BikinginLA

It’s another light news day for some reason.

And this time, I actually managed to manage my diabetes well enough to stay awake to work. 

So let’s get right to it. 

And apropos of nothing, here’s an AI image of a corgi riding a tricycle.

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A couple quick reminders of events taking place today.

LADOT is hosting a virtual workshop to discuss building bikeways connecting neighborhoods on the Westside, which they could find in the city’s decade-old mobility plan, if they bothered to dust it off.

However, judging by their tweet/post, the actual time is on a need to know basis. But since you may need to know, it starts at 5:30 pm.

Join our virtual bikeways workshop tomorrow! Don't miss out on shaping bikeways that will connect Westside neighborhoods. Your input is essential for safe routes. Register now: https://t.co/NqQP4cPQ3a 2c919f&_x_zm_rhtaid=298#/registro pic.twitter.com/u7LM4x0B1k

— LADOT (@LADOTofficial) November 8, 2023

The other event takes on a sadder tone, as street safety nonprofit SAFE — aka Streets Are For Everyone — will place a ghost bike for fallen Hollywood producer Bob George, who was killed in a dooring in East Hollywood last month.

Join us as we place a Ghost Bike for
Robert George, who was hit and killed on the 17th of
October in Hollywood.#GhostBike #InMemorium #SafeStreets #LosAngeles pic.twitter.com/hVvub7Dfy3

— Streets Are For Everyone (@StreetsR4Every1) November 8, 2023

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He gets it.

I believe that there is a street safety crisis in America.

Losing hundreds of lives to unsafe streets is unacceptable. My bill, the Building Safer Streets Act, will help fix this chronic issue here in PA & across the country. pic.twitter.com/l61S5pjuD6

— Senator John Fetterman (@SenFettermanPA) November 7, 2023

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

No bias here. After a dump truck driver struck and killed a Louisiana bike rider, state troopers and the local media were quick to remove any agency from the killer driver, while blaming the victim for “colliding” with the truck.

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

That feeling when the cops chase a bike-riding known felon through the streets of Red Bluff CA, where the local press apparently doesn’t know the difference between road and rode. Never mind that the police need probable cause to stop someone, let alone chase them, and “known felon” isn’t enough. 

A Texas man faces charges for repeatedly stabbing another man in a dispute over a bicycle, after he had taken the victim’s bike earlier in the day and returned without it.

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Local 

Discover Los Angeles looks forward to next month’s CicLAvia – South LA on December 3rd, the final CicLAvia of the year. Just my luck they had to schedule it on my sister’s birthday, when I will be otherwise engaged. 

 

State

KPBS talks with former Caltrans executive Jeanie Ward-Waller, who was fired for blowing the whistle on a possibly illegal freeway project in Sacramento after watching the agency repeatedly skirt the rules.

Streetsblog’s Melanie Curry takes Caltrans to task after Director Tony Tavares tweeted that safety is the agency’s top priority, arguing that if it is, it certainly doesn’t show. Maybe he can explain how wasting billions to widen freeways makes anyone any safer.

Calbike announced plans for its next biennial California Bicycle Summit, to be held in San Diego on April 18th and 19th.

A long-awaited bikeway connecting Santa Barbara County’s iconic Santa Claus Lane with nearby Carpenteria has finally opened.

A San Luis Obispo bike rider was lucky to escape injury after being struck by a 15-year old boy driving a stolen car; the driver and his passenger fled on foot, but cops were able to track down the boy behind the wheel.

Sad news from Modesto, where a bike rider was killed by a hit-and-run driver in a Kia Soul as he was just trying to ride across the street.

A report on the contentious bike lane pilot program on the Bay Area’s Richmond-San Rafael Bridge confirms that it’s not the cause of traffic congestion on the bridge, along with the resulting smog, while opponents play the race card in a full-page ad trying to get it removed.

 

National

CleanTechnica explains how ebikes can make using a bike for transportation practical, or even pleasurable. To which Californians still waiting for the state’s long-delayed ebike rebate program responded, “We wouldn’t know.”

A new organization co-founded by a Portland phys-ed teacher is dedicated to helping kids and parents form bike buses throughout the US.

That’s more like it. An Iowa woman was sentenced to 20 years behind bars for the drunken crash that killed two men and injured another when she somehow mistook a bike path for a freeway onramp; she’ll have to spend at least 17 years behind bars before she’s eligible for parole. Which should give her plenty of time to sober up. 

That’s more like it. Several members of the Dallas, Texas city council rode their bikes to work as the city works on its first new bike plan in a decade; one council member said he only felt safe on about half of his ride. Which is probably more than many of the city’s bike riders could say. 

The Kaitlin Armstrong murder trial continued in Austin, Texas, with testimony from two of her friends who heard her threaten to kill gravel cyclist Moriah “Mo” Wilson, in a jealous rage over a perceived love triangle with pro cyclist Colin Strickland; a former prosecutor warns the case is built on circumstantial evidence.

Streetsblog introduces real New Yorkers who rely on ebikes, in an effort to get politicians to stop demonizing them; meanwhile, Curbed says licensing New York ebikes won’t make the sidewalks any safer.

Bicycles could be restricted, if not banned, under new rules proposed for the iconic Blue Ridge Parkway stretching through Virginia and North Carolina.

A student advocacy group at North Carolina’s Duke University took matters into their own hands, and striped their own DIY bike lanes using duct tape and temporary paint.

You’ve got to be kidding. Life is really cheap in Georgia, where a 28-year old man walked without a day behind bars for the hit-and-run crash that left a 60-year old man riding a bicycle with life-threatening injuries; he jumped a raised median with his car, striking the victim from behind and kept going despite literally running the man over. If you wonder why people keep dying on our streets, this is Exhibit A. 

 

International

Momentum suggests a dozen ways a bicycle could supercharge your life in the city.

Police in London say halting a rash of bike muggings is “among” their priorities, as a number of bike riders report being attacked for their bicycles. Not that they want to get carried away and stick their necks out or anything.

The sister of a fallen Welsh bike rider and two of his friends have refurbished the historic village pub where he used to hang out, and are re-opening it in his honor. Although someone should tell the Welsh news site about this nifty new invention called paragraphs, which would make stories like this much easier to read.

A new patent show Shimano may be trying to cut the weight on e-bike motor systems for gravel bikes and roadies.

A new ebike radar system developed by a 75-year old Japanese company uses an AI algorithm to worn of vehicles approaching from the rear that could pose a risk, as well as a multi-stage brake light for enhanced visibility.

 

Competitive Cycling

Three climate activists who halted this year’s Men’s Elite Road Race at the UCI Cycling World Championships in Scotland by gluing their hands to the narrow roadway got off with a firm admonishment from the local sheriff, while the fourth was fined the equivalent of $307.19.

 

Finally…

Heavy bikes need a heavy duty bike stand and lift system. That feeling when low-cost Costco techwear is almost, sort of, but not quite as good as the name brand mountain bike stuff.

And your new ebike could have a motor developed for a Mars lander, for the low, low price of just 25 grand.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin