BikinginLA

They get it.

The Los Angeles Times calls for passing legislation to legalize speed cams, saying they could “quickly make some of the state’s most speed-prone and dangerous streets safer…”

…With traffic deaths on the rise in California, and particularly in cities, such as Los Angeles and San Jose, you’d think lawmakers would eagerly adopt a proven strategy for saving lives.

You would be wrong. In 2021 and 2022, state legislators killed bills that would override the state prohibition on automated speed enforcement and let some cities install speed cameras to catch and ticket motorists who egregiously exceed the speed limit.

It’s worth taking a few minutes to read the whole thing.

Then contact your state Assembly member and urge them to support Assembly Bill 645, which was introduced by Burbank Assemblymember, Transportation Committee Chair, and US Congressional candidate Laura Friedman.

We’re definitely going to miss her when she leaves the legislature.

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Mark your calendar for World Bicycle Day on Saturday, June 3rd, while Tuesday, May 30th is the first National Ebike Day.

Neither of which have anything to do April’s LSD-themed Bicycle Day.

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It was a bad time to bike around large trucks, as an Alabama bike rider was killed by a dump truck driver on Tuesday, while a Saskatoon, Saskatchewan woman was killed when her bike was struck by the driver of a cement truck, and a London bike rider was killed in a collision with a commercial truck driver.

Note the emphasis on drivers, since the trucks weren’t driving themselves, regardless of what the local press bothers to mention them.

Best advice is to always give large trucks as wide a berth as you can, including moving off the roadway if necessary to stay safe.

It’s better to bail and make it home in one piece, than wish you had.

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An LA bike rider gets fed up with Google’s misleading and just plain wrong bike maps, so he makes his own more accurate version.

Thanks to Erik Griswold and Danny for the heads-up.

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Oceanside bike lawyer and BikinginLA sponsor Richard Duquette forwards a discount for next month’s Giro di San Diego.

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

No bias here. A Pacific Beach website says residents expressed their displeasure over plans to build a bike boulevard on Diamond Street — even though just four people of the seven people commented at a town council meeting even mentioned it; although one resident correctly noted it would affect property values. Even though she meant they’d go down, while bikeways usually make them go up.

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Local 

BikeLA, the former Los Angeles Count Bicycle Coalition, has partnered with autonomous carmaker Waymo to continue their Operation Firefly bike light distribution program this year, which has given out over 15,000 sets of lights over more than a decade. The program started back when I was still on the board of the nonprofit, not that I take any credit for it.

Pasadena is launching its own ebike rebate plan July 1st, with rebates starting at $500; if you qualify for the California ebike rebate prgram, which should launch by then, you could be looking at $1,500 off the price a standard ebike, and significantly more for an e-cargo bike.

The Altadena Bicycle Club and Altadena Heritage will host their 3rd Annual Altadena Golden Poppy Bicycle Ride this Sunday. Which is a lot of damn Altadenas if you ask me.

Santa Monica will conduct road work around the pier to install concrete medians separating the bike lane from motor vehicle traffic on Ocean Ave.

Streetsblog takes a detailed tour of the new Mark Bixby bike and pedestrian path along the Long Beach International Gateway Bridge.

 

State

A 57-year-old road bike rider suffered a compound fracture to his left leg when he was struck by a 61-year old man riding a Harley Davidson in San Diego’s Kearny Mesa neighborhood; the motorcyclist suffered road rash in the crash.

Santa Barbara residents can now check out an ebike from the local library.

A Bakersfield man is on trial for fleeing the scene after running down two people riding bikes, leaving one in a coma, while driving with a blood alcohol level over three times the legal limit; naturally, the defense lawyer blamed the victims for wearing dark clothes and riding without reflectors after dark, instead of his allegedly drunk client.

Sad news from San Jose, where a man riding an e-scooter died days after he crashed into brush piled in a bike lane. Which is exactly why bike lanes should be cleaned on a regular basis, but usually aren’t.

Palo Alto is planning to build bike underpasses before construction begins on reconfiguring its rail crossings, so bike riders and pedestrians can continue to use them while work continues.

Streetsblog’s Roger Ruddick says a report from a local TV station that that San Francisco streets are safer is counterfactual. Which is a polite way of saying it’s BS.

San Francisco News takes a closer look at the city’s “impressive” Slow Streets program.

 

National

Outdoor recommends the best bike helmets.

How to demonstrate you don’t ride a bike, without saying it. Money recommends the best bike racks, starting with a pair of typical wheel-bender racks.

The Scottsdale, Arizona city council is split down the middle regarding the city’s recent road diets, with the mayor and three councilmembers supporting them, and three councilmembers opposed.

This is who we share the road with. An Arizona man faces charges for drifting into a bike lane and killing a bike rider while high on meth and weed; the 46-year old man tried to claim the bike rider swerved in front of his SUV.

Denver has exceeded the city’s goal of building 125 miles of new bike lanes in five years, with 137 miles since 2018.

A Chicago man says if you can’t find a plexiglass covered e-cargo trike, just build your own. Then offer to build some for other people, too.

A legal site examines why people in Wisconsin drive recklessly, blaming a number of factors including the state’s unique laws and driving culture. Although a much shorter explanation is because they can.

Cleveland, Ohio is pushing proposals to change zoning laws and incentives for transit-oriented development with limited parking in an effort to become a 15-minute city.

Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer, co-chair of the Congressional Bike Caucus, teamed with a DC advocacy group to lead a bike ride around the city to demand policies to protect bike riders. Maybe next time they could convince our bike-riding president to join them.

No surprise here, as Miami is one of the nation’s most dangerous places to ride a bike, ranking fifth in the US for bicycling deaths.

 

International

Momentum readers consider the world’s worst bike lanes, including one on PCH in San Diego.

They get it. A Toronto website debunks three common myths about bike lanes, including that they cause congestion and are bad for business; meanwhile a bent bike rack has a Toronto writer bent out of shape.

Mixed results in London, where bicycling fatalities dropped last year, but serious injuries rose sharply.

An English website explains the benefits of Low Traffic Neighborhoods, the British equivalent of our Slow Streets, while debunking the “evil plot” to give people cleaner air and safer streets.

Welsh police face an investigation over the crash that killed two ebike-riding teenagers, who may or may not have been chased by the cops at the time of their crash; security video shows a police van following them just one minute before the fatal crash.

Talk about two countries divided by a common language. Cycling Weekly says Britain’s bike nonprofit “gives you the chance to loan an ebike for a month for free.” Although we’d say “borrow” on this side of the Atlantic. 

An Italian craftsman builds bespoke wooden bike wheel rims, just down the road from the shrine to the Madonna del Ghisallo, patron saint of bicyclists.

A Kiwi website says ebike commuting can be quicker than driving, and healthier, too. The same also holds true up here where drains circle clockwise.

An Aussie bike site asks if road rage is worth getting riled up about.

 

Competitive Cycling

Welshman Geraint Thomas continues to lead the Giro, while Italy’s Alberto Dainese bounced back from a stomach illness to win Wednesday’s stage 17. Anyone who can continue with a bike race while battling stomach issues definitely has my respect.

Ireland’s Eddie Dunbar has worked his way into the top five, with just five stages left in the Giro.

Cyclist examines the businesses behind pro cycling’s biggest sponsors.

 

Finally…

Chances are, Johnny Appleseed would ride a bike these days, just like his Indian counterpart. That feeling when your bike has its own mailbox. And gets love letters.

And when a cat has probably biked through more states than you have.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin, too.