Archive for Morning Links

Morning Links: Political news and endorsements, Caltrans feints at engagement, and how to lose bike vote

February 13, 2017 / / 5 comments

Let’s talk election news before we move on to other subjects.

Starting with a handful of endorsements from Bike the Vote LA, as they rush to get them in before next month’s LA city election.

First up, they’ve endorsed CD15 Councilmember Joe Buscaino for re-election. Buscaino has been a strong supporter of bike lanes and safer streets in his district. And unlike most LA city councilmembers, had the backbone to stand up to San Pedro residents who demanded removal of a road diet intended to improve safety for students on their way to school.

While they’re not making an endorsement in CD9, currently represented by Curren Price, they shared this questionnaire response from opposition candidate Adriana Cabrera. Cabrera seems to grasp the importance of bikes in a community where many residents rely on them for transportation, calling for a return of the Central Avenue bike lanes Price had removed from the Mobility Plan.

And like the LACBC, Bike the Vote takes a strong stand against the anti-growth Measure S, portraying it as a ego project from Michael Weinstein, head of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), which “will only make housing prices, traffic congestion, and social inequity worse.” Never mind that almost all the funding for the measure has come from AHF, instead of being spent for the benefit of patients and the prevention of HIV/AIDS.

Although that’s not nearly as strong a stand as the LA Times took in rejecting the measure, describing it as a “childish middle finger to City Hall” that will worsen the city’s housing crisis and stifle economic development.

Finally, the LA Weekly asks if bike shop owner Joe Bray-Ali can defeat anti-bike incumbent Gil Cedillo in CD1, noting the historical difficulty in beating an incumbent councilmember in the City of Angels. It should also be noted that Cedillo’s stated opposition to bike lanes that benefit just a “small, tight-knit community of cyclists” flies in the face of his self-proclaimed support for immigrants, many of whom rely on a bicycle as their sole source of transportation.

………

Maybe they don’t really want to talk to us.

In an apparent effort to get public input on Caltrans’ new Bike and Pedestrian plan without really having to engage the public, Caltrans is holding exactly three public meetings — yes, 3 — to discuss the plan in a state of 38 million people.

That works out to 12.6 million people trying to squeeze into each room. Which means you should get there early if you want to attend the meeting in Santa Ana on March 6th.

Never mind that by not holding meetings in Los Angeles, San Diego, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Francisco or Sacramento, they are bypassing the state’s major population centers. And the overwhelming majority of people who walk or ride bikes.

But at least you can attend the meetings virtually, via webinar.

After all, we’re easier to ignore that way.

Which would seem to be the point. Because you don’t limit it to just three meetings for the entire state of California if you really want to hear from the people.

………

That’s one way to lose the bike vote.

A candidate for Claremont city council parked his car, which doubles as a campaign ad, in a Claremont bike lane. And left it there.

Which, as it turns out, appears to be semi-legal there, if you ignore the state prohibition against blocking bikeways.

However, it does guarantees that every rider who has to change lanes to go around it will notice the car, and most likely remember his name on election day.

When they cast their ballot for his opponent.

Thanks to Erik Griswold for the heads-up.

………

People on bikes are heroes once again.

Or make that twice.

A San Antonio postal carrier can credit a bicycling nurse for saving her life, after she teamed with other riders to help after postal worker was shot in the leg.

And a British bicyclist saves a pair of swans from morning commuters by herding them off the road.

………

They’re one of us, too.

Actress Bella Thorne rides the sidewalks of LA with friends until she gets a flat. Maybe someone should tell her those can be fixed pretty easily.

New York celebrity chef Seamus Mullen lost 70 pounds by cutting out processed carbs and getting back on his bicycle.

And Lily Allen doesn’t just sing about riding her bike through London, she actually does it.

………

Brit Tour de France champ Bradley Wiggins won’t be making any ski jumps for awhile.

Afghan and Pakistani cyclists compete in a 217-mile race through Pakistan’s militant-torn northwest province in an effort to bring the countries together and promote tourism.

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Local

The Beverly Press attempts to explain LA’s Vision Zero plan to the general public.

Santa Monica’s dangerously auto-centric Lincoln Blvd could get a pedestrian-friendly makeover; while there are plans to improve bicycle crossings, there don’t appear to be any plans for bike lanes on the boulevard.

This is why you have to support your local bike shop. Pomona’s Coates Cyclery will be closing at the end of this month after 83 years in business; owner Corey McCroskey blames competition from online sites. Clearly, it’s not just a SoCal problem.

 

State

AAA says don’t raise gas taxes and vehicle fees to fix roads, just cut state transportation bureaucracy. But how do they expect to speed up bridge and highway repairs by firing the people who do the work?

An Orange County man gets 56 years behind bars for fatally stabbing another man, then riding away on a beach bike; it was his third strike after two previous violent crimes. And another OC man gets 15 years to life for a drunken, high-speed crash to that killed a man as he slept in his own home.

Mariner’s Mile on the West Coast Highway through Newport Beach will eventually be remade into three lanes in each direction, with bike lanes and no street parking. Hopefully, they’ll take steps to slow traffic and avoid making it into a high-speed throughway with just a lousy stripe of paint to protect people on their bikes.

Riverside is the latest city to stage enhanced enforcement of traffic offenses that endanger bicyclists and pedestrians, today and again on the 27th.

Palm Springs police use a bait bike to bust a bike thief who was also carrying over an ounce of meth.

An alleged drunk hit-and-run driver says he fled the scene of a Bakersfield collision because he was scared. Imagine how his bike-riding victim felt.

Four Bay Area communities agree to cooperate on a regional bicycle network.

Famed cyclist Barry Bonds, who used to be a baseball player, crashes the San Francisco Giant’s annual fan fest on his bike.

Marin mountain bikers vow to defy the ban on riding most county trails to force them to open more space for bikes; an Op-Ed in the local paper calls the group “extreme,” and says bike access and conservation just aren’t compatible.

 

National

Forbes says cyclists may get the most benefit from self-driving cars, but could be the biggest challenge for them.

Oregon is connecting already existing mountain bike trails in five national forests to create a single 650-mile mountain bike trail traversing the entire state.

Two-thirds of Denver voters would support a sales tax increase to build out the city’s bicycle network, including a number of protected bike lanes, within the next five years. Although drivers and business owners don’t seem to like the latest one.

Houston cyclists call for safety improvements after two riders were killed in collisions with light-rail trains during Super Bowl weekend.

A Massachusetts naturopath builds a better e-velomobile. But don’t expect the world to beat a path to his door.

A Philadelphia Op-Ed says the now-cancelled Philadelphia International Cycling Classic is good for the city. Meanwhile, the communications director for the Philadelphia bike coalition pens an Op-Ed of his own, skillfully dismantling the auto-centric arguments of a motorist fringe group.

 

International

A British Columbia cyclist says drivers have to be cruel to be kind, and stick to the right of way rather than waving bicyclists through intersections ahead of them.

Love this. Canadians tourists bring bicycles with them to explore Cuba, then leave them behind to help young cyclists when they go home.

A Canadian bike magazine talks with Michael Colville-Andersen of Copenhagenize fame.

Hundreds of Londoners stage yet another die-in to protest the dangers bike riders face on the city’s streets.

London police are looking for a bike rider who collided with a 72-year old man after the older man died two weeks later; the bicyclist stayed at the scene, but police didn’t record his name at the time.

A Scottish Paralympian with cerebral palsy is crowdfunding a new racing tricycle after hers was destroyed when thieves stole her car and crashed it into a gas station with the bike inside.

Caught on video: A Brit bike rider shames a van driver into getting out and picking up his litter. I may have been known to pick trash up and return it to the offending person with a polite “I think you dropped this” in my more reckless days.

FedEx refuses to deal with a Brit cyclist who was terrorized by one of their road-raging drivers because his blog doesn’t have a high enough profile, and accidently sends him an email saying so. Which probably means I’m toast if a FedEx driver ever tries to run me down.

A British insurer has developed what may be the world’s first bicycle street gritting machine, designed to spread salt on frozen bike lanes to prevent injuries.

British drivers reject using the Dutch Reach to keep from dooring bike riders because it’s just too hard. Although officials illustrate it with a bizarre video showing drivers reaching through an open window to grab the door handle from the outside, rather than just opening the door with the opposite hand.

After she was dumped by the man who taught her to ride, a Philippines woman realizes that bicycling is her one true love.

 

Finally…

Seriously. If you’re riding your bike after dark while drunk, with dope, a bunch of concealed knives and an active warrant, put some damn lights on it. Nothing like learning the hard way that a crossing gate sensor doesn’t recognize carbon fiber — and getting stuck with the bill to fix it.

And Elon Musk is boring Los Angeles. No, literally.

 

Category: Advocacy & Politics, Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , ,

Morning Links: Bike rider flees after injuring Glendale woman, and person of interest found in OC hit-and-run

February 10, 2017 / / 3 comments

Appalling news from Glendale, as police are looking for a hit-and-run cyclist who allegedly blew through a red light and crashed into a 64-year old woman as she was walking in the crosswalk.

The victim hit her head on the pavement, suffering “significant” but not life-threatening injuries. The man on the bike fled the scene, despite reportedly being fully aware of what happened.

He’s described only as a male wearing a dark jacket. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Glendale Police Department at 818/548-4911.

For anyone unclear on the concept, bike riders have exactly the same obligation to stop, render aid and exchange information that drivers do after a crash.

And are the same heartless cowards if they don’t.

To put it mildly.

………

Orange County sheriff’s deputies have identified a person of interest in the Sunday night hit-and-run that left a San Juan Capistrano father of five in a coma, and are no longer looking for suspects.

Which means they’re confident they’ve got the right person.

Thanks to Lois for the heads-up.

………

John Montgomery shares a stomach-churning close shave on 4th Street in Venice, first getting cut off in a pass that feels way too close, then forced to make a heart-stopping panic stop when he gets brake-checked seconds later by the same driver.

………

The rescheduled Resolution Ride will take place tomorrow in Griffith Park.

Active Streets LA is hosting a community festival and mapping walk and ride on Saturday at MLK Jr. Park.

And don’t forget the 8th annual Ride for Love at Ted Watkins Memorial Park on Sunday, sponsored by the Eastside Riders.

………

Bicycling Magazine wants to know just how common abuse of power is in competitive cycling, regardless of gender.

………

Local

The Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition has come out strongly against Measure S, which would impose a minimum two-year moratorium on most major building projects in the City of Los Angeles.

Speaking of the LACBC, time is running out to get your 2017 LACBC kit; just click on the ad on the right to place your order.

Strong Towns profiles Josef Bray-Ali in his campaign to unseat anti-bike incumbent Gil Cedillo in LA’s CD1; Bike the Vote LA is looking for volunteers to phone bank for him tomorrow.

KNBC-4 provides renderings of the new $482 million Sixth Street Viaduct project. Just riding down those big swirling bike ramps will make it worth the price.

Manhattan Beach rejects a proposal to put a bike path through the city’s Polliwog Park to improve safety for middle school kids headed to and from school.

 

State

A coalition of 82 organizations join with Calbike to call for reforms in a state transportation funding package to invest more on active transportation.

It’s been awhile since we’ve heard from the OC Register’s David Whiting, who talks with the Long Beach-based founder of Velomax bicycle wheels, now making and marketing the iWalk alternative to using crutches.

A Lakeside driver was shot at by someone riding a bicycle when he tried to chase “suspicious suspects” out of a mobile home park at 4:45 am.

BikeSD calls on the executive director of SANDAG to step down after inflating projections for last year’s failed, overly auto-centric transportation tax.

A killer Fresno drunk driver is asking a judge to allow him to rescind his no-contest plea that resulted in a 12-year prison sentence in the death of a seven-year old boy who was riding in a crosswalk with his family, blaming bad road design instead of his own high speed and drunken state. Sure, let’s go with that.

Modesto police bust a bike-riding groper accused of assaulting at least seven high school girls.

That was fast. A suspected Menlo Park bike thief gets one year in county jail, just eight days after he was arrested after fleeing from police.

Now that’s more like it. Rather than minimum parking requirements, San Francisco will now require developers to provide alternative transportation options in exchange for the permission to provide free parking spaces.

 

National

A new study from the University of Duh says less driving results in fewer traffic fatalities. However, the decade-long decline in vehicle miles traveled did not result in an increase in physical activity.

A habitually anti-bike Seattle radio host is convinced the city is throwing away millions spent on bikeways, as the bicycling commuter rate continues to drop. And yet it’s still at a level most cities would envy, including sunny Los Angeles.

The Radavist says Utah needs our help to stop a lease of BLM land and defend the Bear’s Ears National Monument. Thanks to CiclaValley for the link.

Unlike Los Angeles, DC appears to be serious about reducing speeds to save lives as part of the city’s Vision Zero; a proposal from the DCDOT would lower the default speed limit to 20 mph, with a 15 mph limit around schools, parks, senior and youth centers from 7 am to 11 pm.

 

International

A columnist for London’s Evening Standard says the city’s new cycling and walking commissioner has to accomplish the seemingly impossible task of getting drivers to behave.

Caught on video: A London bike rider falls after jamming on the brakes when a mother with two young kids steps out unexpectedly from between stalled traffic.

Caught on video too: A British cyclist is caught on security camera carving deep scratches into a couple’s minivan, causing the equivalent of $1,250 in damage; the victims had no idea why he chose their car, and questioned whether he targeted them by mistake. Let’s make this as clear as possible: No matter what they might have done, or how justified you might feel, vandalism is always wrong. Period.

A French website offers 10 reasons to visit the county for your next cycling vacation. But really, you only need one — it’s France.

Evidently, it’s not just hoverboards. An ebike battery started a fire that sent a German carport up in flames, causing over a half million dollars in damage. The story’s in German, but you can read a translation here. Thanks to Vesley Reutimann for the heads-up.

Iraqi women are riding for their freedom, in what began as one woman’s art project.

Women make up only 18% of bicycle traffic in Melbourne, Australia, where a lack of safe bikeways forces riders to mix with traffic.

 

Finally…

Yes, you can find lasting love on a bicycle. Okay, so maybe he can downhill slightly faster than the rest of us.

And she wasn’t driving dangerously when she ran over a bicyclist’s hand, just carelessly.

So it’s okay, then. Right?

 

Category: Bike Cam Video, Bike Events, Bikes & the Law, Hit-and-Run, Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Morning Links: An open letter on LA’s Vision Zero Action Plan, and OC hit-and-run victim needs your help

February 8, 2017 / / Comments Off on Morning Links: An open letter on LA’s Vision Zero Action Plan, and OC hit-and-run victim needs your help

The Vision Zero Alliance has written an open letter to the Los Angeles City Council’s Transportation Committee, which will consider the city’s proposed Vision Zero Action Plan at today’s meeting.

While they support the city’s efforts to eliminate traffic deaths, the Alliance, described as “a coalition of over 20 community organizations dedicated to ending traffic deaths and serious injuries in Los Angeles,” takes issue with some parts of the plan.

The Action Plan serves as a critical step to ensuring that the Vision Zero initiative remains grounded in transparency, accountability, and evaluation. It also represents the City’s commitment to protecting the safety of all road users. The Los Angeles Vision Zero Alliance applauds LADOT for its efforts in completing the Action Plan, which reflects extensive coordination among multiple agencies and organizations. We particularly appreciate the department’s ongoing commitment to engaging with and being accessible to the Vision Zero Alliance throughout the development of the Action Plan.

However, we remain unsatisfied with a number of elements of the plan. Our primary concerns relate to enforcement, data transparency, and community engagement. Additionally, we are worried by the lack of attention paid to speed and to the weak commitment in funding.

I’m particularly glad they share some of the concerns I’ve expressed, which are reflected in that last sentence.

We have additional concerns regarding speed and funding. Despite vehicle speed being a primary predictor of crash severity, the Action Plan lacks a bold and coherent strategy to manage it. We appreciate that the City intends to “consider legislation on automated speed enforcement” in 2017, but would like to see a more comprehensive set of actions to address local control of speed limits and the implementation of engineering projects specifically intended to slow traffic. We are also displeased with the low level of funding allocated to Vision Zero projects this year. A serious commitment to ending deaths and severe injuries on Los Angeles streets demands serious funding. Only with a realistic investment in robust engineering projects, education, engagement, and enforcement will Los Angeles ever realize Vision Zero.

It’s worth reading the full letter.

And demanding that the city adopt a plan that is fair for everyone, and will truly take the steps necessary to end the plague of traffic violence in out city.

………

An Orange County bike rider needs your help.

The Orange County Register reports that Steve Schenkenberger, a father of five from San Juan Capistrano, was struck by a hit-and-run driver near Niguel Road and Ridgeway Avenue on Super Bowl Sunday.

Newport Beach Patch is more specific, placing the time of the crash at around 8:56 pm. There were no reported witnesses, he was found by passersby who called for help. Luckily, one of those was a paramedic and his wife, who cared for him until help arrived; she describes it in heartbreaking detail.

According to a fundraising website, Schenkenberger suffered injuries throughout the left side of his body, along with a severe brain injury resulting in emergency surgery. He’s reportedly improving, but remains unconscious and heavily sedated.

As of this writing, the fund had raised over $34,000 of the $100,000 goal to help pay what are sure to be massive medical expenses, as well as care for his family, for which he is the sole provider.

Clearly, they have a long way to go.

Anyone with information about the crash or driver is urged to contact the Orange County Sheriff’s Department in Aliso Viejo.

Thanks to Rod Daryabigi and Lois for the heads-up.

………

Frenchman Roger Walkowiak, the world’s oldest surviving Tour de France winner, passed away Tuesday at 89; the unheralded son of a Polish factory worker won the 1956 Tour with a solo breakaway on the famed Croix de Fer.

Cycling Weekly talks with 19-year old US junior cyclist Adrien Costa, calling him the next Greg LeMond. Sad that they had to go all the way back to the 1980s to find a scandal-free American cycling icon to compare him to.

VeloNews looks at the dangers of Tramadol, a less potent opioid painkiller that’s legal to race on under current doping rules.

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Local

Traditionally bike-unfriendly USC is working on a beautification project to increase capacity for bicyclists and pedestrians on the Trousdale Parkway entrance to the campus.

A sidewalk-raging Santa Clarita transient was arrested on suspicion of vandalism for throwing an object at a driver who had apparently cut him off as he existed a driveway.

 

State

A California sustainable transportation website launches a new series titled Bicyclists Are Human. Something that shouldn’t have to be said, but too often does.

Six California rides make the list of the nation’s 15 top Gran Fondos, including the Malibu Gran Fondo, and the one-year old Phil’s Cookie Fondo hosted by LA’s own former pro and cookie monster Phil Gaimon.

San Diego cyclists hope to repurpose a boarded up 1940s building next to a bike path as a bicycle center.

Ebikes are moving into Santa Cruz. And La Quinta, too.

A 56-year old bike rider in San Francisco’s Tenderloin district faces charges after allegedly punching a 20-year old woman and rifling through her pockets.

A San Francisco bike shop owner is crowdfunding a parklet he wants to build in front of his store.

An injured San Francisco bike rider offers a reminder that rain-filled puddles can disguise hidden dangers.

 

National

Here’s a chance to get technical, as VeloNews explains how differences in bicycle geometry affect how a bike rides and handles.

A British Columbia researcher says bicycle education in the US is in desperate need of an update, questioning whether bicyclists are really safer riding in the traffic lane.

Wired says ride your bike like a kid and make it fun again. Which is a great idea, except they get most of it wrong. Spandex clothing is actually designed to wick away sweat, while reducing wind resistance and chafing; flat pedals only allow you to apply force on the down stroke, reducing efficiency. And the health benefits of riding far outweigh any risk of heart damage from extreme training, which most people will never do anyway.

Colorado cyclists will have to keep stopping for stop signs, as a bill to approve the Idaho Stop Law in the state, legalizing what many bike riders already do, was killed in a legislative committee; a Durango paper blames Senate Republicans.

The Texas Medical Alliance gave away 400 bike helmets to four and five-year olds.

Wisconsin cycling icon Chris Kegel passed away from a rare form of liver cancer; the owner of a regional chain of bike shops had been on the founding boards of PeopleForBikes and the League of American Bicyclists.

A bike-riding Illinois reporter is suing the local police department for false arrest after they busted him for filming them. You have a 1st Amendment right to record anything that occurs in public, whether the actions of police or anyone else, as long as you don’t interfere with an officer in the conduct of his or her duties. And no, standing across the street recording an arrest is not interfering.

A cyclist in Illinois ask why bikes can’t evolve like cars have. Except pretty much all the improvements he calls for are available in one form or another, from disk brakes and belt drives to automatic gearing.

Bicycling rates continue to climb in New York despite slower growth in the city core, as riders respond to the continued expansion of the city’s bicycle network.

Why is it always Florida? A man in his late teens or early 20s exposed himself to a group of people by going naked from the waist down, then took a public poop before riding away on his bike.

 

International

Two brothers from Mexico are planning to ride the entire west coast of the US from Tijuana to Vancouver, in part to challenge stereotypes of Millennials as apathetic and superficial.

A Canadian city legalizes scofflaw cyclists by designating the raised roadways they’re already riding on as cycling facilities.

Caught on video: A bus driver with the official title of Britain’s Most Hated Cyclist catches a woman FaceTiming behind the wheel.

British police finally capture a bike-riding serial groper who allegedly attacked 24 women.

In yet another attack on bicyclists from London’s bike-hating Daily Mail, a writer asks if anywhere is safe from the Lycra louts. Cycling Weekly responds that it includes every anti-cycling cliché known to the human race, and some new ones, too.

A new Scottish safety campaign urges drivers to slow down.

I want to be like him when I grow up. A 77-year old British man will ride the full route of this year’s Giro d’Italia, covering 2,100 miles across Italy.

A British writer rides through the tip of Africa on the first South African Eroica.

A 15-year old junior cyclist finds himself a man without a country after forfeiting his German passport, then getting booted out of a Malaysian school.

A Philippine website looks at the causes of road rage and what drivers can do about it. Which can apply to those of us on two wheels, too.

 

Finally…

Four words: speed dating on bikes. If you’re going to buy a hacksaw to cut a bike lock, don’t try to return it afterwards — and make sure it’s not a bait bike.

And make sure your damn shoe fits before you get behind the wheel.

 

Category: Advocacy & Politics, Bicycle Safety, Hit-and-Run, Injuries and Fatalities, Morning Links, Vision Zero / Tags: , , , ,

Morning Links: Bray-Ali endorsed by Times in CD1, entitled driver behaving badly, and LA BAC meets tonight

February 7, 2017 / / 6 comments

Now this is big.

Former Flying Pigeon LA bike shop owner Joe Bray-Ali’s candidacy to unseat incumbent CD1 Councilmember Gil Cedillo got a huge boost yesterday when he won the endorsement of the LA Times.

While Cedillo has a huge advantage in fundraising, much of it coming from developers and others seeking to influence City Hall, Bray-Ali’s upstart grassroots campaign has been making waves in the district, as he rides his cargo bike door-to-door to talk with local voters.

And the Times has noticed.

Many people in the district think of Bray-Ali, 37, as just a bike-shop owner and bike activist. Frustration over Cedillo’s part in stalling bike lanes on Figueroa Street propelled Bray-Ali into this race. But though he may be campaigning atop two wheels, he has educated himself way beyond bike and transit issues. In fact, his understanding of land-use policy is impressive for someone who has never worked in City Hall, and his experience running a small business in the city will make him a rare and important voice on the council.

They also seem to have a pretty good read on his opponent.

Cedillo has a reputation among community activists as someone hell-bent on helping developers build market-rate housing while paying little regard for the more prosaic concerns of the neighborhoods. This disinterest in the community is troubling; even more so is his indifference to the displacement of low-income constituents. (He called displacement in his district an “urban myth” in a meeting with the editorial board. The city’s own data show it is not.) Building more housing is a virtue — the city is in a housing crunch, and more market-rate housing means more housing, period. But it shouldn’t come at the expense of a neighborhood’s affordability and quality of life. A councilman’s job is to balance the interests of neighborhoods with those of the population as a whole, and Cedillo doesn’t seem to be interested in that task…

The winner of this race will have an extra long term (the recent change in city elections means the winner will hold office for 5½ years) during a building boom that could fundamentally change the district. It is imperative that the person making the decisions focus on the needs of the community, not just a personal vision. The candidate who is best prepared to do that for Council District 1 is Bray-Ali.

Meanwhile, he also won the endorsement of Joel Epstein, writing for the Huffington Post.

Fact: Joe Bray-Ali has been a tireless advocate for safer streets for pedestrians, bike riders and drivers. A key leader in the safe streets Figueroa for All movement, Joe’s advocacy is helping make North East L.A. a safer place to live and is improving the neighborhood’s connections to Pasadena and the Los Angeles River.

Joe’s vision for CD 1 and the entire city, includes zero deaths and injuries from irresponsible, dangerous drivers. This is just one more reason that Josef Bray-Ali should be CD 1’s next councilmenber.

It’s time that CD 1 was represented by a councilmember who cares about the district. It’s time to elect Joe Bray-Ali.

On a personal note, I’ve been encouraging Joe Bray-Ali to run for city council since I first met him nearly ten years ago.

I’ve never met anyone more passionate about improving safety on our streets — myself included. Or more committed to improving the quality of life for the people who live in Northeast LA.

And few people, in or out of government, are more knowledgeable about the way city government works, and how it can be made to work more efficiently and better serve the people of this city. Not to mention possessing a rare ability to dig through city budgets line by line to determine where the money is actually going, as opposed to where it should be.

Joe has been a longtime advocate for better streets and better government. It’s time that passion and commitment is put to work serving, not just the bicycling community, but all the residents of CD1 and the City of Los Angeles.

Thanks to Robert Peppey for the heads-up.

………

If you’re looking for a visual definition of real schmuck, Greg Heining sends us this video of a driver cutting off an elderly woman with a walker as she makes her way across a crosswalk.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qizcnFmWYJA&feature=youtu.be

Sadly, this sort of thing happens every day, almost everywhere.

And yet, they say bicyclists act entitled.

………

The Los Angeles Bicycle Advisory Committee meets at 7 pm tonight at Hollywood Neighborhood City Hall, 6501 Fountain Avenue.

This is the city’s only official voice for bicyclists, yet three of the seats remain unfilled. If you’re a resident of council districts 9 (Curren Price), 10 (Herb Wesson) or 13 (Mitch O’Farrell), contact them today and politely ask your councilmember to get off his ass and appoint someone.

Then not so politely if they still don’t.

………

Bike racing’s governing body issues new rules for support vehicles to improve safety in the peloton. Even though the only way to really improve safety would be to ban them entirely.

The Philadelphia Bicycle Coalition is working to bring back the cancelled Philadelphia International Cycling Classic.

The U-23 development team run by Axel Merckx is providing talented young British riders with an alternative path to pro cycling.

Former cyclist Bridie O’Donnell discusses the sexual and emotional abuse women riders face in the sport, including the abuse she suffered at the hands of her former coach as a young triathlete.

………

Local

Streetsblog looks at the recent LA Great Streets Challenge winners, as well as Vision Zero grants.

KCBS-2 anchor Jeff Vaughn is riding to fight MS.

CiclaValley goes riding on the other road closed to motor vehicles in Griffith Park.

Time Out looks at 14 National Parks within driving distance of Los Angeles. Which means they’re in bicycling distance, too.

Long Beach is challenging residents to walk or ride their bikes on the Shoreline Pedestrian/Bicycle Path, as they try to reach one million trips on the path’s Eco-Counter.

 

State

The San Diego Bicycle Coalition hosted a training session to teach people how to organize grassroots political advocacy efforts for safer, expanded access for bicycles.

In LA, they shut down bike paths to do freeway work; in San Diego County, they shut down freeway lanes, in part to install bike paths.

An alleged drunk driver was arrested for the hit-and-run that left a Bakersfield bike rider with multiple broken bones.

Registration is now open for the 104-mile Tehachapi GranFondo, which will evidently take place sometime. Note to Bakersfield Now: One of those famous Five W’s stands for when. Just a hint. Update: Thanks to MTS, who points out the ride rolls on September 16th.

Now that’s more like it. San Francisco police are deploying extra officers to crack down on traffic violations by drivers at locations where bicyclists or pedestrians have been injured.

San Francisco scraps plans for a raised bike lane on Polk Street after concluding that it would also need to be parking protected. So what’s the point of raising the bike lane if it’s already protected?

 

National

Curbed says even with an auto-centric administration in DC, private car ownership could plummet in the US.

PeopleForBikes ignores the game, and watches the Super Bowl to count the number of bikes in the ads.

Redfin lists the best cities for living without a car; San Francisco takes the top spot, while cross-bay neighbor Oakland checks in at number ten. Needless to say, Los Angeles didn’t make the list.

Lifehacker says there are few things dorkier than putting a bell on your bike, but insists you should do it anyway.

An Iowa letter writer says requiring bicycles to have lights at night won’t save lives because most of the state’s fatalities occurred during the day. Including the one that killed her boyfriend.

Bikeshare is coming to Roanoke VA, with 50 bike at stations scattered around the city.

 

International

Over 5,000 Costa Rican cyclists rode on Sunday to demand safer streets.

A new short film celebrates the success of Vancouver’s prescient multi-modal street design.

London’s Evening Standard explains why you should join a cycling club, and how to fuel your ride.

There’s a special place in hell for someone who would push a 92-year old British woman off her bicycle to steal the equivalent of seven and a half bucks.

Now that’s more like it, too. Large trucks are banned from a narrow British lane where they weren’t supposed to be in the first place after a bike rider was injured in a collision.

The Brit press is up in arms over bicyclists filtering through traffic. Even though it’s legal. And even though it doesn’t seem to be a problem.

A new German project raising funds on Kickstarter promises to deliver a flexible, lightweight bike lock made up of five layers that are saw-resistant, cut-resistant, fire-resistant, waterproof, and dirt-repelling. Because really, who wants a dirty lock?

Today was national Go By Bike Day in New Zealand. Or yesterday, since it’s already tomorrow there.

Chinese app-based bikeshare comes to Singapore to rescue the city from its overly crowded streets.

Caught on video: Dozens of people team up to lift a van off a Chinese bicyclist following a collision; thanks to their efforts, the victim didn’t appear to have suffered any injuries.

 

Finally…

You only have to ride around the block to stay in shape, as long as you do it really, really hard. If you really want to make your point, say it again, and again.

And once again, a bike rider saves the day. Or the dog, as the case may be.

 

Category: Advocacy & Politics, Bike Cam Video, Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , ,

Morning Links: Lecture on 1890s French bike art, last day for Metro Bike Share survey, and don’t lock up to trees

February 6, 2017 / / 4 comments

This Wednesday, long-time Santa Monica bike advocate and UCLA/Cambridge lecturer Dr. Michael Cahn will conduct a free lecture on the 1890’s bicycle art of Jean de Paleologu.

Here’s how he describes the talk, titled Ladies Cycling in the Night Sky.

On Wednesday February 8th I will show some pictures and say a few word about Ladies Cycling in the Night Sky, as popularized by Jean de Paleologu (PAL) around 1890. He started a trend in France that associated the bicycle with female figures flying in the wind. A striking visual discourse which is still alive on the occasional wine label.

Yet the image of those night cyclists is very distant from the concern with bloomers and rational dress that dominates the English speaking cycling scene for women during the same period.

And how does it all connect with an old Greek statute found on the island of Samothrace ?

All welcome to join us for this lecture on the history cycling, imaginary and otherwise.

UCLA, Public Policy, Room 1222 11:00 – 12:15

………

Local

Today’s the last day to take the Metro Bike Share survey, and maybe win a free prize pack.

The Daily News says Southern California is in the grips of a diabetes crisis. The same Vision Zero street improvements that can help eliminate traffic deaths can help prevent even more deaths from diabetes, heart disease and stroke by encouraging more people to get out and walk or ride their bikes.

A Pasadena father takes his two young kids bike riding at Cogswell Dam in the San Gabriel Mountains.

Malibu now has $38.5 million to pay for 12 safety improvement projects on PCH, some of which have already been completed, including bike route improvements. However, no one seems to be talking about the most important safety improvement — transforming PCH from a speed-focused highway ferrying people through the city without stopping, into the city’s Main Street.

 

State

The president of Irvine-based Felt says the company is a perfect match with new parent Rossignol.

The Coachella Valley Association of Governments will consider spending $10 million on bike and pedestrian projects following one of the deadliest years for pedestrians. Then again, it wasn’t great for bicyclists, either.

Caught on video: San Francisco bicyclists continue to fall on the city’s 17th Street streetcar tracks, despite repeated promises from the city to do something about it.

 

National

Cities around the country are turning to bicycle paramedic teams to improve response times and save lives, according to the Washington Post; LA bike paramedics were among the first emergency crews to reach Carrie Fisher on the ground after she suffered a heart attack while landing at LAX.

Registration is open for the 32nd annual Ride the Rockies, a seven day, 447 mile bike tour through Colorado’s Rocky Mountains.

Heartbreaking letter in a Topeka newspaper from a father calling for stiffer penalties for killer drivers, recounting the bicycling death of his own son 28 years earlier.

Needless to say, Minneapolis bicyclists aren’t exactly thrilled with a proposed bill that would require bicyclists to complete an educational program, pass a test and pay a fee just to use the city’s bike lanes. As we’ve noted before, the effect of the law would just be that bike lanes would go unused while riders risk their safety riding in the traffic lanes next to them.

Bicycling Magazine looks at how Boston and Atlanta compare when it comes to bikes, concluding Atlanta edges Boston out in overtime. Which is just the opposite of how the football game came out.

There’s something seriously wrong when an 80-year old Florida grandmother has to sacrifice her own life to save her friend from a hit-and-run driver.

Key West FL considers a road diet on a busy four-lane main drag, converting it to two lanes with bike lanes.

 

International

Toronto’s bike-hating columnist is back at it again, citing 211 bicyclists using a bike lane on a cold January morning as proof that no one uses it during the winter. Except for the 211 people who used it, of course. Then gets in a snit when bike riders refuse to interrupt their commutes to pull over to talk to him. Maybe he’d have better luck getting drivers on their way to work to pull over and chat. Or not.

London is averaging one collision a day between bike riders and pedestrians, an increase of 47% over the last seven years. Which really isn’t much in a crowded city of 8.6 million people, although a better number would be zero. Unfortunately, you can’t control what pedestrians do, but you can control where and how you ride, and always slow down and ride carefully around people on foot.

A Scottish woman is back on her bike just twelve weeks after a double lung transplant.

There’s more than one kind of distracted driving. A British driver gets a whole 20 weeks — yes, weeks — for killing a grandfather out for a bike ride when she turned around for a “split-second” to yell at her kids for throwing popcorn.

British bicycling groups welcome police going undercover on bikes to catch drivers passing dangerously close.

Stockholm sees a 45% reduction in children’s asthma attacks after instituting congestion pricing.

In a brilliant move, Spain will impose special temporary speed limits on popular riding routes at peak cycling times to protect bike riders. That would be like dropping speed limits on PCH to 30 mph on Saturday mornings. Which isn’t a bad idea.

An Aussie writer takes a self-guided tour through Slovenia, and finds more adventure than she expected.

New Delhi bike riders have to contend with a lack of cycle tracks, traffic congestion and bad road design, despite the highest number of bike trips in India.

A retired Indian general is riding his bicycle 7,500 miles across India to honor all the soldiers who have lost their lives since the country gained independence in 1947.

An Indian tsunami survivor hasn’t seen her parents in four years. And doesn’t expect to see them for at least another three, as she focuses on competing in track cycling at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

A former Australian elite track cyclist has her career cut short by a horrific series of experimental surgeries.

 

Finally…

No, seriously. If you’re carrying burglary tools on your bike and ghost riding another bicycle at two in the morning, put some damn lights on it. It doesn’t take a prince to push his fiancé’s vintage bicycle, just a soon-to-be royalty-in-law.

And this is why you don’t lock your bike to a tree.

 

Category: Bike Events, Morning Links / Tags: , , ,

Weekend Links: Great Streets Challenge winners announced, SCAG active trans projects approved

February 4, 2017 / / Comments Off on Weekend Links: Great Streets Challenge winners announced, SCAG active trans projects approved

Los Angeles announced the winners of the latest Great Streets Challenge, providing up to $13,000 to help show what our streets can be.

Besides a steady conduit for speeding drivers, that is.

The seven winning proposals include four temporary pop-up projects, and three permanent installations, offering a mix of pedestrian and bicycling improvements, as well as attempts at transformative community space building.

………

The Southern California Association of Governments, aka SCAG, approved funding for 26 active transportation and sustainability projects throughout LA County on Thursday.

The projects, which total $4.6 million, range from an Open Streets event in South El Monte, to support for Vision Zero community outreach and media development in Los Angeles, as well as developing a Vision Zero action plan for the county.

………

Finally, someone is taking the most important issue of our time seriously, as Bike Radar examines the best bikes for the coming zombie apocalypse.

………

Local

Streetsblog’s Joe Linton calls the new Riverside Drive Bridge “wider straighter faster deadlier,” and inappropriate for the spot where the City of Los Angeles was born, although he says the two-way bike path was a small victory in a losing battle.

Los Angeles Magazine recommends biking as one option for Expo Line commuters to get to the Culver City station, now that the parking garage is being replaced with a mixed-use development. Although I’m told those bike lockers they mention have a wait list.

 

State

Irvine-based bikemaker Felt Racing has been purchased by French ski-maker Rossignol.

The Orange County Register recommends the 28.5-mile Santa Ana River Trail to ride from the hills of Yorba Linda to the beach.

The wife of San Diego Bicycle Coalition Executive Director Andy Hanshaw is opening a bicycle-themed coffee shop in the city’s Point Loma district.

In an absolutely horrifying attack, a Riverside driver is under arrest on suspicion of murder and assault with a deadly weapon for deliberately running down a homeless man he’d never met, for no apparent reason, as the victim stood near the edge of a parking lot.

This is what those subway-style bike maps look like in a city with an actual bike network, like San Francisco.

 

National

A self-described green car website crunches the numbers, and concluded that driving a Nissan Leaf is cleaner than riding a bicycle — if the rider only eats beef. And only if the power for the car comes from non-coal fired plants. In other words, not really.

Gizmodo reviews a belt-drive bike that replaces the derailleur with a continuously variable transmission, which they claim offers an infinite spectrum of gears.

A St. Louis driver gets seven years for killing a bike rider while fleeing from police.

An Op-Ed from Kentucky’s capital calls on the state to adopt a safe-passing law for bicycles; two bills under consideration would require drivers to change lanes to pass bikes, or give at least three feet passing distance if that’s not possible. It would also allow drivers to briefly cross a yellow line to pass bike riders if there’s no traffic, something Jerry Brown vetoed as part of an earlier version of California’s three-foot passing law.

Atlanta Falcons General Manager Thomas Dimitroff is one of us.

 

International

Business Insider looks at 12 major cities around the world that are starting to go carfree. And no, Los Angeles is not one of them.

The owner of a Vancouver driving school says we all have to get along on the roads, so drivers need to watch for bike riders and bike riders need to obey traffic laws. Meanwhile, Vancouver drivers are peeved that bike lanes were plowed following a recent snow.

“Persnickety” residents of a Toronto neighborhood complain about bikeshare besmirching their park; a writer for the Toronto Star calls their petty objections “a rejection of what it means to live in a shared city.”

A British man is riding around the world dressed as Superman, and fixes his bike’s broken fork with chopsticks.

Caught on video: This is what it looks like to hit a bike rider at 25 mph, from the driver’s perspective; fortunately, the victim wasn’t injured. Warning, use discretion in deciding whether to click the link, because this one is really hard to watch. I wish I hadn’t.

Dutch smart bike maker VanMoof chases down their stolen bikes across Europe to return them to their owners.

Outside looks at what we can learn from 105-year old French cyclist Robert Marchard, as scientists conclude there is no upper age limit for training.

You can charge your phone or laptop for free at Brisbane’s International Airport, as long as you’re willing to pedal for it.

 

Finally…

Walking on water may be a miracle, pedaling on it not so much. Your next bike could have a 3D-printed honeycomb steel frame.

And if you cause a traffic pileup, just keep walking.

………

As you’re no doubt aware, the Super Bowl takes place this Sunday. Time your ride for after kickoff if you want to enjoy rare peaceful, empty streets. But try to get home before the game’s over, when you can reasonably assume any driver you see will be drunk.

And if you plan on watching the game, leave your car at home if you’re going to be drinking.

 

Category: Morning Links, Streets and Infrastructure / Tags: , , , , , ,

Morning Links: Bike the Vote rejects Measure S, self-driving cars can’t see you, and bike-following robots

February 2, 2017 / / Comments Off on Morning Links: Bike the Vote rejects Measure S, self-driving cars can’t see you, and bike-following robots

Like it or not, housing issues affect more than just where you live and how much you pay.

That’s why Bike the Vote LA has come out against Measure S, which would impose a two-year moratorium on most major new housing construction, saying it would only increase sprawl, social inequity and traffic.

The group says it would “have far-reaching negative repercussions for our collective vision of a diverse, livable, affordable, walkable, bikeable city.”

Streetsblog reports that a large coalition of diverse groups opposes the measure, also known as the Neighborhood Integrity Initiative, in next month’s election, calling it a “scorched earth” housing ban.

………

Bad news for all those, like myself, who have been hoping that self-driving cars would mean safer streets for bike riders by taking the wheel away from today’s careless, aggressive, wasted and/or distracted drivers.

It turns out that detecting people on bikes is possibly the biggest problem hurdle developers have to overcome before autonomous cars take over the road.

In other words, they can’t see you. And too often don’t know what to do even if they do.

Which pretty much sounds like the way things are now, anyway.

Thanks to Patrick Pascal and Frank Lehnerz for the heads-up.

………

Famed cycling photographer Graham Watson calls it a career; VeloNews talked with him late last year, before yesterday’s announcement.

………

The LA Times says Trump’s travel ban isn’t expected to keep international athletes from competing in the US, an important consideration with the world paracycling championships scheduled for the VELO Sports Center in Carson later this month.

Cycling Tips talks with the Master’s racer who held on for dear life after crashing and going over a retaining wall.

A Pasadena site looks at the city’s role as the finish line of this year’s Amgen Tour of California.

Bicycling takes a motor-doped bike out for a spin. Hopefully we won’t see any of those at the paracycling worlds or the ATOC.

………

Local

Nice piece on Eric Bryan of the UCLA cycling team, as he continues his racing dreams as a third year student at the university.

Santa Monica’s Cynergy Cycles is hosting a maintenance workshop tonight.

Most college students only have to worry about bad drivers as they bike to campus; bike-riding Pepperdine students have to watch out for mountain lions once they get there.

Santa Clarita is asking for input to gauge support for a bikeshare system.

The Pomona Valley Bicycle Coalition will hold its next meeting on Tuesday.

 

State

A San Diego advocacy group calls on the city to fix 15 deadly intersections.

Residents of La Jolla are uniting to keep San Diego’s DecoBike bikeshare systems from besmirching their exclusive city.

A Menlo Park police chase leads to the arrest of a trio of bike thieves; police found numerous bicycles in one woman’s residence, along with other stolen items, but only three of the bikes had been reported stolen. Another reminder to register your bike, and report it the police if it gets stolen; too often they recover bikes that they can’t return to the owners because they have no idea who they belong to. And they can’t press charges if they can’t prove a bike is stolen.

A San Francisco Chronicle reader concludes that if it serves 100 riders a day, a $25 million bike lane on the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge works out to $171 per ride over the four-year trial period. Except that bridges last a lot longer than four years, it could end up serving a lot more than 100 riders a day, and most bike commuters ride both ways, doubling the number of trips. But other than that…

A Castro Valley lawyer collects bicycles in reverse, buying and rebuilding bikes only to give them away to people in need.

 

National

PeopleForBikes discusses the prospects for bicycling under the Trump administration.

Bicycling Magazine wants to know how safe you feel when you ride.

Outside Magazine celebrates its 40th anniversary with their list of the 40 most iconic places on the planet, including mountain bike mecca Slickrock in Moab, Utah, the Tour de France’s Alpe d’Huez, and the Festina car which lead to discovery of pro cycling’s doping problems. Although the latter is more a thing than a place.

The National Bike Registry has merged with the Project 529 bicycle registration service, creating a 400,000 combined database; anyone already registered with NBR will automatically be upgraded to a free lifetime membership with Project 529. Thanks to Mike Wilkinson for the link.

City Lab conducts an autopsy on Seattle’s failed bikeshare system.

I want to be like him when I grow up. A 78-year old New Mexico bicyclist has travelled around 90,000 miles since he took up bicycling in 2004, despite losing a year of riding due to aortic surgery. I mean about the riding at his age, not the aorta problems. Just to be clear.

Bighearted Oklahoma police buy a new bike for an 11-year old boy whose bike was destroyed when he was unexpectedly hit by a car. As opposed to all those people who leave home expecting to crash.

 

International

The UK’s Cyclist magazine calls on Londoners to avoid the inevitable traffic nightmare caused by next week’s tube strike by joining the city’s 170,000 bike commuters.

The road-raging driver who was filmed threatening BBC personality Jeremy Vine has been convicted of threatening behavior and driving “without reasonable consideration.”

A British bicyclist navigates what he calls the nonsensical cycling scene in Cambridge, saying even if everyone behaved perfectly, there’s just not enough space for cars, pedestrians and bicyclists in the medieval city.

Caught on video: An English driver just backs up, turns his lights off and drives away after hitting a bike rider; fortunately, the victim wasn’t seriously injured.

Oslo, Norway is fighting pollution and traffic congestion by giving residents a $1,200 credit towards the purchase of an ebike. If California ever gets serious about fighting climate change and doing something about our crowded streets, a program like that could be cost-effective if it actually succeeds in getting people out of their cars.

A German explorer has spent the last ten years traveling the world by bicycle in an attempt to visit every country on Earth.

An Indian cyclist uses his own wedding invitation to promote the importance of bicycling.

A store owner in the Galapagos Islands converts a cargo bike into an animal ambulance to transport his poisoned dog to an animal hospital.

 

Finally…

Just what every bike rider needs: A $10,000 ebike inspired by Tesla. If you’re a convicted felon illegally carrying a loaded handgun on your bike, put a damn light on it. The bike, not the gun.

And who needs a cargo bike when you can get your own bike-following robot?

 

Category: Advocacy & Politics, Morning Links / Tags: , , , , ,

Morning Links: More on Vision Zero plan, call for killer driver to turn herself in, and OC man has 9 DUIs in 6 years

February 1, 2017 / / 2 comments

As we noted last week, the City of Los Angeles has finally released its Vision Zero Action Plan, explaining in detail how it plans to reduce traffic deaths by 20% this year, and eliminate them entirely by 2025 — just eight years away.

Comments to the plan continue to roll in.

Today, Vision Zero Alliance member Bobby Peppey is sharing a letter he wrote in response to the plan.

Note: While Peppey is a member of the VZA, he want to make it clear that these are his opinions, and do not necessarily reflect those of the alliance. 

………

There is a serious problem with LADOT’s Vision Zero Action Plan (VZAP) that wasn’t mentioned in LACBC’s excellent letter.

The lack of mention of lowering speed limits from the deadly 35/45mph to safer speed limits of 25/15 mph on Los Angeles HIN or other City streets in the VZAP.

Safer, slower top speed limits have been instituted by New York City, Seattle, Boston and in other North American cities.

Yes there is the California Speed Trap law and its 85 percentile rule that  supposedly forces City’s to raise limits as Joe Linton mentions in his article last spring. There are exceptions in the law to this rule that are manifest on all of the HIN streets that can easily be implemented to lower the speed limits on these streets.

On page 15 is the only mention of lowering speed limits in the plan, “A speed-limit reduction may be more appropriate on streets where children walk to school.” In my experience children walk on all sorts of streets and not only to get to school.

There is some amorphous language on page 36 as follows, “Vision Zero for Los Angeles will pursue local, state, and federal legislation that strengthens traffic safety policy…”, but the VZAP doesn’t go on to then state what policy changes will be pursued by the City.

More ominous in VZAP are the BENCHMARKS on page 37. The second row concerns finishing speed surveys conducted by LADOT but does not state what the results of these surveys will be.

In Joe Linton’s June 9th article in StreetsblogLA concerning the City Council Transportation Committee meeting of June 8th, he states that “LADOT General Manager Reynolds stressed that speed surveys and resultant speed limit increases are needed.”

Earlier at the same meeting Ms. Reynolds stated “IF WE COULD GET EVERYBODY IN THE CITY TO SLOW DOWN TO A SAFE SPEED, WE COULD SAVE HUNDREDS OF LIVES EVERY YEAR.” This quote is verbatim from the printed minutes of the meeting.

We live in a City (second largest in the US) that is now facing down the full brunt of the power of an arch-conservative unified federal government on the issue of immigrants rights, one of the most significant human rights battles of this century for our Country.

That the City of Los Angeles is not willing to deal with the same vigor towards Caltrans, and the State of California’s terribly inequitable Speed Trap Law; when our City is suffering from an epidemic of Kills and Serious Injury (KSI) of persons who walk, ride a bike or use transit on its sidewalks, crosswalks and streets is stunning.

Sincerely,

Bobby Peppey

Vision Zero Alliance member

Advisory and Policy Committee

Enforcement Committee

………

Meanwhile, a governing website explains what Vision Zero is, and says the hardest part for cities is making the long-term commitment necessary to make it work.

………

KCBS-2 reports that relatives of Agustin Rodriguez, the bike rider killed in a hit-and-run in Whittier Monday morning, call on the driver to turn herself in while describing her as a monster who murdered the father of three.

Considering that she dragged him the length of two football fields, they’re probably right. Anything less than a murder charge would be an abject failure of justice.

………

This is why people continue to die on our streets. An Orange County man was arrested for DUI on Sunday after crashing into a utility box in Placentia and attempting to run away.

Police quickly discovered that the driver, 52-year-old Derek Stacy Haskayne, was already on probation for a previous felony DUI conviction.

In fact, he’s had eight DUI convictions since 2011.

Read that again. Eight DUI convictions — not just arrests — in the last six years. And yet he somehow still manages to remain behind the wheel, placing every other human being on the roads at risk.

We can talk all we want about Vision Zero. But as long as people like this are allowed own, buy, rent or borrow a motor vehicle of any kind, innocent people will continue to die.

Thanks to John Damman for the heads-up.

………

The route was announced for this year’s edition of the Amgen Tour of California, as well as the separate but unequal four-stage Breakaway from Heart Disease women’s race. The last three stages will be set in SoCal, including a Mt. Baldy finish in stage 5, a Big Bear time trial, and a Pasadena finish for the final stage, while the women won’t get any closer than Sacramento.

Deadspin says if motor doping exists, the 60 Minutes report didn’t prove it. Of course it exists; the only question is whether it’s actually being used in the pro peloton.

………

Local

A bike rider was one of three victims stabbed in an apparent random attack on Sunset Blvd in Hollywood before police shot the attacker inside a Jack in the Box.

A bike-riding homeless man was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison for the unprovoked fatal stabbing of a AAA tow truck driver in Pico Rivera last year.

Los Angeles now has the largest bicycle paramedic corps in the US, allowing rescuers to quickly navigate crowded streets and sidewalks.

The East Side Riders Bike Club and Los Ryderz BC invite you to join them for the annual Ride for Love on February 12th.

Actress Bella Thorne is one of us, going for a beachfront bike ride in Santa Monica.

The former Governator goes for a bike ride in Venice after calling out Trump for making the US look stupid.

LA Downtown News looks at former bike shop owner Josef Bray-Ali and his uphill battle to unseat anti-bike incumbent Gil Cedillo in LA’s 1st Council District.

 

State

Streetsblog talks with BikeSD founder Sam Olinger, who’s helping to reshape San Diego into one of California’s safest city’s for bicyclists.

Bad enough an Escondido man got carjacked at knifepoint; they also got away with his bike.

Hop on your bike later this month for a tour of the doors of Palm Springs.

Santa Cruz police bust five bike thieves using a bait bike.

It looks like Monterey’s Sea Otter Classic will be around for awhile, after inking a contract extension with the Laguna Seca racetrack for the next 15 years.

A San Jose columnist defends a local road diet, calling it a proven safety measure even if some people don’t like it. Speaking of which, Streetsblog reports on Oakland’s successful Telegraph Avenue road diet, which cut all crashes by 40%.

 

National

A new study shows that physically active children are less likely to be depressed, just like teens and adults. Which is as good a reason as any to get them started riding a bicycle as early as possible.

Bicycling offers beginners tips on how to ride every day, and why you should.

Women’s Day tells drivers to use the Dutch Reach, aka opening a car door with your right hand to avoid dooring bicyclists.

The Denver Post calls on the state to pass the proposed Idaho Stop Law, while noting it’s probably a bill before its time. Meanwhile, a Colorado woman isn’t sure about the proposed law after she was seriously injured by a red light-running bike rider. Even though running a red light would remain illegal; the law would require riders to come to a full stop, then proceed only when it was safe to do so.

Nebraska introduces a new bike-themed license plate.

Life is cheap in Iowa, where killing a bike rider taking part in the state’s annual RAGBRAI ride only merits a misdemeanor charge.

A Houston writer looks at her great uncle’s bike tour of Europe in 1939, culminating in a photo of the Fuhrer as the continent geared up for war.

 

International

Once again, the bike rider wins in a race across a city, this time in London where a cyclist beat someone traveling by the tube by 17 minutes. Apparently driving was so hopeless it wasn’t even worth trying.

Kindhearted UK cops pitch in to buy a boy a new bike after his was stolen, not once, but twice as he travelled to see his sister at a children’s hospital.

A British writer says, contrary to what the country’s transportation secretary says, cyclists are not part of the problem.

A Brit driver faces charges for driving onto a pathway to run down a bike rider after hearing rumors the man may have been the one who stole his bike.

A British government inquiry hears that London’s bicyclists are being failed by the justice system, and vows to investigate the problem. Chances of that ever happening with the US Congress are somewhere south of zero.

Life is cheap in the UK, where a hit-and-run driver is fined the equivalent of just $471, after claiming he had no idea he hit a bike rider because his music was too loud. Or maybe he just turned it up so he couldn’t hear the screams of his victims.

Riding a bike in Johannesburg can be a matter of life and death — not from distracted drivers, but because of armed bikejackers.

 

Finally…

No, seriously. You should have a flasher on your bike, not be one. Actually, the biggest mistake you’re making at SoulCycle is not getting outside on a real bicycle.

And what’s next, mandatory ladder helmet laws?

 

Category: Bicycle Safety, Morning Links, Vision Zero / Tags: , , , , , , ,

Morning Links: Help make Union Station bikeable, donate used tubes in Ventura, and motor doping on CBS

January 30, 2017 / / 3 comments

Through the end of this month, BikinginLA is supporting local bike shops and other small businesses in the bike industry by offering deep discounts on our usual advertising rates. For more information, or to find out if your business qualifies, email the address on the Support and Advertising page.

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You have just two days left to comment on Metro’s plans to make the entrance to LA’s Union Station more walkable and bikeable.

Although there’s some concern about the removal of a bike lane on Los Angeles St, and dismount zones where riders will be required to walk their bikes.

………

If you’re in the Ventura area, stop by BikeVentura at 1150 N Ventura Ave to drop off your old inner tubes; they’ll patch them and pass them on to people in need.

………

Now that 60 Minutes has taken up the case, it seems like the whole world is talking about motor doping. The original designer of the hidden motors says he thinks pro cyclists have been using them to cheat since he sold the first one for $2 million in 1998, while America’s only remaining Tour de France winner says he can’t trust cycling victories as a result.

Dutch great Marianne Vos slipped on a wet corner, creating an opening for Belgian Sanne Cant to win her first World cyclocross championship, while denying Vos her eighth.

Deadspin offers a history cyclists taking wrong turns or getting lost in the middle of a race.

A 30-year old Philadelphia bike race has been canceled due to a lack of sponsors.

Lance is still around and kicking, finishing second in a Texas gravel bike race after his ban on cycling was partially lifted last year.

Former Spanish pro and U-23 world road champ Iván Gutiérrez says he tried to hurt himself eleven times as a result of depression. Pro teams focus a lot of attention on physical condition of their riders; maybe more needs to be paid to their mental and emotional health.

………

Local

Los Angeles agreed to purchase a large property on the LA River, which should help revitalize the river while making space for parks and bike trails.

Pure Cycles looks at the recent Draft: a People for Bikes Meetup that they hosted.

Work continues on the Ocean Blvd road diet in Long Beach, which will include bike lanes once it’s finished.

Multicultural Communities for Mobility is hosting a bikeshare ride to next Saturday’s 118th Golden Dragon Parade in LA’s Chinatown.

The LACBC’s next Sunday Funday ride will explore LA’s Super Bowl history on Super Bowl Sunday.

 

State

Ventura police are looking for a 60-something, bike-riding arsonist.

Streetsblog looks at a soon-to-be unveiled protected bike lane through the city’s McLaren Park.

A Marin County equestrian says conflicts on trails are caused by a small percentage of aggressive cyclists, and never happened before mountain bikes were invented. Funny, I’ve been run off trails by horseback riders while hiking more than once, before and after mountain bikes came into widespread use.

Sad news from Northern California, where an Oroville bike rider was killed in a hit-and-run.

A Chico man lost $15,000 worth of bicycles and parts when a burglar broke into his garage and stole six bikes.

 

National

If you have a Pro-Tec City Life bike helmet, send it back; they’re being recalled after failing routine tests by Consumer Reports.

Fast Coexist looks at a simple fix that could keep bike riders’ tires from getting caught in streetcar tracks.

A writer for Strong Towns says she’s not a cyclist, she’s just someone who rides a bike. While I understand the sentiment, I have to respectfully disagree; saying cyclists are only people who wear spandex and ride for sport, as opposed to others who ride casually or for transportation, just creates an us vs. them mentality, instead of standing up for the rights of everyone who rides a bicycle.

An Op-Ed in the Austin TX paper says it’s time to respect cyclists humanity and rightful place on the road.

A suspect turned himself in for the hit-and-run death of a young Texas bike racer, whose mother found his body the next day when he didn’t return home from a ride; the driver turned himself in on Friday, following the collision last Monday. Which gave him plenty of time to sober up and come up with a good excuse. Thanks to Steve Katz for the heads-up.

Bike advocates and friends of a fallen Chicago bike rider express their outrage over the ten day sentence given a killer drunk driver. Streetsblog says the politically connected driver was twice charged with DUI in high school, but had the charges dismissed. This is why people continue to die on our streets; too often there are no consequences for dangerous behavior, even when someone gets hurt — or worse. Especially if they can afford a good lawyer.

A Minnesota TV station looks at the intersection of bicycling and President Trump, who hasn’t been on one since he was a kid. Which probably explains a lot.

Not surprisingly, bike riders aren’t reacting well to a Minnesota legislator’s proposal to require bicyclists to pay a $5 fee and pass a road safety course before they’re allowed to use the state’s bike lanes. Which would just push riders into the traffic lanes, defeating the whole purpose.

The New York co-founder of the CycloFemme movement offers her advice on commuting by bike year-round in city traffic.

The New York Times says innovations in the cycling world, including mobile bike shops and online ordering, are threatening local bike shops. Thanks to George Wolfberg for the link.

 

International

If you’re going to get into bicycling, the first thing you’ll need is a bicycle. Just about everything else the story mentions is optional to a greater or lesser degree; yes, you should have a spare tube and patch kit, but countless riders somehow manage to get along without a bike computer, as useful as they may be.

A 230 mile long abandoned railroad in Paraguay could soon be the longest bike path in South America.

Bike parking sheds are fine on the streets of London’s Westminster district, as long as they look like luxury cars.

Caught on video, sort of: It takes a real schmuck to punch a disabled London cyclist, knocking him out, after blocking the rider’s path with his double-parked Uber car.

Hero Cycles, which claims to be the world’s largest bike maker, is opening an R&D center in Manchester, England. Except it isn’t the biggest.

Antonio Banderas is one of us, riding through the woods behind his English home; he made the news after suffering a heart scare.

Seriously, how oblivious do you have to be to not even know you hit someone with your car? A British driver claims his had his music turned up so loud he didn’t even know he’d hit a bike rider until he got home and saw the damage to his car. But how is it that he didn’t even feel the impact?

A Scottish lawyer says the country has to make bicycling safer, as too many people are afraid to get out on their bikes, resulting in a public health crisis.

PeopleForBikes says the latest edition of the Netherland’s bikeway design manual, which they call the world’s best, is available now. And in English.

An Indian bus driver rode his bike nearly 700 miles to call for the expansion of a two lane highway.

 

Finally…

Your next helmet could signal your turns for you. LA riders may have gotten caught in the rain lately, but that’s better than frostbite and burned bronchial tubes.

And you may be able to outsprint the other riders, but can you drop a giraffe?

………

Thanks to an anonymous giver for a generous donation to support this site. The kindness and generosity of BikinginLA readers is always welcome.

And appreciated.

 

Category: Bike Access, Morning Links, Streets and Infrastructure / Tags: , , , ,

Morning Links: New Colorado pro race, bikes and microbrews coming to Echo Park, and riding 30 days the wrong way

January 26, 2017 / / 2 comments

Through the end of this month, BikinginLA is supporting local bike shops and other small businesses in the bike industry by offering deep discounts on our usual advertising rates. For more information, or to find out if your business qualifies, email the address on the Support and Advertising page.

………

Colorado’s USA Pro Challenge is dead and buried. Now the four-stage Colorado Classic pro race, which will include a two-stage women’s race, will rise from the ashes to take its place. Although they still seem to think women are too fragile to compete on an equal basis with the men.

Evidently, former pro Frank Schleck still likes to go fast; he’ll lose his driver’s license for a month and face five year’s probation for driving 52 mph in a 31 mph zone.

Former British world road champ Nicole Cook says the problem with pro cycling is the sport in run “by men, for men” and doping is being fought by “the wrong people, in the wrong way, with the wrong tools.”

………

Local

Echo Park could be soon home to LA’s first microbrewery/bike shop.

The Radical Optimism series is hosting a panel discussion on How We Move: Getting Around the “Shrinking” City of Los Angeles tonight in Culver City.

Santa Monica’s Cynergy Cycles hosts a discussion on bikepacking tonight.

Hermosa Beach will start using bike cops in an effort to control late night partying in the downtown area.

 

State

Ventura police bust a man who jacked a bicycle at knifepoint after he’d removed it from the back of vehicle while the driver slept inside.

A San Francisco bicyclist was the victim of a hit-and-run near the city’s Pier 39 following a failed pass.

Just days after San Francisco officials stared down Chinese app-based bikeshare company Bluegogo, a US-based startup wants to bring their dock-less, app-based bikeshare system to the city.

A San Francisco native says no, cyclists, pedestrians and drivers have not always hated one another, but we should all come together to hate the people on hoverboards.

 

National

The CEO of Affirm and co-founder of PayPal is one of us, taking his bike with him wherever he travels.

Popular Mechanics gets it, saying it’s time to rethink our roads so they work for everyone, including bicyclists.

Next City talks to Motivate CEO Jay Walder, head of the nation’s largest bikeshare company, who says Donald Trump should look to America’s transit revolution for guidance on how to overhaul the nation’s infrastructure through public-private partnerships.

No bias here. Colorado considers adopting the Idaho Stop law, but one TV station says it allows bicyclists to run red lights and stop signs. Actually, it just lets bike riders treat stop signs as yields, and treat red light like stop signs. Big difference.

A Victoria TX newspaper says all it would take is a little paint to bring the city into the 21st Century by putting in some bike lanes.

Detroit police are still looking for the bicycle-riding killer of a university police officer, releasing a photo of the bike he was riding.

A Northwestern University professor says cyclists, pedestrians and drivers all have to work together to ensure safety.

Note to Boston Globe: A “suspicious device” made from a beer bottle half filled with gasoline with a rag sticking out of it, like the one found on a bike trail, is called a Molotov cocktail.

New York-based BMX pro Nigel Sylvester makes Forbes Magazine’s 30 Under 30, to go along with his 200,000 Instagram followers and seven million YouTube views.

A Virginia columnist says the state doesn’t need a proposed law banning bicycling while drunk, calling it a legal solution in search of a problem.

Before you detain a teenager for stealing your son’s bike, make sure it really is. A Florida man faces felony kidnapping and robbery charges because he didn’t. And it wasn’t.

 

International

James May, host of Amazon’s The Grand Tour, is one of us, but says most bike riders are a bit hopeless, awkwardly peddling badly adjusted bikes with no idea how to use their gears.

Cycling Weekly patiently explains why cyclists ride in the middle of the road. But they neglected to mention that it makes riders more visible to drivers, which is why taking the lane is taught by both the League of American Bicyclists and CyclingSavvy.

London’s Independent says forget riding down Bolivia’s Death Road; if you want a real challenge, try riding Peru’s Pichu Pichu volcano.

Bike riders are donning facemasks to deal with London’s crushing smog.

Now that’s a close call. A Brit driver just misses a bicyclist riding in a bike lane before plowing into a street sign.

 

Finally…

Breaking News: Riding at night isn’t like riding during the day because it’s dark. If you’re trying to make it home for the holidays, make sure you don’t ride for 30 days in the wrong direction.

And if NASCAR is going to be more like bike racing, does that mean the drivers will start shaving their legs?

 

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , ,
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