Just 53 days left until Los Angeles fails to meet its Vision Zero pledge to eliminate traffic deaths by 2025.
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Shockingly, California was rated as the second-safest state to ride a bike in, behind only Massachusetts.
That’s despite having the country’s second-highest number of bicycling deaths, after Florida. But as Sports Illustrated notes, we also have the nation’s largest population, and the most drivers.
At the other end of the scale, Louisiana ranked as the most dangerous state for bicyclists, followed by Florida, Arizona and Mississippi.
So maybe you might want to route that dream ride across the US a tad further north, just to be safe
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Streetsblog says ambitious Complete Streets projects along Reseda and Ventura Blvds have helped Metro reach over 1 million daily bus and train boardings.
However, the picture is more complicated for the 217 bus line on La Cienega Ave, and Hollywood and Los Feliz Blvds, where the quick-build Hollywood Blvd bike lane amounts to just two miles of the expanded 15.5-mile route.
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It’s now 323 days since the California ebike incentive program’s latest failure to launch, which was promised no later than fall 2023. And a full 41 months since it was approved by the legislature and signed into law — and counting.
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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
Police in Ann Arbor, Michigan are investigating a driver who allegedly responded to getting yelled at for nearly hitting a bicyclist by pointing a gun at the bike rider and threatening him, but they insist it was just an isolated incident and there’s no threat to the public. Although someone who threatens random people with a gun over minor traffic incidents seems like kind of a big public threat to me. But what the hell do I know?
But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.
A Columbian extreme cyclist and bicycling influencer was killed, along with a 13-year old girl riding on the back of his bike, when he crashed his brakeless gravity bike head-on into motorcyclist while trying to pass a car on the wrong side of the roadway. Thanks to Megan Lynch for the heads-up.
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Local
The annual cleanup of Ballona Creek, home to the popular Ballona Creek bike path, will take place tomorrow (scroll down).
Streets For All is joining AARP for a Mobility popup in Westwood a week from Sunday.
State
Calbike continues its call for safer vehicles, starting with side guards for large trucks.
A Sacramento TV station examines how the city is using bicycle infrastructure to create safer streets for everyone.
Burglars have hit a Sacramento-area bike shop three times in just ten days, making off with around 100 ebikes worth $120,000.
The Bay Area bucked national trends by electing several safe streets advocates, including Emeryville’s “Bicycle Mayor” John Bauters, who is on the verge of moving on to the Alameda County Board of Supervisors.
National
NBC News profiles a Chinese man making his way across the US by bicycle to demonstrate the heart of humanity.
A fraternity at the University of Colorado is riding a stationary bike for nearly six days straight to raise $100,000 to protect bicyclists and pedestrians from distracted drivers.
A Denver bicyclist created a new interactive map showing just how far you can get in the city by bicycle in 15 minutes, to demonstrate the practicality of the 15-minute city.
Bike riders say the nation’s oldest bike path, Brooklyn’s 1894 Ocean Parkway Greenway, is in desperate need of a facelift.
The Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia reminds us that this year’s World Day of Remembrance for the victims of traffic violence will take place on Sunday, November 17th.
International
Momentum considers 12 cities with “drop dead gorgeous” waterfront bikeways. San Diego’s Mission Bay makes the list, but evidently LA County’s beachfront Marvin Braude trail just ain’t pretty enough.
The CBC looks at how Montreal became a bicycle-centric city.
Shockingly, the British woman sentenced to over six years for the drug-fueled hit-and-run death of a bike riding man was five times over the legal limit for cocaine. No, what’s shocking is that Britain even has a legal limit for coke.
Smithsonian examines how the infamous Berlin Wall became a 100-mile long bike and pedestrian trail along the former border between the erstwhile East and West Germanys.
Evidently, there’s something funny about watching Aussie cops fall off their bikes riding up a steep, grassy hill.
Competitive Cycling
France’s Vélo d’Or, aka Golden Bicycle, will honor fallen Swiss cyclist Gino Mäder with a new award in his name for athletes supporting charitable or societal causes; Mäder was killed in a high speed crash while descending at last year’s Tour de Suisse.
Cyclist ranks the top 50 women’s road cyclists of the 2020s; you know it’s a tough list when the legendary Marianne Vos only comes in at number 6.
Cycling Up To Date ranks the top five male Belgian cyclists of this century; again, it’s a tough list when Remco Evenepoel can only hit number 3.
Finally…
Your next bike helmet could call for help if you actually put it to use. Your next cargo ebike could be a funky reverse tricycle.
And when you’re riding on Friar Truck Road with meth on your bike, put some damn lights and reflectors on it.
The bike, I mean, not the road. Or the meth.
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Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.
Oh, and fuck Putin
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/08/ambulance-hits-oregon-cyclist-charges-bill-hospital