Tag Archive for Nevada

Good but not great year for CA street safety bills, and 17-year old Las Vegas killer driver could be tried as adult

September 19, 2023 / / 3 comments

It could be a good year for California traffic safety, if the governor’s veto pen cooperates.

Streetsblog reports Governor Gavin Newsom has until October 14th to sign legislation “championed by safety and sustainable transportation advocates (that) actually made it all the through the sausage making.”

Among the bills that passed are measures to legalize a speed cam pilot program, provide transparency on highway building and emissions, require daylighting at intersections, and prohibit criminal charges for transit fare evasion.

Bicycling bills that made it to Newsom’s desk would create a Caltrans bike czar, legalize sidewalk riding throughout the state, allow vehicle-mounted cameras to enforce bike lane parking restrictions, and require landlords to let tenants store and charge ebikes and e-scooters inside.

Based on Newsom’s previous actions, I’d expect the sidewalk bill to face the greatest veto risk, followed the ebike charging bill, due to the risk of fires.

Other measures would unbundle parking costs from rent, allow businesses to share excess parking, require a human driver in autonomous trucks, and study the costs and benefits of imposing a weight-based vehicle fee.

Another measure would remove restrictions on lowriders and legalize cruising throughout the state — lifting lowrider culture over traffic safety and the climate emergency.

Bills that didn’t make it include the ban on pretextual traffic stops, free transit passes for youths, and requiring the state to take climate change into account on highway projects and monitor air pollutants.

That’s in addition to the latest attempt at passing a Stop As Yield bill, aka Idaho Stop, which was pulled by Assemblymember Tasha Boener, apparently over fears Newsom wouldn’t sign it. Which seemed pretty clear to begin with, since he’s vetoed two previous attempts.

Meanwhile, Calbike considers the risk that speed poses to all road users, but particularly bike riders and pedestrians, as well as making the case for why everyone should support ebikes, even if you don’t ride one.

Image from Schoolhouse Rock – I’m Just a Bill.

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No surprise here, as Nevada’s Clark County DA announced plans to try a killer teenaged driver as an adult.

The 17-year old driver was recorded on a now-viral video deliberately aiming his car at retired Bell police chief Andreas Probst as he rode his bike in a Las Vegas bike lane last month.

It’s also no surprise that the car was stolen, one of several auto thefts the teen is accused of taking part in that day. Or that the driver had used it to sideswipe another car moments earlier, apparently just for the hell of it.

Investigators are also trying to identify the passenger who filmed the fatal crash, who could faces charges, as well.

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They get it.

The Boston Globe writes that it will take more than just infrastructure to get people onto bikes, and meet the city’s goal of a 8% bike commuting rate by 2030, which is four times the current rate.

Reaching that goal is vital to the city’s health. The increased use of bikes usually means the decreased use of cars, which will shrink the city’s carbon footprint and its need for costly parking spaces. At a time when the T is slow or undependable, cycling can not only fill gaps in the transit system but can also be the most efficient mode of travel.

Moreover, bicycles add to the vibrancy of street life, a potential boon to neighborhood stores, restaurants, and cafes. And let’s face it, we could all use a bit more exercise.

Yes, it will require a network of safe, connected bike lanes, the paper argues.

But it will also take adult bike classes, and bicycle training in elementary schools. Along with state and local ebike subsidies, and tax deductions to help defray the cost of bike commutes or pay for Uber rides in bad weather.

As well as growing Boston’s docked bikeshare system.

All of which applies equally well right here in Los Angeles, or pretty much anywhere else in the US.

And while we’re on the subject, Momentum asks if it’s time for governments to start paying people to bike to work.

Short answer, yes. Longer answer, oh hell yes.

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Longtime Los Angeles bike advocate and former LACBC board member Kent Strumpell will interview Streets For All founder Michael Schneider, founder of the Streets For All PAC, in a webinar hosted by Climate Action Santa Monica this Thursday.

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That feeling when a 16-year old trail rider could probably drop you like freshman English.

Or maybe that’s just me.

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

No bias here. San Diego’s KPBS is once again raising the panic over ebike and e-scooter injuries, as ER doctors cite a painfully small study showing a jump in injuries coinciding with the rise in e-scooter use. Although as any middle school science student could tell you, correlation does not equal causation. And an increase in injuries is to be expected with any increase in usage; the question is whether that rise exceeds what would be expected with greater usage.

Once again, someone has boobytrapped a bike trail in the UK, stringing a nest of orange twine across the trail to ensnare any mountain bikers who failed to spot it; fortunately, a man saw the trap before he hit it at nearly 20 mph, and dismantled it with a small knife from his bike kit.

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

After a pair of bike-riding teenaged theft suspects attempted to escape down a Missouri bike path, a local cop following on foot borrowed a bike from a woman taking part in a corporate relay race, and chased down one of the suspects; the woman’s team was allowed to finish the race despite being shorthanded.

Friends and family members are looking for answers after the beloved assistant director of the New York Chinatown Head Start program died days after she was struck by a hit-and-run ebike rider while walking to work.

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Local 

Streetsblog offers photos and an open thread about Sunday’s NoHo CicLAmini.

 

State

San Marcos will close part of Via Vera Cruz Road for a months-long construction and resurfacing project, including adding bike lanes to the street.

A San Diego op-ed examines how speed cams could help reduce the hundreds of lives lost to traffic violence in the city each year. Yet the just-passed speed cam pilot program inexplicably excludes California’s second-largest city.

The Manual recommends mountain biking into Death Valley to watch next month’s solar eclipse.

Bakersfield bike riders now have a new bicycle repair station near Beach Park along the popular Kern River Parkway.

The San Francisco Standard examines what the hell is taking so long with the scaled-back Better Market Street Project, which no longer includes plans for a sidewalk-level fully separated bike lane.

 

National

How to charge your ebike using an electric car charging station.

Electrek says budget ebikes are driving retail sales, which is why leading bikemakers like Trek and Cannondale are introducing low-priced ebikes that undercut their own high-end models.

Bicycling recommends the best bike deals in advance of next month’s two-day Amazon Prime Big Deal Days. This one doesn’t appear to be paywalled, but you’re on your own if the magazine blocks you, since it doesn’t seem to be available elsewhere. 

Portland’s transportation director has ordered staffers to rip out a 16-block, parking protected bike lane downtown, for no apparent reason, just one year after completing the final segment.

A Maryland man has filed suit against Seattle’s Rad Power Bikes after the front wheel of his RadRunner bike came off as he was riding.

Seattle’s new waterfront bike path is coming into focus as construction nears completion, although, as usual, last-minute changes undercut previous promises.

Following the time-tested model of NIMBYs everywhere, residents of a Denver neighborhood are protesting a new bike lane “protected” by flimsy plastic car-tickler bendie posts, blaming them and a new roundabout for a series of minor crashes.

Bikepackers and hikers are bringing life back to an old Wyoming gold mining town along the Continental Divide Trail, just a small part of the estimated $454 billion outdoor recreation adds to the nation’s gross domestic product.

Life is cheap in Illinois, where a 76-year old driver walked without a single day behind bars for the hit-and-run death of a 20-year old bike-riding man, after the judge suspended his entire five-year sentence for negligent homicide. But at least he’ll be 101 before he’s allowed to drive again.

There’s a special place in hell for whoever shot an 11-year old Saginaw, Michigan boy as he was riding his bicycle; fortunately, his wounds weren’t life-threatening.

A Brooklyn writer argues that foldies aren’t just for city living, and should be part of your outdoor adventures, as well.

A pair of men were injured, one critically, when they were struck by a driver while taking part in a Maryland gran fondo, apparently because they were unable to stop on the wet roadway.

 

International

Dueling groups of demonstrators turned out Monday over plans to widen and protect a Montreal bike lane; as usual, the issue was the planed removal of 250 parking spaces to make room for it.

A bike-riding Dublin, Ireland woman was seriously injured in a collision with another bicyclist Monday morning.

A Ukrainian woman rode her bike more than 125 miles around London to draw an outline of the UK, to thank the country for supporting Ukraine.

A UK letter writer supports a call to reduce traffic congestion by eliminating parking, saying the roads are too dangerous for “all but the most experienced and intrepid” bike riders.

A Bangladeshi financial site writes that the local bicycle industry is facing the worst period in memory, apparently falling victim to the worldwide financial upheaval cause by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

 

Competitive Cycling

The fan-based @GCSeppKuss account on X/Twitter started out as a joke, then gained followers as Kuss took the lead in the Vuelta — including Kuss himself.

The last American to win a grand tour before Kuss says his victory could provide a timely boost for a flagging road cycle racing scene in the US.

Velo says the attitude throughout the peloton is that no one deserves a grand tour win more than Sepp Kuss.

The once high-flying Astana-Qazaqstan team brought home less than $5,000 in prize money for three weeks work in the Vuelta.

This about sums up this year’s racing season. Even if the winners of the first two tried to keep the last one from winning.

 

Finally…

One more way bikes are better than cars for the climate — we don’t need windshield washer fluid.

And you should always wear the proper attire for bike racing, even if it’s a suit jacket and knickers.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin

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

Nevada lawmakers propose banning bikes from high-speed highways, and the war on bikes just keeps on going

March 19, 2021 / / 3 comments

No bias here.

Nevada lawmakers somehow respond to the meth-fueled massacre of five Las Vegas bike riders by trying to punish the victims by banning bikes from 4,400 miles of state highways with a speed limit of 65 mph or higher.

The bill would also ban bicyclists from riding more that two abreast on the shoulder of a highway, even if there’s room for it without encroaching on the roadway.

Although personally, I don’t have a problem with passing a law banning bikes from high speed highways.

As long as they pass another one to lower speed limits to more rational levels that would improve safety for everyone.

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

South Carolina bicyclists complain about harassment and attacks from people in cars, ranging from punishment passes and being pelted with bottles to leaving a critically injured bike rider bleeding in the road.

A Florida county sheriff was lucky to escape with minor injuries when he was the victim of a hit-and-run while on a 20-mile bike ride; a witness said the driver appeared to intentionally run him down. Update: The crash wasn’t intentional, just another stupidly distracted driver shopping on her phone instead of watching the road. And naturally, claimed she just hit a mailbox when she was caught.

Someone deliberately tried to injure innocent bike riders by stringing a wire across a popular Edinburgh bike path; at least one man was seriously injured.

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

An English man in his 70s suffered a broken hand, wrist and arm when he was knocked down by a sidewalk-riding, top hat-wearing, hit-and-run bike rider, who swore at him while riding off without stopping.

A Welsh bicyclist was filmed skitching by holding on to a large truck as it pulled him through traffic; the trailing witness naturally gave the story to Farmer’s Weekly.

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Local

Metro invites you to take a short bikeshare tour through Downtown LA for women’s history month.

A Santa Clarita bike rider made a lucky, if possibly illegal, escape after allegedly getting hit by a Metrolink train, then picking his or herself up and fleeing the scene. Although I’m not sure that qualifies as fleeing if there were no injuries or significant damage to the bike or the train.

 

State

It seems like it would be hard to go belly up during a bike boom, but SoCal direct-to-consumer bikemaker Eminent Cycles proved it can be done by filing Chapter 11, with current assets representing just 10% of its existing debt.

A San Jose man was busted for the hit-and-run death of a 63-year old man riding his bike in Cupertino last August, after sheriff’s deputies finally found the man’s car with damage consistent with the crash.

 

National

Specialized is teaming with a Tesla co-founder to solve the problem of recycling old ebike batteries.

A Bicycle Retailer op-ed questions why we can’t make bicycles in the US, citing advantages ranging from shorter supply chains to pride in craftsmanship.

Um, no. A Utah columnist responds to the collision that left former NBA star Shawn Bradley paralyzed by talking with a bicyclist who offers safety advice. Except all of the advice is for the people on two wheels, and none for the ones in the big dangerous machines — even when it comes to dooring.

Denver wants to give Lyft and Lime the keys to the city, handing them exclusive rights to provide dockless bikes and e-scooters in the city.

A Colorado man’s new book details his “difficult and grueling 1,400-mile ebike ride from Denver to Columbus, Ohio” to raise funds for Meniere’s disease awareness and research — which causes chronic dizziness, nausea, severe ringing in the ears and vertigo — after realizing the automated features of an ebike could hep him overcome his symptoms to get off the couch and onto the road.

An Arkansas woman celebrates the passage of a bill that sailed through the state house without opposition to tighten the penalties for hit-and-run, with up to 20 years behind bars and a $15,000 fine; her husband was killed riding his bike less than two months after they were married.

A New Hampshire woman faces faces up to seven years behind bars for hit-and-run despite playing the “I thought I hit a deer” card, telling police she blacked out after seeing horns and hearing a loud bang; fortunately, the victim wasn’t seriously injured. Surprisingly, very few bike riders actually have horns, even though some drivers apparently think we all do.

Police in Greenwich, Connecticut remind everyone that people on bicycles have to obey the law just like people in cars. Which evidently means no one has to obey the law, since most drivers don’t.

Pennsylvania approves a bill to legalize parking protected bike lanes.

I want to be like him when I grow up. A 70-year old man plans to ride 1,000 miles from Miami to Mobile AL to raise funds for an organization that provides comprehensive care to people with special needs.

Miami Dade police killed a man who stole a bicycle from a bus while shooting his gun to frighten off the owner, then fired again during a carjacking at a gas station.

 

International

Ebike prices continue to drop, with the new KBO Breeze checking in at a relatively svelte $1,399.

Canadian advocates call for making temporary popup bike lanes permanent, arguing that they’ve increased accessibility in a number of the country’s cities. A feeling Los Angeles bike riders are unfamiliar with, since the city still hasn’t installed a single popup lane anywhere.

London bike riders say the decision to rip a popular popup bike lane off one of the city’s deadliest streets is depressingly predictable, after officials concluded that the plastic bendy posts marking the lane would somehow prevent emergency vehicles from getting through. Apparently forgetting that the plastic bollards are no match for a bigass firetruck, or even a decent police bike.

Good boy! An eight-year old English boy started his own fundraising bike ride to help dogs rescued from the meat trade; so far he’s raised $400, mostly from family and friends.

A British man and his family converted one of the country’s iconic red phone booths into a self-service bike repair station.

Dutch ebike maker VanMoof plans to expand to 50 cities around the world. Although in the US, it will be limited to the West and Northeast Coasts.

A local tour guide recommends ten iconic Manila landmarks to visit by bicycle.

An Aussie home burned down when an ebike that had been left to charge overnight burst into flames; all seven residents managed to escape safely, though the bike was toast.

 

Competitive Cycling

Life is cheap in the UK, where a 78-year old driver walked with a lousy fine for brake checking an Olympic hopeful just days after she won a bronze medal at the world championships; then-19-year old Lauren Dolan was forced to give up cycling as a result of her extensive injuries.

 

Finally…

That feeling when a Louisville bike shop restores Ray Bradbury’s bicycle, but the story is hidden behind a paywall.

And when you’re already carrying a large bag full of stolen mail — including a $10,652.90 check — maybe it’s not the best idea to stop to steal a bicycle.

Especially not in front of a cop.

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Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a damn mask, already. 

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

Killer Vegas truck driver on meth, killer Bonsall truck driver stoned, and Tamika Butler’s take on Buttigieg to head USDOT

December 17, 2020 / / Comments Off on Killer Vegas truck driver on meth, killer Bonsall truck driver stoned, and Tamika Butler’s take on Buttigieg to head USDOT

It’s the final Thursday of the 6th Annual BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive!

Thanks to Gold Leaf Films, Brer M and David V for their generous donations to help keep all the best bike news and advocacy coming your way every day. 

So don’t wait.

Give to the BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive today and beat the holiday rush!

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That explains it.

The truck driver who killed five Las Vegas bicyclists and injured four others, one critically, was allegedly high on meth at the time of the crash.

Police bodycam video from the scene shows Jordan Barson tearfully insisting he must have fallen asleep before drifting off the roadway, since he had no memory of the crash.

A blood test showed Barson had an “extremely high” level of the drug in his system, despite the earlier insistence by investigators that intoxication did not play a role in the crash, and it was all just an unfortunate accident.

He was charged with five counts of DUI resulting in death, six counts of reckless driving resulting in death or substantial bodily harm, and one count of DUI resulting in substantial bodily harm, which could result in “decades” behind bars.

And should, if there’s any justice.

Meanwhile, a crowdfunding campaign for the victims has raised over $91,000 of the $100,000 goal in just five days.

And a ghost bike is already up for the victims.

Thanks to John McBrearty for the heads-up.

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The driver in Tuesday’s fatal bicycling collision in Bonsall has been charged with DUI for allegedly being stoned behind the wheel, and drifting into what looks like a painted shoulder, but police call a bike lane.

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Transportation and diversity consultant Tamika Butler offers her unique perspective on the selection of Pete Buttigieg as US Secretary of Transportation.

As a self-identified genderqueer Black woman, she congratulates Buttigieg on his selection as the first LGTBQ cabinet secretary.

But goes on to add this.

Being a member of the administration’s cabinet is truly a privilege and I hope that Buttigieg acknowledges that privilege and power and uses it to make important transportation funding and policy decisions that are informed by the communities that too often suffer the burdens of those decisions rather than reap the benefits. I hope the team Buttigieg surrounds himself with is reflective of the rich and diverse makeup of this country and does not reflect, uphold, and reinforce the current lack of diversity in the transportation sector.

At a time when our infrastructure is failing, our transit funding is falling off a cliff, the dire state of climate change requires innovative transportation solutions, transportation inequities continue to widen disparities along all social and economic outcomes, and mobility and transportation continue to be used as forms of policing of BIPOC bodies, many people have questioned the appointment of Buttigieg, with his relatively little direct transportation experience. But Buttigieg has always been willing to try and has succeeded where people have doubted him. I hope he brings that energy to the policy decision-making and staffing—especially at the leadership level—of the Department of Transportation as he takes on this truly important role to support President Biden and Vice President Harris in their vision of building back better.

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Long Beach will host a food giveaway for those in need this morning.

And for a change, you don’t need a car.

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Bikes are hard to find this year, especially decent kids bikes. Fortunately, Culver City-based Walk ‘n’ Rollers is here with the solution.

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Maybe the war on cars really is a thing.

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I don’t know a thing about his policies in the campaign for Los Angeles City Controller.

But somehow, I like him already.

Thanks to Meghan Lynch for the link.

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But SoCal bike riders won’t ride in the winter, when the weather sometimes dips all the way down to the 60s.

Right?

https://www.instagram.com/p/CI4OrIrB7Fi/

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

The bike-riding man accused of attacking a group of teens putting up posters about the death of George Floyd along a Bethesda, Maryland bike trail has pled guilty to second-degree assault; Anthony Brennan III will be sentenced February 2nd.

South Carolina police are looking for a man who abandoned his full shopping cart in a Walmart, and made off with a bicycle and a backpack — then came back to do it again.

A Miami man faces charges for throwing his bicycle at another man following a dispute, then attacking him with a hammer.

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Local

They get it. The LA Times says public transit is in a death spiral, and must be rescued to keep from endangering bike riders and pedestrians by forcing more cars onto the roads. And that “the post-pandemic transportation system has to reward transit riders, bicyclists and pedestrians with safe, efficient and comfortable ways to travel.”

The Uplift Melrose project is back, but thanks to pseudo-environmentalist Councilmember Paul Koretz, without the protected bike lanes that were key to the project. So the street will remain just as dangerously auto-centric as before.

East LA’s recently formed Activos bike club is holding a toy ride this Sunday, collecting toys at Belvedere Park and riding with them to Whittier.

 

State

‘Tis the season. A Manteca group donated 120 new bicycles to children of needy families.

Morgan Hill-based Specialized was victimized by a brazen daytime burglary; bikes worth a total of $160,000 were stolen from the company’s museum, as well as bicycle prototypes and bikes belonging to employees.

 

National

New Strava data shows male bicyclists rode 41 percent more than last year, while female riders showed a whopping 72 percent increase.

C|net looks at the year’s best cargo bikes.

Here’s yet another problem with bike helmet laws. Seattle police rarely enforce that city’s mandatory helmet law. And when they do, it’s often homeless people who get ticketed, even though they may not even have access to a one.

Nice story from Bicycling about Golden, Colorado-based marketer and former political campaign consultant Alex Showerman, who now rides for the pure joy of it after coming out as a transgender woman, despite living the first 32 years of her life as a man. Unfortunately, if this one’s available on Yahoo, I couldn’t find it.

Houston pledges to end traffic deaths by 2030. Let’s hope their leaders take it more seriously than Los Angeles, where just four years remain in the city’s commitment to end traffic deaths by 2025. “Commitment” being a relative term, in this case.

‘Tis the season too. A bighearted Connecticut teenager raises funds throughout the year by selling ice cream, then uses the money to give anonymous gifts for children in need — including 20 bicycles this year.

A New York bicycle delivery rider was shot in two places as he rode through Harlem, apparently the victim of stay bullets fired from a pair of passing cars.

New York shut down its Citi Bike bikeshare Wednesday night in advance of a major snowstorm.

A North Carolina man’s three-wheeled bike has become a permanent memorial  after the popular bike rider died following a collision last year.

 

International

Sad news from north of the border, where an 88-year old man overcame Parkinson’s to ride across Canada, but couldn’t out-pedal Covid-19.

A Vancouver mother and daughter are shocked to see a police car barreling towards them as they rode in a popup bike lane. So much for the myth that bike lanes block emergency vehicles from getting through. Because well-designed ones don’t. 

Toronto bike riders are complaining after new bike racks were installed with easy-to-remove bolts securing them to the ground. Although secure may not be the right word.

A new London study shows that painted advisory bike lanes — shared lanes marked by a broken white stripe — actually increase the risk of injuries to riders, while curb-protected lanes cut the risk of injuries by 40 percent, and stepped lanes cut the risk to riders by a whopping 65 percent.

An English county councillor was forced to resign after tweeting that bike riders are “constantly wanking off the Dutch.” If you’re not familiar with the word, it involves taking sex into your own hands, so to speak.

This is who we share the road with. A British man will spend the next 30 years behind bars for intentionally ramming his car into six co-workers, “knocking them over like bowling pins,” after he was punched at a company Christmas party.

British bike scribe Carlton Reid and son switch to gravel bikes to ride ancient Roman roadways through the English countryside.

The pandemic is fueling a boom in UK bicycle delivery.

Bicycles have become a friend to impoverished Eritreans.

 

Competitive Cycling

Colombian track star Fabian Puerta, a favorite for next year’s Tokyo Olympics, will be staying home after receiving a four-year ban for doping. But the doping era in cycling is over, right?

A local TV station looks at Chula Vista teenager Dante Silva’s rapid rise in downhill mountain biking.

 

Finally…

That’s one way to store your bike on a train, anyway. From Buddhist monk to Peloton instructor.

And who needs an ebike?

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On a personal note, I was scheduled to have the first of two wrist surgeries for bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome this morning.

However, my surgery was cancelled on Tuesday, when Cedars Sinai cancelled all elective surgeries to prevent being overwhelmed by the Covid-19 crisis. Which means I’ll get to keep living with severe pain for the foreseeable future. 

All because too many people refused to take a worldwide pandemic seriously. 

So please, be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a damn mask, already. 

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

No protection for bike riders in bike lanes, more on horrific Las Vegas bike crash, and New York driver injures 6 protesters

December 14, 2020 / / Comments Off on No protection for bike riders in bike lanes, more on horrific Las Vegas bike crash, and New York driver injures 6 protesters

It’s the last full week of the 6th Annual BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive!

Thanks to Dan G, Sketch Productions and Kenneth R for their generous donations to help keep SoCal’s best bike news and advocacy coming your way every day!

While we accept donations year round, this is the only time of year we ask —okay, beg —  for your help to keep this site going. 

So don’t wait. Give to the BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive today!

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Bike scribe Peter Flax is back with a piece in Outside, warning about the lack of legal protections for riders in bike lanes.

Experienced cyclists already know that a conventional bike lane—where government officials paint stripes on the road to demarcate a dedicated space for riders—offers few real physical protections from motor vehicles. But the case in Bend offers a window into how the legal protections they offer are extremely limited, too.

The problem extends outside of Oregon. After the October ruling, I spoke with two attorneys who specialize in cycling-related law—one based in Colorado and the other in Ohio—and both said that existing laws in their states do almost nothing to define cyclists’ right of way in bike lanes or protect them in a crash…

Both attorneys expressed considerable frustration that cyclists don’t yet have more rational, legal protections. “If we are going to spend the time and money building bike lanes for cyclists, they must come with some level of protection,” says Hottman. “If bike lanes are where city planners want us riding, and if we agree that collisions and tensions tend to decrease when cyclists get dedicated places to ride, then we have to be granted some level of protection when we ride in them. My perfect world would be a state statute that says motorists turning across a bike lane must yield to bikes in bike lane.”

It seems like a no brainer. Bike riders should have the right-of-way in the only piece of pavement dedicated to our use.

But we don’t.

Anyone who has ridden most SoCal bike lanes can tell you that we’re still subject to swinging car doors, drivers using bike lanes to pull in or out of parking spaces or cruise of a parking spot, or cutting across the bike lane to make a turn — which is illegal in California, where drivers are required to merge into a bike lane before turning right.

And for which we too often get the blame, despite being exactly where we’re supposed to be.

The simple solution is to make drivers fully liable for any collision with someone on a bicycle who is riding legally in the bike lane.

Period.

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More on the horrific crash that killed five Las Vegas bicyclists last week and injured four others, one critically.

The Las Vegas coroner identified the five victims Friday afternoon.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the victims were described as key fixtures in the local bicycling scene, and in the top 10% of area bicyclists. Note: if the paper’s paywall blocks you, trying opening the link with another browser or a private window.

One of the victims was a member of the national triathlon team, while another was described as someone who lived on on his bike and would help anyone — including cyclists on a competing team.

A third victim was called a kind, caring man of faith who loved bike racing.

Hundreds of community members gathered around a ghost bike sculpture in front of a local bike shop to remember the victims and call for safer streets.

NBC News somehow gets the crash sequence backwards, saying the truck driver hit the car that was chaperoning the ride before crashing into the bicyclists. The five riders killed were actually trailing the car, and were pinned between the two vehicles, although some of the injured may have been riding in front of the car.

Seriously? Las Vegas police are reminding drivers to obey Nevada’s three-foot passing law in the wake of the crash.

As if that would have kept the driver from plowing into nine people on bicycles, as well as a car leading them.

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The Nevada crash wasn’t the only bloodbath involving bike riders last week.

After a 52-year old New York woman found her car surrounded by people protesting ICE, she floored it and crashed into the protesters in front of her, injuring six people, including bike riders attempting to protect the protest.

For a change, though, the NYPD appears to have taken the crash seriously, charging her with reckless endangerment.

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This is the future we could have in Los Angeles.

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

You’ve got to be kidding. Bike riders in a Philippines town will now be required to wear a helmet and reflectorized vest, keep both hands on the handlebars except to signal, and only carry minimal loads “because bicycles are not designed to carry much cargo.” The new rules were put in place to “support our bike enthusiasts.” Sure, let’s go with that.

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Local

The two LA County sheriff’s deputies accused of shooting 18-year old Andres Guardado were relieved of duty after crashing their patrol car while chasing a man on a bicycle, even though they had a suspect in custody in the back of their cruiser.

Streets for All has set up a new Twitter account to raise awareness of traffic violence in and around the City of Angels, sending out an alert when a bike rider or pedestrian is involved in a crash. Which is pretty damned often, unfortunately.

Former pro wrestler and actor Tommy “Tiny” Lister was found dead in his Marina Del Rey home on Thursday; he was best known for playing bike-thieving neighborhood bully Deebo in the Friday movie franchise. Series star Ice Cube called him a born entertainer with a big heart, who could pop into character at the drop of a hat.

 

State

A Bakersfield collector donated the sign from the sporting goods store where he bought his first bicycle to a local neon museum.

San Francisco bike advocates have long called for a fix to a dangerous chokepoint on the popular crosstown Wiggle bike route, which forces bike riders to cross traffic turning into a gas station; after the latest crash involving someone on a bike, a city supervisor has joined the call.

 

National

Writing for Outside, bike scribe Joe Lindsey says the new Tesla ebike concept makes no sense. Which is being kind.

This is what an adaptive e-mountain bike looks like, allowing paraplegic riders to hit the trails.

Heartbreaking story from Arizona, where doctors discovered a malignant brain tumor in a three-year old boy after he fell down the stairs while learning to ride a bike; a crowdfunding page has raised a little over ten grand to help his single mom pay for his surgery.

A bighearted Boston-area man bought a new bike and a lock for an 11-year old neighbor boy after his was stolen.

South Carolina officials have filed hit-and-run charges against a 30-year old woman who killed a four-year old boy — and his dog — as the boy was riding with his uncle.

Life is cheap in Louisiana, where a hit-and-run driver who ran down two kids as they were riding bikes in their own neighborhood will serve just two years home vacation arrest, followed by a lousy three years probation. Even though a year later, his seven-year old victim still has no sense of taste or smell, and struggles with schoolwork, while his 13-year old sister faces another round of plastic surgery to repair damage from the crash.

 

International

No bias here. London’s Daily Mail says British prime minister Boris Johnson has lost the support of nearly 25% of his Conservative Party over Johnson’s support for popup bike lanes during the pandemic. Which means that nearly three quarters of the party are just fine with it, thank you.

Police in an English town confiscated the bicycle belonging to a 15-year old boy, accusing him of riding in a “dangerous manner.” Want to bet they’ve never confiscated a car from a driver for the same offense?

A UK bike advocacy group is considering legal action to prevent local governments from ripping out bike lanes, calling the removals “unreasonable.”

A driving website examines the new Italian-made Ducati ebike.

A climate website says Germany needs to look beyond cars and de-emphasize driving, while boosting trains, bicycling and walking.

The once and future Bicycle Kingdom is back, as bicycling booms in China while the pandemic is restricting movement.

When the trains stopped running in Manila due to the coronavirus pandemic, commuters jumped on their bikes, fighting for space on some of the world’s most congested streets.

 

Competitive Cycling

A new Irish film looks at the role of the domestique in pro cycling, set in the the start of 1998 Tour de France in Ireland.

Cycling Weekly considers why so many elite cyclists have a background in rowing.

 

Finally…

Who knew? Evidently, bike riders and horse people can actually get along.

And let’s hope they at least gave him free coffee and donuts.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

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

Five people killed riding bikes in horrific Nevada crash, SaMo protected parking lane, and new placid bike video game

December 11, 2020 / / 5 comments

It’s the 15th day of the 6th Annual BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive!

Thanks to everyone who has given so far, and gotten us off to our best start ever! 

Your support will help get through the next few months until our sponsors start to renew in the spring. And keeps SoCal’s best source for all the best bike news and advocacy coming your way every day, whether from around the corner and around the world. 

It only takes a moment to donate. So what are you waiting for, already?

………

There are no words.

Five people were killed, and another four injured, one critically, when a truck driver slammed into a Nevada group ride Thursday morning.

The victims had broken off from the main group, and were trailing an escort vehicle on the shoulder of Highway 95 near Searchlight to get some protection from the wind. They were trapped between the two vehicles when the truck driver inexplicably veered off the roadway.

All five died at the scene.

The Nevada Highway Patrol appeared to absolve the driver of any responsibility, saying it was just a tragic accident after concluding he was not under the influence.

Evidently, if you’re sober in Nevada you get a free pass, no matter how many people you kill.

Bike shop worker Clay Weeks knew many of the victims personally, as well as the crash site.

“That shoulder on the side of that highway is wide enough to fit three cars,” Weeks said. “We don’t really know how somebody managed to get that far off the road. These were all very very experienced cyclists. It’s not like they accidentally rode off and into the road.”

It was not the first time those riders made the trip.

“These are people who ride 10,000 miles a year. Some race professionally,” Weeks said. “How did something like this mistakenly happen?”

The bicyclists were celebrating the recent retirement of Las Vegas police officer Michael Anderson.

The 22 years he spent as a cop before retiring in November couldn’t have prepared him for what he witnessed Thursday. “I’ve seen stuff, obviously as a police officer,” he said in a low voice, pausing and tearing up. “But it’s your friends … I’ve never seen that…

“It’s the worst thing I can ever see in my life,” he said, noting that he had contacted the victims’ families. “(I) didn’t know how to say it to them. It’s terrible.”

They’ve done the same 130-mile loop through Nevada and California for the past 15 years, with no incidents until yesterday’s crash.

A graphic from a Las Vegas paper explains how it happened.

https://twitter.com/KostelecPlan/status/1337279939490410496

What’s still unknown is why the driver left the roadway, and why he couldn’t see seven grown people on bicycles and a cars with its flasher on directly in front of him.

Let’s hope they subpoena the driver’s cell phone, and any onboard screens or entertainment system.

The identity of the victims was behind withheld until relatives could notified. However, one was identified by family and friends as a 43-year old woman from Las Vegas.

The tight knit Las Vegas bike community was in mourning Thursday as news of the crash spread rapidly through the city. A drive-through vigil will be held at a Las Vegas bike shop today.

Thanks to everyone who sent me links for this story. There’s far too many to thank individually, but I sincerely appreciate the help.

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When is a protected bike lane not a bike lane?

When it becomes a parking space for city workers.

Although Oakland seems to have the same problem.

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Any video game that lets you explore the world by bicycle has got to be a good one.

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

An Akron, Ohio man was busted for robbing a store with a hatchet, before fleeing the scene on his bike. Or someone’s, anyway.

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Local

Good question. Streetsblog’s Joe Linton wants to know why streets can’t be closed off for bike riders, when LA officials don’t hesitate to close them for rich people.

A new study shows LA traffic collisions dropped a whopping 21% since the initial coronavirus shutdown.

No surprise here. Traffic volume is still down in Pasadena during the pandemic, but average speed are up.

 

State

Business is booming at a San Diego bike shop, despite being down two staffers due to the pandemic.

El Cajon’s Main Street is getting greener, literally and figuratively.

BMX riders catch big air at two-year old Sapwi Bike Park in Thousand Oaks, built as a partnership between the Concerned Off-Road Bicyclist Association and Conejo Recreation And Parks District.

Great idea. A group of San Francisco bike messengers are skipping the big app-based delivery services, and forming their own food delivery co-op. Thanks to Megan Lynch for the heads-up.

 

National

Get your new Lumos bike helmet at your friendly neighborhood Apple Store.

A writer for Clean Technica shares what it’s like to ride the new Harley Davidson ebike.

Speaking of motorcycle makers, Italian bikemaker Ducati is bringing their e-mountain bikes to an American motorcycle dealer near you.

Nevada’s new three-foot passing law hasn’t stopped bike riders from getting killed, with three deaths in the Las Vegas area in the previous three months. Make that eight in four months, now.

‘Tis the season. Police in Fayetteville, Arkansas teamed with a bike nonprofit to donate 100 bicycles to area kids.

An Illinois bike advocate and licensed cycling instructor says nothing will change until drivers slow down and pay attention, or face real consequences for their actions.

Life is cheap in Ohio, where a reckless driver who killed a prominent attorney as he rode his bike walked without a single day behind bars; he could have faced up to five years in prison.

A new documentary premiering today focuses on exploring Maine’s Acadia National Park by bicycle.

A writer for New York Streetsblog witnesses a bike rider get left hooked by a driver — and watches as the police let her go without so much as a warning.

A high-ranking Georgia state lawmaker has been indicted on charges of wrongly ignoring a fatal 2019 hit-and-run crash, after a friend called to say he’d just killed a bike rider and left him lying in a ditch.

‘Tis the season, too. A New Orleans motorcycle club is teaming with a local lawyer to give away 100 bicycles to kids between three and nine years old to share their love of riding on two wheels.

 

International

Cyclist pulls back the curtain on Specialized’s $1,000 full carbon balance bike, for the weight weenie toddler in your life.

Cycling Weekly looks at their favorite bicycles and accessories for 2020.

Toronto bicyclists took to the streets to remember the 15 bike riders killed in the city this year.

The European Union calls for doubling bicycle infrastructure as part of the continent’s Green New Deal. Then again, LA’s mayor made a similar climate fighting declaration, and you can see how that turned out.

Bicycling says it’s time to add Slovenia to your bike bucket list. You can make a pilgrimage to visit the shrine to Melania Trump while you’re at it. And yes, you can read the story on Yahoo if Bicycling blocks you.

Life is cheap in Singapore, where a Finnish expat was sentenced to a single week behind bars for crashing into a pedestrian while riding a bike; the victim died five days after the crash.

 

Competitive Cycling

Cycling’s governing body has finally gotten around to adopting a new in-race concussion protocol for the 2021 season, assuming it actually happens.

The Bianchi bike Marco Pantani rode to the top of Mount Ventoux in the 2000 Tour de France, beating out a fellow doper from Texas, will find a new home in a museum dedicated to the late, great Italian cyclist after a consortium of Italian business people bought it for the equivalent of $87,000.

Cycling News says Justin Williams and the L39ION of Los Angeles cycling team has the power to change bike racing for the better by encouraging cultural diversity in the sport and opening doors for aspiring young riders.

Pro mountain biker Brett Rheeder won’t be riding anytime soon, after breaking his leg crashing at an indoor skate park in British Columbia.

 

Finally…

That feeling when police recover a rare $15,000 Colnago/Ferrari roadie, and have to figure out who owns it. And your new ebike could come with the Good Housekeeping seal of approval.

………

Be safe, and stay healthy. And wear a mask, already. 

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