Don’t get your hopes up yet.
The proposed $1,500 federal ebike rebate that was dropped from last year’s Inflation Reduction Act is making a comeback, although its prospects may not be any better this time around.
This year’s version, titled The Electric Bicycle Incentive Kickstart for the Environment Act is sponsored by Representatives Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.), Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), Mike Thompson (D-Calif.), and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), as well as Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii).
You may notice that each of those people have a “D” after their names.
That doesn’t bode well in the newly Republican controlled House, where any environmental or bicycle bill is likely to be met with extreme skepticism, to put it mildly.
Let alone a financial incentive to buy one.
So unless they can get a few Republicans to co-sponsor the bill, it’s likely to be dead in the water.
BREAKING: The federal e-bike bill is BACK.
A new proposal would give Americans up to $1,500 off a new e-bike.
This bill is similar to its predecessor, which came tantalizingly close to passing last year. BUT there are some key differences.
🧵https://t.co/OQYWoqjohz pic.twitter.com/BH0AeRHmAu
— David Zipper (@DavidZipper) March 21, 2023
Photo by John Guccione from Pexels.
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Life is cheap in Desert Hot Springs.
A 34-year-old woman was sentenced to a lousy six months behind bars, along with two years probation, for the hit-and-run death of a 43-year old bike rider.
Yesenia Bibriesca pled guilty to felony hit-and-run causing death, as well as misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence, and destroying evidence in the death of 43-year old Christopher Jones as he rode his bike in July, 2020.
Police were able to track down her damaged Lexus sedan, and take her into custody within days.
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Back around the turn of the century, I was brought on board to help save one of the most innovative company’s in the music industry, a company that literally invented home studio recording.
I worked 80 hour weeks for over four months to develop a marketing campaign to would reposition the company, and introduce a number of groundbreaking new products, in an effort to save them from bankruptcy after years of mismanagement.
It was a huge success. We brought in over $6 million in new sales in just three days after the new products dropped and the ad campaign broke.
But it wasn’t enough. The banks cut off funding, the brand and patents were sold off to another company, and they shut down in a matter of days, putting over a hundred people out of work.
So I can relate to what’s happening with popular, employee-owned bikewear brand Kitsbow, which announced it will be closing in the next three weeks after failing to raise enough capital to keep going.
The company I was with was a victim of the dot.com crash, when banks retrenched and stopped lending money.
Kitsbow appears to be one of the first victims of today’s financial retrenchment, as higher interest rates and financial instability lead investors to become more conservative with who they fund, and how much they’re willing to risk.
But at least you can score some decent deals on top quality clothing and gear, if you move fast.
It's a very sad story that Kitsbow is going out of business. Hard to think of a brand that treated employees better. Just noting that EVERYTHING is on sale on kits https://t.co/1cGVbMInon and you wind up helping them and getting some very sweet kit.https://t.co/vqFvgRNBa5
— Peter Flax (@Pflax1) March 22, 2023
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As long as we’re talking sales, you can save 25% on the Fly6 and Fly12 combination bike cam and taillight/headlight right now.
And no, I’m not getting anything for promoting their sale.
Dammit.
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It’s not that American cities can’t build world-class bikeways.
They just don’t.
And yes, I’m looking at you, Los Angeles.
https://twitter.com/AmericanFietser/status/1638326595155886084
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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on rolling.
An English city installed bollards to protect a bike path, but made them too narrow for their own cargo bike trailers.
No bias here. BBC presenter Dan Walker got back on his new bike for his first ride since a driver left him bloodied and bruised — and gets slammed online for not wearing hi-viz. Even though he actually bought some.
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Local
No news is good news, right?
State
San Francisco approved a pilot program to give free ebikes to delivery workers in an effort to reduce costs and emissions.
A man with a history of DUIs faces 15 years to life behind bars, after he was convicted of killing a 76-year old man while driving on a Sacramento bike path with a BAC over three times the legal limit; Armondo Moreno-Rodriguez drove four miles on the American River pathway before slamming into the victim, who would have had no reason to watch out for someone drunk enough, and foolish enough, to drive on a bikeway.
National
A new NACTO paper says bike lane design has to evolve to meet the new era of ebikes and micromobility.
While bicycling injuries and deaths are rising nationwide, bicycling injuries in Denver are half what they were just five years ago, as the city’s investment in bicycle infrastructure is paying off in human lives.
They get it. A Texas newspaper argues that every traffic death robs the victim’s family and community.
He gets it, too. While Los Angeles is content to build just a few miles of protected bike lanes each year, a Brooklyn councilmember is pushing for a requirement to double the 50 miles of protected bike lanes New York is already committed to building each year.
New York addressed the rising rate of ebike battery fires by banning the sale of ebikes and batteries that don’t meet UL certification standards.
International
The nonprofit World Ride has established a free online mountain biking forum for women to connect locally and globally with other mountain bikers.
It’s probably no coincidence that many of the world’s happiest countries have some of the highest rates of bicycling.
Now you, too, can have your very own $15,000 Giant ebike mountain bike, assuming you have several thousand dollars you don’t need stuffed under your mattress; Stuff argues that an expensive ebike and some mudguards are all you need to tackle the toughest terrain.
A British Columbia woman learned the hard way not to try to reclaim your stolen bike yourself, when she had a gun pointed at her after she spotted her bike on the street and tried to walk off with it; the man who threatened her was released the next day on just $500 bond, despite being a career criminal
A Danish website examines why ebikes are gaining popularity in the country. Probably for the same reasons they’re becoming more popular everywhere else.
An Egyptian man is pedaling his bike to peddle fresh sushi on Cairo streets.
According to a Singaporean website, entrepreneurs should start bicycling, too.
A New Zealand mayor promises that a new 2.7 mile, $316 million bike path — the equivalent of $193 US — will soon be recognized as one of the world’s best bikeways.
Competitive Cycling
Bicycling reports that there will be a women’s edition of Milan-San Remo starting next year, although it will be much shorter than the men’s race; UCI limits women’s races to a maximum of 170 kilometers, or just 105 miles, compared to the men’s 186 mile course. Just one more example of pro cycling assuming women are the weaker sex, and couldn’t possibly manage the same courses the men ride. Read it on AOL if the magazine blocks you.
Seriously? The Mirror writes that a “cycling star” was knocked off his bike during the Vuelta Extremadura by a spectator angling to record the race on her phone. But somehow they can’t be bothered to identify said cycling star.
Finally…
That feeling when the city illegally builds a bike path on your property without asking permission, and the mayor complains that you’re making a big deal out of it. Your next bike helmet could be 3D printed for a fit tailored to your own head.
And nothing like riding a modern Penny Farthing down a mountain bike trail.
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Ramadan Mubarak to all observing the Islamic holy month.
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Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.
Oh, and fuck Putin, too.
