It’s official.
DTLA is getting an $11 million bikeshare program next spring, with 1,100 bikes and 65 stations around the Downtown area. Plans are to expand into nine other neighborhoods by 2017.
However, the system to be installed by Philadelphia’s Bicycle Transit Systems is unlikely to be compatible with other bikeshares in Long Beach and Santa Monica, as well as other Westside locations.
Streetsblog’s Joe Linton says we should let the disparate systems thrive. I wish I could share his optimism; my fear is that multiple, incompatible bikeshare systems will doom them to failure.
Let’s hope I’m wrong.
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2013 Tour de France winner Chris Froome blames overzealous hotel workers for his missed blood test earlier this year. US riders swear they’re clean, too, while Teejay says his homie Lance deserves a second chance.
Peter Stetina hopes to return to racing this year after a horrific crash in Spain last spring. NPR profiles rising Columbian rider Nairo Quintana.
Women will ride some of the same routes as the men in Colorado’s USA Pro Challenge this year; the first American Gio Donne winner is looking forward to it.
And British pro Lizzie Armistead has recovered from her recent collision with finish line photographers, and will be racing in the country’s national championships this weekend.
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Local
LA’s recently passed hit-and-run reward system is being put into practice, offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the heartless jerk who killed Manuel Enrique Mendoza-Hernandez in South Park earlier this month. Meanwhile, KCRW talks hit-and-run.
CiclaValley pens an ode to the 300 volunteers helping to put on Sunday’s LA River Ride. I’m planning to be there, so stop by the main LACBC booth and say hi after your ride.
Malibu’s city council approved the new PCH safety study by a vote of four to zero; as the story notes, the problems will come when it’s time to implement the recommendations over the likely objections of local residents.
Some Redondo Beach residents are declaring the city’s new separated bike lanes, sharrows and reverse-angle parking a failure a whole week after they were officially unveiled.
Sounds like fun. Flying Pigeon is hosting the Nobody Can Hear You Scream in Space Ride Saturday night.
State
For reasons that probably only make sense to them, the CHP opposes a statewide hit-and-run alert system; you’re urged to voice your support for the bill before Monday.
The OC Register says the adult tricycle rider killed with her dog in a suspected DUI collision was riding at one of the most dangerous times of day; CHP records put the greatest risk to bike riders between 6 pm and 7 pm, and 10 pm to 11 pm. The victim still hasn’t been publicly identified.
The bike rider who was deliberately run down by the UC Santa Barbara shooter has filed a lawsuit against the shooter’s parents, as well as the university, the county and the sheriff’s department.
National
A 9-year old girl was shot in the leg while riding her bike in Lincoln NE, while a cancer patient riding cross-country to raise awareness was robbed at gunpoint in Tennessee.
Pittsburgh is experiencing a bikelash over proposed bike lanes, as the city attempts to get people out of their cars.
Danish Race Across America (RAAM) competitor Anders Tesgaard has been critically injured in a collision with a pickup in West Virginia; his support van had reportedly stopped for gas, leaving Tesgaard unprotected on the roadway.
DC residents don’t exactly respond positively to an OpEd calling for bikes on the sidewalks.
The Episcopal Church is doing some soul searching following the drunken hit-and-run death of a cyclist at the hands of a now-former Baltimore Bishop.
Now that’s more like it. A Florida man gets 20 years — yes, 20 — for the hit-and-run death of a bike rider.
International
A bike thief with a conscience returns the BMX bike he stole and rebuilt, and offers a heartfelt apology to the parents of the bike’s 11-year old Calgary owner eight months after he died in an accident — and exact one year after he first brought the bike home.
Speaking of Calgary, the local police get it, saying of you’re too drunk to drive, you’re too drunk to ride. But if they had to choose, they’d rather see you drunk on two wheels than behind one.
London mayoral candidates says the priority given to motor vehicles in the city has to end. Any chance we could get them to move here?
A salmon cyclist reportedly yelled at a UK pedestrian to get out of the way before slamming into her and riding off, breaking her leg in five places.
English police arrest a 26-year old motorist on suspicion of murder following a fatal bike collision, though Britain’s press restrictions prevent them from telling us why.
Yet another British bike race has been sabotaged with pins. And yet another saboteur should face terrorism charges when he, she or they are caught.
Serious cycling injuries are up 8% in Great Britain, however, the increase could be due to a jump in ridership.
An Aussie cyclist says both drivers and bike riders need to be educated on proper road use.
New Zealand commits to building 41 new bikeway projects worth $333 million, the equivalent of $230 million US.
Finally…
A Portland Baptist church isn’t really calling for a cover-up of the city’s World Naked Bike Ride. Your next e-bike foldie could provide turn-by-turn navigation and warn you about potholes. But not, evidently, naked bike riders. Or Baptists.
And bikes have headlights, so why not skateboards?
