Let me take just a moment to thank everyone who contributed to the BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive over the last month.
Thanks to your support, what had started as joke became a real thing. And what had looked like a bleak holiday season became much brighter.
And for that, I couldn’t be more grateful.
So please accept my most humble thanks, and my best wishes for a very merry Christmas. Or the happiest of holidays, whatever you may observe.
BikinginLA will be taking the next week off, as I plan to do a little work under the hood and make some long-delayed changes.
So unless there’s breaking news, we’ll see you bright and early next year.
We have a big January planned for you, with more people ready to describe their rides. And a first-ever contest to give away a new bicycle, courtesy of Hermosa Beach’s Beachbikes.net.
So enjoy the holidays.
Ride safe and ride happy.
And don’t forget Sunday’s Valley Finish the Ride.
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Special thanks to David Aretsky for contributing to the BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive.
But for a change, there doesn’t seem to be anyone else involved.
Police spent Tuesday night searching for a driver who fled the scene after a passerby found a man lying critically injured in a Van Nuys crosswalk, still wrapped around his BMX bike. After further investigation, however, they concluded that he fell and hit his head while riding under the influence.
Of course, as always, the question is why he fell; whether he was simply too drunk to stay upright or if there was some other factor that caused him to lose control of his bike.
Regardless, let’s hope he makes a full and fast recovery.
The recently released video shows Noel Aguilar struggling with the officers, who had apparently disarmed him before opening fire, despite Aguilar’s insistence that he didn’t shoot anyone.
And once again, the DA’s office declined to press charges against police officers, despite the video evidence. Just like the case of Ricardo Diaz-Zeferino in 2013.
Or the Milt Olin case, for that matter, where a deputy plowed into Olin’s bike from behind as her was distracted by the car’s onboard computer just after texting with his wife.
Which raises the question of whether the DA refuses to prosecute cops. Or just doesn’t give a damn about people on bikes.
An Oklahoma police officer repaired a girl’s damaged therapy tricycle after it was stolen and thrown over a fence; her parents couldn’t afford the $5000 it would take to replace the bike for their daughter, who suffers up to 60 epileptic seizures a day.
Pennsylvania police give a new adaptive bicycle to a six-year old special needs boy.
An anonymous donor gave the equivalent of $150 to replace a British girl’s bike for Christmas after hers was stolen.
Around 150 Brits dressed up like Santa for a bike ride to raise funds for a children’s hospice.
After a paralyzed Welsh stunt biker tried to sell his bike to raise money for his rehabilitation, over £50,000 — roughly $74,000 — in donations poured in from fans.
CiclaValley is justifiably angry about the death of pedestrian on Riverside Drive, where the city installed new bike lanes while simultaneously making the street more dangerous. Kind of like Vision Zero in reverse.
Richard Risemberg says Burbank made the right decision in requiring riders to walk their bikes across a dirt-covered bridge used by equestrians; although he notes that if horses could be trained to charge into battle for the past 7,000 years, they should be able to tolerate someone on a bicycle.
Reseda Blvd receives a nomination from Streetsblog for the nation’s Best Urban Street Transformation of 2015. While it’s a huge step for auto-centric LA, it doesn’t begin to compare with the best work elsewhere. Or where we need to be, for that matter.
LA Weekly ranks the city’s new Mobility Plan number one on its list of why this was a banner year for new ways to get around in LA. Although they screw up the timeline; the plan has already been approved by the city council, first with, then without amendments, with more under consideration.
The jerk who stole a bicycle out of the hands of a boy who had just won it in a Halloween raffle makes LAist’s list of Southern California’s biggest jerks for 2015.
A Santa Monica man was severely beaten by a bystander after dropping the bike he was walking onto his own dog, accidently or otherwise.
Long Beach’s Danny Gamboa writes about the ghost bike movement for Bicycling Magazine. Danny is one of the heroes of the local bike movement, even if he prefers to give the recognition to others.
After the father of two Santa Ana teens were hit by a car while riding his bike, they responded by forming the Bike It! Santa Ana campaign, which was recently awarded a $2.7 million grant for three projects, including two protected bikeways. Makes you wonder why adults have so much trouble getting things done.
As she nears retirement, the founder of Trips for Kids reflects on the group she founded 27 years ago; the national organization works to get kids out on mountain bikes.
After a five-year old Idaho boy was seriously injured in a collision while riding his bike, the state agrees to put more bicycling questions on their driving test.
A Los Angeles man keeps fighting for a bikeway in Grand Teton National Park, where his 13-year old daughter was killed by a distracted driver 16 years ago. Somehow, a roadway doesn’t harm the environment, but putting a protected bike lane on or next to it would.
The Department of DIY strikes in Rhode Island, as city officials move to quickly rip out a BMX track secretly built in the woods.
Fort Lauderdale becomes the latest US city to embrace Vision Zero, and the first in Florida.
A Florida cyclist films the hit-and-run driver who ran him down from behind, without slowing, while he was riding on sharrows. The video is hard to watch, leading right up to the point of impact. And if you’ve ever wondered why I’m no fan of sharrows, this is a damn good reason.
Brit rider Mark Cavendish wants to cap his riding career with a medal in track cycling at the Rio Olympics.
In an usual case, a 13-year old British boy is charged with causing the death of a motorcyclist by intentionally riding his bicycle into the path of a car; the driver stopped in time to avoid him, but the victim hit the car.
Now that’s more like it. A Swedish university suggests paying people to ride bikes in the most congested part of Stockholm by using congestion charges from motorists.
A writer looks at the recent Tour of Rwanda, where police beatings and the country’s recovery from genocide overshadow the action in the peloton.
An Aussie writer says the government must stop its war on cyclists, and stop actively discouraging people from riding.
Finally…
If you want to spot the trendy new neighborhoods, just follow the fixies. Don’t bust out a car window, even if the jerk driver honks and nearly hits you for riding in the traffic lane.
And if you’re going to burglarize a shed and steal a mountain bike, it’s probably best if you don’t leave your mobile phone behind.
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It’s the last day of the BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive. Thanks to David Wolfberg, Christian Hesch, Calla Weimer and Carmen Tellez for their generous support, along with everyone who has so generously contributed this past month.
Seriously, thank you.
The Corgi thanks you for your support. And she’s glad it’s the last day of the Holiday Fund Drive so she can attempt to reclaim her dignity.
A Glendale letter writer says there’s a safer alternative route for bicyclists to bypass the Mariposa bridge, where riders are now required to walk their bikes across. Although walking across a dirt horse and pedestrian bridge seems pretty damn safe to me.
This is why you let the police handle it. A pair of San Diego men were stabbed in the back when they tried to recover a bicycle after it was stolen from the brother of one of the men.
Bizarrely, that wasn’t the only bike stabbing in San Diego, as a 45-year old rider was stabbed several times after colliding with a pedestrian.
The threat of bicycle theft is one of the biggest deterrents to bike riding, in Salinas or anywhere else; a new study from a Canadian university shows half of all riders have had a bike stolen, while one in five have lost at least three. One solution may be micro tagging. A better solution is increasing the penalty for bike theft to make it worth prosecuting.
For once, the punishment fits the crime. A homeless Portland man who bragged of being the king of bike thieves has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison, and will need permission and a receipt to possess a bicycle after his release.
A Savannah GA writer says a proposal to ban bikes in a park will force riders onto dangerous streets, and waste already scarce police resources enforcing it.
A Florida man faces charges a year and a half after a fatal, drunken hit-and-run, after his ex-girlfriend recants a claim that she was behind the wheel.
International
London’s Boris Bikes will be fitted with a Blaze laser light that projects the image of a bicycle on the roadway 16 feet ahead of the rider.
New graphene-infused tires from Italy’s Vittoria will harden while riding straight, and soften when accelerating, braking or turning for better traction and control. No wonder the inventors won the Nobel Prize.
The Guardian says the new one-meter passing law in an Aussie state will be met with anger even while it saves lives. Meanwhile, one group says the state’s new requirement to carry ID while riding will make it an international laughing stock.
A New Zealand paper says it’s too early to criticize a new cycletrack when the lanes haven’t even been painted yet.
No retirement plan? Try operating a London pedicab, where one rider tried to charge $894 for a half-hour ride. If you really want to lose weight, get off your bike and start dancing.
And is it really that impressive when Harrison Ford mounts a mountain bike atop his Mercedes?
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It’s the last two days of the BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive. Thanks to George Wolfberg, Ralph Durham, Vanessa Gray, and Lois Rubin for their generous support.
Evidently, Santa’s reindeer are getting shorter this year. But seriously, who could turn down a face like that?
Just a quick update today, due to too many other obligations. We’ll have a full Morning Links tomorrow.
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Sad news today, as an LA cyclist has passed away after suffering a heart attack while riding his bike.
According to Breitbart.com, conservative activist Avi Davis passed away peacefully at the UCLA Medical Center on Monday, after he was placed into a induced coma following his December 10th coronary.
He leaves behind two sons, as well as his parents and three siblings.
A memorial will be held at 11:00 am today at Home of Peace Cemetery, 4334 Whittier Blvd in Los Angeles.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Avi Davis and his loved ones. Thanks to Asher for the heads-up.
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The first two Finish the Rides were huge hits, bringing hundreds of riders, walkers and rollers together for a fun day supporting the fight for safer streets and an end to hit-and-run.
Now the event comes to the San Fernando Valley for the first time with a ride and festival this Sunday — the perfect way to end the year on a high note.
Spokeswoman Dayna Galbreath sends this information.
Finish The Ride, Run, Walk ‘N Roll Across The Valley 2015
Brought To You By Streets Are For Everyone (SAFE)
Support safe city streets and help end hit and run crimes by taking part in Finish the Ride, Run, Walk ‘N Roll Across The Valley!! All proceeds will benefit Streets Are For Everyone (SAFE) and Happy House.
Join us on Sunday,December 27th, 2015 for an awesome event to end the year! Registration is open RIGHT NOW so register TODAY at www.FinishTheRide.org/register.
Plans for FTR Across The Valley 2015 include:
Ride= Two routes including a 25 Mile Finish The Ride and a Metric Century
Run = 5K, 10K and Half Marathon
Roll= 10K
FREE 2K Walk/Roll for the kids!
Timing and medals awarded for selected events
Cool goodie bag and free t-shirt with registration
Great live music and dancing
Free festival and safety expo with giveaways, raffles, prizes and activities for kids and adults alike and much more! Feel free to bring the whole family!
For details on the FTR Across The Valley 2015 event, click here.
Join FTR Across The Valley 2015 not only for yourself, but for those who survived, those who didn’t and the safety of ALL!
#FTRValley #EndHitandRuns
For more information on the event itself, registration questions or other customer service inquiries, e-mail us at register@FinishTheRide.org or call (844) 884-7233 Ext. 801.
I haven’t had a chance to listen to it yet, so check out last week’s Bike Talk, wherein I was one of the guests, to see — or rather, hear — once again why I’m a writer instead of a radio pundit.
Here’s how the website describes the show.
TJ Flexer, Zachary Rynew, Nick Richert
TJ puts together this show with bloggers Zachary Rynew of Ciclavalley.org and Ted Rogers of bikinginla.com. With Steve Messer, President of the Concerned Off Road Bicyclists Association, Jim Cadenhead, founding co-host of Bike Talk and Orange 20 bikes, and Neil Shirley, Bike racer, journalist, and fundraiser for World Bicycle Relief.
Frightening stat, as LA leads the nation in traffic fatalities among major cities, with 6.27 deaths per 100,000 people in 2012. San Diego, San Jose and San Francisco also make the top ten.
Bicycles are now specifically included in the law requiring slow moving vehicles to pull over to let traffic pass. However, that only applies on two lane roadways when five or more vehicles are backed up and unable to pass; it does not give police cart blanche to ticket someone riding in the traffic lane, or impatient drivers the right to harass anyone in front of them.
That bike-riding Colorado bus boy who returned $3,000 in cash that a customer left behind will now get even more than that, as a gofundme account set up for him has raised over $5,100.
Evidently convinced that bikes are just as dangerous as cars, Australia’s New South Wales introduces draconian fines for law-breaking bicyclists, quadrupling the amount in some cases. Riders will now pay over $300 for not wearing a helmet, $425 for going through a red light, and will be subject to a $105 fine if they’re caught without ID — even though licenses aren’t required to ride a bike. The one bit of good news is they’re also experimenting with the equivalent of a three-foot passing law.
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Finally…
If you’re going to get Tased for riding salmon while carrying meth and wanted on an outstanding warrant, at least make sure you’re wearing a heavy down jacket.
And let’s end with a heartwarming video from Foster City CA. After a little girl was hit by a car while riding her bike, bystanders lifted the car off her, and police pitched in to buy her a new bicycle.
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Just three more days to support the BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive; thanks to Karen Karabell, John P. Lynch and Mark Ganzer for their generous contributions.
Don’t make her dress up like this for nothing. Support the BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive.
Which is exactly what the LA Times gave it Friday, with a deep dive into the world of bicycle collisions using the CHP’s SWITRS data to identify the ten most dangerous streets for bicycling.
Not surprisingly, Figueroa, which has been in the news far too much lately, makes the list, coming in third, behind only Venice and Vermont, which led the way with 230 bicycling collisions over the past five years.
Others included Western and Sunset, along with the parallel east/west boulevards of Pico and Olympic.
Surprising, Van Nuys is the only street in the San Fernando Valley to make the list, followed by Downtown’s Main Street and Wilshire Blvd.
Going back to Vermont, the paper found that when drivers were found at fault, it was mostly for failing to yield, speeding and improper turns, while riding salmon was the main reason cyclists were blamed for collisions.
And they suggest that separating bikes from cars with protected bike lanes, or at the very least, painted lanes, is a good start if the city’s Vision Zero is going to succeed.
Let’s hope LADOT is listening.
Not to mention the mayor and the city council.
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‘Tis the season.
A Redding group teams with Coke to give 60 bikes to foster kids, as well as recently adopted kids.
When a Pittsburgh PA man wanted to give away a few bikes in honor of his daughter and grandchildren, he went on Facebook asking people to nominate six deserving kids. Instead, contributions poured in to buy more bikes; he’ll now be donating at least 35 bikes to needy kids.
A North Carolina group donates three truckloads of bikes to less fortunate kids. Although the local TV station seems to think it was news from the future.
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Don’t make her beg. You only have six more days to support the BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive.
A UCLA public health website says the new Wilshire Blvd bus-only lanes should be called a bus, bike and a**hole lane due to a lack of enforcement against aggressive drivers who use it illegally.
A new video discusses what the future of LA streets could be, including drone footage of the recent CicLAvia in Downtown LA.
As we mentioned yesterday, Redondo Beach’s Harbor Drive separated bikeway made People for Bike’s list of the nation’s top 10 new bike lanes.
A bystander’s video suggests sheriff’s deputies may have killed a Long Beach bike rider after one of them accidently shot his own partner.
State
The Voice of San Diego looks at what stands in the way of a proposed international bike lane across the border with Mexico. Besides Donald Trump, that is.
Nebraska’s Supreme Court bizarrely rules that a railroad may have been at fault for a boy’s death after he rode his bike around the crossing guards; his mother’s lawyer argued that the first train was too loud for him to hear the second train that killed him, while blocking it from view.
Cincinnati considers a 42-mile bikeway circling the city, though a business writer questions whether supporters will actually see it built in their lifetimes.
Streetsblog remembers the man who saved New York cycling by fighting a 1980s Midtown bike ban.
Bikes really do mean business. September’s world championships in Richmond VA brought in $89 million in direct spending, with a total economic reach of $170 million.
Raleigh NC installs bike lanes and sharrows around the town; naturally, drivers are confused and say cars should come first because there’s more of them. By that argument, people should always come before cars.
A Florida man is shot in the legs when he refused to let go of his bike when four men tried to jack it. Rule number one: Never forget your life is worth more than your bike.
Police are looking for a road raging Brit cyclist who reached into a car and rode off with the driver’s keys. Something I have been tempted to do many times, wrong though it may be.
Water keeps posing a risk to cyclists, and El Niño hasn’t even started yet.
Wes High wants to know why a Sparkletts truck has to park in a Santa Monica bike lane to make a delivery, when there’s plenty of parking just a couple spaces up the road.
Why indeed?
Then again, that’s nothing new in Santa Monica.
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Caught on video: When the third place rider in a Spanish race suffered a flat shortly before the finish, he picked up his bike and ran for the finish line. A competitor followed closely behind, refusing to pass even though it would have meant a podium finish.
Unfortunately, not all of the day’s bike racing news showed sportsmanship, as Olympic track cyclist and US national champ Bobby Lea gets a 16 month ban for doping; he claims it was an accident. Then again, so does everyone else who gets caught these days.
And the official pro cycling team of India’s Uttar Pradesh state gets to share just one bicycle between all 21 cyclists on the team. On the other hand, the state government has distributed 4,500 bikes to the poor, though you’d think they could spare a few for their racing team.
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‘Tis the season.
The San Luis Obispo Sheriff’s Department donated 167 bicycles to children in need, while another 33 bikes went unclaimed.
Two hundred children in Pacheco, CA got new toys and bikes through Toys for Tots, thanks to the generosity of one woman.
An anonymous donor gave a St. Helena, CA girl a new trek mountain bike to replace one she lost in a fire; her two-year old sister got a new tricycle, too.
And a Maui car dealer gave away 250 bikes to kids from the local Boys and Girls Club.
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Just in case you have any spare change left after your holiday shopping…
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Local
The LA Planning Commission approves minor amendments to the Mobility Plan, which had been stripped from the approved plan a few weeks ago to address a lawsuit filed by the non-profit group Fix the City; more serious amendments to remove streets from the plan will be considered after the first of the year.
Speaking of Fix the City, they re-filed their lawsuit to address the city council’s action to address their initial lawsuit. Odd that a group named Fix the City is fighting LA’s efforts to do exactly that, attempting to use the courts to undo six years of public process.
Bicycling profiles Boyle Heights’ Ovarian Psychos Cycles, sponsors of monthly Luna Rides and the annual Clitoral Mass.
CiclaValley offers advice on what to wear for those cold LA winter bike rides. Relatively speaking, of course.
State
San Diego attempts to fix a dangerously congested intersection by increasing capacity and changing signal light timing; the redesign will also include much needed bike lanes and sidewalks.
Santa Ana approves a citywide bike safety program, including workshops to teach bike safety skills, light and helmet distribution, and certifying new cycling instructors.
The San Jose paper discusses how drivers can politely toot on the horn to warn cyclists they’re approaching. Unfortunately, there’s no such thing; as one person notes, even a light tap can startle a rider and cause a dangerous fall.
San Francisco’s Market Street bike counter records its one millionth rider. Meanwhile, the city completed a road diet and added cycle tracks to improve safety on a dangerous street after two boys were hit by a drunk driver. People get hit by cars in LA all the time, but it seldom results in a significant safety improvement to the street where it happened.
Lifehacker offers a practical guide to urban bicycling. Which actually offers some pretty decent advice, for a change; thanks to Mike Wilkinson for the heads-up.
People for Bikes looks at America’s 10 best new bike lanes. You don’t need any fingers to count how many are in Los Angeles, but the new Harbor Drive cycle tracks in Redondo Beach check in at number nine.
Bicycling looks at what eight top bicycling cities have done to promote safer cycling. CicLAvia draws as more people in one day than Minneapolis drew all year with their eight Open Streets events.
The DC-area AAA objects to an increase in fines targeting dangerous drivers, complaining that they don’t address law-breaking cyclists and pedestrians. Maybe because people on bikes and foot don’t pose the same risk to others that speeding and distracted drivers do.
It’s said that nothing kills a bad product like good advertising.
But the question is, what effect does excruciatingly bad advertising have on a new product? Like this virtual reality stationary bike that lets you pretend you’re pedaling a race car. Or a pony.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KpE5O6Q6ss
Thanks to Mike Wilkinson for the heads-up; my apologies to Mike for misspelling his name earlier.
San Luis Obispo County sheriff’s deputies will give bikes refurbished by honor farm inmates to kids in need for the 26th year; last year they donated 175 bikes and helmets.
Sad news from Sacramento, as a lightless bike rider was killed shortly after dark on Tuesday. Always carry lights with you this time of year, even if you don’t expect to be out after dark; even a slight delay or a flat can mean riding home later than planned.
A Davis bike thief is busted with meth, two loaded guns and a large quantity of stolen mail, along with five high-end stolen bikes. There’s got to be a punchline in there somewhere.
National
A new medical study offers advice for parents of children with ADHD, who are more likely to have collisions and close calls when riding their bikes across the street.
Evidently, if you want to stop bike theft in Portland, it takes an intern.
After tackling the man who just stole his bike, a Texas rider talks it out and lets him go with a fist bump instead of calling police.
The Missouri mayor charged with deliberately ramming a cyclist before fleeing the scene insists the rider blew a stop and swore at him before grabbing the car and falling down on his own.
A British man is about to complete a 12,000 mile ride from Australia to the UK to raise money for a children’s hospice.
A Facebook post tells the story of an Indian man who spent four months riding through eight countries to be reunited with his Swedish wife in the 1970s, only to learn he had married into the royal family. True or not, it’s a nice enough story to wish it is.
Australia tries out a glow-in-the-dark bike path, which is expected to replace electric lights with over eight hours of illumination.
Representatives of a Thai airline ride through the country in matching yellow jerseys. “We all ride in a yellow peloton, a yellow peloton, a yellow peloton…”
Finally…
A cherubic-looking bicycle-riding car thief is busted for the 20th time, which is an impressive rap sheet for a 12-year old. When you’re running away from home, making your escape by riding your bike on a busy freeway probably isn’t the best choice.
This is the fourth traffic fatality on the street in the last six months, with three pedestrians and a cyclist losing their lives on a street that was supposed to have been made safer by now.
And would have been, if Councilmember Gil Cedillo hadn’t unilaterally killed a fully funded, shovel ready road diet for reasons he has yet to fully explain, instead bizarrely claiming he was halting the safety project in the name of safety. Yet as yesterday’s tragedy clearly shows, his inaction has merely helped keep a dangerous street deadly.
Unfortunately, we live in a city where councilmembers oversee virtual fiefdoms, thanks to the reluctance of their fellow councilmembers or the mayor to challenge them for fear of retaliation against projects in their own districts.
This has to change.
If Cedillo is unwilling to admit his mistake, someone in city leadership or LADOT has to find the courage to stand up to him to protect the lives of our fellow Angelenos.
Otherwise, people will continue to die needlessly.
And our much-vaunted and fought-for Vision Zero will be nothing more than a very unfunny joke.
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Today’s theme is bizarre court cases involving allegedly traffic-blocking bike riders.
A Louisville KY bike and pedestrian advocate rejected a plea deal on charges of blocking traffic and running a red light, insisting that bicyclists aren’t required to use bike lanes. Or stop at red lights, for that matter.
A Pennsylvania bike rider faces charges for repeatedly obstructing traffic by slowly riding his bike in the middle of the road; a prosecutor hints he may be trying to get hit after receiving a settlement from a drunk driver for a 2007 collision. Or he could just be taking the lane on a narrow street, like bike riders are instructed to do.
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Help keep LA’s best source for bike news and advocacy coming to you every morning.
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‘Tis the season.
For the seventh year, the Burbank Bike Angels will donate over 120 refurbished bikes to children of local low-income families.
A Rochester NY bike shop donated 20 bikes to an organization serving children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, for the second year in a row.
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Local
Democratic legislators ask Obama for funding to start planning and design work for the restoration of the LA River, which could include extensions of the LA River bike path.
The family of a Portland driver accused of fleeing the scene after killing a cyclist while driving stoned says it was just an accident and he’s really an awesome person. Except when running down bike riders while too high to drive, evidently.
A New Mexico man is arrested for his seventh DUI, just three months after being released from prison for killing a bike rider in 2005 while driving at three times the legal limit. Yet somehow, despite repeatedly proving he’s incapable of resisting the temptation to drink and drive, he’s still allowed behind the wheel.
Forget skiing. If you’re looking for a little winter adventure, try fat tire cycling through the Minnesota snow.
The Wall Street Journal says New York safety advocates say more needs to be done even though traffic deaths are declining. After all, it’s Vision Zero, not Vision Slightly Better.
A Savannah writer nails it. “A legion of scofflaw cyclists cannot inflict the amount of pain, suffering and death as one young man driving a Dodge Durango.”
International
Unbelievable. A Costa Rican cab driver denies doing anything wrong after pulling out from the curb and hitting three lead riders of a bike race after police had cleared the route; fortunately, no one was badly hurt.
A road raging bus driver deals with a confrontation with a London cyclist by running over his bike.
A candidate for London mayor offers a six-point plan to make the city a “byword for cycling around the world.”
Brisbane, Australia’s Green Party proposes a network of protected bike lanes, which would allow cyclists to ride in safety to within two blocks of any location in the downtown area.
December 15, 2015 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Morning Links: They Drive Among Us part deux, and Marina del Rey rider stopped for biking while black
How disappointing.
Last week we looked at the angry anti-bike rants of a self-described former Disney executive, as he vented his spleen over the cyclists who ruined his three week motorized trip through the late, great Golden State.
And how what he termed “nasty, radical bike Nazis” and “selfish bicycle jackasses” were ruining it for everyone with their war on cars.
I was actually looking forward to the promised second part of Greg Crosby’s rant, the same way some people used to pay to see train wrecks.
Sadly, though, he reveals himself to be just another conspiracy nut, convinced there’s a secret plot to use bicycles to turn America into a third world country.
As proof, he offers the bios of the staff of the California Bicycle Coalition, who are well respected in Sacramento. But not, sadly, by our esteemed Mr. Crosby, who faults them all as “proud radicals” and “social justice activists.”
And what do those crazed radicals want? To triple the amount of bicycling by building bikeways — paid for, in his estimation, with your hard-earned gas taxes and registration fees.
Never mind that most bicyclists also drive and pay those same taxes and fees. Or that the general public subsidizes the roads he drives, since those fees cover only a fraction of the cost of building and maintaining the roads.
And never mind the free on-street parking that most drivers seem to feel is a God-given right.
He goes on to complain about being unable to pass cyclists with at least three feet distance, as the law now requires, as if the requirement to pass a bike rider safely was something new. Drivers were always expected to pass at a safe distance; the three foot law merely codifies what that distance is, unlike the six inches some motorists seem to find acceptable.
And he closes with a hint at conspiracy, noting that cities like Burbank have been narrowing streets by building center islands and extending sidewalks. Not to improve safety, in his apparent estimation, but just to frustrate drivers like himself by making it impossible to pass a cyclist.
Oh, the humanity!
Just imagine, all those drivers forced to endlessly idle behind slow-moving bikes, unable to ever get home to their families because of a vast leftwing conspiracy to bring America to its knees.
In all, his rumblings were a disappointment.
Just the self-deluded babble of an angry, indignorant* man so desperate to find someone to blame he creates an enemy in his own mind, rather than taking a few moments to try to understand the world from someone else’s perspective.
*Indignorant, an expression coined by my friend Will Campbell to describe someone who is both indignant and ignorant, usually willfully so.
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A celebrity chef is justifiably outraged after he was pulled over by police — most likely sheriff’s deputies — in Marina del Rey for biking while black.
According to his video statement, he was stopped for “going too fast,” and asked if he was running from something; the officer also implied that his pale blue t-shirt might be some sort of gang attire.
Just to be clear, unless he was riding faster than the posted speed limit, or somehow going too fast for conditions, which was highly unlikely, he wasn’t going to fast.
Period.
We should be long past this sort of harassment. Let’s hope he got a badge number and files a complaint.
And that someone in the department actually cares.
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Sometimes zoning and planning regulations can seem a little arcane, at best. But this PSA from Ottawa, Canada clearly explains in just 90 seconds the harm minimum parking requirements can do, and how getting rid of them can make room for bike lanes and transit.
The president of the American Public Works Assoc says the new $305 billion federal transportation bill lacks “targeted funding for bike and pedestrian projects that promote physical and social health, decrease emissions, and ease congestion.”
A writer in my hometown offers 10 reasons why cars are in decline. None of which Mr. Crosby would probably agree with.
A writer for the Louisville KY paper calls for a three-foot passing law in the bike-unfriendly state, which is rated 49th out of the 50 states.
The entire bicycle committee of Salem MA resigned at once to protest their concerns being ignored. Good for them; let’s hope the city takes the hint.
Nice gesture, as Buffalo NY police give a new bike to the family of a four-year old boy who survived on milk and maple syrup for two days after his mother died unexpectedly.
Under the first 10 months of New York’s Vision Zero plan, crashes are up 1%, while traffic fatalities are down 12, and injuries have decreased 2.5% — even if some drivers don’t like the new lower speed limits.
International
The Calgary paper says it takes a special kind of creep to steal a bike from a special needs kid. No argument here.
A London cyclist urges people to look out for each other on the roads, after surviving a crash with a stoned driver.
A British driver who deliberately slammed into a cyclist last June has confessed to murder most foul.
A London bike advocate discovers the loudest voices aren’t always the majority, as most local residents support a plan to turn their neighborhood into a bike-friendly Mini Holland.
An Aussie woman’s post went viral after saying she wanted to give a bike to someone whose kids really needed it, not someone “who wastes money on cigarettes;” she finally settled on a family whose daughter spent six weeks in the hospital after nearly drowning.
December 14, 2015 /
bikinginla / Comments Off on Morning Links: Still more big hearts for the holiday season, and driverless cars won’t solve LA’s traffic problems
Don’t forget to tell us what it’s like to ride your bike, wherever you ride, for our new Describe Your Ride feature — good, bad, or anything in between.
It can be anything from a few sentences to a detailed description, a rant, a rave, a bike cam view or your latest bike-related music video, here in LA or anywhere else.Just send it to the email address on the About BikinginLA page.
Civic leaders are working to improve safety for bike riders in Orange County, where an average of four riders were injured or killed every day in 2012.
San Diego service members remember an Army vet who was killed in Texas last month, while on a cross country ride to call attention to the plight of homeless veterans.
San Franciscans are in a heated debate over the proposed Idaho stop law, with the city council still two votes short of a veto-proof majority.
National
The first legally blind musher to compete in the Iditarod gives up her dream of competing as a tandem cyclist in next years Paralympics to become a mom.
In a truly bizarre tragedy, a Minnesota bike rider is killed in a collision with a train, at the same station where he had survived a similar collision just four months earlier.
Columbus, Ohio drivers and cyclists are confused by the city’s first protected bike lane. Actually, the description does actually sound pretty confusing.
Former Victoria’s Secret and current L’Oreal Paris model Karlie Kloss is one of us, as she rides a Citi Bike through the streets of New York.
Controversial Russian cycling team owner Oleg Tinkoff vows to leave the sport after next year’s racing season; a Canadian site says the man who compared Obama to a monkey won’t be missed at all.
A New Zealand cyclist sets a new record for riding around the world in just 125 days, although he’s disappointed it only raised the equivalent of just over $2500 for charity.
Five hundred Filipinos ride for cleaner air and call more action to help sustain the environment.
Caught on video: Twenty passers-by save the life of a Beijing bicyclist by teaming up to lift a car off her. Warning: Even knowing the positive outcome, the first part of this video is very hard to watch.
Finally…
Why bother checking the statutes when you can just ask Twitter whether sidewalk cyclists should be fined. An e-car driver wants permission to politely honk to tell bike riders to get the hell out of his way.
And chances are, you’ll never win the Nobel Peace Prize, but your bike might.
