It’s our first light news day in awhile, so let’s get right to it.
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Today’s common theme is bikeshare.
Caught on video: Vandalism of the Bay Area’s Ford GoBike bikeshare continues, as someone set one of the bikes on fire as it was docked.
A new Rutgers University survey shows black and Latino respondents support bike lanes and bikeshare, but concerns over crime and racial profiling have to be addressed first.
Two more dockless bikeshare companies are taking to the streets of Seattle, starting with China’s Ofo.
It really shouldn’t surprise anyone that the Trump Administration had a bikeshare station removed from the White House grounds, after it had been installed at the request of the previous administration.
The battle for dominance in China’s crowded bikeshare market claimed another victim as Nanking’s Ding Ding went out of business without returning customer’s deposits.
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In a setback for safer streets, the Neighborhood Council of Westchester/Playa voted to send an advisory letter to CD11 Councilmember Mike Bonin calling on him to “immediately reverse the lane reductions in Playa del Rey.”
The motion was approved after removing Pershing Drive from the resolution, which presumably means they want to keep that one.
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Local
KPCC looks at plans to revamp the area in front of Union Station to make it more inviting for people walking and biking. Even if that means eliminating some parking and reducing traffic lanes on nearby streets.
Volunteers are wanted to help clean up the Santa Clara River in Santa Clarita; free bike valet will be provided by local bike shop Performance Cyclery.
Manhattan Beach approves a 400 foot bikeway along Pollywog park to improve safety to middle school students going to and from school.
State
The LA Weekly asks if California’s strict DUI laws are tough enough. That’s easy. No.
San Diego authorities thought they caught a break when police detained a couple for the hit-and-run that left a bike-riding woman in a medically induced coma, but it turned out to be the wrong car. Thanks to Frank Lehnerz for the heads-up.
After dominating California high school mountain biking, recent Ramona High School graduate Gwendalyn Gibson will represent the US at the world championships in Australia next month.
Santa Barbara will get its first protected bike lane, connecting the Eastside to downtown. If you can call bendable bollards protection, that is.
No bias here. A San Luis Obispo paper says local residents aren’t happy about plans to create a bicycle boulevard. Except they’ve dropped plans for the bike boulevard, and are actually proposing a pair of protected bike lanes. And only “several” of the 60 speakers complained about the proposal.
San Francisco is planning a road diet, bike lanes and other safety improvements on one of the city’s most dangerous corridors as part of the city’s Vision Zero program.
A Sebastopol bike gear maker nearly became the victim of a patent troll.
West Sacramento is installing a road diet to improve safety for people biking and walking; as usual, some residents want it ripped out before the construction is even finished.
A Sacramento public radio station examines efforts to allow mountain biking in US wilderness areas.
Folsom will open the full 2.5 mile Johnny Cash trail this October, honoring the singer’s legendary 1968 performance at nearby Folsom Prison; artwork depicting the singer will follow in another five years.
National
Seattle’s police department politely suggests it has better things to do than enforce the county’s mandatory bike helmet law.
Caught on video too: Bighearted Texas paramedics make a four-year old girl’s day by giving her a bicycle one of their daughters had outgrown after they treated her for a fall.
It took a bike rider to find a pair of horses that threw their riders and ran off into a Missouri national battlefield after getting spooked by turkeys.
Nice story. When a father tweeted that he couldn’t take his little daughter to a Green Bay Packers event she’d been looking forward to, one of the Packers players volunteered to ride a bike with her to a team practice himself. Even though her father was a Vikings fan.
Kindhearted Michigan cops buy a new bicycle for a young girl after taking a report about her stolen bicycle.
A New York driver parked in a bike lane — then chased after a woman and called her a fucking bitch after she had the audacity to ride her bike around him. Apparently, she was supposed to sit there and wait until he moved his car. Or maybe she said something as she rode past.
International
A fan of the Nottingham soccer club is riding to all of the second-tier British team’s away games to raise money for a cancer charity; he expects to ride at least 2,249 miles before the season ends next May.
Caught on video: A Scottish van driver has to make a panic stop to avoid a bike rider who rode out directly in front of him at a rainy junction.
Self-described anarchists remove grocery store ads from Helsinki’s bikeshare bikes.
Life is cheap in Singapore, where a truck driver got a whopping four weeks for killing an ebike rider when he pulled out from an intersection without looking. But at least he was banned from driving for five years, which will likely force him to find another line of work.
Finally…
No, you don’t want to borrow an abandoned bike in Japan. There’s a lot of good ways to impress friends; stealing a bike isn’t one of them.
And no, those bike-shaped bike racks aren’t meant for riding.
The helmet article I could not find actual numbers in but appreciate heads up about Seattle having such a prohibition despite it being used only as an excuse apparently to stop people.
A new thought amazingly comes to me- let helmets be optional under 20 MPH or on bikes rarely capable or not prone to spill us so as to provide enforcement guidance and a defence.
On slow level ground a fat tire cruiser traveling a short safe distance is complete without human powering passenger needing code as to how to dress. It is on such bikes for such distances that all impediments to progress must be struck. I assume it is legal to mount an atv at 40 MPH with wind blowing in hair freely in places where even walking a bike unarmored on sidewalk might get refugees deported.
If ones health insurance will cover injuries they should be legal to sustain, welcome to risk, fantastic to be safer via when the option to choose creates less dangerous roads for everyone.
The real reasons helmet laws get passed and remain however dusty deserves a best seller to report. Where there are docks there should be helmet vending if not optional. Forcing law abiders to carry helmets is stingy. Clearly the universal rigid one size fits all foldable personal sweat retaining discrete liners day is here and such liners should be included in memberships at cost the shells with every bike and electronic for structural damage detection.
A shareable bike with skull protection for those bothering to bring liner ain’t complete. It might fake protection except against being hustled for those liner less but so what…. the potential for enough crumple distance to reduce concussions has not been realised by personally owned caps. Airbags where more affordable in rental cars then …
I’m not for nanny state laws but years ago my dad had a friend who was an experienced rider that fell off his bike at low speed and hit his head on the ground sans helmet. Dad gave me one that I still wear. His friend spent the rest of his life as a vegetable. So if you think you’re skilled, smart, or exempt good for you. Maybe someone will visit you in the hospital but you will not be able to recognize them. 🙁