The Santa Monica Mirror investigates the infamous Zoom video conference used to fire over 400 employees of SaMo-based Bird. Although to its credit, the company did provide laid-off employees with four weeks’ pay, three months of health insurance and 12 months to exercise stock options. Which does not make up for the callousness of the way they handled it.
Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court rules a high-speed, reckless driver who killed a seven-year old boy riding his bike while fleeing from police over 20 years ago will have to finish his 28½ to 57-year prison term behind bars.
Tampa advocates are urging the mayor to “rebalance” a street where speeding motorcyclist and a bike rider in a crosswalk were both killed in a collision, after the coronavirus shutdown cut motor vehicle traffic by 40%; almost needless to say, the mayor said no.
A Florida paper seems to leave out a key detail, reporting that a bike rider was seriously injured when the front of his southbound bike was somehow struck by the side of the driver’s northbound SUV. And of course, the driver fled.
Today, we’re reposting a letter sent out to members by Executive Director Eli Akira Kaufman, as he addresses both the state of the organization, and advice on whether to ride your bike for the time being.
Because this matters. All of it.
As the COVID-19 crisis continues to worsen, we have been listening closely to our public health officials and our community leaders about what we can do to help flatten the curve and reduce the spread of the virus. The health of the bicycling community and our pedestrian and transit riding friends is our top priority. So we are asking you to do your part by exercising an abundance of caution in everything you do, especially when you take to the street on your bicycle for an essential ride.
What qualifies as essential? We are hearing a range of opinions on this topic, from staying in your neighborhood within a reasonable distance from your home, to avoiding more challenging and/or longer rides with increased exposure to risk of injury, to riding in smaller groups of fewer than 5 or just with members of your household to maintain recommended social (physical) distancing of at least 6 feet. Of course, each of us is different in terms of our level of comfort and fitness on a bike so it really comes down to using common sense and following the very clear guidelines that our civic leaders and public health officials have been sharing for weeks now. At the end of the day, the last thing we want is to end up needing medical attention when our first-responders and healthcare providers are working overtime to handle the pandemic which has been made all the more challenging by the fact that medical resources they need are in such short supply. Once again we believe that all of us need to do our part for the safety of our families and our communities. The more we can avoid non-essential trips, the more we can limit the spread of the disease.
I recognize that hearing this from your Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition may feel off message from our normal advocacy in support bicycle culture and improved infrastructure but that is precisely the point. The COVID-19 pandemic is a new normal that we must adjust to by responsibly advocating for biking as one of the best ways to maintain our physical, mental and community health within our new reality.
In fact we are looking beyond the current surge in COVID-19 cases to the period of months, if not longer, when the virus is still with us but under control enough for Los Angeles County to reopen. How our region reopens is an important question, but we anticipate there will be guidelines for Angelinos to maintain the practice of social (physical) distancing. We also anticipate that during this time non-essential workers and those who can use alternative modes of transportation will be asked to help lessen the crowds on our buses and subways by walking and bicycling. Which is why we anticipate an even greater need for everyone to join us in advocating for safer, healthy, more sustainable and equitable streets for a more livable Los Angeles for everyone.
One more note about our streets during this crisis: many of our fellow riders have jobs that are at essential businesses and many more are still riding as a part of their daily commutes. To support those riders, we ask that everyone take extra care when you are out and about, especially if you are driving. Due to the reduced traffic, many drivers are finding the empty streets a temptation to speed. As many of our fellow riders are still making essential trips, including people commuting and also traveling around their own neighborhoods, we ask all of you to exercise extra caution while you are outside your homes. Whether you are in the saddle or behind the wheel, please make sure to be extra aware of your surroundings, put away the distractions, and travel at safe speeds for your own safety and the safety of others. Again the last thing we need now is more people further burdening our increasingly already strained healthcare system.
Finally, I am sure some of you have heard that LACBC has had to make the difficult decision to reduce our staff for the second year in a row and permanently close down our offices in DTLA to work remotely. The current COVID-19 crisis has resulted in a significant loss of revenue for us this year, especially as spring is one of our most important seasons for our events and education programs. I want to close with a special note of gratitude to the two staffers who we had to let go last week. Colin Bogart and Kevin Claxton have been key members of the LACBC community and larger transportation justice movement for years and in Colin’s case for decades. It has been my privilege to work alongside and learn from Kevin and Colin. They will be deeply missed.
While the current situation is among the hardest we’ve had to endure at LACBC, I firmly believe that we will make it through this crisis and come back stronger than ever. We ask you for your positive thoughts as we prepare LACBC for its next chapter.
And if you are in a position to assist financially, please take a moment to send us a donation.
I’m not exactly rolling in money these days, especially after my wife was let go when her company shut down, perhaps permanently, because of LA County’s stay at home order.
Like far too many others out there.
But I’m going to find the money to renew my membership in the LACBC in the next few weeks.
It’s not going to lift them out of their current financial difficulties.
But we all need to do what can to save an organization that does so much for us.
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One of the few positives to come out of all this whole pandemic mess is that cities across the US are taking entire streets away from cars and giving them to people to get outside and exercise.
On the other hand, Los Angeles, which has closed virtually all popular parks and trails, still insists on reserving every inch of asphalt reserved for the cars and drivers that often aren’t there right now.
Rather than giving a little of it back to the people to get outside for awhile.
But like schools everywhere, his Rapid City, South Dakota shut down due to the Covid-19 outbreak — just as he was approaching his 1,000th straight day.
So he kept riding the 2.1 miles to school every day anyway. Then turned around and rode back home to take his classes online.
And yes, he hit the mark.
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Heartless bike thieves continue to plague medical workers in the UK, despite the current coronavirus crisis. Or maybe because of it.
Speaking of Britain’s National Health Service, this tweet pretty much puts things in perspective.
I work for the NHS. Last night people were clapping for me (and millions of other key workers). Today people were bullying and intimidating me and generally not giving a f@ck about injuring or killing me with their cars. The reason? I was riding a bike to work. UK is weird.
Don’t get me started on the need for elderly drivers to give up their keys when they can’t drive safely anymore.
Instead of driving them everywhere, hop in the passenger seat and let your older relatives drive. And see if they’re still the safe drivers you remember.
Speaking of generous people, I was happy to find this announcement in my inbox yesterday.
Luis Razo, Manager of Operations at Aventon Bicycles, an Ontario, California-based E-bike manufacturer & retailer, says the community has supported the company, so now it’s time to give back four thousand surgical masks and one thousand N95 masks to Loma Linda University Medical Center and Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center, where supplies are running short.
The company will also donate two E-bikes to Loma Linda University Medical Center. It’s a personal mission for Luis Razo. His wife Gracie is an RN at Loma Linda Hospital, on the front lines of this pandemic.
Nice to see so many members of the bike industry pitching in to help when our entire world is in crisis.
Of all avocations, riding a bike is, almost beyond dispute, the finest. With endorphins and all, it is as much exercise for the brain as the heart, lungs or legs, a way to solve all the world’s problems while seeing the world.
Which is about as good a description as I’ve ever come up with.
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Phil Gaimon remembers what it was like to ride with other people.
A San Jose man writes in to complain that Millennials and their dogs are ruining bike trails for everyone else. Seriously? There are just as many jerk and jackass Baby Boomer and GenXers as there are Millennials — and just as many kind and considerate people, too. It’s no more fair or accurate to blame every member of any generation for the actions of a few than it is any other social, ethnic or religious group.
After the country went into a coronavirus lockdown, New Zealand’s Health Minister stirred up controversy by bending, if not breaking, the rules by driving to get out for a mountain bike ride.
Los Angeles leaders are focused on fighting the coronavirus.
But that doesn’t mean they can’t provide safer transportation and exercise options for LA residents during the shutdown.
That’s the case nonprofit group Streets for All has been making with city councilmembers and the mayor’s office in recent days.
Here’s what they have to say.
COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on Los Angeles; tens of thousands are out of work, hundreds of thousands are working from home, and millions have been ordered to only leave their homes if absolutely necessary.
Because of these changes, our road space far exceeds the required amount for vehicle traffic. At the same time, for their own physical and mental health, many Angelenos need to get to/from work if they are an essential employee, need to go to the market or a doctor’s office, or perhaps just need to go for a run, bike ride, or go play with their kids. It isn’t possible to do this and maintain 6’ of space on our current transit, sidewalk, and bike lane infrastructure.
Proposals to enhance mobility and open space access in Los Angeles during COVID-19:
Pilot a temporary emergency safe streets network to slow down speeding cars and give residents a safe 6’ distanced option for active transportation while reinforcing connections to grocery stores, hospitals, LAUSD food centers, delivery services, parks, and other essential resources. View our potential network.
Create an accelerated path for street closure requests to increase local access to open space, especially in neighborhoods with limited park access. Potentially using the framework studied with Play Streets. These could be hard closures block by block, or maintaining local access for parking.
Specifically we suggest:
Waiving fees and insurance requirements
Giving Neighborhood Councils the same request exception as council offices
Under the new orders, customers can’t enter the bicycle shops, retail sales are banned, payments are to be made by credit card or debit card remotely; customers must leave and pick up bicycles outside the store; and the bikes have to be disinfected before being brought inside. Staff must also wear protective equipment and the stores have to be routinely disinfected.
Here’s your chance to work in SoCal transportation social justice.
PMJ is hiring a Bicycle Education Program Manager! PMJ is closely monitoring COVID-19 & its effects that it has on our work. For the time being, this position will be remote/work from home until it is safe to being programming. If you’re interested in applying, LINK IN BIO⬆️ pic.twitter.com/P3joj9K7mx
— People for Mobility Justice (@peopleforMJ) April 1, 2020
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This should get your heart going if you can’t get out for a ride.
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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
The president of an Illinois advocacy group says it’s time to get back on your bike and shift the perception of bicycling from a sport to transportation.
Bicycling says Covid-19 will deal a serious blow to pro cycling, as teams fold and the sport may never be the same. Pro cycling never recovered from the doping scandals, and many teams have for been circling the drain for years now; this will only speed the process.
Thanks to Matthew R for his very generous donation to help keep SoCal’s best bike news coming your way every day. Contributions of any amount are always appreciated, especially in times like this.
Very disappointing news today, as the coronavirus shutdown claimed another victim.
This is part of an email that was forwarded to me today.
…I’m writing to tell you that this will be the last email you get from me at LACBC. As of Friday March 27, my time as an employee of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition officially came to a close.
As you probably know, LACBC has been struggling financially for over a year now. Thanks to the tremendous work of Eli Akira Kaufman, the Board of Directors, and my fellow staff, we were on a path to recovery, until recently. Unfortunately, the current pandemic has effectively put a hold on the contracts I’ve been managing, our annual LA River Ride is hanging in the balance, and our finances are even tighter than before. Eli and the board have had to make some difficult decisions for the sake of keeping LACBC rolling.
That message comes from Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition Education Director Colin Bogart, the coalition’s longest serving staff member, and the last remaining link to the group’s founding.
I also want you to know that it’s been a great joy and a pleasure to work at LACBC and with all of you. I’ve always considered myself lucky to be doing this work and to be able to work with so many great people. And I’m forever grateful to those of you who have volunteered your time or supported LACBC through various fundraising efforts. I hope that you will continue to do so. LACBC still needs all of you.
Lastly, this is not good-bye. Instead, it’s more like “see you later.” As many of you know, I truly believe in bicycling as a means to make our world a better place. I’m not going anywhere and I intend to stay engaged. (Some of you may recall that I myself was a volunteer and a board member for years before I was hired)…
If you believed, like me, that Colin would be the one turning out the lights if the worst ever came for LA County’s leading bicycle advocacy group, this day brings special sadness.
It marks an end of an era stretching back two full decades, and the final, last loss of institutional memory for the LACBC. Thanks to board term limits and staff turnover, no one is left who has been with the coalition more than four years.
And trying to tell people they can’t ride bikes on a bikeway. Or let their kids ride legally on a sidewalk.
Someone on Nextdoor tried slamming sidewalk cycling as illegal by omitting important details. I'm glad to report other neighbors were all over her before I got to it.@bikinginla@StreetsblogLApic.twitter.com/iifXcKf8Xg
Actually, that section of the Municipal Code reads,
No person shall ride, operate or use a bicycle, unicycle, skateboard, cart, wagon, wheelchair, roller skates, or any other device moved exclusively by human power, on a sidewalk, bikeway or boardwalk in a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property.
Which kinda changes the whole meaning.
So you and your kids can feel free to ride any bikeways, boardwalks or sidewalks that are still open right now.
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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
It was rewarding to see dozens of people riding bikes in the former Biking Black Hole of Beverly Hills as I passed through with my wife over the weekend, ranging from spandexed roadies to families with small kids.
More evidence that people will return to the streets if they feel safe, and bring their kids with them.
Notably, there were no large groups of riders; the largest non-family group I saw was just three people riding together, and staying widely spaced from others on the street.
Which is exactly what we need to do for the foreseeable future.
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David Drexler reports that the beachfront Marvin Braude bike path through Santa Monica was shut down over the weekend, as announced, after people ignored social distancing requirements to pack it the previous weekend.
He also says the newly widened bike path was open north of the pier, though very few people were taking advantage of it.
And with the other closures in place, the primary route people were taking to get down to the beach appeared to be the steep California Incline, below.
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This is what an everyday hero looks in the age of Covid-19.
A nurse in the UK felt like she’d been targeted after someone broke into her car and stole her bicycle, uniform and other items, then used a stolen key fob to break into her partner’s home. But the joke may be on the thief because the dirty uniform could be infected with Covid-19.
Learn about rebalancing the streets for people this Thursday.
Join us for a free, one-hour webinar on Thursday, April 2nd at 2 pm Eastern. We'll share techniques for rapid street redesigns that can provide more safe places for people to walk, bike, and run while maintaining a safe physical distance from each other. https://t.co/G6UQEHB5g2
I want to be like him when I grow up. An 80-year old Portland man continues to ride a bike, 15 years after he rode every street in the city — then set out to ride every street in the suburbs, too.
The wife of a 40-year old British man is telling the world to take Covid-19 seriously, as the “young, fit” British bike rider recovers following a terrifying seven-day struggle for his life.
A Brit triathlete flaunted the country’s coronavirus lockdown by taking a nine hour, 200 mile ride he termed the Tour of Norfolk, saying if it’s okay to go out for a one-hour ride, it’s okay to go out for five or six. Even though he exceeded that by 50%.
The Tour de France could be held without spectators this year, if it’s held at all. Although it would be virtually impossible to clear spectators from the 100+ mile stage routes, and would do nothing to prevent transmission of Covid-19 between the cyclists and crews; the best hope is that the virus simply recedes by then and allows the race to go on.
One the other hand, South African cyclist Nic Dlamini finally got the all clear from his doctors after national park rangers broke his arm last year while trying to seize his bike for the crime of not paying the entrance fee on a training ride. But now there are no races to ride, and the entire country is under a total lockdown.
If you just can’t get enough BikinginLA, I’ll be talking about bikes in the age of the Covid-19 coronavirus with Leo Duran on KPCC’s Take Two this afternoon.
If you’re in the LA area, tune in to 89.3 between 2 pm and 3 pm — Duran’s segment should come on around 2:45 pm — or listen live online wherever you are.
And David Drexler sends photographic proof that the popular Santa Monica stairs are closed for the foreseeable future.
Thanks to Jim Lyle for Redondo Beach links. Photo of Redondo Beach bike path by Ted Faber.
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As we’ve said too many timesalready this week, there’s a special place in hell for anyone who’d steal a bike from a medical professional anytime, let alone someone treating patients during the coronavirus crisis.
Yet there seems to be a worldwide rash of bike thieves targeting busy doctors and nurses.
Thanks to Philippa Moore for the heads-up about the Nottingham doctor, who just happens to be her brother-in-law.
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Bike business is booming throughout the US, despite the calls for social distancing.
Or maybe because of it.
People all around the country are dusting off their bikes or buying new ones, and enjoying one of the few outdoor activities still available to most people while keeping them safely separated from others.
Speaking of a special place in hell, there is something seriously wrong with anyone who would steal a wheelchair bike from an Oakland family.
In the midst of everything else going on this might not get much attention, but please contact stolenwheelchairbike@gmail.com if you see this bike in the Bay Area. The owner’s family crowdfunded $6k to purchase it for him. pic.twitter.com/80vvtpjbMw
Bicycling tells the unexpected tale of American and British bike riders who met by chance in a lonely teahouse in the middle of a Kazakh desert, as they were both riding around the world from opposite directions.
Authorities recommend avoiding the area entirely, for reasons that should be obvious.
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You could get dropped by a runner in the not-too-distant future.
A new paper published in the journal Science Advances suggests a mechanical exoskeleton based on bicycle mechanics could propel a runner as fast as 46 mph, just a hair below the speed where bike riders max out.
And no, I can’t ride that on my best day.
Which is long behind me, anyway.
Now if they can figure out how to apply that to a bike rider’s legs, we might be on to something.
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Here’s your chance to weigh in on first mile-last mile connections to the coming L Line station, for the train formerly known as the Gold Line.
Newport Beach confirms that Back Bay Drive remains open to people traveling by foot or bicycle.
Hi David, On March 23, the City closed Back Bay Drive to vehicular traffic, providing more room for recreational users to maintain at least six feet of separation from others. Cycling is still allowed, but not in groups of people who are not part of your household.
As promised, Uber has filed suit against Los Angeles over the requirement to provide realtime user data for their Jump dockless ebikes and e-scooters. The only surprise is that they managed to find a court that’s still open.
Tahoe’s 29th annual America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride has been pushed from this June to September, on the hope this crap will be over by then. Let’s hope so, but don’t hold your breath.
Maybe keep it to yourself next time. A South Carolina man interrupted his bike ride to take a phone call from someone who wanted to know where he was. After telling him, the acquaintance drove up and shot him in the leg.
A Florida woman was busted for a hit-and-run that left a bike rider with minor injuries when she stopped to buy a couple beers, with a BAC nearly twice the legal limit; she was already on probation for ripping off an 81-year old patient at the rehab facility where she worked.
Pro cyclist Alex Pavon is on the front lines of the coronavirus crisis, working as a Tucson, Arizona EMT when she’s not racing. Unfortunately, though, it’s a reminder of the inequity in the pro cycling world, where women cyclists have to hold a full-time job in addition to racing.
I got that very interesting question from reader Maruta Taube yesterday, who was wondering how to maintain social distancing from another bike rider.
As she points out, the usual advice to maintain six feet of separation between yourself and others doesn’t work on a bike.
Assuming the experts are correct that Covid-19 droplets linger in the air up for to three seconds, you’d ride right through their viral-loaded expectorations if the rider in front of you sneezes or coughs.
Unfortunately, though, algebra and I took an instant dislike to one another back in the day. And haven’t made up since.
So I put the question to the Twitterverse last night, and it didn’t take long for people much smarter than me on the subject to come back with the answers.
Since relative distance is tricky to work out when you’re stationary, let alone moving, my take would be to follow three seconds behind another rider, which is easy to gauge by counting the seconds between when you each pass a stationary point.
Then give the other person as much space as possible when passing.
Just like you wish SUV drivers would give you.
As someone else pointed out, however, some reports indicate that the virus can linger in the air for hours, rather than mere seconds.
That refers to aerosolized particles, which occur under relatively rare circumstances in public spaces, as opposed to the heavier droplets expelled when someone coughs or sneezes.
Photo by Burst from Pexels. You can easily judge the usual six-foot social distancing space by the length of a standard bicycle.
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Evidently, the fishing line strung across a Seal Beach bike path we mentioned yesterday is nothing new.
Richard Rosenthal writes to say another rider was attacked on the San Gabriel River Trail in a similar fashion last month, and forwards this comment from Nextdoor.
Again, this kind of sabotage is not just a harmless prank, but a violent assault intend to harm innocent victims, in an apparent attempt to frighten people off the path.
Like several other comments I received, Rosenthal points the finger at a nearby homeless camp.
Let’s just hope the police take this seriously.
And catch the people responsible — and hold them accountable — whoever it turns out to be.
We salute those essential workers who have to travel — health care workers, delivery staff, maintenance people, and everyone else who is keeping society going — and we want them to be able to bicycle for their essential trips.
Biking at a safe distance from others is also one of the outdoor activities allowed while we try to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Now more than ever, a bicycle ride is important for our physical and mental health.
If biking is essential, bike shops are, too.
That’s why we are sending a letter to the California State Public Health Officer, Dr. Sonia Angell, asking her to affirm that bike repair shops are essential services.
Al Williams forwarded news that iconic parts maker Campagnolo was forced to shut down by the Italian government until at least April 6th as part of the country’s coronavirus clampdown.
So any orders received before that date won’t be processed until after they reopen.
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Beach parking falls like dominos as people up and down the SoCal coast continue to ignore calls for social distancing.
Long Island communities now have a new excuse to crack down on groups of bike riding teenagers, saying they’re putting themselves at risk of contracting coronavirus. Which may be true, but follows months of heavy-handed attempts to make the bike-riding kids go away. Even if the kids do act like jerks way too often.
