62-year old man dies after he’s struck by a driver while bicycling in Palm Desert Tuesday night

March 14, 2024 / / 2 comments

Sadly, he didn’t make it.

Wednesday’s post included a brief mention of a bike rider who suffered major injuries when he was struck by a driver in Palm Desert Tuesday night.

Later yesterday, a notice from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department indicate the victim, later identified as 62-year old Indio resident Jay Groth, died from his injuries.

He was pronounced dead at 8:37 pm after being taken to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs.

According to the sheriff’s department, the crash occurred around 7:30 pm Tuesday at Cook Street and Country Club Drive in Palm Desert.

The driver remained at the scene and cooperated with investigators.

There’s no word on which direction the driver was traveling, where Groth was in the intersection, or any other details on how it happened. However, a street view shows combination bike and golf cart lanes on both Cook Street and Country Club.

Hopefully, we’ll learn more later.

Anyone with information is urged to call Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputy Sanchez at the Palm Desert Sheriff Station at 760/836–1600, or anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 800/782-7463.

This is at least the ninth bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the third that I’m aware of in Riverside County.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Jay Groth and all his family and loved ones. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , ,

Bass visits bike-friendly Paris, gets $900m for LA transportation; living in a state of happiness; and just another Florida oopsie

March 13, 2024 / / One comment
Just 293 days until Los Angeles fails to meet its Vision Zero pledge to eliminate traffic deaths by 2025.
So stop what you’re doing and sign this petition to demand Mayor Bass hold a public meeting to listen to the dangers we face walking and biking on the mean streets of LA.

Then share it — and keep sharing it — with everyone you know, on every platform you can.

As of this writing, we’re up to 1,013 signatures, so let’s keep it going! Urge everyone you know to sign the petition, until the mayor agrees to meet with us!

Photo by Matteus Silva for Pexels. 

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Fifteen years ago, then-Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa had his eyes opened when he visited Copenhagen, and saw how cities can thrive when they provide safe alternatives to driving.

Let’s hope current Mayor Karen Bass gets the same message on her pre-Olympic excursion to Paris, where Mayor Anne Hidalgo has been removing highways and building bike lanes to create a 15-minute city.

Bass will have plenty of money to spend on it, after the city secured nearly $900 million in federal funding for transportation and infrastructure projects ahead of the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.

Although more than $700 million of that will go to rail projects.

But still. The other $200 million could go a long way towards fixing what ails LA.

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It’s now 84 days since the California ebike incentive program’s latest failure to launch, which was promised no later than fall 2023. And 33 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.

No bias here. A London media personality questions who is at fault in a five-year old crash where a driver cut a corner and hit a bike rider waiting to turn head on — making who was really at fault glaringly obvious.

https://twitter.com/OliLondonTV/status/1766515138654306533

Police in Mumbai, India denied permission for bicycling groups to gather for a silent protest to draw attention to unsafe road conditions for bike riders and pedestrians, despite planning the rally for a spot designated for protests.

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

Authorities in Dublin, Ireland are looking for video evidence after a middle-aged woman was pushed off her bicycle by a “group of lads on bikes,” for no apparent reason.

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Local 

The two leaders of the nation’s largest homeless rescue mission, Hope the Mission in North Hills, are on their way to DC on a 3,500-mile bike ride to advocate for homelessness programs.

Good news for Pasadena, where bike-friendly former city mayor, Los Angeles assistant mayor and Santa Monica city manager Rick Cole has been re-elected to the Pasadena city council, receiving just over 60% of the vote.

Speaking of Pasadena, the city’s police will conduct a bicycle and pedestrian safety operation on Friday, ticketing anyone who commits a traffic violation that could endanger either group, regardless of who commits it; Santa Monica cops will also hold one on Thursday and Friday. As usual, ride to the letter of the law until you cross the city limits, so you’re not the one who gets written up and fined.

Streetsblog talks with South Bay-based writer Peter Flax, whose new book, Live to Ride: Finding Joy and Meaning on a Bicycle, offers a broad look at bike riding, with a common theme that bicyclists have to work together because strength comes from unity. And yes, I’ve ordered my copy.

 

State

This is who we share the road with. An unlicensed driver with four previous DUIs over the past decade hit and killed a pedestrian in Orange Tuesday morning, and was arrested after fleeing the scene and leading police on a short chase. And yes, he showed signs of intoxication as he was taken into custody. Which is what happens when authorities take someone’s license away, but let them keep their keys.

Caltrans will provide millions of dollars for a pilot program to build parks, bike lanes and other amenities to reconnect communities in southeastern San Diego and National City that were divided by the 805 Freeway; the program will also seek to reconnect similarly divided communities in Arcata and San Francisco.

A man suffered major injuries when he was struck by a driver while riding his bike in Palm Desert last night.

 

National

That’s more like it. An Oregon man got 12 years behind bars for killing a woman biking with two friends while under the influence, and in possession of controlled substances. Although it’s shameful that it took seven years for the victim to get justice. 

The horrific story of the Washington mountain biker attacked by a mountain lion gets even worse, with news that the 60-year old woman’s entire head was in the cougar’s mouth for a full 15 minutes before her companions managed to pin it down with a bike frame; a crowdfunding campaign has raised nearly $75,000 for the victim.

They get it. The Baltimore Sun, which was recently purchased by the owner of a conservative media group, asks why bike lanes won’t work there, if they’re so successful in Cambridge, Massachusetts, even though the Baltimore bike plan has recently come under from residents and city leaders.

In news that will undoubtedly confound California officials, the District of Columbia will somehow managed to launch their new ebike voucher program next month, just seven months after it was approved by the city council. Which is 26 months less than California’s moribund program’s failure to launch has taken — and counting.

 

International

Momentum offers 33 reasons to start bike commuting this spring, ranging from reducing your carbon footprint to getting some alone time while connecting to your community. Although they forgot to mention that it’s a lot more fun than driving, too. 

British Columbia will invest $50 million in active transportation projects over the next three years.

He gets it. A Toronto columnist questions why the city is cutting funding for safe streets, when it just experienced the deadliest month for bike riders and pedestrians since the heady days before the pandemic.

The Dutch Cycling Embassy explains how fire trucks and bike lanes can peacefully co-exist, despite the largely debunked belief that they slow response times and limit the ability to respond to emergencies.

An Austrian tech company is training AI to enable smart bicycles to analyze their surroundings. On the other hand, would you want to trust your safety to a technology that draws people with three legs, and gets lawyers sanctioned by making up legal precedents?

Dubai opened two new separated cycle tracks in the residential communities of Al Khawaneej and Mushrif, part of the emirate’s goal of building 1,000 km — 621 miles — of bike paths by 2030.

Here’s your chance to mountain bike the Serengeti this fall, while you help fight poaching.

Bike Radar highlights eight weird and wonderful road, gravel and urban bikes from the Taipei Cycle Show.

Police in Australia are revisiting the seven-year old cold case shooting of a 72-year old man, who was shot multiple times in the head and chest by a man who got out of a parked car to fire at him as he rode his motorized bicycle on a rail trail; he somehow survived, but even a half-million dollar reward hasn’t been enough to solve the case.

An Aussie professor says subsidizing micromobility-share programs can benefit people on low incomes or with disabilities.

 

Competitive Cycling

Pro cycling gets its kicks from caffeine.

Ghana’s Sports Minister blamed the country’s Cycling Federation for the national team’s equipment fiasco at the Africa Games, as cyclists were forced to compete using the same worn gear they’d been training on.

Triple world champion Ellen van Dijk won the time trial in the final stage of Spain’s Vuelta Extremadura Féminas on Sunday, just five months after giving birth, while Dutch cyclist Mareille Meijering took the general classification for the three stage race; no American finished in the top 25.

 

Finally…

That feeling when they build a new separated bikeway, and leave a lamppost in the middle of it. Or when you get a call from your dead friend’s phone asking for his bicycle back.

And a snow covered reminder of why we ride in California.

………

Ramadan Mubarak to all observing the Islamic holy month today. 

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

Oh, and fuck Putin

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

PCH near-closure due to Malibu rockslide, Tish & Greg’s Excellent Oscar Adventure, and East Side Riders BEAST classes

March 12, 2024 / / 2 comments
Just 294 days until Los Angeles fails to meet its Vision Zero pledge to eliminate traffic deaths by 2025.
So stop what you’re doing and sign this petition to demand Mayor Bass hold a public meeting to listen to the dangers we face walking and biking on the mean streets of LA.

Then share it — and keep sharing it — with everyone you know, on every platform you can.

As of this writing, we’re up to 1,011 signatures, so let’s keep it going! Urge everyone you know to sign the petition, until the mayor agrees to meet with us!

Photo from Caltrans tweet, below. 

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As we mentioned yesterday, hats off to Tish and Greg Laemmle, owners of the Laemmle Theater chain, for once again leading a group bike ride from West LA to Sunday’s Oscar ceremony, as the following photos attest.

I can imagine few things more badass or sending a stronger message than walking the red carpet holding a bike helmet.

Tish and Greg Laemmle preparing to ride to the Oscars

The assembled entourage posing in front of the Laemmle on Santa Monica Blvd

And in a reminder that there’s always a troll around, a participant on the ride responds to a commenter’s faux concern about scofflaw riders.

Twitter post

Twitter post

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The East Side Riders Bike Club will now be hosting Bicycle Safety and Education Classes, aka BEAST, as Keller Park every Saturday; participants will get a free bike helmet.

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It’s now 83 days since the California ebike incentive program’s latest failure to launch, which was promised no later than fall 2023. And 33 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.

No bias here. A Cincinnati public radio station says bicyclists wonder if a Covington KY road diet, and new bike lanes on a bridge things, will make things better or worse, but can only seem to find people who think it will get better. But they do find the city’s mayor, arguing that the city’s streets are too narrow for bike lanes, and you just can’t take people’s parking away, because cars matter more than people’s safety, evidently.

There’s a special place in hell for the two men who stopped to “help” a seriously injured mountain biker in York, England, and made off with his bike, instead.

The metro Manilla area in the Philippines is banning ebikes from all major roadways starting next month, for reasons that must make sense to someone.

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

Brooklyn police are looking for a hit-and-run bike rider who may have killed a 67-year old man riding an ebike in an apparent bike-on-bike collision, although a close pass by an oncoming van driver may have played a role.

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Local 

After conducting a nationwide search, Pasadena found their new DOT head in their own backyard, promoting 20-year Pasadena Department of Transportation veteran Joaquin Siques to lead the agency.

Santa Monica police will conduct yet another Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Operation this Thursday and Friday, targeting anyone who commits a traffic violation that could endanger either group, regardless of who commits it. As usual, ride to the letter of the law until you cross the city limit line, so you’re not the one who gets written up and fined. 

 

State

June will officially be mountain bike month in California.

San Luis Obispo has received $4 million in federal funding to build a 1.25-mile extension of the existing Edna Valley Trail next to Highway 227.

The chair of the San Mateo County Bike and Pedestrian Advisory Committee reminds everyone that bicyclists pay taxes, too, and deserve safe streets.

Sad news from San Jose, where a woman died a week after she was struck by a motorcyclist while riding her bicycle across the street. The story notes that she was riding “outside of any marked crosswalks,” even though there’s no requirement for bicyclists to ride in one. 

More sad news from Sacramento County, where police are looking for witnesses to an apparent solo bicycling fall last December, when a 62-year old man died after being found in the roadway next to his bicycle. Although it’s also possible that a close pass or bump by a driver could have caused his fall. Read the second link on Yahoo if the newspaper blocks you. 

 

National

No surprise here, as the streets of Milwaukee are even deadlier for people of color, especially when walking or riding a bicycle.

A West Warwick, Rhode Island driver somehow managed to jump an island at a “horrible” intersection, and crash into not one, not two, but three kids riding their bikes; fortunately, none of the tween kids were seriously injured.

A speeding Brooklyn driver faces charges for the “wild” drunken crash that injured a bike rider, and put a pedestrian into a coma.

This could be your best smile of the day, as a South Carolina boy teaches his little sister how to use a backyard bike ramp.

Residents of Valdosta, Georgia are understandably horrified when the driver of a city-owned semi was caught on security cam right-hooking a 56-year old man riding a bicycle, who had pulled up next to the truck at a red light just as the light was changing; the victim remains in stable but critical condition. Naturally, one commenter said “Bicyclists should know traffic laws,” even though the victim didn’t appear to break any. 

 

International

An orthopedic surgeon writes in the prestigious British Medical Journal that active transportation is the “best buy” for improving people’s health, and the UK should make more cycling and walking journeys a priority in the United Kingdom, while calling for more 20 mph speed limits.

Mumbai bike riders raise the alarm over wheel-trapping roadway grates on a new highway flyover. Even though most cities around the world got rid of these hazards years ago. 

I want to be like him when I grow up. A 91-year old South African man gets back on his ebike and finishes the country’s largest fondo, despite a nasty fall that left him momentarily motionless. Although I could do without the nasty fall. And the bandages. 

Luxury Travel Magazine recommends three bicycling routes you need to travel to explore Vietnam by bike, including the Mekong Delta and the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Which are bound to bring up warm memories for any Vietnam vet.

A columnist argues that New Zealand’s war on bicyclists can’t continue, as the country’s Transport Minister proposes slashing bike funding in half, even though other departments only face a 6% cut.

 

Competitive Cycling

Bicycling says wet cobbles couldn’t slow Lorena Wiebes down at the Ronde van Drenthe. Although this one doesn’t appear to be available anywhere else yet, so you’re on your own if the magazine blocks you.

 

Finally…

That feeling when Amsterdam has the ability to remotely slow ebike riders, but speeding drivers are apparently A-OK. Or when drivers owe a bike rider their thanks for sucking up flat-causing nails and screws by towing a bigass magnet behind his bike.

And your next cruiser ebike could be built by the same people who made the little red wagon you probably had as a kid.

………

Ramadan Mubarak to all observing the Islamic holy month today. 

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

Oh, and fuck Putin

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , ,

EVs present danger to all road users, how Measure HLA ballot measure changed the city, and Laemmle’s bike the Oscars

March 11, 2024 / / Comments Off on EVs present danger to all road users, how Measure HLA ballot measure changed the city, and Laemmle’s bike the Oscars
Just 295 days until Los Angeles fails to meet its Vision Zero pledge to eliminate traffic deaths by 2025.
So stop what you’re doing and sign this petition to demand Mayor Bass hold a public meeting to listen to the dangers we face walking and biking on the mean streets of LA.

Then share it — and keep sharing it — with everyone you know, on every platform you can.

As of this writing, we’re up to 1,010 signatures, so let’s keep it going! Urge everyone you know to sign the petition, until the mayor agrees to meet with us!

………

A new study shows even a total worldwide switch to EVs would perpetuate what the authors call “car harm,” such as death, injury, disease and other miseries, because the current system “prioritizes speed over safety.”

 

The report concludes:

  • In 2019, 43% of people killed by motor vehicles were walking, using a wheelchair or riding a bike.
  • Motor vehicles kill more than 700 children a day. Traffic deaths occur at the highest rates in Africa and Southeast Asia, and, in the US and Brazil, crashes disproportionately kill Black and Indigenous people.
  • SUVs, which make up nearly half of car sales globally, are eight times more likely than traditional cars to kill children.
  • Traffic-related air pollution is linked to circulatory and heart disease, lung cancer, asthma and, according to a cited study, “acute lower respiratory infections in children.”
  • Other car harms include drunk driving, drive-by shootings, carbon monoxide poisoning and, in the US, traffic stops that “are a setting for police violence against Black, Latine/x, and Indigenous people,” they write.
  • Access to oil has played a role in a quarter to half of wars between countries since 1973.
  • The electric car, a juggernaut of the energy transition, “fails to address a majority of the harms,” they write, including crashes, sedentary travel, inequality and cities designed more for cars than people.

 

Greg and Tish Laemmle, owners of the Laemmle Theater chain and descendant of early Hollywood royalty, led a group biking to the Oscars yesterday.

Twitter post

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GCN tests whether an experienced amateur can descend at the same hair-raising speeds as a pro cyclist.

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It’s now 82 days since the California ebike incentive program’s latest failure to launch, which was promised no later than fall 2023. And 33 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.

No bias here. A writer for Streetsblog complains that an NYPD precinct is responding to complaints about ebike riders by targeting riders of traditional human-powered bikes, because they’re easier to catch.

A Scottish mountain biker was lucky to escape without serious injuries after someone booby trapped a trail with buried spike strips they had welded together to cause maximum damage.

A British woman learns the hard way what happens when you hug the edge of the road, as several drivers pass her bike way too close — including a large truck.

No bias here, either. The UK traffic lawyer who calls himself Mr. Loophole for getting scofflaw drivers off the hook continues his campaign to force bike riders to carry ID and have numbered license plates on their bicycles. Apparently forgetting that it’s the dangerous drivers he represents who are the real problem. 

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Local 

A letter from a former LA resident argues that the passage of Measure HLA is proof that NIMBYs aren’t the majority, no matter how loudly they scream.

Arnold is apparently in the clear, after the woman suing the former governator for crashing into her bike with his massive SUV dropped her lawsuit.

A 40-year old man was airlifted from the Haines Canyon Mountainway in the Sunland/Tujunga area after injuring his back in a mountain bike fall Sunday morning.

Culver City is asking the state for a $4 million grant to replace existing bike lanes with protected lanes on a 1.75-mile stretch of Overland Avenue between Washington and Sawtelle Boulevards.

 

State

An op-ed from the leaders of Hispanic rights organization LULAC and the California Alliance for Jobs calls for an “all of the above” approach to transportation infrastructure to keep people working. But what they really mean is keep spending billions on highways — even though bike and pedestrian projects create more jobs.  

San Diego’s City Heights neighborhood received a $3.3 million state grant for enhanced bike and pedestrian infrastructure.

A Simi Valley letter writer calls out the “dismal condition” of the city’s major streets and bike lanes, thanks to a “multitude of ruts, cracks, potholes.”

San Francisco bike shop owner fear the city’s new ban on dangerous lithium-ion ebike batteries, along with a requirement for any store that sells them to install sprinklers, could put them out of business. Meanwhile, a British member of Parliament calls the batteries “unexploded bombs.”

 

National

A travel website recommends 20 American cities to visit without a car.

Jalopnik says bike lanes are good for business, and anyone who says otherwise is wrong. So there.

Electrek says riding an ebike instead of driving can really impact your wallet — in a good way.

Bicycling drama Hard Miles is set for a nationwide April 19 premier date; the fact-based film tells the story bicycling team made up of inmates from a Colorado correctional school as they ride from Denver to the Grand Canyon.

Give your kid an early start on the biking bug with a new book large-format picture book for kids ages 3 to 6 that follows a mom and her son on a bicycling adventure.

This is who we share the road with. Life is cheap in Vermont, as the driver who killed motorcycle-riding actor Treat Williams walked without a day behind barsl, despite pleading guilty to negligent driving.

A writer for Forbes offers advice on how to stay safe riding a bicycle in New York traffic. Or any other traffic, for that matter.

The mayor of Baltimore’s security team parked in a bike lane for over an hour while he attended a candidate forum, despite the city’s recent crackdown on bike lane violators.

 

International

An Irish man just returned home for bicycling across Afghanistan, Iran, India and Pakistan as part of a multi-stage ride around the world, while attempting to meet as many people as possible along the way.

A conservative Irish counselor claims she was never told that a Limerick road project included segregated bike lanes — even though she posted on Facebook four years ago how delighted she was with them.

Velo looks at the best bike tech from small brands only Belgians have access to.

A bicycling organization hosting a series of of bicycling“camps in spectacular destinations throughout Türkiye, formerly known as Turkey in the English-speaking world.

Rappler rides a 120 kilometer — 75 mile — bike route through central Manila to rate the roadway quality, and concludes not so much.

David Seymour, leading of New Zealand’s rightwing Act Party, wasn’t injured when he went over his ebike handlebars to avoid a driver, then suffered verbal abuse from a bystander who complained about what he was doing to the Māori, even though he is one.

 

Competitive Cycling

Twenty-four-year old American Matteo Jorgenson won the Paris-Nice stage race on Sunday, capping the biggest victory of his young career, as Cycling News offers a blow-by-blow recount of the final stage; Bobby Julich in 2005, and ex-Tour de France champ Floyd Landis in 2006, are the only other Americans to win the iconic Race to the Sun.

Tour de France champ Jonas Vingegaard claimed a dominating victory in the seven-day Tirreno-Adriatico stage race, as the Visma-Lease a Bike cycling team took both Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico in the same year for the first time.

Ghana’s national cycling team blamed substandard equipment for their poor showing in the ongoing Africa Games, competing on their own aluminum-frame bikes and using the same gear they train on.

This year’s 38th annual Redlands Bicycle Classic will take place on April 10th through this 14th.

 

Finally…

If you’re carrying illegal narcotics on your bike, put a damn light on it and don’t ride on the sidewalk. Your next ebike could have four wheels and look more like a dorky little car. Or maybe be made of recycled plastic.

And an NFL cheerleader turns gravel racer, while a track cyclist turns astronaut.

………

Ramadan Mubarak to all observing the Islamic holy month today. 

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

Oh, and fuck Putin

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Bicyclist struck and killed by two drivers in Vista collision, one driver fled the scene

March 9, 2024 / / Comments Off on Bicyclist struck and killed by two drivers in Vista collision, one driver fled the scene

Two drivers combined to strike and kill someone riding a bicycle in Vista Thursday night.

But only one had the basic human decency to stick around afterwards.

Multiple sources are reporting that the victim, who has not been publicly identified, was “bumped” by a driver on South Melrose Drive at Buena Vista Drive around 10:28 pm Thursday.

He was then struck by a second driver.

The first one stuck around and cooperated investigators. The second didn’t, reportedly fleeing north on Melrose; investigators are looking for a white SUV or crossover, which may have front-end damage.

The victim was pronounced dead at the scene.

There’s no information on how the crash occurred. However, it sounds like the initial impact may have been minor, and could have been survivable if the second driver had stopped in time.

There’s also no word on whether either driver may have been speeding, driving distracted or under the influence.

There appears to be a buffered bike lane on Melrose, which has a 45 mph speed limit. That speed could have contributed to both the force of the impact, as well as the inability of the second driver to avoid the victim.

Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 888/580-8477. There’s a $1,000 reward for any details that lead to an arrest.

This is at least the eighth bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the first that I’m aware of in San Diego County.

Three of those fatal crashes have been hit-and-runs.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and their loved ones. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , ,

Support for Measure HLA shows near-identical overlap to LA’s High Injury Network, and making art out of bike chains

March 8, 2024 / / Comments Off on Support for Measure HLA shows near-identical overlap to LA’s High Injury Network, and making art out of bike chains
Just 298 days until Los Angeles fails to meet its Vision Zero pledge to eliminate traffic deaths by 2025.
So stop what you’re doing and sign this petition to demand Mayor Bass hold a public meeting to listen to the dangers we face walking and biking on the mean streets of LA.

Then share it — and keep sharing it — with everyone you know, on every platform you can.

As of this writing, we’re up to 1,008 signatures, so let’s keep it going! Urge everyone you know to sign the petition, until the mayor agrees to meet with us!

Streetsblog photo of former LA Mayor, and current Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti declaring Vision Zero from behind his big open-air desk, which led to the development of LA’s largely ignored High Injury Network.

………

Now this is interesting.

A comparison of LA’s Vision Zero High Injury Network with a map of support for Measure HLA created by The Works LA, which passed with overwhelming support on Tuesday, shows nearly identical results.

Which explains a lot about who supported it, and why.

It’s also worth noting that the areas with the fewest deaths and serious injuries, and the least support for HLA, include some of the wealthiest and most conservative parts of the city.

Twitter post

Twitter post

Slide the center divider to compare the images below.

Before imageAfter image

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A “visionary” South Korean sculptor makes breathtaking art using bicycle chains.

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A British bike rider was lucky to avoid serious injury when a maniacal speeding driver decided pass several vehicles on the grass verge at the side of the road.

To make matters worse, the driver was only fined the equivalent of $436, and lost his license for a lousy year.

………

It’s now 79 days since the California ebike incentive program’s latest failure to launch, which was promised no later than fall 2023. And 33 months since it was approved by the legislature and signed into law — and counting.

………

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

Good question. Business Insider examines why so many business and restaurant owners oppose bike lanes, when study after study shows they’re good for business.

No bias here. A Key Biscayne letter writer demands a total and permanent ban on ebikes because young kids ride them on the sidewalk. Instead of, say, regulating their use by children, and building safe infrastructure so they don’t have to ride them on sidewalks. 

No bias here, either. A Dublin, Ireland city councilor for the Sinn Féin political party argued that bike lanes “are for a ‘privileged minority,’ negatively impact ‘ordinary people,’ and are making the roads more dangerous.” By which he no doubt means the privileged minority who can’t afford or don’t want cars, inconveniencing ordinary people driving alone in their massive, high-end SUVs. 

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

Police in Irvine, California are looking for the bike-riding man who repeatedly broke wildfire-detection equipment.

London’s Daily Mail complains about the “shocking” images of a “selfish” bike rider going through a crosswalk when five people were using it, including three kids. Yes, the guy was a selfish jerk. But just wait until they learn that drivers do that on a daily basis.

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Local 

Hats off to South LA’s Major Taylor Cycling Club for raising funds for the track team at Dorsey High School.

Police in Redondo Beach held a community meeting last night to gather input on ebike use in the city. Which at least makes more sense than the knee-jerk restrictions we’ve seen in other coastal cities.

 

State

The California Air Resources Board announced grants totaling $33 million for planning and implementing clean transportation projects across the state, while they continue to slow walk the state’s moribund ebike voucher program.

An “overly sedentary” Chico letter writer says he gets in the steps his health app demands by walking his ebike until he gets tired, and sees a lot that way. Which kinda seems to defeat the purpose, but still.

 

National

A new report by equity expert and former LACBC head Tamika Butler offers a guide to equity principles for state DOTs and community collaboration.

Trek announced plans to cut staffing, inventory and bike lineups to achieve a 10% overall cost reduction.

Forbes says the new Hollywood movie Hard Miles could give bicycling the same boost Breaking Away did back in the late 70s.

Speaking of movies, a reminder about the new documentary that highlights mountain biking on the Navajo Nation.

An Albuquerque, New Mexico man was sentenced to life behind bars for killing a man he thought had taken his bicycle. Which is a reminder that no bike is worth a human life. Or two, in this case. 

Police in Madison, Wisconsin recovered the adaptive bicycle stolen from a kid with special needs. No word on the schmuck who took it, though.

The New York Times examines why last year was the deadliest year for New York bicyclists since 1999, noting that most deaths occurred on streets without bicycle infrastructure, and a third of deaths involved solo falls.

New York officials are dragging their feet on plans to expand a bikeway on the Queensboro Bridge, despite data showing bike riders keep crashing on the narrow bike lane.

Baltimore residents get out the torches and pitchforks over the city’s Complete Streets plan, citing a lack of community engagement in affected areas. Although if they’re anything like LA residents, “lack of community engagement” just means they’ve ignored repeated attempts to engage them. 

You’ve got to be kidding. Life is really cheap in Florida, where a sheriff’s deputy walked with a lousy traffic ticket for killing a 63-year old bike rider, while doing 98 miles an hour in a 50 mile zone, and not responding to a call. Which should be Exhibit A for why people keep dying on our streets.

 

International

The United Nations Regional Information Center for Western Europe considers how to address the gender gap in bicycling, while the European Union just wants more people on bicycles, period.

The rich get richer, as London gets yet another massive new bicycle superhighway, in a city where the bike network has quadrupled in size in just eight years.

Czech carmaker Škoda’s We Love Cycling website says there’s never been a better time to chase the Northern Lights by bicycle.

Momentum visits Bologna, Italy’s three-day Cycle Tourism Show, inspiring bike riders for their next two-wheeled adventure.

 

Competitive Cycling

SoCal Cycling offers a photo gallery from the recent Taylor Elizabeth Clifford Memorial Grand Prix in Costa Mesa.

Seriously? If the era of doping is over in pro cycling, why did 130 out of 187 cyclists entered in a recent amateur race in Valencia, Spain suddenly abandon after drug testers showed up?

Say what? AOL somehow picked up a story from Bicycling reporting that Philippe Gilbert was forced to withdraw from the Tour de France after a grisly crash — in 2018.

 

Finally…

Even fashionable ladies rode bikes over 100 years ago. Who needs gears when you can have your very own 100-tooth chainring?

And mountain biking without the mountain in DTLA.

………

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

Oh, and fuck Putin

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , ,
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