BikinginLA

Following up on last night’s standing room only presentation at Occidental College, New York’s Commissioner of Transportation and Oxy graduate Janette Sadik-Khan — the woman who added 200 miles of bike lanes to the city’s crowded streets, and continues to add lanes at a rate of 50 miles per year — will be a featured guest when KPCC’s AirTalk with Larry Mantle looks at StreetSummit, beginning at 10 am today. If you miss it, visit their site later for a recording or podcast.

And in case you missed last night’s speech — or like me, you got there late and had to watch it on a TV screen in the lobby — I’ve been assured that she will reprise her speech at Saturday’s L.A. StreetSummit 2010 at LA Trade Tech College.

She’ll take the stage promptly at 10:30, so get there by 10 am to make sure you can register and make it inside in time. Then stick around for all the other sessions, including a certain session on bikes and politics at 1pm.

Personally, I’ll get there by 9:45 to make sure I don’t miss out again.

Update: Damien Newton offers a great review of last night’s speech.

And that’s the main difference between the “new” NYCDOT and the “current” LADOT.  While NYCDOT is constantly pushing the envelope, and seeing dramatic success in reducing car dependency; the LADOT has resisted all efforts to change business as usual.  NYCDOT is concerned about moving people, LADOT seems more concerned about political gamesmanship and protecting their jobs and the failed status quo on our streets.  This “goofus and gallant” comparison was in-part inspsiring and in-part depressing.  All you have to do is compare Sadik-Khan’s delighted boast that her department completed 2,000 hours of outreach to LADOT General Manager Rita Robinson’s excuse making that her departmentcan’t afford to send representatives to Neighborhood Council meetings or properly staff Bike Advisory Committee meetings.

As Sadik-Khan talked about how easy it is to make some of these changes, some in the room got a little quesy.  It’s easy to paint bus-only lanes?  Sorry, that takes decades of studies and environmental reviews.  NYCDOT has a goal of fifty miles of new bike lanes ever year?  Well, here in L.A. we can bring a Sharrows pilot program on a couple of streets to fruition a mere three years, and counting, after the city starts studying it.  To be fair, yes, there is an effort out of the Mayor’s office to change L.A. into a transit town in the next decade through leveraging Measure R funds in the “30 in 10” program.  But New York had a more extensive subway system than L.A. will have even under “30 in 10.” As recently as five years ago their city was gridlocked with car traffic and pollution with no end in sight anyways.

I highly recommend reading the full story.

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The LACBC is one of just five groups nationwide to receive an REI/Bicycle Friendly Community Grant. A Metro driver hits a cyclist on Sunset and blames the rider for vandalizing the bus — then refuses to exchange information as required by law. A fresh start between cyclists and semi-bike friendly Santa Monica. When a cyclist locks her bike to a fence at an Amtrak station in Davis, an employee cuts the lock and tosses it over a fence where it is promptly stolen (thanks to George Wolfberg for the heads-up). Women are encouraged to complete a brief 10 – 15 minute survey on cycling to help planners understand why women do — or don’t — bike. Saying “I ride a bike, too” doesn’t mean you’re an expert on cycling. Advice for polite and practical cycling. A driver nearly hits a cyclist after running a stop sign, then tells the rider to “get off the f-ing street.” Brooklyn police are cracking down on cyclists who leave bike lanes, even to pass double-parked cars. A truck driver is nearly charged with hit-and-run after stopping to aid an injured cyclist. A Nashville writer concludes that cyclists are scary. New York’s Police Commissioner aids a woman injured in a collision with a cyclist. A leading Brit road safety group encourages cyclists to ride to the left (our right) in the middle of the block, but take the lane at intersections. The new BMW bike offers proof that cycling is the new golf.

Finally, a new British drivers’ group puts the twit in Twitter. With the motto “Drive more. Drive faster,” they insist bikes are for poor people, speeding saves lives and farms should be paved for parking.

Why do we drivers pay for nice smooth shiny black stuff and then let Lycra wrapped numpties pointlessly pedal on it in their stupid circles?

But before you get too upset, bear in mind that the groups is called the Association of British Nutters. Maybe Tony Kornheiser can open a U.S. branch.