Tag Archive for cicLAvia

Fountain Ave design meeting tonight, LA opens HLA appeals process, and recaps from Sunday’s successful CicLAvia

August 19, 2025 / / One comment
Day 231 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

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A quick reminder before we start about this week’s anticipated heat wave, with temperatures in Woodland Hills, LA County valleys and the Inland Empire expected to top well over 100°. 

So try to ride early or late if at all possible, stick to shady, tree-lined routes when you can, and drink plenty of non-alcoholic fluids. 

And keep your phone handy to get help if you get overheated. 

Seriously, stay safe out there. I need every reader I’ve got these days. 

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West Hollywood with host a meeting tonight to discuss plans for the long-delayed Fountain Avenue Streetscape Project tonight in Rooms 5 & 6 of the Plummer Park Community Center on Santa Monica Blvd.

The presentation starts at 6 pm with an open house and refreshments, followed by a presentation and Q&A session.

You can review a pdf of the draft plan here.

Unfortunately, I’m not comfortable leaving my wife alone so soon after her heart attack, so I’m disappointed I won’t be there this time.

And yes, I feel guilty as hell asking you to go in my stead, but supporters need to turn out in force if you can make it.

Because opponents of the plan are certain to be there to fight for their precious free curbside parking spaces and a not-so-secret alternative to busier Sunset and Santa Monica Blvds, valuing convenience over protecting human lives.

Photo by Joe Linton/Streetsblog depicts protesters opposed to Fountain Ave bike lanes.

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Los Angeles officially opened the appeals process for street projects that bypass Measure HLA’s strict requirement to build out the city mobility plan whenever streets get significantly resurfaced or re-striped.

Acting on his own behalf, Joe Linton wasted no time filing an appeal for work not done on Ohio Avenue.

Today I submitted a city-level appeal for protected bike lanes that the city did not install during resurfacing on Ohio Avenue – along the Bundy Triangle Park in Sawtelle. Read my appeal letter.

He is also aware of a number of other appeals that should be filed soon.

I have discussed possible appeals with several people, and I understand that other folks are planning to file city-level appeals today. Below are additional appeals that I am aware of today. (I am adding to this list as I learn of additional appeals.)

  • Appeal of Corinth Avenue in Sawtelle Japantown – pdf
  • Appeal of Kingsley Dr. in Koreatown – one page image
  • Appeal of Kingswell Ave. and Rodney Dr. in Los Feliz – pdf or page 1, 2
  • Appeal of Mesa and Eagle Dale Avenues in northeast L.A. – pdf
  • Appeal of Middlebury St. in East Hollywood – pdf

This is the first step required by the city before a lawsuit can be filed to enforce the requirements of Measure HLA — even though that was not part of the proposition passed overwhelming by LA voters.

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Streetsblog offers an open thread on Sunday’s Culver City meets Venice CicLAvia, along with Joe Linton’s typically great photos.

David also forward several photos, along with these brief comments.

This was an extraordinary one. Maybe the largest group of cyclists ever for a Ciclavia.  It was an impressive turnout of cycles.

Councilwoman Tracy Park set up a Tent in Mar Vista and the Venice end and unlike any other elected politician ever she stayed there from morning till it was done handing out bike flashing to everyone and chatting with anyone about anything that stopped on their bike. I saw her in the morning at Mar Vista and later at almost 4 pm in Venice.

Usually the electeds stay for the 1 hour morning photo-op to start the event and leave their staffers at the table the rest of the day.

Attached is a photo of me with Tracy Park and some Misc photos from the Venice end.  I did not take a lot of photos at this one just wanted to enjoy the experience.

Photos by David Drexler

Finish the Ride was there, too.

 

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Today’s common thread is just how cheap life your life is held if you ride a bicycle.

Like in Nebraska, where an Arkansas man was sentenced to a lousy 31 months behind bars for the attempted hit-and-run death of an 82-year-old man riding a bicycle.

Or in Louisiana, where a former state trooper walked without a day behind bars for the drunken hit-and-run death of a man biking with his two sons, after a judge sentenced him to a three-year suspended sentence and three years probation.

Or Singapore, where a garbage truck driver was sentenced to just six months behind bars for killing a 60-year old man riding a bicycle, insisting he only realized he’d hit someone when he felt a bump under his wheels, although an eight-year driving ban will keep him from working again until he’s 72.

On the other hand, a 28-year old Texas man got 15 years for the hit-and-run that killed a Fort Worth father of five as he was riding his bicycle last year; the driver’s mother told police he wasn’t sure if he hit a deer or a homeless man, neither of which would justify just driving away — or covering his car with a tarp to hide it from the cops.

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

No bias here. Indianapolis, Indiana scrapped several segments of a planned bike lane after gradually paring it down so drivers could keep their precious curbside parking, choosing their convenience over everyone’s safety.

A bike rider in Cheshire, England says people riding on the county’s roads are “fair game for crazy drivers,” after police reject video evidence of dangerous driving due to a lack of witnesses. Although it seems like the cops themselves would be witnesses if they just watched the videos.

Bicyclists in West Yorkshire, England criticized the cops following yet another mass casualty event when a driver cut back into a group of bicyclists while attempting to pass on a blind curve, resulting in serious injuries to two riders, with several others hurt; the “abysmal” police report failed to criticize the driver, or even mention that the car had one.

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

A 20-year old British man was sentenced to eight years and three months in a young offenders’ institution for the hit-and-run death of an 86-year old man just walking to a fish and chips shop, moments after popping a wheelie and swerving all over the road on his ebike. Although it sounds more like he was riding an e-motorbike than a ped-assist ebike, but still. 

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Local 

KCBS-2 looks at Metro’s adopt-a-bike program to assist families affected by January’s devastating Eaton and Palisades firestorms

Secret Los Angeles looks forward to Santa Clarita’s forthcoming $7.4 million Haskell Canyon Bike Park. Even though that scheduled opening is only a secret if you haven’t been paying attention.

ICE agents are accused of snatching a man off his bicycle in a Santa Clarita raid, and heartlessly leaving the man’s bicycle lying in the roadway.

 

State

A Davis columnist recommends an ebike for a friend’s son, saying it’s the perfect solution to allow the 6’10” 16-year old to attend a school in another neighborhood with a better basketball couch.

 

National

Bicycling recommends eight jersey’s built for this month’s extreme heat, with no paywall this time because they hope to make a little on the backend.

Cycling Electric recommends the year’s best e-gravel bikes. Or gravel ebikes. Or something.

A member of the Washington State Traffic Safety Commission busts the myth of wrong-way riding being safer for bicyclists. I still hear from people on a regular basis who insist salmon bicycling is safer than riding with traffic, all evidence to the contrary.

Residents of Houston, Texas demanded better police protection after a 77-year old man was fatally stabbed by a transient as he was riding his bicycle to work on an East Houston bike trail.

An Iowa college professor is employing lessons in the classroom she learned on a 56-day bike ride from Kentucky to San Francisco with her husband along the Trans American Bicycle Trail and Western Express Bike Route.

I want to be like him when I grow up. A 90-year old Milwaukee man is still riding his e-recumbent around 150 miles a week when weather allows.

A Boston company now allows you to rent a cargo bike in eight neighborhoods throughout the city.

The rich get richer, as New York releases a masterplan of 100 projects to expand the city’s 506-mile bicycle greenway network, designed to “connect underserved communities, spur economic development and provide environmental benefits.”

Great idea. Alexandria, Virginia is recruiting bike-riding volunteers to deliver food from local farmer’s markets to residents in need as part of their Bike for Good program.

 

International

A new McGill University study shows Montreal doesn’t have enough bicycle infrastructure to meet demand, taking up just two percent of street space despite a measurable need for more in some areas.

An Icelandic man is working to raise funds and awareness for multiple myeloma, after a new treatment helped ease his pain and get him back on his bike.

Cycling UK opens a new multi-day bikepacking route through “Majestic rolling hillsides, historic regal villages and bluebell-lined woodland trails,” just a stones-throw from London.

A bicycling professor offers advice on how newcomers can safely bike through Amsterdam. Which would seem to be a lot safer than biking in LA, newcomer or otherwise.

 

Competitive Cycling

Canadian Tour de France stage winner and world championship medalist Michael Woods calls it a career, arguing that it’s a “ludicrously dangerous sport,” but Velo says he has big plans going forward.

Former South African champion Ryan Gibbons calls it quits after nine years in cycling’s highest tier, the last two as Mads Petersen’s key lead-out man.

Belgian “domestique extraordinaire” Tim Declercq also calls it a career after 14 years, torching the peloton on his way out for having too many riders who don’t care if they crash and take ten other riders out with them.

A writer for Cycling Weekly argues for making bike racers take a skills test, just like motorsports drivers, with tongue placed firmly in cheek.

 

Finally…

That feeling when “Lime Bike leg” only seems to afflict London bike riders.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

Category: General / Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How LA’s inaction led to a child’s death, LADOT “improves” safety by restoring parking, and CicLAvia rolls again

August 18, 2025 / / No comments
Day 230 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

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Of course he gets it.

Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Streets For All founder Michael Schneider says fourth-grader Nadir Gavarrete did not have to die in a Koreatown intersection earlier this month.

Nadir Gavarrete was riding an e-scooter along with his 19-year old brother when they were run down by a drunk driver, who was accused of blowing through a stop sign to make a left turn.

A stop sign, and an intersection, that shouldn’t have still been there.

Koreatown is one of the densest parts of Los Angeles — at 44,000 people per square mile, it’s more crowded than most New York City boroughs. Nearly every major street in Koreatown is on the city’s “high injury network” list — the 6% of streets that cause 70% of the traffic injuries and deaths. In other words, L.A. knows how dangerous Koreatown’s streets can be.

As a result, 14 years ago, in 2011, L.A. applied for a federal grant to improve safety along several city streets, specifically choosing to focus on the intersection of New Hampshire and 4th for one of its projects. The city won the grant money and kicked off community meetings to discuss installing a roundabout at the intersection, as well as adding enhanced crosswalks and other safety improvements to the immediate area.

Needless to say, a decade-and-a-half later, nothing has happened, this being Los Angeles and all.

Except for yet another needless death, added to a long and ever-growing list of failure.

What will it take for Los Angeles to have a sense of urgency in actually making our streets safer? We currently spend more on legal settlements to those hurt and killed on our streets than we do on Vision Zero, the city’s half-baked effort to reduce traffic deaths. Since Los Angeles declared itself a Vision Zero City in 2015, with the ultimate aim of having no one killed in car crashes on city streets by 2025, deaths and injuries have only gotten worse. In the last few years we’ve had at least three children hit and killed while walking to school. And yet the city’s leaders — facing a budget crisis, much of it of their own making — perpetually underfund LADOT and street safety in general.

Good question.

It’s worth taking a few minutes to read the whole thing.

Because the more things change in this city of fallen angels, the more they stay the same.

And that’s not a good thing.

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Good news and bad news, as LADOT announced plans to remove peak-hour lanes on a number of low-traffic streets throughout the city in an effort to improve safety.

The lanes currently prohibit parking during morning and/or evening rush hours, too often turning them into high speed traffic lanes.

However, the bad news is, instead of converting the lanes to full-time bus or bike lanes, the city is restoring parking throughout the day. Which doesn’t actually improve safety for anyone, just trading one problem for another.

LADOT dangles the possibility of converting the lanes to some other, better use at some undisclosed future time. Although given the city’s financial problems — due in large part to those legal settlements referenced above — that day could be years, or even decades, off.

If ever.

LADOT Begins First Phase of Peak-Hour Lane Removal

LADOT has begun implementing the first phase of a citywide initiative to improve safety and access to street parking by removing peak-hour travel lanes and restoring full-time parking. This initiative, directed by the Los Angeles City Council, aims to enhance safety, improve access, and support the City’s long-term mobility goals.

Phase 1 of this initiative focuses on low-traffic corridors, restoring street parking on corridors where traffic volume is below determined thresholds. Future phases will examine higher-volume streets and may propose alternative uses for peak-hour lanes, such as dedicated bus lanes, protected bike lanes, or expanded pedestrian zones. LADOT will conduct outreach and collaborate with community stakeholders as future phases move forward, ensuring that proposed changes align with neighborhood needs.

In addition to providing greater parking availability to support surrounding businesses, these changes are expected to have minimal impact on congestion while improving street safety, with reduced speeding, fewer collisions, and improved visibility for people walking and biking.

The specific corridors selected for Phase 1 of peak-hour lane removal are:

  • Alpine St, from N. Spring to Yale
  • Alvarado St, Northbound, from James M. Wood to 7th
  • Beverly Blvd, from Rampart to Witmer
  • Broadway, Northbound, from 2nd to 1st
  • College St, from New Depot to Alameda
  • Crenshaw Blvd, from Florence to 59th St
  • La Tijera Blvd, Northbound, from Thornburn to Knowlton
  • Melrose Ave, from Vermont to Virgil
  • Nordhoff St, Westbound, from Corbin to Canoga
  • Pico Blvd, Westbound, from Overland to Sepulveda
  • Ventura Blvd, Eastbound, from Farralone to Tampa
  • Victory Blvd, from Lankershim to Clybourn
  • Washington Blvd, from Vermont to Flower
  • Washington Blvd, Eastbound, from Redondo to La Brea and from Wellington to Crenshaw

Thanks to Dr. Grace Peng for the heads-up.

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A writer for Circling the News was the first to post a report from yesterday’s Culver City meets Venice CicLAvia.

And the first thing they noticed was the bad shape of the road around Venice and Abbot Kinney, saying it was easy to notice if you’re trying to dodge pavement problems.

The second thing seemed to be members of White People 4 Black Lives, several accident attorneys and the Venice High School Cheerleaders handing out free water along the route, the latter as they tried to raise funds.

And yes, it seems a good time was had by all.

Although I had to miss it because of my wife’s health problems, since she still hasn’t bounced back enough to go herself, or to be left at home alone.

Meanwhile, the Militant Angeleno’s guide to highlights along the route was posted too late to link to before the CicLAvia, but you can still check it out to see what you missed.

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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 55-year old Miami man claims he was arrested just for touching a police cruiser, as he tried to ride around the patrol car stopped in a bike lane; police claim he intentionally hit the car hard enough to dent it “four to five times.”

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

A 12-year old Singapore girl was hospitalized after she was knocked cold by a 51-year old man on fixie while riding her bicycle; the older man was being investigated for a “rash act causing hurt.”

A Brisbane, Australia writer offers a carrot and stick solution to the problem of scofflaw bicyclists, saying the answer is more bike paths, while forcing bike riders to wear registration numbers.

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Local 

Two women were arrested for shooting another woman in the arm on Sepulveda Blvd in Culver City earlier this month, in an attempt to steal the victim’s ebike; a search of their apartment also turned up two assault rifles with high-capacity magazines, ammunition and a kilo of suspected cocaine.

 

State

Mark your calendar for September 4th, when the Orange County Transportation Authority will hold a webinar to discuss the OCTA Bikeways Connectivity Study to expand options for bikeways across Orange County.

A mom writing for the Times of San Diego explains how to select the right bicycle for your kids.

California Streetsblog reports on Bike Bakersfield and Calbike teaming up to “flip the script” on a “ludicrous” grand jury report decrying efforts to implement bicycle safety measures.

A local website reports bicycling and pedestrian deaths in Watsonville far outpace the average in Santa Cruz County, and considers four ways to make the city streets safer.

 

National

ABC News says the deadly 85th Percentile Rule that allows drivers to set speed limits with a heavy right foot could finally be on the way out.

Great idea. The White Line — the bicycle safety group founded by the parents of fallen Team USA cyclist Magnus White — put a group of Colorado lawmakers on a bus, and drove them around for a series of mobile town halls to show them the impact crashes have on vulnerable road users.

I want to be like her when I grow up. A Missoula, Montana woman calls a local octogenarian, peacemaker and bicycle evangelist her hero and mentor, the 87-year old woman is known throughout the community for riding around town in a bright vest, with her dog in her basket.

Chicago Streetsblog says yes, the city has a long way to go to become bike friendly, but People For Bikes’ use of it as a poster child for bicycling problems is just a joke.

New York’s Citi Bike bikeshare will now require users to prove they’re over 16 to use the service.

Florida — yes, Florida — is now the first state in the nation to offer ebike education as part of the regular curriculum, at least in some schools.

A 54-year old Miami man riding a bicycle on the city’s deadly Rickenbacker Causeway was killed when he was struck by two kids riding an electric dirt bike.

 

International

Momentum ranks the ten best European city’s for bicycling and the best time to visit, including four French cities, led by Paris.

An op-ed from a Calgary, Alberta bike advocate urges local drivers not to fear road diets, arguing that they can ease the city’s traffic woes.

An expat website explains how to get around the Netherlands by bike like a local.

Here’s another one for your bicycle bucket list, as Travel + Leisure recommends a 560-mile bike trail through France’s Loire Valley, exploring a unique blend of ancient Gaelic history, Renaissance châteaus, and ancient vineyards.

A 65-year old Tallahassee, Florida high school teacher and tennis coach stopped in Madrid, Spain, a little less than a quarter of the way on his attempt to become the oldest person a bike around the world.

 

Competitive Cycling

Remco Evenepoel will now be on the same team as Primož Roglič, as Roglič says he hopes they can do great things together, after the Belgian star signed with the Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe cycling team.

 

Finally…

Your next car could be a bike.

No, seriously, that’s all we’ve got this time. 

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

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

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

Dangerous streets keep kids off bikes, Canadian bike riders have a right to not get killed, and CicLAvia rolls on Sunday

August 14, 2025 / / One comment
Day 226 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

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She gets it.

A writer for the Washington Post says dangerous streets make it hard to give kids the freedom they need to roam and explore.

In recent decades, many of America’s roads have indeed become more chaotic: Speed limits are higher; vehicles are (much) bigger; drivers are more aggressive and more likely to be distracted by smartphones. When parents see massive SUVs speeding down neighborhood streets or blowing through stop signs, they might feel less inclined to allow their kids to roam freely on foot or bicycle. And though the number of children injured or killed by cars while walking or riding a bike has fallen steadily since the 1970s, research by the CDC notes that this decline is not because streets are safer, but because fewer kids are out and about in the first place.

This pattern, some parents say, can create a self-perpetuating cycle: If drivers are less accustomed to encountering kids on roads, they might be less likely to drive safely around them, which in turn makes parents more anxious and restrictive of their child’s movements.

It’s worth giving the whole story a read.

Because one of the most common refrains from parents is that they would never allow their kids to ride on city streets, in Los Angeles or elsewhere, whether or not they ride themselves.

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He gets it, too.

In a piece that starts out very tongue-in-cheek before evolving — devolving? — into legalese, a Canadian columnist takes conservatives to task for complaining about a recent court ruling ordering the government not to remove Toronto’s protected bike lanes.

It was judicial activism run amok, they agreed. Canada’s ever-inventive courts had discovered a “right to bicycle lanes.” What next: a right to volleyball courts? Time to invoke the notwithstanding clause, said some.

Well, that was then. When, one week ago, the Conservative government of Nova Scotia, with the province’s forests tinder-dry and fearing a repeat of the devastating wildfires of two years ago, issued a ban on hiking and camping in forested areas, conservatives were again apoplectic.

But the real issue, he says, is whether the government has the right to kill you.

The issue at stake in the bicycle lanes case is disarmingly simple: does the government have the right to kill you? It is not hyperbole but demonstrable, probabilistic fact that banning bike lanes will sentence a certain number of randomly selected Torontonians to death, and cause serious injuries to still more…

That’s also reflected in our Constitution. Section 7 of the Charter does not assert an absolute right to “life, liberty or security of the person” but the right not to be deprived thereof “except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice.”

Because removing bike lanes could predictably deprive some people of their “life, liberty or security of the person.”

And likely would.

Which does not mean the government has to build bike lanes. But it does mean the court had a reasonable basis to prohibit the government from removing them.

Nothing in the decision obliges the government to build new bicycle lanes. As such it involves no “positive rights,” which conservatives are right to oppose. It simply requires that before a government takes the extraordinary step of ordering the removal of lanes that have already been built – an action guaranteed to cost some lives and put many more in peril – it ought at least to have some basis in evidence or logic for doing so.

Maybe we should try that same argument on this side of the border the next time someone wants to rip out an existing bike lane here.

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CicLAvia marks its 61st open streets event this Sunday with the 6.75-mile Culver City meets Venice CicLAvia, connecting Culver City, Mar Vista and Venice.

Hard to believe it’s been 15 years since the first one on 10-10-2010. And even harder to believe now that we thought it would never happen when CicLAvia’s founders came to the LACBC, now BikeLA, board to ask for our support.

Meanwhile, KNBC-4 suggests honoring the Venice lifestyle by skating the whole route.

Thousand, a woman-owned Boyle Heights bike helmet-maker, will celebrate their tenth anniversary by giving away 1,000 helmets at their booth at the Mar Vista Hub.

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The Spring Street bike lanes in DTLA are getting new safety barriers, with enough separation to hopefully prevent the kind of injuries San Diego bicyclists have complained about.

https://twitter.com/LADOTofficial/status/1955736202172092503

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

No bias here. Middlesborough, England is going to spend the equivalent of nearly $3 million to rip out a bike lane derided as “an absolute nightmare” and “exploited by drug dealers,” despite spending just $100,000 to settle injury claims after it went in — and spending $2.3 million to install it just three years ago.

A Dublin, Ireland city counselor accused civic leaders of “pure gaslighting” and treating bicycles “like a child’s toy” by shutting down a popular bicycle route, forcing riders into an “anti-cycling death trap.”

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

British motoring lawyer Mr. Loophole accuses bike cam vigilant Cycling Mikey of using his bicycle as a weapon by pushing it into the path of a driver attempting to illegally drive down a closed roadway, resulting in his bike getting run over and shattered into pieces. So he’s saying it wasn’t a very good weapon?

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Local 

Streets For All released their August newsletter, including calls for protected bike lanes on Pico Blvd and Alameda Street.

 

State

California is hitting pause on a requirement to install bike parking in new commercial and residential buildings, after the legislature passed a bill delaying the requirement until 2027.

A Monterey County woman says there’s no law against kids under 16 riding an e-scooter or a Class 1 or 2 ebike, but maybe there should be. Actually, there is a law against riding e-scooters without a driver’s license. 

Sad news from Yuba County, where a 60-year old man was killed by a driver while towing a trailer behind his bicycle.

 

National

An op-ed writer in USA Today argues that ebikes are driving him crazy, so we need to make them obey the same rules as drivers. Even though most drivers don’t.

Singletracks offers a guide to the ten best downhill mountain bike trails in Idaho.

Portland’s mayor has called a pause on plans to remove diverters and change the traffic flow on two neighborhood greenways, after the bicycle advisory committee increased pressure on the city.

Police in Houston arrested a 40-year old man in the fatal stabbing of a 77-year old man as he was riding his bike to work; the victim somehow made it to his job site before collapsing, and died at the hospital.

This is the cost of traffic violence. A 70-year old cancer treatment specialist in the Indiana University medical system was killed by a driver while riding his bike on Monday.

A Boston writer explains how she fell in love with her ebike after moving here from France, saying biking every day makes her life better.

Princeton, New Jersey banned right turns on red lights as part of the city’s Vision Zero program. Meanwhile, Los Angeles just tells drivers to carry on. 

Arlington, Virginia is joining the ebike rebate movement, offering vouchers for up to $1650 on the purchase of an ebike. Although those ebikes are about to get a lot more expensive, thanks to Trump’s 30% tariff on goods imported from Asian manufacturers. 

An Atlanta photo exhibition documents one man’s journey to bike every single street inside the city’s I-285 perimeter.

A TV station in Lake Charles, Louisiana unmasks a mysterious man on a Mardi Gras-festooned ebike, who says he rides through the community because “he loves to see people smile.” Although something tells me Adorian Hollywood Flavor probably isn’t his real name. 

A Florida teenager was lucky to survive his first day of school when he was struck by a driver while riding his ebike in a crosswalk, after witnesses teamed together to lift the car off him.

 

International

A recent study ranks Victoria, British Columbia as Canada’s most bicycle-friendly city, edging out Winnipeg and Quebec City.

The 134-year old Cycling Weekly introduces the British nonprofits working to transform the lives of refugees and asylum-seekers by providing them with bicycles.

A clueless Conservative city counselor in the UK questioned why disabled bicyclists can’t simply get off their bikes and push them across a footbridge. Um, maybe because they’re disabled?

 

Competitive Cycling

The Cyclists’ Alliance, the union for women’s cycling, is calling for mandatory, annual screening in the wake of Pauline Ferrand-Prévot’s victory at the Tour de France Femmes, amid comments about her drastic weight loss.

Cyclist offers a preview of the three-stage Tour de Romandie Féminin, which kicks off tomorrow.

 

Finally…

What it’s like to suffer for the sake of science on a ten-mile time trial. That feeling when you stop riding in the year’s hottest month because your cleats are haunted.

And we may have to deal with stampeding LA drivers, but at least we don’t have to worry about getting trampled to death by elephants.

………

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

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

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

73-year old man busted for fatal WeHo hit-and-run, new CicLAvia maps revealed, and we all need a pro-bike guidebook

July 17, 2025 / / No comments
Day 198 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

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They got him, for once.

Allegedly, anyway.

Multiple sources are reporting that Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies arrested a 73-year old man for last week’s hit-and-run death of fallen bicyclist Blake Ackerman.

Douglas Morton Adams was arrested Tuesday on a charge of hit-and-run causing death, and released latter that same day on $50,000 bond.

Adams is accused of running Ackerman down from behind as on Fountain Ave near Gardner, and continuing west on Fountain without stopping.

Authorities said he was arrested after witnesses and tipsters helped identify his car. WeHo Times credits Florida resident Shanna Meade with giving investigators a video of Adams’ car and license plate.

Despite the arrest, the case remains under investigation. Anyone with information is urged to call LA County Sheriff’s traffic investigators at the West Hollywood station at 310/855-8850.

Unless additional charges are filed, Adams faces a maximum of four years behind bars under California’s lenient hit-and-run laws.

Meanwhile, more than 60 people turned out for a ghost bike installation honoring Blake Ackerman near the site of the crash Wednesday morning.

Matt Parker, one of Ackerman’s closest friends, gave a moving statement, while his fiancé and friends wrote personal messages on the freshly painted white bike.

Ackerman had recently returned to Los Angeles to work as associate at DTLA law firm Morgan Lewis. He was likely returning home from a late day at work when he was killed, have just taken up bike commuting and transit use rather than driving.

The ghost bike ceremony was organized by the West Hollywood Bicycle Coalition with assistance from Streets Are For Everyone.

A larger vigil will be held Friday starting at 6 pm at Fountain and Gardner, followed by a short march to West Hollywood City Hall for a rally and press conference.

Everyone is urged to attend to call for safer streets in WeHo, and throughout the area.

And yes, I mean everyone.

Today’s photos show the newly installed ghost bike for Blake Ackerman, along with the installation ceremony.

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CicLAvia unveiled the map for October’s Heart of LA CicLAvia, marking the 15th anniversary of America’s largest open streets event.

Although someone should tell NBC4 that if you’re going to do a story about a new CicLAvia map, you should at least include it.

However, there are two events preceding it, in August and September.

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Good question.

Having seen the congestion, safety, and emergency access arguments deployed against bike lanes in literally hundreds of places, why have we not developed a little guidebook or something on how to deal with them?

— Bike Talk (@biketalk.bsky.social) 2025-07-17T00:52:51.247Z

As I recall, back in the dark ages when I served on the board, staffers at the former Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition — now BikeLA — developed a short guide on how to respond to common objections.

But it really would make sense for someone to pen a handbook with effective arguments against the most common complaints, which would undoubtedly become an instant best seller.

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Call it elder abuse.

Anyone who is still riding a bicycle at 85 deserves better than to be killed by an alleged drunk driver, like this man in Portland, Oregon.

The same goes for an 83-year of British Columbia woman killed by the driver of a semi truck, who played the international Get Out of Jail Free card by claiming he didn’t see her.

………

People For Bikes says there are six things any city can do to improve bicycling, using the acronym SPRINT:

  • safe speeds
  • protected bike lanes
  • reallocated space
  • intersection improvements
  • network connections
  • trusted data

………

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

No bias here. London’s walking and cycling commissioner decries the “antagonism” between bicyclists and motorists on social media, saying it’s “not representative of real life.” But all the Evening Standard wants to talk about is his statement that some bike riders “are idiots” — even though he included motorists in that statement, too.

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

An English bicyclist calls for building a pump track so kids will stop digging up woodlands and damaging ancient archaeological artifacts in search of somewhere to ride.

………

Local 

Los Angeles Magazine offers an oral history of Pee-wee Herman’s iconic bike from Pee-wee’s Big Adventure; six bikes were made for the 1985 movie by the Pedal Pusher bike shop in Newport Beach, one of which will soon find a well-deserved home at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.

 

State

A California political newsletter consider’s Vista’s move to remove the protection from the city’s protected bike lanes, after “overwhelming feedback” from bicyclists. Thanks to Phillip for the heads-up.

Chico breaks ground on a new bike track that will bring state-of-the-art amenities for riders. Presumably without damaging any ancient archaeological artifacts. 

 

National

Walmart has issued a recall of 200 children’s bikes that pose a risk of illness or death due to excessive levels of lead; parents are urged to destroy the bikes sold under the SPPTTY brand.

National Guard service members and Air Force reservists have joined the search for a 52-year old Oregon man who disappeared after leaving for a mountain bike ride last Friday.

Two men from Grand Rapids, Michigan are way ahead of schedule on their fundraising ride to Los Angeles to benefit Pedal to the Rescue, a nonprofit on a mission to support the heroes who fought LA’s wildfires, on track to finish the ride in half of the 82 days originally estimated.

No surprise here, as four of New York’s five boroughs rank at the top of a new analysis of active transportation in the US, led by Manhattan, where 60% of all trips are taken on foot or bike. Needless to say, auto-centric Los Angeles didn’t even make the list.

 

International

Momentum recommends international alternatives to Airbnb for your next bike tour.

Road.cc suggest ten things you really shouldn’t copy from the pros. Although I could add an 11th, like doping, for instance. 

Cycling Weekly tests four of the best road bikes for under $2,400, and says you can get a lot more for your money than you could ten years ago. Tell me about it. I spent about that much for a 2014 LeMond, which doesn’t hold a candle to today’s bikes. Although putting a candle on a bike doesn’t make a lot of sense. 

Um, okay. Dame Joan Collins — yes, that Joan Collins — pens a confusing “diary” post that starts with complaints about the British prime minister, even though it’s about the invasion of Lime Bikes, or maybe an invasion of immigrants on Lime Bikes, before moving on in truly Trumpian fashion to talk about hard working movie people and telling Ingrid Bergman’s daughter to bugger off.

German direct-to-consumer mountain bike brand YT declares financial insolvency and enters a “self-administered legal restructure,” meaning they will continue to run the company with outside oversight.

Um, okay, too. A new Chinese study examines “The nonlinear relationship between built environment and cycling propensity for different travel purposes − based on extreme gradient boosting decision tree.”

 

Competitive Cycling

Tragic news from Italy’s Giro della Valle d’Aosta, where 19-year old Italian cyclist Samuele Privitera died following a crash on Wednesday’s stage 1; Privitera was a member of the Jayco AlUla World Tour team, owned and managed by Alex Merckx, son of the legendary Eddy Merckx. Stage 2 was cancelled following Privitera’s death.

Velo says Wednesday’s stage 11 of the Tour de France was the “wildest day of racing yet” amid “wire to wire chaos,” as Norwegian cyclist Jonas Abrahamsen won in what ended as a day-long two man breakaway.

Tadej Pogačar crashed in the closing moments Wednesday, but say’s he’s “quite ok” after “losing a bit of skin;” his crash came with around 4km — 2.5 miles — to go, outside of the 3km safety zone. However, race leader Ben Healy slowed the pace to allow Pogačar to catch up to the leaders.

Norway’s Tobias Johannessen admitting causing Pogačar’s crash, saying he was “terrified” by the online abuse he received afterwards.

An anti-Israel protester attempted to disrupt the final sprint of the stage, jumping over the barricade and running opposite the cyclists wearing a T-shirt reading “Israel Out of the Tour” while waving a black and white keffiyeh, before he was tackled by a security official.

Bike Radar goes “in search of the truth” about how clean pro cycling really is, 12 years after Lance came clean about not riding clean.

Easy Reader presents a recap of Sunday’s 62nd Annual Chevron Manhattan Beach Grand Prix.

 

Finally…

Probably not the best idea to ride a stolen scooter to your appointment at the police station. It may not be the best idea to ride a bike with a live cobra around your neck, either.

And that feeling when you get overnight delivery by Porsche for your newly painted yellow bike.

You know, to match that new yellow jersey.

………

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

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

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

When Streets Are For Everyone says everyone, they mean everyone; and join Bike LA for South LA CicLAvia feeder ride

June 13, 2025 / / Comments Off on When Streets Are For Everyone says everyone, they mean everyone; and join Bike LA for South LA CicLAvia feeder ride
Day 164 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

It was a light news day in the world of bikes yesterday, so let’s get right to it. 

I mean, it’s not like anything else happened Thursday, right?

Ice photo by Dragon77 from Pixabay. 

………

Streets Are For Everyone, aka SAFE, responds to the recent ICE raids and the protests that followed by stressing that when they say everyone, they mean everyone. 

At Streets Are For Everyone, our mission is simple: improve the quality of life for pedestrians, bicyclists, and drivers alike by reducing traffic fatalities to zero. This mission does not exclude any Angeleno from our work. We strive to make streets safer for everyone, regardless of their mode of transportation, income, housing status, or immigration status. That means pushing for equitable design, advocating for justice, and demanding infrastructure that protects our most vulnerable neighbors.

The ongoing immigrant raids across Los Angeles, including the deployment of 2,000 National Guard troops (and now Marines), did not make the streets safer. In fact, they worked to sow fear and discord across our communities.

Long after this current moment of ICE raids is over, our most vulnerable neighbors will continue to live in fear of moving around the city, of taking the bus, or simply walking down the street.

………

Bike LA, nee Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, is hosting a CicLAvia feeder ride along the new Rail-to-Rail trail through South LA next Sunday.

………

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

No bias here. Washington DC unraveled two years of community work by unceremoniously removing barriers protecting a two-way bike lane, apparently because some people thought it was ugly and didn’t even bother to tell anyone before they did it, safety be damned. DC bike riders weren’t too thrilled by it, either.

A road-raging Florida woman says she drove down a multi-use path chasing a 14-year old boy riding an ebike, just so she could tell his parents he was riding too fast, apparently confused what “multi-use” means. So why is it always Florida?

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

The news director for a Wisconsin radio station complains about having to jam on the brakes to avoid a couple of stop sign-running bike riders. On the other hand, reckless drivers don’t seem to bother him at all. And why do people always feel the need to remind us that getting run over by a car or truck “doesn’t end well for the bicyclist,” as if that will somehow come as a surprise to anyone?

………

Local 

A UCLA student was knocked cold by an attacker while riding his bike on campus and woke up to find his cellphone missing; the suspect was described as male, 5’6″ tall and wearing a black hoodie and black pants.

Santa Monica received $875,000 from SCAG — the Southern California Association of Governments — to improve and expand their neighborhood greenways.

 

State

GT Bicycles has cut ties with extreme mountain biking pioneer Hans ‘No Way’ Rey after a remarkable 38 years, as the Aliso Viejo-based bikemaker continues to shed sponsorships.

Santa Cruz County is encouraging residents to get out of their cars by launching their own ebike incentive program, with vouchers ranging from $300 to $1,200. That compares favorably to LA County’s program offering absolutely nothing. 

San Francisco moved the center-running Valencia Street protected bike lane back to the curb, but evidently forget to protect all of it.

A Chico bike park will now serve alcohol, for anyone who needs a few drinks to give it a try. After all, what could possibly go wrong?

 

National

Say what? Hawaii’s governor targets a bill prohibiting “high-speed electric devices” from the state’s roadways, arguing that it could ban electric cars and probably violates the US Constitution clauses regulating interstate commerce and banning discrimination against groups and individuals.

Denver removed plastic bollards from some protected bike lanes because drivers kept knocking them over, and concrete barriers last longer with less maintenance, anyway.

That’s more like it. A Colorado woman was sentenced to five years behind bars for fleeing the scene after killing a man riding a bicycle, until her lawyer called hours later to turn her in.

A Boston letter writer corrects a recent editorial, pointing out that it wasn’t the bike lane’s fault when a speeding driver jumped the sidewalk and hit a man riding a bicycle head-on.

Writing for Streetsblog, a New York man channels the spirt of 1970’s bicycle philosopher Ivan Illich, arguing that he would probably agree with the mayor’s 15 mph speed limit for ebikes, and wouldn’t be a fan of bicycle delivery riders, either.

Speaking of Gotham’s ebike-riding delivery riders, the city’s Department of Transportation is distributing four hundred fire-safe, certified ebike batteries to cut down on the risk of fires.

A Pennsylvania woman says she settled for riding just 10,000 miles in the year leading up to her 50th birthday, because it was too cold to ride 12,000.

A Virginia man blames a new bulb-out for making him fall off his bike, insisting that he didn’t see it on a road he rides regularly until it was too late.

 

International

No one else was around when a well-known Canadian paracyclist came to, after he was run down from behind while training in Whitehorse, forcing him to flag down a motorist with one good arm because the other one is now paralyzed — yet somehow, police aren’t even treating it as a hit-and-run.

A Guardian op-ed says cars already made pedestrians second-class citizens, and we can’t let driverless cars push us off the street entirely. If pedestrians are second-class citizens, imagine what that makes us. 

They get it. The New Zealand government is installing a dozen ebike charging stations along trails in Hawke’s Bay and Wellington to boost bicycle tourism, at a cost of nearly a half-million dollars.

 

Competitive Cycling

America’s other ex-Tour de France winner talks with Cyclist about the dark years following his fraudulent doping denials, and the redemption that was years coming.

 

Finally…

That feeling when electric bike pumps are great, but you’d rather do it the old-fashioned way. Call it the Wonka Chocolate Factory of cargo bikes, but without all the golden tickets.

And your next $3,500 electric scooter could look like a Cyber Truck.

Which ain’t necessarily a good thing.

………

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

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

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

Chino driver flees with ebike embedded in bumper, Historic South Central Meets Watts CicLAvia, and pledge to bike in OC

May 29, 2025 / / Comments Off on Chino driver flees with ebike embedded in bumper, Historic South Central Meets Watts CicLAvia, and pledge to bike in OC
Day 149 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

Just a quick note. 

I always try to thank people who submit stories, because I truly appreciate the help finding stories I might not otherwise see.  

After hearing from a few people, however, I am changing my policy to identify people just by their first names going forward, in order to protect their privacy. 

I mean, you’ll still know it’s you. But everyone else doesn’t need to.

………

Um, okay.

Police in Chino arrested a woman who drove roughly five miles or more to Montclair with a shattered windshield, and an ebike embedded in her bumper, after fleeing the scene of a hit-and-run crash that left the victim with a head injury.

Police found the woman by tracking an AirTag hidden on the ebike across multiple cities.

What they don’t say, though, is how much time elapsed between the crash and the arrest, and whether the driver would have had time to sober up first.

Because something tells me she might have needed to.

Thanks to Jeffrey for the heads-up.

………

Mark your calendar for the next CicLAvia next month, as Historic South Central Meets Watts.

Here’s how a press release describes the open streets event.

6.4-Miles of Open Streets Connecting Historic South Central, Florence, Firestone, and Watts Via S Central Ave and 103rd Street to Enjoy this ‘Pop-Up’ Park for the Day in One’s Favorite People-Powered Way for All Ages and Abilities

On Sunday, June 22; between 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. CicLAvia will celebrate its 61st car-free open streets event catalyzing vibrant public spaces, active transportation and good health through car-free streets. CicLAvia—Historic South Central meets Watts connects historic South Central, Florence, Firestone, and Watts, welcoming everyone of all ages and abilities to enjoy this day-long 6.4-mile pop-up park. Always free, you can enjoy the day,by walking, jogging, biking, roller skating, skating, or simply spectating at CicLAvia. Participants can show up anywhere along the route between 9am-4pm to enjoy the open streets, take the time to explore, and see where the day takes you.

Imagine streets alive with joy, laughter, and the freedom to roam. CicLAvia is a non-profit organization that has been opening streets throughout Los Angeles County for nearly 15 years now. It transforms city streets into a car-free celebration of community, connection, and possibility — places where participants can slow down, connect, and appreciate the city in a new way. CicLAvia is about reimagining our city streets as welcoming spaces for everyone — places for walking, running, rolling, skating, cycling, gathering, and enjoying the moment.

As a nonprofit organization, CicLAvia relies on the public’s support to continue bringing opportunities for meaningful community connections, mindful exploration, and greater understanding across Los Angeles.

CicLAvia—Historic South Central meets Watts includes five (5) hubs filled with plenty of activities and programs along the route. Hubs are walking zones (mandatory dismounts) and meeting points along the route which includes theHistoric South Central Hub located on Central Ave, just south of Washington Blvd.; Jazz Park Hub located at 41nd Place and Central Ave; Florence Firestone Hub located on Central Ave near 61st St; Central Ave Hub located on Central Ave near E. 84th St; and the Watts Hub located on E 103rd St and Success Ave. Hubs offer family-friendly activities, restrooms, free water refilling stations, free basic bike repair, bike parking, places to sit and meet up with friends and family, and first aid. Free pedicab rides are available at each hub’s information booth.

The CicLAvia—Historic South Central meets Watts route is accessible via many different forms of transportation. There is not one place to start or finish. Read more about getting to the route through these links: hubs, Metro, bike rentals, parking for the event, group meet ups: walk/run clubs, feeder rides, bus detours, and help getting to CicLAvia.

(Please note, if you are biking to and from CicLAvia along any streets that are open to cars, it is at the discretion of the individual.)

“South LA is always one of the highlights of CicLAvia’s schedule,” says CicLAvia Executive Director Romel Pascual. “Along South Central Ave, LA’s dynamic culture can be seen in the local businesses and restaurants, community parks, and public art that are on the route. It gives Angelenos the opportunity to see new things, which reminds us of what makes our city a remarkable and special place.

………

As long as we’re doing press releases, the Orange County Transportation Authority, aka OCTA, says there’s still time to pledge to ride a bike this month.

While OCTA encourages people to ride all year long, May is National Bike Month, which is also celebrated all month long in Orange County.

OCTA invites people of all ages and abilities to take part in Bike Month, and there’s still time to pledge to ride a bicycle – for commuting, for fun, or for fitness.

This year’s “Every Ride is Your Story” campaign encourages participants to ride at least once during May. Those who pledge online will be entered in a raffle to win a commuter e-bike prize package that includes an Avant Agile Commuter E-Bike, along with accessories including an adult helmet, child helmet, bike lock, and baby seat.

Pledges must be received by the end of the day on Saturday, May 31, at www.octa.net/bikemonth. A winner will be announced in June.

In addition to the Bike Rally, OCTA continues to promote safe cycling habits for all riders, including those using e-bikes. Resources and safety tips are available at www.octa.net/bikeand www.octa.net/ebike.

Orange County offers more than 1,000 miles of bikeways, from beach paths to mountain trails, making it easier than ever to ride safely and explore the region on two wheels. Over the last 15 years, OCTA has invested approximately $437 million in active transportation, including cycling and more than half (54%) of the county’s primary roadways include bike lanes.

Over 80 riders made a 4-mile bike ride from the Orange Metrolink Station to OCTA headquarters for a Bike Rally Wednesday morning to promote active transportation throughout the county.

………

No bias here.

The anti-bike New York Post is trying to whip a nonissue into an “explosive” campaign issue, after an ebike rider crashed into a three-year old girl who apparently got out of a double-parked car and darted into the bike lane he was riding in, making a crash virtually unavoidable.

Yet the paper somehow blames the bike lane, and not the driver who double-parked or the dad who didn’t hold her back.

And the result could have been far worse if she had darted in the other direction. But no one seems to be calling for removing dangerous traffic lanes from the roadway.

………

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

A Lancaster, Pennsylvania man was charged with intentionally crashing his car into a 16-year old boy riding an ebike, after he admitted to intentionally driving into the victim, causing serious injuries.

Seriously? After a British bike rider was struck by a hit-and-run driver who darted in front of him on a roundabout, The Sun can’t seem to figure out who was in the wrong.

………

Local 

Metro’s board of directors moved last week to put the planned Southeast Gateway Line underground, leaving them a paltry $10 to $12 billion short. And even that probably wouldn’t result in the green, bike-friendly Alameda corridor shown in the picture.

Ebike dealer Upway is hosting a community bike ride and ebike block party in Redondo Beach on Saturday.

 

State

Former Los Angeles mayor and erstwhile bicycle champion Antonio Villaraigosa is complaining about high gas prices and closing oil refineries. Neither of which could have anything to do with taking more than $175,000 in campaign contributions from the oil industry for his run for governor. Right?

The chief executive officer of the San Diego Youth Services rode his bicycle 500 miles from San Francisco to San Diego earlier this month to call awareness and raise funds for the 55-year old nonprofit.

A Madera teenager got a new, refurbished bicycle after his was stolen, thanks to a program run by inmates at a local penitentiary.

Sad news from Petaluma, where a man riding a bicycle was killed when he was rear-ended by a driver.

 

National

Portland wants residents to help them choose a new tagline to promote bicycling. None of which would have made it past the first round at any decent ad agency.

Singletracks looks at five of the best mountain bike trails in Washington state. Sasquatch sightings optional.

Another teenager has been arrested for the Albuquerque, New Mexico hit-and-run that killed a 63-year-old physicist as he was biking to his job at Sandia National Laboratories last year, making them the fourth juvenile in the stolen car when the kids intentionally steered it into the victim, and posted it on social media.

A Denver, Colorado TV station examines the intersection between May’s Mental Health Awareness Month and National Bike Month, and how riding a bicycle can improve your mental health.

An Austin, Texas woman learned the hard way about reckless ebike riders on the city’s trails. Or one in particular, anyway.

Atlanta’s bike-riding Magnet Man has a new bicycle thanks to fans and supporters who replaced the one he had stolen, enabling him to get back to using his magnet-equipped bike trailer to sweep metal debris off the streets before it ends up in the tires of local drivers.

 

International

Bicyclists in the Cayman Islands are calling for immediate action to improve safety on the streets after an uptick in serious injuries.

What’s the point of living in a haunted Manitoba city if you’re not going to have a bike ride visiting all the ghastly and ghostly sites? Although it really should have been after dark. 

 

Competitive Cycling

Mexico’s Isaac del Toro bounced back from a bad day in the Alps to win Wednesday’s stage 17, extending his lead to 41 seconds, as Richard Carapaz climbed into second.

This is pretty much the definition of a gnarly crash, taken from a New Jersey Cat 3 race.

 

Finally…

That feeling when your AI reporter doesn’t know the difference between a linear park and a sports attraction. Or when a fundraising ride ends in a new bike — and a proposal.

And NFTs once again raise their ugly, scammy and virtually worthless head, this time with a bicycle spin.

Seriously, shame on Pez Cycling for even accepting the sponsored post.

………

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

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

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

Open Streets season opens, alleged drunk driver with suspended license kills teen fire refugee, and key bike bills in suspense

May 6, 2025 / / 3 comments
Day 126 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

It’s open streets season again.

The City of Bell kicked things off on Saturday with a one-mile carfree event on Gage Ave; as usual, Streetsblog’s Joe Linton offers photos capturing the day.

Long Beach is hosting its next Beach Streets event from 10 am and 5 pm this Saturday.

According to a press release from the city,

This year’s event route will feature Willow Street and Santa Fe Avenue. Entertainment hubs along the route will feature live music, a kid zone, food trucks and more. More information regarding this year’s event, including a more detailed event route, entertainment, activities and other highlights, will be provided by the City at a later date.

That will be followed by the year’s first CicLAmini the following Saturday, a CicLAvia-style event with a shorter route to encourage people to walk rather than ride their bikes.

Here’s how their press release describes it.

Come enjoy a more pedestrian-oriented, car-free experience at CicLAvia’s 60th Open Streets event, CicLAmini—Pico Union, taking place on Sunday, May 18, between 10 a.m.–3 p.m. The public is invited to enjoy this compact neighborhood route for the day to explore Pico Union along Pico Blvd between Normandie and Union Aves. For all ages and abilities, CicLAmini—Pico Union offers walkers, joggers, bikers, skaters, and those who simply want to play with one’s favorite people-powered way to enjoy this 1.4-mile unique “pop-up park.” Always free, CicLAvia participants just show up anywhere along the route at any time to enjoy the open streets and to take the time to explore one of the most historic neighborhoods in all of Los Angeles…

“CicLAmini—Pico Union includes two hubs, where you’ll find the essentials, community partners, resource booths, photo ops, and more, plus activities for all ages sprinkled throughout the route. CicLAvia encourages participants to jog, walk, ride, skate, and bike along the open space. Free pedicab rides are also available next to each information booth to ensure that everyone, regardless of age or ability, is able to enjoy open streets. Please visit the CicLAvia website for updates regarding local gems, additional activities, and specials offered by local businesses along the route.

………

Sadly, no surprise here.

Word broke yesterday that the woman who killed a popular Loyola high school senior just a month before graduation was driving on a suspended license due to a 2023 DUI.

And yes, she was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence once again after the early morning collision on Sunday, as Levi Braun was walking with a friend along Sepulveda Blvd in Manhattan Beach.

Which means 33-year old Jenia Belt could face a murder charge, assuming she signed the required Watson notice informing her she could be charged with murder if she killed someone while driving under the influence anytime in the future.

She’s currently being held without bail in Manhattan Beach.

Compounding the tragedy, the 18-year old Levi, a three-year captain of his high school tennis team and four year league tennis champ, was living in Manhattan Beach because his family’s home was destroyed in the Palisades Fire.

This is yet another tragic example of the many people who continue to drive — and yes, drive under the influence — after their licenses are suspended.

We will never know just how many of those we share the road with are driving without a license, because only a handful ever get caught. But even one is one too many.

It’s not enough to take away a driver’s license. We also need to impound or immobilize the driver’s car until they get their license back.

It’s clear that nothing else will stop a percentage of suspended drivers — perhaps a sizable percentage — from getting back behind the wheel anyway.

………

Streetsblog offers a disappointing legislative update, with most of the bills benefiting bike riders placed in the suspension file.

Which means they could be revived, but it’s usually just a way to kill a bill without leaving fingerprints, so no one can be blamed for it.

To make matters worse, AB 697, which would allow SR 37 to be widened between Vallejo and SR 121 in Sonoma County moved forward, even though the project would run through protected habitats and wetlands, while endangering protected species.

Widening the highway also runs against California’s climate policies. Although it does make me wonder if we could get bicyclists and pedestrians added to California’s endangered species list.

And whether that would make any difference, given this misguided bill.

………

A group of cops and their loved ones are riding over 800 miles through the heart of California to honor fallen officers.

According to the Santa Clarita Signal, the group stopped in the city to hold a ceremony at the SCV Sheriff’s Station to honor of officers who died in the line of duty.

Law Enforcement United is a group of federal, state and local officers, along with survivors who pedal their bikes to remember the surviving families, according to Rich Gallo, long-ride division director of Law Enforcement United.

“We started in San Francisco on April 30; we’ll end in San Diego on May 7. That’s 851 miles since we went via Sacramento, Stockton, Modesto, Fresno, Bakersfield to Tehachapi and now into Santa Clarita. Tomorrow, we’ll do the circuit through and around Los Angeles and then down into Camp Pendleton into San Diego,” Gallo said.

………

Thanks to John Cinatl for forwarding this item from Safe Routes to School announcing their annual summit this fall.

Get ready to connect, collaborate, and chart a path forward at the 2025 Safe Routes to School Virtual Summit! The 2025 Summit is completely virtual, and early bird tickets are now on sale for just $99!

We’re planning three days of engaging presentations, hands-on trainings, and educational conversations focused on topics that matter most to Safe Routes practitioners, including:

  • Quick win projects
  • Rural Safe Routes programs
  • E-bike safety and education
  • Walking school buses and bike trains
  • Creative partnerships
  • …and so much more!

Speakers are currently being confirmed, but you can expect useful tools, inspiring stories, and a community working to make walking and rolling safer and more accessible for communities throughout the country!

Early bird ticketing closes July 4, 2025!
Don’t miss this deal: register now!

………

Yep. That about sums it up.

Thanks to someone who wishes to remain anonymous for the forward.

………

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

No surprise here. A British road safety expert says a new law that imposing life in prison for bike riders who kill pedestrians is unlikely to significantly improve safety, especially when the biggest threat comes from speeding drivers.

But sometimes its the people on two wheels behaving badly.   

Police in Dorsett, England are already spaying scofflaw riders of ebikes, quad bikes and motorbikes with fluorescent paint in order to identify and ticket them later, as part of a pilot project.

………

Local 

This is who we share the road with. A man in his 70s somehow drove through the security gate at the home of Friends and The Morning Show star Jennifer Anniston, and was held at gunpoint by security guards until police arrived; at last report, there was still no word on whether the act was intentional.

Culver City issued a proclamation in support of Bike Month. Which unfortunately didn’t include restoring the MOVE Culver City protected bike lanes they ripped out, which is probably the only proclamation most of us want to hear from them.

ActiveSGV hosts a three-hour Bikes and Boats Tour this Saturday; the ride will explore the San Gabriel River Bike Path, the Whittier Narrows Recreational Area and the Merced Ave Greenway project, as well as including a free 30-minute paddle boat ride at Legg Lake. Although we all remember what happened with the last three-hour tour. Right, Gilligan?

 

State

Police in Westminster will hold a bicycle and pedestrian safety operation today, ticketing anyone who commits a violation that could endanger either group. 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. 

Redding says forget the state’s failed ebike voucher program, and get one of that city’s $1000 ebike vouchers instead.

 

National

Pee Wee Herman’s iconic cruiser bike from 1985’s Pee Wee’s Big Adventure was sold to a private collector for $125,000. Which was over twice the estimated price, and a hell of a lot less than I thought it was worth.

Popular ebike maker E-Cells was the latest bikemaker to bite the dust, bringing the company’s all-wheel-drive, extremely high performance fat tire ebikes to a grinding halt, in part because of Trump’s 170% tariffs on Chinese-made bikes.

A judge in Queens, New York dismissed a lawsuit from a group of Long Island business owners, clearing the way for a protected bike lane through an industrial area that will probably improve safety for their drivers, as well as people on bicycles.

 

International

An Ontario, Canada website reminisces about those halcyon days of North America’s first bicycle craze.

Speaking of Ontario, a small town is celebrating its new crossrides, as opposed to crosswalks, allowing bicyclists to cross the intersection without dismounting. Or, go with me on this, they could just allow bicycles to use the already existing crosswalks.

Bicyclists in Northern Ireland decry the country’s dramatic and dangerous jump in drivers illegally parking in bike lanes.

A Welsh website recommends the rugged, jaw-dropping hiking and biking trails around the UK’s tallest dam that you’ve probably never heard of.

Stars & Stripes warns US service members about Japan’s new restrictions on bicyclists, making it illegal to ride salmon, ride abreast or ride using a smartphone. So much for using your phone’s GPS.

Three thousand people turned out for a race/fondo on the streets of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with elite teams competing for the win, and leisurely bicyclists just out for the ride.

 

Competitive Cycling

Sports Illustrated celebrates Colorado’s three-day Durango to Silverton Iron Horse Classic, calling the festival founded in 1971 America’s second-oldest bicycling event. Although it’s kind of sad that the second oldest bike event is only 54-years old, which says a lot about this country’s inability to sustain bike races and other bike events. 

My home state scored big in the USA Cycling Collegiate Road National Championships, as Colorado Mesa University and the University of Colorado Boulder won the team omnium titles.

 

Finally…

That feeling when an AI written story wants to give California’s $2,000 ebike vouchers to motorists. Or when just riding your bike without a satnav is somehow a big deal.

And your next bike seat could rock and roll each of your buns separately.

No, really.

………

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

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

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

Bass slash-and-burn budget threatens street safety & CicLAvia, and how to apply for CA ebike vouchers Tuesday

April 25, 2025 / / 2 comments
Day 115 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

Evidently, I’ve not the only one concerned about the effect of the draconian budget cuts and layoffs proposed by Mayor Karen Bass.

Streets For All sent out the following email yesterday making many of the same points.

This week, Mayor Bass released her proposed budget for 2025-2026. This budget plans to slash most departments’ funding, as well as eliminate 1,650 city positions and 1,074 vacancies. It also proposes deferring capital projects, like planned road and infrastructure improvements.

This budget is a disaster for road safety and even basic services.You can read our detailed analysis here. This budget will result significantly more broken streets and sidewalks. New pedestrian and bike projects, including many Olympics projects, will be delayed. All streetlight repairs will be paused until 2027. Billions in grant funded street safety and mobility projects may be lost. And there may be no staffing to support open streets events like CicLAvia.

There are only TWO opportunities to comment on the Mayor’s proposed budget, and they are both in person:

APRIL 25, 2025 at 1pm
Van Nuys City Hall
14410 Sylvian Street
Van Nuys, CA 91401

APRIL 28, 2025 at 4pm
City Hall Council Chamber, Room 340
200 North Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Budget Chair Katy Yaroslavsky will be hosting a session in person:
APRIL 26, 2025 at 11am
Westwood
RSVP for address

Tell the Mayor that cutting funding for our streets will lead to more crashes, costing the City even more in liability payouts – part of why the city is in such financial distress to begin with. This budget would also lead to a near pause of any new projects, and delay existing ones – freezing our infrastructure during a time period when we are about to host the World Cup and Olympics.

While showing up in person is most effective, if you cannot attend you may comment on the council file.

Thank you for fighting for a safe, sustainable, and equitable future for Los Angeles and beyond!

………

Streetsblog’s Damien Newton takes an in-depth look at the second round of the California ebike voucher program, including how to apply.

The Air Resources Board’s long–delayed and controversial e-bike voucher program will be opening its application portal for a second time at 6:00 p.m. on April 29th. This time instead of a first-come, first-serve approach that left out tens of thousands of hopeful applicants, the system will randomly choose 1,000 people who join their virtual waiting room between 5:00 and 6:00 p.m.

To join the waiting room, go to ebikeincentives.org and select the ‘APPLY’ button in the upper right-hand corner of the page.

He also notes that you are encouraged to arrive early to the portal to file your application.

But don’t bother if you don’t meet the financial qualifications, and aren’t willing to jump through their hoops to document your income — and watch a couple of pretty meaningless videos.

The program is only offering 1,000 vouchers this time, which represents less than 1% of the people who tried to apply for the first round of vouchers.

The 1,000 lucky people will be selected through a form of lottery. You’re encourage to stick around through the full process, until you receive a notification that you either were or weren’t selected to apply.

Surprisingly, it looks like I may actually qualify this time.

But whether I’ll actually bother, given the massive shitshow mess they made of the first round, remains to be determined.

………

Evidently, life is cheap in the UK.

Mansfield Town striker Lucas Akins was sentenced to 14 months behind bars for carelessly killing a 33-year old man riding a bicycle, in a crash caught on the victim’s bike cam.

Yet Akins seemed to demonstrate just how little it bothered him by playing in a League One soccer match the same day he entered his not guilty plea in court.

The team issued a statement expressing their condolences to the family, and said they’re “considering its position with regards to” Akins.

Especially since he won’t be on the pitch for the better part of the next few seasons.

………

PinkBike takes a look at the creation of Bradley Bike Park in San Marcos, calling it “a rideable masterpiece built against all odds on near-flat ground,” and “artistry etched in dirt.”

………

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

A British couple were threatened and spat on by a pair of men who were riding their bikes next to the couple’s car, after they brought the car to a stop, for no apparent reason. Although I would guess thee may be another side to the story, and that maybe the driver did something to tick ’em off. But regardless of what it may have been, nothing justifies violence.

………

Local 

Metro still hasn’t done anything with the long-delayed second phase of the Metro Mobility Wallet, which is supposed to provide participants with $1,800 to spend on any form of transportation, from bus passes and rideshare to bikeshare, or even buying a bicycle. But the program is worthless if the agency doesn’t follow through by actually funding their debit cards.

Speaking of Metro, CEO Stephanie Wiggins will continue to lead the agency for another four — or maybe five — years, after the Metro board voted unanimously to extend her contract, at whopping half a million dollars a year, a 20% increase over her previous contract. Which means they’ll give everyone else who works for Metro a similar pay bump, right?

Redondo Beach says ebike riders are behaving better now.

SoCal’s killer highway claimed another victim, as Torrance residents called for improved safety after a 38-year old man was hit and killed by multiple drivers as he crossed the street Saturday night — including the heartless coward who hit him first, and fled the scene without stopping. Although I wonder whether Killer PCH or deadly Vista del Mar, aka Deadly del Mar, actually kills more people on a per-mile basis. Thanks to How The West Was Saved for the heads-up. 

 

State

Rancho Mirage does Bike Month, or Bike Safety Month, the right way by introducing plan for three bike safety projects, including widened bike lanes, improved signage, and designated bike paths, to be completed by the end of summer.

Los Gatos opened a long-anticipated bike and pedestrian bridge linking Highway 9 to the Los Gatos Creek Trailhead.

 

National

The Seattle Times visits the forested Washington State segment of the 5,000-mile mountain bike trail along West Coast.

A 32-year old man from the US faces charges for crossing into the country from Mexico on a bicycle stuffed with fentanyl and meth.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell kicked off the NFL Draft in Green Bay with a wobbly bike ride onto the stage, in a nod to the Packers tradition of riding borrowed bicycles to the first day of camp. But it wasn’t enough to silence the boos from fans.

Surprisingly, the New York Times picks the Dahon Mariner D8 as the best foldie over Tern’s Link D8, with the famed Brompton taking third.

New York Streetsblog says beyond treating bicyclists like an afterthought, the New York Parks Department has been downright unfriendly to people on bicycles, even though it controls some of the city’s most important carfree infrastructure.

Finishing our New York trifecta, the city announced a whopping 127 Open Streets events to take place this spring and summer, including a belated Earth Day celebration featuring 54 carfree streets and plazas throughout the five boroughs.

Passaic New Jersey opened a small bikeshare system that will be free to local residents.

People in Louisiana just seem to have more fun than the rest of us, even on a five-day fundraising ride through Cajun country.

 

International

Even in the Cayman Islands, bicyclists are demanding safer streets, in the wake of a hit-and-run that killed a bike rider on Easter Monday.

Here’s a few more for your bike bucket list, as Momentum recommends Europe’s best rail trails for a unique bicycling vacation. I’ll take the one that follows the Danube, thank you. Or maybe the one that runs through Belgium, Germany and Luxembourg. 

Evidently, congestion pricing and better bikeways work, since London’s Square Mile, aka the sparely populated financial district that employs a half-million people each day — now averages nearly twice as many bicycles as cars, following a 57% jump in bicycling rates in just two years.

London bicyclists are now expected to adhere to a code of conduct in the city’s parks, as a new survey shows 86% Londoners think the parks’ 20 mph speed limit should apply to bicycles, too.

A new survey shows that most British drivers still don’t understand how to share the road with bicyclists, three years after the rules of the road were changed to improve bike safety. The same survey in the US would probably show similar results, even though most of our rules haven’t changed in decades. 

In an unusual move, Irish police, aka Gardaí, reached out to bike clubs to see if any were riding in the area where a 56-year old farmer went missing last month, in hopes that maybe someone saw him. Something they should do more often, since we have a lot more eyes on the streets than they do.

Now you, too, can fix your own light when your ebike maker goes belly-up, like the Netherlands’ VanMoof.

Mind your biking behavior in Japan next April, when police will start fining bicyclists for “minor” violations like using a cellphone while riding, and running red lights.

 

Finally…

Why buy a custom-made bicycle when you can just make your own damn bike? Your next tire pump could look like a tiny little robot.

And why just go for a bike ride, when you could earn crypto with every ride.

………

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

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

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

Hollywood meets Koreatown CicLAvia, help provide bikes for fire victims, and 2 boys arrested in mob driver beatdown

February 28, 2025 / / Comments Off on Hollywood meets Koreatown CicLAvia, help provide bikes for fire victims, and 2 boys arrested in mob driver beatdown
Day 59 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

CicLAvia returns to Koreatown and Hollywood on the first Sunday in April, with a semi-new route traversing Wilshire, Western, Santa Monica and Highland.

Which makes it one of the easiest CicLAvia’s to get to, with Metro subway stops at either end.

Not to mention the semi-protected bike lanes on Hollywood Blvd, although they dump you off three blocks from the Hollywood and Vine Hub, leaving you to deal with the Amoeba Records and Funko traffic on your own.

https://twitter.com/CicLAvia/status/1895172175625097495

………

The Los Angeles Times’ outdoor newsletter The Wild calls out a pair of bike events this weekend we touched on earlier this week, both helping to provide bicycles to people and families affected by the recent firestorms in the LA area.

1. Walk and bike for a good cause in Culver City
Walk ‘n Rollers will host its annual Walk More Bike More Festival from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday at Ivy Station in Culver City. The event raises money for Walk ‘n Rollers’ adopt-a-bike program, which has refurbished and donated more than 350 bikes to families in need. This year, bikes will be primarily donated to families affected by recent wildfires. At the festival, guests can participate in free bike repairs, a scavenger hunt and a prize raffle. There will also be e-bike and skateboard demos. The event is free, but registration is requested, with the option to donate. Register at walkmorebikemore.org…

3. Build bikes in Mar Vista to help Eaton fire survivors
Bikerowave Co-op needs volunteers with bike wrenching experience to prep bikes that will be donated to people affected by the Eaton fire. The repair event will be from 2 to 8 p.m. Friday at its shop (12255 Venice Blvd.). The shop has several bikes to repair but welcomes donations. All bikes will be checked by a head mechanic before they’re distributed. Learn more at the shop’s Instagram page.

You can sign up for the email newsletter here.

………

Two arrests have been made in Saturday’s violent mob attack on a driver at San Vicente Blvd and McCarthy Vista by a group of teens riding bicycles.

Both boys have been charged with assault with a deadly weapon, but aren’t likely to be publicly identified unless they are tried as adults. Although it’s questionable what the deadly weapons may have been, unless the DA is counting the shoes they kicked him with.

Hopefully, these two can help identify some of the other kids, who deserve to be grounded until they’re 30, at the very least.

………

Local  

Jalopnik looks at that violent mob attack, and apparently concludes there’s a gang of teens riding around the city just randomly attacking drivers. Which unfortunately may not be that far off the mark.

 

State

Mountain View will attempt to tame one of the city’s “diciest” bicycling routes with new protected bike lanes.

Life is cheap in Fremont, where a 31-year old man was sentenced to a lousy year of home vacation detention — and will likely do less than half of that —  for the 2019 hit-and-run that killed a man riding a bicycle, after swerving to strike the victim for no apparent reason while doing 25 mph over the posted speed limit.

A new study shows San Francisco’s Slow Streets program has been successful in improving safety for all road users, and could be a key tool to reduce traffic deaths.

This is the cost of traffic violence. The 47-year old Vallejo man killed this week while riding his bike on a deadly Napa County highway has been identified as a beloved nurse and humanitarian, as well as a Tahitian dancer.

 

National

Women’s online magazine Redbook recommends the 17 best ebikes on the market. Which probably aren’t, but still.

Portlanders will join bicyclists in 74 other cities in a Tesla Takedown ride this weekend to protest Elon Musk in absentia. And yes, there are several rides planned for the LA and Orange County areas.

A writer for the University of Arizona student newspaper says the school needs better bike safety on campus. Just like pretty much every other university campus in the US. 

Bike riders in Boise, Idaho fear a new bill in the state legislature to add two new members to a county commission is intended to stack the board with opponents of bike safety projects.

An Arkansas cycling startup accelerator has selected its first ten participants, in an effort to help bicycle companies from Bentonville and around the world get a jumpstart in the industry.

A 57-year old New York man was killed by the driver of a city bus in the Bronx, which was being used as a replacement shuttle for an out-of-service subway; the crash occurred on a “killer corridor” known for traffic deaths.

Atlanta’s “massively successful” ebike rebate could see another round of funding, after already helping 800 city residents get a new ebike, many of whom might not have been able to afford one otherwise. Which is exactly what California’s designed to fail program should be doing.

A 78-year old hit-and-run driver critically injured a 78-year old Florida bike rider while fleeing from an earlier hit-and-run crash, while on his way to yet another crash before finally stopping. Once again raising the eternal question of how old is too old to drive, and why the hell we can’t get people off the road before this kind of crap happens. 

Police in Buena Vista, Florida arrested a fake “homeland security officer” for impersonating an officer, after he tucked a loaded gun inside his jacket and rode his bicycle to an apartment complex to look for “Mexicans” in the country illegally — and handing the cops a blue ID card, which was actually his application to become a licensed security officer.

 

International

Momentum recommends the best solutions to store your bikes.

If you’re planning to escape head to Canada anytime soon, don’t walk or ride in the Toronto suburb of Mississauga, which has been the deadliest city north of the border for both over the last ten years, on a per capita basis; then again, Toronto isn’t much better.

A pair of hammer-armed bikejackers on a motorbike forced a man off his bike in London’s Regent Park, stealing his $5,200 bicycle in a crime captured on security cam.

Life is cheap in Scotland, where a woman walked without a single day behind bars for killing a “legendary” Glasgow bicyclist, despite falsely telling investigators that her vision was impaired.

Distracted drivers killed 32 people in Japan last year, while causing 164 serious crashes; that compares to one person killed by a distracted bike rider, despite the massive new penalty for using a cellphone while biking.

You may be freezing your ass off this winter, but Down Under they’re spontaneously stripping off their clothes and joining a naked bike ride.

 

Competitive Cycling

It’s going to cost you more to watch cycling on the Max streaming service after they discontinued bike racing on the ad-supported level.

 

Finally….

There’s just nothing like riding a dilapidated bike surrounded by ghosts and ancient cycling spirits. If you’re riding your bike with a gun, illegal drugs and an explosive-filled backpack, put a damn light on it, already.

And watch the Bob Ross off mountain biking shredding on a hundred buck bike.

………

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

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

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

Banning non-existent 39 mph ebikes from sidewalks, the year’s first CicLAvia on Sunday, and riding to remember civil rights

February 21, 2025 / / Comments Off on Banning non-existent 39 mph ebikes from sidewalks, the year’s first CicLAvia on Sunday, and riding to remember civil rights
Day 52 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

………

No bias here.

Los Alamitos will join the list of Orange County cities enacting local restrictions on ebikes, introducing a new ordinance allowing cops to cite riders for “unsafe” conduct, while intentionally keeping the ordinance “broad.”

Although leaving it too broad could make the ordinance unenforceable if it leave it up to officers to decide on the fly what’s legal and what isn’t.

Then there’s this.

The city’s mayor pro-tem demonstrated from the dais just how little research and preparation went into the promised ordinance.

Mayor Pro-tem Tanya Doby said she read that e-bikes can travel at nearly 39 miles per hour on a sidewalk. “So my question is, what, if anything, is within the realm of possibility to limit or restrict e-bikes or just no e-bikes on the sidewalk,” she asked.

“Is there anything that can be added for that,” she wondered?

Never mind that anything capable of doing 39 mph would be considered an electric motorbike under California law, requiring a motorcycle helmet, driver’s license and license plate.

And as a police captain explained to her, Class 3 ebikes capable of exceeding 20 mph are already prohibited from being ridden on sidewalks.

Let alone 39 mph motorbikes.

But other than that, it’s nice to see a city official so well versed on the subject she’s attempting to legislate.

And yes, that’s a little sarcasm.

Okay, a lot.

………

Don’t forget Sunday’s first-of-the-year CicLAvia, on a first-ever route from University Park to LA’s historic West Adams.

And if you see someone with a corgi walking or riding a pedicab, say hi. Because that just might be me.

The person, that is. Not the corgi.

………

Local  

No news is good news, right?

 

State

Business owners are “concerned” about a new bikeway project on San Diego’s Imperial Ave, which will remove the center lane they use to unload trucks, even though it will provide bike access for underserved communities. And even though studies have repeatedly shown that bike lanes are good for business.

Ride through the Paso Robles wine country to raise funds for local cancer patients, survivors, and their families on April 6th.

This is the cost of traffic violence. Oakland will name a new two-way cycle track next to Lake Merritt for Maia Correia, the four-year old killed when she was doored while riding with her father on the same roadway.

The Los Angeles Post-Examiner offers a guide to the best bicycling routes in the East Bay, for your next trip to the Bay Area.

 

National

Bicycling considers common household items that could come in handy for cleaning and maintenance on your bike. And for a change, this one is available on Yahoo if the magazine blocks you. 

No surprise here. Consumer Reports tested 21 cheap bike helmets purchased online, and found eight failed to meet minimum federal standards.

The Guardian traces the history of how bike buses revived riding to school.

A Portland father describes how bicycling led him to a job in the mayor’s office.

This is why people keep dying on our streets. An Elyria, Ohio police employee hit a homeless man riding a bicycle after rolling her car through a stop sign, then just drove away, later claiming she didn’t know she’d hit anyone — and still ended up only paying a lousy $50 fine. Fortunately, Good Samaritans are stepping up to help the victim, whose bike was destroyed in the crash.

A group of 35 people rode 31 miles from Marion to Selma, Alabama to remember civil rights activist Jimmie Lee Jackson, who was shot and killed 60 years ago on Feb. 18, 1965. And a bicycle ride this Saturday will follow the 51-mile route from the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama to to the Alabama State Capitol steps Montgomery taken by civil rights marchers led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr in 1965. 

 

International

A writer for Road.cc says sometimes, souplesse is more, longing for the days when effortless pedaling and the love of bicycling mattered more than ‘watts,’ ‘aero’ and ‘epic.’

Awhile back, we mentioned a father and son in the UK who were injured when a driver plowed into the bike they were sharing; now bicyclists and community members are calling for a complete redesign of the intersection, while civic leaders agreed to reconsider the ridiculous 50 mph speed limit.

Swiss bikemaker BMC issued a voluntary recall for its Kaius 01 gravel bike, telling users to “immediately stop riding” it due to a risk of fork steerer tubes coming loose under heavy riding conditions.

A pair of Dutch men embarked on a bike ride to “the other side of the world” last year, arriving in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam 343 days later — and offered to host anyone who wants to do the same ride in reverse.

I want to be like him when I grow up. An Aussie man celebrated his 86th birthday by bicycling with his friends in the local bike club, which has a growing chapter hosting twice weekly rides for people over 80.

Ebike and e-scooter injuries have “skyrocketed” a “whopping” 300 percent in a single year at an Australian children’s hospital — although that reflects a jump from just six to 24. And in all likelihood, has more to do with the increase in ebike ridership than an increase in risk. 

 

Competitive Cycling

Levi Leipheimer’s Levi’s Gran Fondo will offer live streaming of The Growler, its professional race with both on and off-road cyclists competing for a $156,000 purse.

Yeti Cycles offered a heartfelt tribute to American expat and Yeti/Shimano EP Enduro Team Mechanic Matt Opperman, who was found dead next to his mountain bike in the mountains above Siles, Spain.

 

Finally….

Apparently, it takes a major screwup for lesser known bike races to make CNN. That feeling when calling an ebike an ebike is an insult to the ebike.

And seriously, if you’re going to Mardi Gras, just leave your car at home.

And take me with you.

Please.

………

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

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

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