”

What is clear is that 9 out of 10 U.S. counties with the highest levels of active transportation — walking and biking — have a population density of at least 4,000 people per square mile. For example, New York County, N.Y., which includes Manhattan, has the highest level of active transportation, where 48 percent of trips are taken via walking, 11 percent are taken by bicycle and 41 percent in an auto.

But while biking and walking as seen as key transportation elements that can benefit from density, those aren’t the only benefits.

Increasingly, walking and biking are seen as key pieces of the overall transportation ecosystem in a region spurring the development of infrastructure like bike lanes, mobility hubs and the advancement of micromobility programs for sharable bikes and scooters. And indeed, public transit is viewed as an enabler of active transportation, since if it were not an option, a number of biking and walking trips would simply become car trips, Morzynski said…

Increasing density can accomplish more than converting car trips to walking or biking. It can also help to solve housing shortages, urbanists have said. Researchers with the Urban Institute have cited studies showing increased density, coupled with reduced parking requirements, help to bring down the cost of housing, while also making smarter use of transit investments.

Your move, Los Angeles.

Photo by Josh Hild from Pexels. 

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No surprise here.

Streets For All says Metro is once again protecting the convenience of drivers over the lives of bike riders, this time on the NoHo to Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit project.

Metro is choosing parking spaces over a protected bike lane!

Metro is seeking feedback about the North Hollywood to Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Project. The BRT will add 19 miles of faster and more reliable transit and 22 bus stations between NoHo and Pasadena, connecting Burbank, Glendale, and Eagle Rock.

But…the latest design completely removed the protected bike lane on Glenoaks through Glendale because it would have required removal of 30% of the on-street parking spaces.

Tell Metro that it’s unacceptable to choose parking over safety, and demand they restore the protected bike lane through Glendale!

There are six Metro community feedback meetings, attend as many as you can, and make your voice heard! 

Meeting Details:

Virtual
Thursday, July 10, 2025
6:00pm – 7:30pm
Call-in: 213.338.8477
Webinar ID: 849 6832 2391
Link to Join

Pasadena
Tuesday, July 15, 2025
6:00pm – 7:30pm
Pasadena City College, Circadian Room
1570 E Colorado Bl, Pasadena, CA 91106

Glendale
Wednesday, July 16, 2025
6:00pm – 7:30pm
Adult Recreation Center
201 E Colorado St, Glendale, CA 91205

North Hollywood
Saturday, July 19, 2025
10:00am – 11:30am
East Valley High School
5525 Vineland Av, North Hollywood, CA 91601

Eagle Rock
Monday, July 21, 2025
6:00pm – 7:30pm
Yosemite Recreation Center
1840 Yosemite Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90041

Burbank
Tuesday, July 22, 2025
6:00pm – 7:30pm
Buena Vista Branch Library
300 N Buena Vista St, Burbank, CA 91505

Thank you for fighting for a safe, sustainable, and equitable future for Glendale and beyond!

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In case you’ve been hiding under a rock lately, it’s Amazon Prime Days, giving you the opportunity to help pay off Jeff Bezos’ recent Venice wedding.

Oh, and get some bike stuff, too.

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This is who we share the road with.

A 24-year old road-raging driver is charged with 1st degree murder after allegedly ramming his Tesla into a San Diego motorcyclist, killing the victim instantly.

He then tried to walk away from the crash in his bare feet, offering cash to other drivers to give him a ride before flipping them off when they refused.

He was finally taken into custody at gunpoint by CHP officers, reportedly incriminating himself with his own statements afterwards.

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This is who we share the road with, part two.

The CHP reports 1,311 California drivers were busted for DUI over the holiday weekend. Although the only real surprise is that the number is that low.

Officers wrote a total of 34,548 during the enforcement period that began Wednesday evening and ran through Sunday night, 21,328 of those for issues related to speeding.

And no, I have no idea what “issues related to speeding” means, as opposed to just violating the damn speed limit.

Especially since all you have to do to catch a speeding driver in California is pick one and point a speed gun at them.

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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

Over 100 bike riders turned out on Saturday to protest plans to either reduce the width of Manilla bike lanes to make room for motorcycle lanes, or convert them to shared lanes with motorcycles. And on a related note, Philippine residents say it’s fear, not laziness, that keeps them from riding bike — a situation that’s not likely to be helped reducing or eliminating bike lanes.

But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

A Singaporean man filed a pair of formal complaints, alleging that reckless bicyclists and e-mobility users are endangering his pregnant wife by the way they ride on walkways, and leave their bikes blocking the way. Although when I look at the photos he submitted, all I see are hundreds of bicycles safely and considerately parked along the sidewalk, while leaving space for people to pass.

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Local 

Metro approved $2.9 billion in transit fund allocations for the 2026 fiscal year to help fund municipal and local transit operations throughout LA County, including bike and pedestrian projects.

 

State

Calbike says don’t believe the misinformation coming from Big Highway — aka companies who profit from highway expansion — about mitigating Vehicle Miles Traveled, or VMT, offering a detailed explainer of why the highway builders are wrong.

The new San Diego State University Mission Valley is the nation’s first college campus purpose-built as a bicycle-friendly, transit oriented development, or TOD.

San Diego’s stormwater department has belatedly come to the realization that bike paths shouldn’t be underwater, and committed to fixing a frequently flooded section of the SR-56 bike path. Even if a bike path deserves better than to be named after the freeway that blights it.

Vista will remove berms and bollards from protected bike lanes, just months after they were installed, due to complaints from bicyclists who said they made them feel less safe. Although they don’t seem to have bothered to gather safety stats to determine whether they actually increased or reduced injuries. 

Mountain View is considering a road diet on El Monte Ave after a series of pedestrian deaths, removing one lane to create a single lane in each direction with a center turn lane, and converting the existing bike lanes to buffered lanes.

 

National

You can now legally ride an ebike on Oregon bike trails and park roads.

The youngest of the four kids who killed an Albuquerque nuclear scientist as he biking to work by — allegedly — intentionally driving into him with a stolen car has been charged with murder, despite being just 12 years old; he was 11 at the time of the crime, and suspected of being involved in a string of burglaries dating back to when he was just ten.

New York will hire up to 45 unarmed “peace officers” to enforce rules against illegal moped, ebike and e-scooter use. Because apparently, the city’s existing 36,000 sworn peace officers aren’t up to the task. Or maybe just don’t want it. 

Hundreds of Asheville NC bike riders took to the streets and gathered in bike shops to honor two men who were killed when the driver of a dump truck crossed onto the wrong side of the road, and hit them head-on as they rode their bikes; a friend said one victim’s greatest fear was dying alone, which he tragically avoided by getting killed along with the other victim.

He gets it. The father of one of those Asheville victims says unsafe roads are a national problem.

 

International

One of the most prominent British politicians of the Thatcher era of the 1980s has died at age 94; Norman Tebbit, aka Lord Tebbit of Chingford, was responsible for popularizing the now common English phrase, “On yer bike,” for which he may never be forgiven.

Former pro cyclist Molly Weaver says she was relieved and disoriented after shaving a whopping 17 hours off the record for riding around the coast of Britain, while becoming the first woman to hold the record.

New research shows demand for ebikes is growing in the UK, even as bicycling rates are dropping — although bicycling rates appear to be rising in the Scottish Highlands.

TNT Magazine says bicycling is the best way to connect with “authentic” Spanish life.

A local writer says yes, bicyclists have a right to ride on Malaysian roads, but have to ride single file under every circumstance.

 

Competitive Cycling

Tadej Pogačar surged at the finish to take stage four of the Tour de France, marking his 100th career victory, while pulling even in overall time with race leader Mathieu van der Poel, who retained the yellow jersey for one last day. Meanwhile, a 22-year old Scotsman was stunned to find himself just off the podium.

Bike Radar offers 11 surprising things you need to know about Pogačar. Some of which actually are, but none of which you actually do. 

A UK site examines how the Tour is mitigating its environmental impacts.

All 11 bikes stolen from the Cofidis cycling team before the Tour’s second stage have now been recovered by police across the border in Belgium, though no arrests appear to have been made.

USA Today looks back to the deep, dark days of the 1980’s, when America’s only remaining Tour de France winner was dominating the race, despite a shotgun blast to the gut.

Meanwhile, women are still racing, even if they’re overshadowed by the Tour, as Dutch pro Lorena Wiebes took a crash-filled stage three of the Giro D’Italia Donne, while Britain’s Anna Henderson retained the pink leader’s jersey after a late crash that involved all but 10 riders, resulting in almost the entire peloton receiving the same time.

 

Finally…

That feeling when even husbands of Bachelorette stars aren’t safe from hit-and-run drivers. Or when you try nearly every bike bag known to man before finding one you can live with.

And a new study shows that saddle height and setback, pedaling intensity, rider height, and sex can affect comfort in the lower limbs.

Although it should be obvious that sex on a bike saddle would affect the lower limbs — especially this one.

Or so I’m (ahem) told.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Bicyclist killed by driver in early morning Pomona hit-and-run, police wait over a week to inform the public

July 8, 2025 / / No comments

Once again, someone riding a bicycle has been murdered by a heartless hit-and-run driver.

And once again, police were in no hurry to tell us about it.

According to My News LA, police found the victim lying in the roadway at Monterey Avenue and Eleanor Street in Pomona around 1:10 am on Monday, June 30th — over one week ago.

He was taken to a hospital suffering from serious injuries, but died shortly later. He has not been publicly identified.

Police are looking for the driver of a gray four-door sedan, possibly a Nissan Altima or similar make and model.

There’s no word on the how the crash occurred, or any description of the driver at this time. However, there are sharrows in both direction on Monterey, which may have contributed to the crash.

Anyone with information is urged to call the Pomona Police Department at 909/620-2156.

This is at least the 23rd bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the seventh that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County. This was also at least the seventh SoCal bike rider killed by hit-and-run drivers since the first of the year.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , ,

Ventura woman carrying bike loses arm in train collision, and alleged red light-running Escondido bike rider injured in crash

July 8, 2025 / / No comments
Day 189 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

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Bad news from Ventura, where a 24-year old woman lost an arm when she was struck by a train.

The victim was reportedly carrying her bike in one arm as she crossed the railroad tracks near Seward Ave when her bicycle somehow got caught in the tracks, and was struck by a southbound Amtrak train as she was still holding it.

Her arm was located near the crash site, and was taken with her to the hospital; however, there’s no word on whether doctors were able to reattach it.

Anyone is urged to call the Ventura Police Department at 805/650-8010.

This is yet another tragic reminder to never attempt to cross railroad tracks when a train it approaching, or once a crossing gate closes and the warning lights start flashing.

Photo by Brett Sayles from Pexels. 

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More bad news, this time from Escondido, where someone riding a bicycle suffered “significant injuries” when they were struck by a driver.

The victim, who hasn’t been publicly identified, was reportedly riding against a red light while crossing North Centre City Parkway at Mission Ave Friday evening.

And yes, the driver stuck around afterwards this time.

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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

No bias here. A San Diego letter writer calls on police to ticket lawbreaking bicyclists who ride through stop signs and red lights, while complaining about bicyclists riding two and three abreast in the traffic lane on the coast highway. Yet somehow fails to also call for ticketing all the speeding and/or distracted drivers who pose a far greater danger to the public.

An Irish city counselor who claims he was a “keen cyclist” before a recent injury now opposes a planned bike lane, claiming his opposition is evidence based, and he will defend it even if “cycling zealots bombard” him with emails. Proving once again that it’s always the ones who claim to be cyclists that you have to worry about. 

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Local 

People for Mobility Justice will host a a solidarity ride in East LA this Saturday in “response to the ongoing attacks on immigrants and communities of color.”

Culver City will host a community input meeting for the Better Overland project this evening, which includes plans for protected bike lanes on the dangerous street.

The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department is planning another bicycle and pedestrian safety operation in West Hollywood this Thursday. The standard protocol applies, ride to the letter of the law until you cross the city limit line, so you’re not the one who gets ticketed. Thanks to David for the heads-up. 

 

State

Calbike is calling for more people to join the 1,256 people who have already written to support AB 954, the Bike Highways Bill currently before the state Senate.

I want to be like him when I grow up. Eighty-two-year old Bonita resident Jacobo Melcer is planning to attempt a new age group hour record, aiming to ride 32 kilometers — 19.88 miles — in 60 minutes at the San Diego Velodrome in Balboa Park.

San Francisco Streetsblog celebrates the completion of the first segment of a sidewalk-level bike lane on a one-block section Market Street, in an attempt to tame the previously car-choked street.

 

National

Calbike shares a guest post from the National Youth Bike Council recounting the recent three-day Youth Bike Summit.

A Portland, Oregon TV station examines why the city dropped in the recent City Rankings from People For Bikes.

A Las Vegas man faces a murder charge for fatally shooting a 27-year old man in a dispute over a stolen bicycle; he was just released from prison in 2023 after serving a year behind bars for another alleged attempted murder, after pleading to a reduced charge for participating a double shooting.

In a poignant moment after the recent flash floods that have killed over 100 people, a Texas police chief spots a little boy’s bicycle atop a pile of rubble, and hopes that whoever it belonged to is safe now. Amen.

A Milwaukee man who spent his honeymoon riding around Ireland with his wife now questions whether he will ever ride a bike again after surviving a hit-and-run in his home city.

A Chicago area hit-and-run turned doubly tragic when the suspected driver was found dead in his home on the 4th of July, two days after the crash that killed a 15-year old boy as he rode his bike with a friend.

A suspect was arrested in an Orlando, Florida hit-and-run where a 43-year old man riding a bicycle was killed, and the truck set on fire in an apparent attempt to destroy the evidence.

 

International

A Nova Scotia woman wants answers about her father’s death days after hitting a culvert on his bicycle while possibly being chased by a pack of dogs; he managed to walk home, but no one realized how badly he was injured until hours later. A tragic reminder to always get checked out by a doctor after any hard crash, especially if you hit your head. And keep your damn dogs under control and on your property. 

Once again, a bike rider is a hero, this time for loaning his bicycle to a Yorkshire, England cop chasing an attempted murder suspect, who was quickly caught and taken into custody.

A 16-year old English girl set a new 24-hour record by biking 294.3 miles in 23 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds,

A pair of British men are attempting to set new records for the first father and son to ride around the world, and the longest distance ever ridden by a father and son.

 

Competitive Cycling

Belgian cyclist Tim Merlier won a crash-filled third stage of the Tour de France yesterday, beating Jonathan Milan and Phil Bauhaus in a photo finish as they lunged for the line, while Mathieu Van der Poel held onto the yellow jersey.

Sprinter Jasper Philipsen is out of the Tour after breaking his collarbone when he hit the pavement after several riders bounced off one another during the intermediate sprint on Monday’s third stage.

Sports Bible remembers former British world champ Tom Simpson, who died climbing Mount Ventoux after dosing himself with amphetamines in the 1967 Tour de France.

Conservative media sources are up in arms after a veteran women’s cyclist refused to share the podium with a trans woman who took gold at the Lyons Masters National Championships in Wisconsin last week.

An HBCU sport site celebrates the success of the Bowie State University Cycling Club, which went from a brand-new team to finishing in the top 10 of the Atlantic Conference of USA Cycling.

 

Finally…

That feeling when Marshmallow is protecting your new bike, after the local cops replaced the last one. Or when you and your uncle ride cross-country in opposite directions eight years apart to honor the same woman.

And 20 comic reasons to love bicycling.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , ,

Vermont Ave bike commuters deserve safe multimodal route, and someone finally takes an anti-bike booby trap seriously

July 7, 2025 / / One comment
Day 188 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

He gets it.

A Substack writer considers the bike commuters who ride LA’s Vermont Avenue, as Jonathan Hale argues they “deserve a multimodal transit artery done right.”

Taisha was riding on the sidewalk. There are no bike lanes along Vermont north of Gage Avenue. I asked her why she liked riding a bicycle around Los Angeles.

“You know, it’s quicker, it’s easy to get around,” she said. “It gives me peace of mind.”

“You ever been hit by a car?” I asked, keeping an eye on the evening mayhem in my periphery.

“Absolutely!” she exclaimed, laughing. “Yeah, everybody gets hit by cars. It’s always a victim of someone looking left and turning right. Always.”

Hale continues by pointing out that Metro is building bus rapid transit lanes on the corridor, without considering the need of people like her and others he spoke with.

And LA doesn’t seem to care.

The city of Los Angeles, meanwhile, has looked the other way, refusing to collaborate with Metro to build a truly multimodal transit corridor – even though the city is legally required to fund the project under Measure HLA. That’s why local activist Joe Linton has sued the city, alleging that Los Angeles has shirked its legal responsibility to make roadway improvements in accordance with its Mobility Plan 2035.

It’s more than worth a few minutes of your day to read the whole thing.

Meanwhile, Dr. Grace Peng points out that it’s personal for her, too.

The Vermont protected bike lane through South LA to Del Amo is personal. It connects the J line Harbor Gateway Transit Center to 99 Ranch on Artesia. What places could you go on a Vermont Ave protected bike lane? @bikinginla.bsky.social

— Dr Grace Peng (@gspeng.bsky.social) 2025-07-03T19:16:03.192Z

………

That’s more like it.

A 23-year old man from Osaka, Japan have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and obstructing traffic for stringing a rope across a city street, causing a bike rider to fall and strike his head.

About damn time someone, anywhere, took a booby trap like that seriously, treating it the dangerous, potentially deadly assault it is, instead of just a harmless prank.

Thanks to Megan for the heads-up.

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Gravel Bike California celebrates its 6th anniversary by delving even deeper into the darkest dens of the Angeles Forest.

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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

No bias here. The Encinitas city council approved contracts for bicycle education programs from grade school to high school — but ordered city staffers to ensure they weren’t teaching “political” pro-bike propaganda.

A North Vancouver, British Columbia city councilor is calling for mandatory bells on every bike, even though drivers can’t hear them, and pedestrians don’t know what to do if they do.

Clearly suffering from a severe case of windshield bias, a member of the Irish parliament demanded that the country’s Transportation Ministry consider making hi-viz jackets compulsory for all pedestrians, bicyclists and school bus passengers.

But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

Police in New York initially arrested a 30-year old woman for hit-and-run, accusing her of leaving the scene after crashing her bicycle into the rider of an electric unicycle — but prosecutors dropped the charges after discovering she had waited 45 minutes for the cops to show up, while speaking with witnesses and waiting for paramedics before going home.

A Washington Post reader takes the paper to task for showing a shirtless, helmet-less bike rider with a corgi in a backpack in high heat while checking his phone with no hands on his handlebars.

A London barrister posts video of his confrontation with a traffic cop after he got a ticket for riding with no hands during rush hour traffic, even though there’s no law against that in the UK.

………

Local 

An op-ed from the chair of Bike Long Beach argues the city is falling behind on life-saving speed cams. Just like its much bigger neighbor next door. 

 

State

A portable pump track is making it’s way around Orange County, popping up in Buena Park before moving on to Santa Ana, after appearing already in Mission Viejo, Garden Grove, Tustin, Irvine and Huntington Beach.

Sad news from San Raphael, where a 54-year old man who was one of the mountain biking coaches at a local high school was killed by a driver in a left cross collision while he was riding his bike, at an intersection where four bike riders were struck by drivers in similar crashes over a five-year period, yet the city did nothing to fix it.

The people running Apple clearly don’t get it, donating $4 million to close a funding gap to build a Cupertino freeway interchange with funds originally planed for a bikeway project, helping fuel induced demand and climate change.

 

National

Bicycling considers why so many girls are giving up biking, and what parents can do to help keep them on two wheels. You can read the story on MSN if the magazine blocks you. 

An architect’s newsletter says it’s time to come up with an infrastructure design solution to safely integrate ebikes.

Car and Driver recommends the best electric cargo bikes. Because who knows more about replacing your car with an ebike than a driving magazine?

Singletracks wants to know whether you think mountain bike trail difficulty ratings are accurate.

Velo explains how to find an actual, factual real deal on bicycling gear on Amazon Prime Day.

A Black father and son describe how they began biking together after the 65-year old dad underwent three heart surgeries, including the multi-day ride from St. Louis to Chicago recounted in their PBS documentary Bike Vessel. 

Um, okay. Hundreds of Portland bike riders were expected to turn out for the “We’re Better Than You” bike ride to raise awareness for “their superior lifestyle choices,” riding at exactly 6 mph to send a message that “Cars are murder machines, walking is inefficient, and public transit is for people who haven’t maxed out their REI credit cards yet.”

Denver bike riders spent their 4th of July riding in silence to honor the victims of traffic violence, following a 78% jump in bicycle and pedestrian deaths in the past ten years.

An Ohio driver faces multiple charges for the alleged DUI hit-and-run that seriously injured two of three kids riding a “three-wheeled bicycle.” Which sounds a lot like a tricycle, although they don’t mention the age of the victims. 

A New York news site says the Parks Department is trying to have it both ways by allowing ebikes and e-scooters in parks and pathways, while restricting cars in parks to protect people on bicycles, arguing that reckless ebike riders pose as much risk to pedestrians as drivers do.

Once again, a motor vehicle was a weapon of mass destruction, when a North Carolina dump truck driver crossed the center line and hit three bike riders head-on, killing two men and injuring the other; an Asheville bike shop planned a memorial to remember the victims, one of whom had worked there for four years.

 

International

Momentum tries to explain People For Bikes’ seemingly inexplicable ratings for the world’s most bicycle-friendly cities.

Thirty-one-year old British cyclist Molly Weaver set a new record by circumnavigating the country in 21 days, 10 hours and 48 minutes, shattering the previous record by 17 hours.

Students from the vocational school founded by the two Václav’s who founded Czech carmaker Škoda as bikemaker 130 years ago transformed one of the company’s cars into a bike race support vehicle as their graduate project.

An 18-year old man with dual French and German citizenship disappeared while riding his bike through Iran on a 400-day bicycling trip across Europe and Asia; he went missing on the third day of the recent Israeli bombardment, and could be one of the estimated 20 foreigners being held by Iran on suspicion of spying. 

The best places to ride your bike in Tokyo for your next trip to Japan.

Bicyclists and traffic safety advocates staged a protest in Manila over the weekend, demanding the Philippine capital cancel plans to remove a protected bike lane to make room for motorcycle lanes.

China is experiencing a boom in ebike sales thanks to a generous nationwide “cash for clunkers” style trade-in program.

This is the cost of traffic violence. An Australian race car driver described as a “extraordinary figure” in Australian motorsports, and who recently competed in the 24 Hours of La Mans, as well as backing the careers of several young racers, was killed by a bus driver while he was riding a bike with his wife near the local zoo.

 

Competitive Cycling

Mathieu Van der Poel ended the first weekend of the Tour de France in yellow after outsprinting Tadej Pogacar in a photo finish to win the second stage, with Jonas Vingegaard third; Cycling News offers a moment-by-moment recap of how the stage unfolded.

The Cofidis cycling team was hit by thieves before the second stage, breaking into one of the team trucks to steal 11 Look bikes worth an estimated $170,000, as well as the team mechanics’ tool sets.

Trine Marie Vingegaard Hansen, the wife of Jonas Vingegaard, stirred up a hornet’s nest by publicly criticizing the training methods of her husband’s Visma-Lease a Bike cycling team, as well as the time away from family demanded by the team, though the team insisted it was blown out of proportion.

Former world time trial cham Filippo Ganna’s Tour de France experience didn’t even make it through the first stage, becoming the first rider to abandon the race after suffering a concussion in a crash.

Cyclist profiles the seven North American cyclists taking part in this year’s Tour — two of whom came up through the same Boise, Idaho youth cycling program.

Road.cc offers a definitive guide to what all the pros are riding at the Tour, while your favorite cyclist could now risk getting a yellow card for bad behavior, just like soccer players.

The Tour de France is overshadowing the Giro d’Italia Donne, aka the women’s Giro, where Swiss individual time trial champ Marlen Reusser won the Giro’s first stage ITT to take the pink leader’s jersey.

The final day of the German Track Cycling Championships was cancelled when two cyclists crashed over the track barriers on final bend of the men’s keirin semi-finals, injuring seven spectators, two seriously enough to be airlifted to local hospitals; the two racers escaped with minor injuries.

A 19-year old British pro apologized for causing a massive crash after hitting a pothole in the country’s national road championships, while reporting that he fractured a vertebrae in his neck, and suffered a “fair amount” of road rash.

 

Finally…

Achieving world peace by sharing an off-road tandem. Your next e-recumbent could look like a velomobile, with a removable roof and a trunk in the back, or maybe it could be powered by a hydrogen fuel cell — but is it really a bicycle if it doesn’t have pedals?

And that’s one hell of a polka dot tan line, dude.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

San Diego killer hit-and-run drivers — plural — turn themselves in, and Perris hit-and-run driver out on bail

July 3, 2025 / / No comments
Day 184 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

I’m dealing with a sick migraine as I finish this, so please excuse any mistakes this time since I’m not up to proofing it. 

………

Look, I don’t have to tell you that tomorrow is the 4th of July. Or that there’s no better way to get to or from the fireworks than riding your bike.

Unless you live in my neighborhood, where it already sounds like a war zone from all the illegal fireworks.

Just remember that drivers are more likely to be focused on their kids or finding a parking spot than they are to be looking for you on a bicycle.

And three-day weekends tend to bring out the worst in drivers, including making a beer or hot dog run after drinking all day. Or imbibing some other substance, legal or otherwise.

So whenever wherever you ride, do it defensively. Assume every driver you encounter is under the influence or otherwise distracted, and prepare in advance.

Because chances are, you won’t be far off.

Photo by Kindel Media from Pexels.

………

Better late than never.

According to San Diego’s Fox 5, a pair of hit-and-run drivers were arrested after belatedly turning themselves in for killing a Claremont ebike rider all the way back on March 29th.

Twenty-seven-year old Kamille Agustin and 23-year old Anthony Phan turned themselves in to traffic investigators at the San Diego Police Department on Wednesday, accused of fleeing after they both struck the 31-year old victim in separate vehicles.

The victim still has not been publicly identified.

………

Forty-one-year old Perris resident Kenneth Orlando Juarez Vega was already out on $75,000 bail yesterday, released Monday following his arrest the same day for fleeing the scene after seriously injuring a bike rider while driving under the influence.

Although maybe I was too hasty in criticizing the LAPD for the bizarrely cryptic story about a fatal South LA hit-and-run story posted by My News LA yesterday.

They may have replaced their human writers with AI, after their version of this said “Driver Accused of Pedro’s DUI Hit-and-Run Out on Bail,” rather than Perris.

Oops.

………

Sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

A new survey shows half of London bike riders admit to running red lights — although they are ten times more likely than drivers to get fined for it. Funny how The Times seems to drop its paywall for stories bashing bicyclists, though.

………

Local 

Streetsblog explores the new bike lanes on Avenues 64 and 63 in Highland Park.

 

State

The annual Huntington Beach Fourth of July Bicycle Cruise returns for a sixth year on Saturday.

Hats off to eight-year old third grader Will Benzer, who became the youngest rider to ever complete Folsom’s 40-mile Motherlode Epic mountain bike race.

 

National

She’s got a point. A Denver writer questions whether ebikes must be allowed everywhere more traditional bicycles are, arguing that anything that can do 20 mph uphill without pedal is an electric motorcycle, not a bicycle.

It was a bad day in Houston, where three bike riders were killed in just 24 hours.

A New Hampshire public radio station offers tips on how bike riders can stay say on the road. Which mostly make sense as far as they go, although it’s hard to make eye contact with a speeding distracted driver. 

A former DOT official under the previous administration warns New York Mayor Adams’s “counterproductive” ebike speed limit will reduce bicycling rates and safety.

Unlike most American cities — including Los Angeles — New York is making progress under Vision Zero, with traffic deaths for the first six months of this year at their lowest level in recorded history. Then again, it’s hard to make progress when you don’t fund the program, and fight it at every turn.

 

International

EV Magazine lists the world’s top ten electric bikemakers, from Britain’s Brompton to Dutch conglomerate Pon Holdings.

That’s more like it. A 37-year old British man was sentenced to 13 years behind bars for the hit-and-run death that killed a 48-year old man riding a bicycle while driving nearly 100 mph, then setting his car on fire to destroy the evidence.

 

Competitive Cycling

Cycling Weekly explains everything you need to know about the third and final season of Netflix’ Tour de France: Unchained.

 

Finally…

That feeling when the family 116-year old bike shop is just this side of a museum — unless it becomes a dance studio. Your next racing bike could be an abstract expressionist canvas.

And that feeling when a young man’s effort to bike from Nigeria to the US breaks the internet.

Okay, not really.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

30-year old man riding bicycle killed in South LA hit-and-run — or maybe not, it’s kind of hard to say

July 2, 2025 / / No comments

The news just keeps getting worse this week.

At least, I think it’s this week.

According to a cryptic report from My News LA, the LAPD is looking for a hit-and-run driver who killed a 30-year old man riding a bicycle in the Vermont-Slauson neighborhood of South Los Angeles.

Except there’s no time listed for when the crash occurred. Or a date, for that matter. Only that police asked for the public’s help on Wednesday, which doesn’t exactly narrow it down.

The crash also occurred in a manner that would seem to be physically impossible.

According to the story,

The crash occurred when the vehicle, which was speeding east on 67th Street toward Flower Street, hit the bicyclist as he rode east on Flower, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

Except while 67th runs east and west, Flower runs north and south. Which means the victim, who hasn’t been publicly identified, was apparently either rear-ended as he rode east on 67th, or struck as he rode on Flower.

He died after being taken to a hospital, which was also unidentified.

The driver was last seen fleeing east on 67th Street toward Grand Ave. No description of the driver or vehicle was given.

Anyone with information is urged to call Officer Lozada at the LAPD’s South Traffic Division. But apparently, you’re supposed to look it up yourself, since there’s no number given.

Okay, I’ll save you the trouble.

It’s 323/421-2577, unless it’s 323/421-2500, since one is listed on the LAPD’s website, while the other came from a previous South Traffic Division press release.

Although you’d think they might have told us if they really want our help.

As always, there is a standing $50,000 reward for any fatal hit-and-run in the City of Los Angeles. Maybe they want you to tell them when and how the crash occurred to collect the reward.

This is at least the 22nd bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the sixth that I’m aware of in Los Angeles County; remarkably, it’s only the third we’ve learned about in the City of Los Angeles

This was also at least the sixth SoCal bike rider killed by hit-and-run drivers since the first of the year.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , ,

Crowdfund launched for fallen rider Virgo Datu, nominations for Burbank kids bike giveaway, and Metro meetings this month

July 2, 2025 / / No comments
Day 183 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

We’ve got a lot of ground to cover after yesterday’s unexcused absence.

But before we get started, a crowdfunding campaign has been launched to help pay funeral and memorial expenses for fallen bicyclist Virgo Datu.

Datu passed away unexpectedly after crashing when he caught a wheel on Saturday’s Montrose Ride.

The campaign has already raised over $10,000, more than double the initial $5,000 goal.

Photo of Virgo Datu from crowdfunding page.

………

I’m always a sucker for a good cause, especially when it comes to giving kids bicycles.

Which brings us to the 4th Annual Bikes for Kids giveaway sponsored by Burbank native and personal injury attorney Adrianos Facchetti.

According to a press release for the event,

Facchetti, who helps families recover after car accidents and injuries, says the giveaway is one of the most meaningful things his team does all year. “After seeing the struggles many of our clients go through, we wanted to create something that spreads joy.”

The event has grown steadily since its launch in 2021. Past winners included kids who helped care for siblings, stayed strong through medical challenges, or simply showed up every day with kindness. The firm invites the ten selected children to its Burbank office, where they receive their new bikes, helmets, and a round of applause…

“This community raised me,” Facchetti added. “This is one small way we can give back.”

Nominations are open for any child aged 6 to 17 who lives within ten miles of The Law Offices of Adrianos Facchetti at 4444 W. Riverside Drive, Suite 308, in Burbank. Submissions should explain how the child has gone “above and beyond” to help someone else, or positively impacted their siblings, classmates or community.

Nominations are open from July 5th through July 26th; just click here to submit yours.

………

Metro will hold a series of important public meetings this month to discuss the NoHo to Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit Project, and the Sepulveda Transit Corridor.

………

The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

Seriously? An English town defends fining people the equivalent of nearly $1,400 just for riding a bike through the town center, claiming residents have been “scarred for life” by “anti-social” bicyclists.

But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

If you’re trying to flee from San Bernardino Sheriff’s deputies while carrying several baggies of meth, try not to crash your ebike into one of their cars.

No bias here. A Santa Barbara grand jury examined complaints about bad behavior and near accidents involving young people on ebikes, concluding that better eduction and stricter enforcement were needed to rein them in — although the local paper doesn’t put it that nicely. And yes, some kids are out of control, with far too many e-motorbikes passed off as ebikes. But just wait until the jurors learn what drivers do out on the streets, as well the relative risk ebike riders pose compared to people in the big, dangerous machines.

………

Local 

A 31-year old man was in stable condition after being shot while riding his bike in DTLA Sunday night, telling police he didn’t see the shooter. Or presumably, know why.

The LA Country Sheriff’s Department will conduct another bicycle and pedestrian safety operation in West Hollywood on Thursday, ticketing anyone who commits a traffic violation that could endanger either group, regardless of who commits it. So as usual, ride to the letter of the law until you cross the city limit line to make sure you’re not the one who gets written up. Thanks to David for the heads-up. 

Santa Clarita officially broke ground on the new Haskell Canyon Bike Park on Tuesday.

 

State

California cities are now using drones to catch people riding illegal ebikes, aka out-of-class, not street legal or illegally modified.

Oceanside will dedicate a segment of the San Luis Rey River Trail in the city to Jensen Taylor Hughes, a young woman who was killed while riding on the trail in September, 2023. I don’t seem to have a record of her death, and can’t find any news reports.

An Oceanside man is working to transform the community through a lowrider bicycle project.

Family and friends of a 12-year old girl killed this April in an Encinitas crosswalk call out a proposal to widen deadly Encinitas Blvd to add a third traffic lane in each direction, calling for bicycle and pedestrian improvements instead.

A 41-year old man was busted for an allegedly drunken hit-and-run after rear-ending a bike rider in Perris; the victim was hospitalized in stable condition despite suffering serious injuries.

Ventura nonprofit Bike 4 A Cause will launch a free program to teach kids to ride bicycles this Saturday.

Hats off to Oakland’s Bay Area Bicycle Rescue, which collects unloved bikes from community members and repairs them to redistribute to people who need them, saving over 1,200 bikes from the landfill last year alone.

Singletracks talks with the Calirado Kid, a Sacramento-based mountain bike content creator “known for posting hilarious bike-related videos on Instagram, TikTok and Youtube,” while working with a science group to encourage riders to help document biodiversity in California.

 

National

Good damn question. A movie site questions whatever happened to all those great cycling movies like we had in the ’80s.

Buyer beware. Electrek considers what you really get when you order that $500 ebike online.

He gets it. A writer for Cycling Weekly argues that bicycling is a political act, and the battle for public lands is a reminder that cyclists can’t afford to stay on the sidelines of politics.

No bias here, either. A writer for a sustainable journalism newsletter examines the slow progress American cities are making in becoming bike friendly — but positions it by misleadingly asking if that progress is a good thing. But at least they have the good taste to include a photo of a Boston corgi in a cargo bike. 

The Atlantic bemoans the decline of a classic childhood pastime, as fewer kids are riding bikes. But you’ll have to sign up for a free trial if you want to read more than the first few paragraphs.

He gets it, too. Alaska writer Craig Medred complains that the public is usually kept in the dark about traffic violence, at a time when even AAA says only 35% of American drivers can be classified as “good,” and “only luck and the capabilities of modern medicine” keep the carnage from being worse.

As of yesterday, bike riders in New Mexico now enjoy the full benefits of the Idaho Stop Law, which lets bicyclists treat stop signs as yields and red lights as stop signs, although in both cases they’re required to observe the right-of-way and proceed only when safe.

Livability says diverse terrain, beautiful views and a lack crowds make Idaho’s Palouse region a bicycling paradise.

A new Denver bike app helps bicyclists find “low-stress” bike routes, while rewarding them for stopping at local businesses along the way.

A New York judge calls time out, ruling that a restraining order protecting an endangered bike lane will stay in place for now, until he rules on a case trying to stop the city from ripping it out.

More proof that bikes are good for business, after the US Pro Road National Championships generated a $6.9 million impact on Charleston, West Virginia — a whopping 50% jump over last year.

A new report says bike-unfriendly Alabama has the nation’s strictest bicycle laws.

 

International

Momentum recommends Canada’s best bike cities, for anyone looking to flee for snowier pastures.

More on the Toronto bike lane that Ontario officials want to rip out “because no one uses it” — even though it carries more rush hour traffic than the traffic lanes next to it. Maybe they should rip out one of the lanes drivers use to make more room for bikes, instead. 

After selling his eponymous bikewear brand, former Canadian Olympian Louis Garneau has started a new company focused on making more affordable kids bikes.

Shimano wants to know why Europe has a “critical” shortage of bike mechanics, saying it risks creating barriers to bicycling.

Police in Wales will stop accepting video evidence of overly close passes — or doing anything about them, anyway — even though video is been accepted as proof of traffic violations throughout the UK.

They get it. An Irish bike advocacy group says we try to rationalize traffic violence as freak accidents, when the roads are “still engineered, policed and legislated for in ways that accept, and sometimes even enable, lethal outcomes.”

Here’s your chance to own a new limited edition Swiss watch honoring cycling great Fabian Cancellara, for the low, low price of nearly $6,400. Although the only nod to Cancellara is a few touches of yellow, so it could honor anyone of your choice who has ever worn yellow, if Sparticus doesn’t do it for you. 

Life is cheap in New Zealand, where a judge acquitted a semi driver for killing a longtime bike commuter in their equivalent of a right hook, blaming poor road markings for making it unclear who had the right-of-way, even though the driver admitted to never even seeing the victim.

 

Competitive Cycling

Cyclist calls out the favorites for this year’s Tour de France, which they swear goes beyond Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard, and digs deep to examine who stands to get a cut of the race’s $2,714,901.48 in prize money (at Tuesday’s exchange rate).

Velo identifies “all the bikes, components and gear” used by the 23 teams rolling out for the Tour this Saturday.

 

Finally…

Now you, too, can own your very own established bike brand. Your next handlebars could be reminiscent of America’s military HQ, but with less brass.

And call it the next best thing to biking naked.

Thoughts on this skinsuit
byu/BaewuIf inCyclingFashion

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

75-year old Hemet man killed by hit-and-run driver while riding bike; suspected DUI driver arrested after brief chase

June 30, 2025 / / 2 comments

Once again, a SoCal bike rider has been killed by a hit-and-run driver.

But this time, they actually caught the heartless coward.

According to the Hemet Police Department, a man was struck by a driver around 5:36 pm Saturday, while riding east on Domenigoni Pwky near State Street.

The victim, identified as 75-year-old Hemet resident Kenneth Lauer, died at the scene before police arrived.

After witnesses provided a description of the vehicle, police searching the area spotted the vehicle. The driver refused to stop, and led officers on a brief chase before being taken into custody.

Police said the driver, who has not been publicly identified at this time, appeared to be under the influence, and believe that may have been a factor in the crash.

Anyone with information is urged to call Hemet Police Corporal Christian Coley at 951/765-2400.

This is at least the 21st bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fourth that I’m aware of in Riverside County.

Lauer was also at least the sixth SoCal bike rider killed by hit-and-run drivers since the first of the year.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Kenneth Lauer and his loved ones.

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , ,

CTC approves $5 billion for transportation but pittance for bikes & peds, and we’re not even safe at open streets events

June 30, 2025 / / No comments
Day 181 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

When is $5 billion not $5 billion?

When it comes from the California Transportation Commission.

The CTC announced this past week that they are investing that amount to improve road safety, reduce traffic congestion and promote cleaner transportation.

Although that amount drops a lot before they get to the “cleaner transportation” part. And even more before they get to the active kind of clean.

Nearly half of that 5 billion bucks is allocated for crumbling roadways, with another $1.45 billion to improve low-emission freight networks, while nearly $810 million goes to streamline freight movement to reduce truck idling and cut pollution.

You have to get all the way down to the bottom before bikes and pedestrians get a mention. Even then, it’s in the context of $483 million for passenger rail extensions, bike lanes and rapid transit bus systems, along with another $202 million for local rail, transit and pedestrian upgrades.

Which includes things $63 million to add a bridge and wildlife crossing for Riverside County’s Ramona Expressway — along with some bike lanes to help greenwash the project — as well $49 million for EV charging, and $28 million for ultra-fast vehicle chargers.

Oh, and there’s also a relatively minuscule $18 million to improve traffic safety near five Los Angeles schools, most of which will undoubtedly be spent to undo the damage caused by cars, rather than proactively improving biking and walking.

Even though that’s what kids do.

At least the ones who don’t get dropped off in big honking SUVs, pun intended.

Meanwhile, California Streetsblog says the CTC didn’t do anything to dispel the charge it just rubber stamps highway widening, after unanimously approving every highway project before it.

They may have a point.

………

We’re not even safe at open streets events.

Two Pittsburgh PA bike riders were lucky to escape with minor injuries when a woman blew through a barricade blocking streets for the event in her car, striking the first rider with her mirror.

She made a U-turn as bystanders yelled at her, before running down a second woman who heroically tried to use her bike to stop her.

Sheriff’s deputies working safety at the event finally brought the rampage to a halt, but had to bust out the car window to drag her out as she struggled and “became verbally abusive,” yelling racist statements at the cops.

No reason was given for the incident, and there’s no word on whether it was intentional.

But it sure as hell sounds like it.

………

The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

A brand new bike path in a Welsh city remains blocked by a gate, which may not swing open for at least another two months.

A British railway operator scrapped plans to scrap bike parking over fears it could be used for a car bomb. Or maybe a bike bomb, in this case.

But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

If you’re going to carry an illegal ghost gun with an extended magazine and laser attachment on your bike, try not to crash into a park car like this Connecticut teen.

Nothing like another mountain biker tossing your bike off a wet Whistler, Canada bridge just because you stopped to enjoy the view.

Speaking of videos, an Edinburgh bike rider posted video of a run-in with a pedestrian that begins with the bicyclist running a red light, and ends with him repeatedly telling the other man to fuck off — then is surprised when commenters criticize him instead of the other guy.

………

Local 

Malibu is extending its local emergency declaration addressing traffic violence on PCH, where 23 people have died in 22 crashes between 2018 and 2022, and 170 deaths and serious injuries between 2011 and 2023.

 

State

A 73-year old California man is walking or bicycling 50 kilometers — aka 31 miles — in each of the 50 states in just 50 days to inspire seniors to be more active.

Sad news from Fresno, where a woman was killed when she was run down from behind by a hit-and-run pickup driver, who clearly had to know they hit someone after dragging the woman’s bicycle 120 feet down the roadway.

 

National

If you bought a Bell bike helmet from Target or Walmart, you may have to take it back after a number of models are recalled.

A Utah man is filled with gratitude after finding he could do an entire ride to a downtown meeting on bike paths and bike lanes, 30 years after giving up his regular bike commute due to the risk.

That’s more like it. It’s now illegal for Utah motorists to block or drive in a bike lane, and they must yield to bicyclists riding in one.

Authorities in Montana are on the hunt for a killer grizzly bear who fatally mauled a 38-year old mountain biker on a trail trail just outside Glacier National Park after startling the bear, while his riding companion went for help.

Chicago Streetsblog complains that the city is not one of the nation’s worst cities for bicycling, despite what People For Bikes says, while admitting there’s room for improvement. Meanwhile, Los Angeles has even more room to improve.

NY Streetsblog offers “affidavits” from people who use a threatened Queens bike lane safely and legally, before an expected Tuesday court ruling in a lawsuit to save it, while making it clear the judge is an active contributor to the politician who wants to rip it out.

Lyft magnanimously agreed to stop blaming New York’s Pride celebrations for capping bikeshare ebike speeds at 15 mph, when it actually came in response to a directive from the mayor’s office.

A pair of New York women were both sentenced to six years behind bars for killing a 22-year old man riding a bicycle in New Jersey, even though only one woman actually hit him; both were driving separate cars up to 90 mph in a 50 mph zone, while passing other drivers on the shoulder of the roadway leading up to the crash.

This is how Vision Zero should work. Philadelphia is implementing safety improvements at an intersection where a 50-year old man was killed while riding his bike last month, as local residents say the changes can’t come quickly enough. Wait until someone tells them changes like that take years here in Los Angeles, if ever.

I really want to be like him when I grow up. An 84-year old Pennsylvania man completed the New Wilmington area’s annual Tour de Donut for at least the sixth time, riding ten miles while eating a dozen donuts.

 

International

Nat Geo has advice on where to go for your first gravel-biking adventure in Scotland.

A British writer rides over 400 miles of gravel on a mountain bike, and says he wouldn’t change a thing, despite “going arse over tits.”

Almost as impressive as the 84-year old donut eating man, an 87-year old man completed the UK’s Land’s End to John o’ Groats challenge, riding the entire length of the country in 14 days, while finishing the ride with two broken ribs and six stitches after crashing two days from the finish.

A new survey shows half of Dutch bike riders have ridden after drinking, while half of those admit to riding drunk. Which may pose its own risks, but I still say it’s better than driving under the influence of anything. 

 

Competitive Cycling

American Sepp Kuss will ride this year’s Tour de France, after missing last year’s race with Covid. Let’s hope he got his shot this year.

Twenty-seven-year old French cyclist Eddy Finé was forced to give up the sport after the Cofidis team revealed he has an “abnormality in the iliac artery, a problem that is incompatible with top-level sport,” and had struggled to return despite three operations in six years with the team.

It was national championship weekend in Europe —

 

Finally…

That feeling when you ride your bike from England to Australia without getting wet. Or when Lance just refuses to go away.

And what self-respecting bird wouldn’t rather go by bike?

@randomspotofglitter

Bike rides are her favorite. #getacockatooitwillbefun #moluccancockatoo #cockatoosoftiktok #peachesthemoluccancockatoo #fleetwoodmac #fyp #parrotsoftiktok #birdsoftiktok #lectricebikes #leathersforfeathers #lectricxptrike

♬ Dreams – Fleetwood Mac

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
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