BikinginLA

Day 34 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

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If you were thinking about buying a bicycle, ebike or parts for your bike, you should do it now, before Trump’s new tariffs kick in.

Or be prepared to fork over more money for it.

The overwhelming majority of bicycles, ebikes and components come from China, which will now be subject to a new 10% tariff, in addition to the previous tariffs.

Those previous tariffs already amount to 36%, according to Bicycle Retailer, with the 25% punitive tariff imposed by Trump in his first term, and continued by Biden, added to the previously existing 11% protective tariff approved by Congress.

Which means that with the new 10% punitive tariff Trump imposed over the weekend, the rate will be 46% added to the cost of anything coming in from China.

And despite Trump’s repeated insistence that it will be a tax on and paid for by China, the added costs cost are likely to passed on to the consumer, amounting to a nearly 50% tax on bikes and components that will have to be paid by someone.

In other words, you.

It could also result in shortages if importers balk at the higher taxes, after bike shop are just getting back to full inventory after the pandemic-fueled shortages.

So don’t wait.

Peddle yourself down to your favorite local bike shop now. Or you could be the one who pays the higher prices, or find yourself unable to buy anything at all.

Photo by Kaboompics.com via Pexels.

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A 23-year old Fresno man faces three counts of assault with a deadly weapon, accused of intentionally running down two teenaged bike riders, as well as another man on a bicycle.

The incident started when the driver got out of his SUV to fight with a group of bike riders on the side of the road, after they had argued on the street.

But following the brawl, the man allegedly drove onto the sidewalk to purposely hit the two teenagers as they tried to ride away.

He then backed off the sidewalk and continued down the street, before swerving into a bike lane to deliberately ram the older man, who does not appear to have any connection to the other group.

Not surprisingly, the driver was assaulted by a group of bike riders following his vehicular attacks. And no, that doesn’t mean it was justified, just understandable given the circumstances.

He was hospitalized with minor injuries, apparently stemming from the assault following the crashes

All three victims were taken to a local hospital, but there’s no word on their condition.

The article from the Fresno Bee appears to be hidden by a paywall, but I was able to click through to read it. 

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The Transit Guy is on this week’s Bike Talk, along with LA bike lawyer and BikinginLA title sponsor Jim Pocrass.

Hayden Clarkin is on this week. AKA the Transit Guy. @bikinginla.bsky.social @bikelanesla.bsky.social @bikelaneuprising.bsky.social

— (@taylor-biketalk.bsky.social) 2025-02-01T15:45:12.819Z

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Streets For All will host their monthly virtual happy hour next Wednesday, featuring newly elected Culver City Councilmember Bubba Fish.

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Gravel Bike California returns with a ride across the rolling foothills of Bakersfield with Grizzly Cycles.

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

No bias here. Citing insufficient evidence, Florida prosecutors refused to charge a road raging 76-year old woman for attempting to run down a man riding a bicycle, after the two argued when she cut him off in a roundabout — even though the whole thing was captured on the victim’s bike cam, as well as two security cams. Which makes you wonder just what they would consider sufficient.

He gets it. The CEO of Lime Bikes chides Londoners for complaining about a single dockless bikeshare bike parked on the sidewalk, when there are hundreds of parked cars cluttering the streets.

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Local  

Friends and fellow cops held a 37-mile memorial ride for LAPD officer Paul Jordan, who was killed in an off-duty crash on the 118 Freeway while driving home from work last week; Jordan was a frequent road cyclist who reportedly loved bicycling.

West Hollywood may be jumping the gun just a tad, as the city is planning first and last mile connections to the K Line subway, which could be decades away since it hasn’t yet been approved, let alone funded; it also may never even reach the city, with three routes remaining under consideration, two of which would bypass WeHo all or in part. But I do applaud the effort. 

South El Monte decided not to decide between two options for a 1.4-mile bike and pedestrian project on Tyler Ave/Santa Anita Ave, tabling the motion for two months after councilmembers balked at the loss of 99 parking spaces. Once again prioritizing the convenience of motorists over the safety of people on bicycles.

State

Calbike will host a webinar on February 20th to discuss creative approaches to funding active transportation funding. Which is even more important now, in light of the freezing of federal funding. 

Now you, too, can see Santa Barbara by bike through the eyes of a longtime local.

National

Sigh. A writer for Streetsblog says Trump is putting safety last and politics first by freezing the federally funded “Road to Zero” program, in an apparent attempt to undo anything approved by the Biden administration, even though the funds were intended to improve traffic safety in both red and blue states.

An automotive website says there is no truth to the rumor that Tesla is building an ebike, revealing it was dreamed up by a freelance industrial designer and the internet ran with it. But would you really want an electric bicycle made by the manufacturer of the “the polarizing and fault-ridden Cybertruck,” anyway?

Once again, an innocent bike rider was collateral damage for a driver fleeing from the cops, this time in Las Vegas, where police were chasing a juvenile and allegedly unlicensed DUI driver accused of sideswiping an SUV at a high rate of speed, then crashing into another SUV before both vehicles spun onto the sidewalk, killing a 41-year old man riding a bicycle; a St. Louis bike rider was also injured by a driver fleeing from the cops.

This is why people keep dying on our streets. A middle school teacher in my Colorado hometown was convicted of misdemeanor careless driving for killing a bike-riding 10-year-old boy while driving distracted, after previously pleading guilty to another lousy misdemeanor for deleting texts and tampering with physical evidence. Because evidently, killing a little boy and trying to hide the evidence just isn’t a big enough deal to warrant a single felony count. Or at least that’s the message drivers will take from this kind of chronic undercharging. 

A Cary, Illinois man is suing the local village after he was right hooked by an on-duty cop while riding in the crosswalk with the light.

The kindness and generosity of the bicycle community is on display once again, as West Springfield, Massachusetts’ Bob “The Bike Man” worked with local boy and girl scout troops to package gear to get the city’s homeless people through the worst of the winter; he’s best known for refurbishing bicycles to give to people in need.

Charlottesville, Virginia is the latest city to offer ebike vouchers, distributing $100,000 to 100 residents this year in the form of $1,000 “mini-grants” intended to encourage ebike use; the grants are available to any resident over the age of 18.

A Tampa, Florida woman marked her 50th birthday by riding 50 three-mile laps around a local island in honor of her father, who had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, while raising funds  fight to Parkinson’s through Team Fox and the Michael J. Fox Foundation.

International

An Ontario bike rider responds to the provincial plan to rip out Toronto’s bike lanes by saying “I don’t want to be in this province anymore.” Which is a feeling a lot of us can relate to when government actions — or inaction — threaten our safety.

A new Toronto study shows that a full ten percent of the city’s bicycle traffic consists of delivery riders delivering food.

Cycling Weekly takes up the burning question of why bike lanes in the US and Great Britain end abruptly without connecting to other bikeways . Which pretty much describes most of the bike lanes in the LA area. 

The Guardian’s Laura Laker recommends the best panniers and handlebar bags.

Life is cheap in the UK, where a delivery driver was fined the equivalent of a lousy $1,200 and banned from driving for an equally lousy 12 months, after leaving a woman with a broken neck when he cut across the bike the victim was riding in

Bicyclists in Chennai, India — formerly known as Madras — call for more bike lanes and better infrastructure, and government action to “sensitize” drivers of heavy vehicles to traffic safety. Showing once again that we all face the same issues, regardless of where you ride.

Le Monde Diplomatique reports that Taiwan’s bicycle industry relies on migrant labour and “dodgy employment practices.” But you’ll have to find a way around their paywall if you want to read more than the first few paragraphs.

Competitive Cycling

Once again, a promising young cyclist has been killed, this time in the UK, where 18-year old national junior champ Aidan Worden was struck by a driver while on a training ride in Lancashire, England.

A writer for Cycling Weekly says maybe we need more unpredictability in pro cycling, and really don’t want the top riders to compete against each other more often.

Finally…

That feeling when you need new-age bike accessories, apparently so you can burn sandalwood incense while you meditate while riding. Evidently, French bike riders can fly over the heads of horses and pedestrians.

And please dismount before breaking your neck riding down the stairs to the Bike Hub at the bottom.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin.