That’s a wrap.
Thank you to everyone who donated to the 5th Annual BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive!
While we fell a little short of last year’s total, you helped set a new record for the most donations with 57.
So please accept my personal and heartfelt gratitude for each and every donation, regardless of size; $5 from someone struggling to give means every bit as much as a larger donation from someone more comfortable.
Your generosity will help fund this site for the next few months, while ensuring I can pay for the medications I need to keep working, and keep riding.
As usual, I’ll be taking off between the holidays to rest and recharge from the stress and carnage on our streets — unless there’s breaking news, of course.
So ride safely and defensively, and have a warm and happy holiday season. And we’ll see you back here after New Years.
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LA journalist Alissa Walker nails it with her response to the recent Peloton Wife ad, with tongue planted firmly in cheek.
The gift that gives back… @BikeMetro pic.twitter.com/zCbGXJsvOL
— Alissa Walker (@awalkerinLA) December 23, 2019
Meanwhile, Streetsblog calls it “pitch perfect.”
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CiclaValley experiences firsthand the newly widened bike lanes on Forest Lawn Drive.
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‘Tis the Season.
A kindhearted Virginia cop bought a new bike for a nine year old boy after his was stolen, and the officer saw him walking next to his bike-riding friend a few days later.
Bighearted Massachusetts police gave toys and a new bicycle to a four-year old boy after his mother was killed recently, delivering them in a police parade featuring cops from 11 different departments across the state.
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Local
Our fund drive may be over, but LA Streetsblog’s isn’t. And deserves your support, too. They were my university when I got started in advocacy, and taught me much of what I know about equity and Complete Streets.
A newly released restoration plan for the Ballona Westlands included ten miles of new bike paths and foot trails, though opponents fear the restoration work will cause too much harm to fragile species.
CiclaValley’s Zachary Rynew provides an update on plans for Phase III of the LA Riverfront Park connecting the western section of the LA River bike path to White Oak and Lake Balboa Park.
State
A new report says Joy Covey, Amazon’s first CEO, was killed by one of the company’s own delivery vans while riding her bike in California six years ago.
A Huntington Beach bike rider suffered moderate injuries when he was the victim of an alleged drunk driver who slammed into him after losing control following a high speed turn, then crashed into two other drivers.
The San Francisco Examiner says a lot of work remains to be done on the city’s Vision Zero plan, as traffic deaths in the City by the Bay have only gone down by four in the five years since the plan was adopted.
National
Electrek reviews every ebike they reviewed this year. Meanwhile, Gear Patrol ranks the best non-electrified handmade bikes of 2019.
Bike Snob’s Eben Weiss nails it once again, insisting there’s no such thing as the wrong bike.
A Bellingham, Washington bike rider is suing the city after he was arrested simply for asking a parking enforcement officer not to park in a bike lane.
It’s a minor holiday miracle in Colorado, where a woman begged thieves to bring back a bicycle belonging to her late son. And they did.
Omaha NE artists are protesting the recent removal of a bike corral by placing ghost bikes around the city — including in view of the mayor’s office.
An Iowa cop hit a fleeing domestic violence suspect with his car as the man was trying to make his escape by riding his bike on the sidewalk. `
Life is cheap in Michigan, where authorities once again bargain away a stiff sentence to get a guilty plea, ordering a driver to serve just one year in jail and five years probation for fleeing the scene after killing a man on a bicycle.
A Vermont anthropologist explains the state’s bike culture in cartoon form. But not the fully kind.
The NYPD is belatedly cracking down on truck drivers, after four of the six pedestrians killed in collisions over a 48 hour period last week were killed in collisions with trucks. But if the victims had been riding bicycles, they’d be cracking down on the people on two wheels, instead.
International
Tragic news from the UK, where a 79-year old man died two days after he was hit by a bike rider earlier this year. Unfortunately, British privacy laws mean it can take a very long time for news to filter out.
Horrifying crime from Great Britain, where a 21-year old bike rider was knocked off his bicycle by three men and dragged into a car, were he was robbed at knifepoint.
Russian scientist Ivan Petrovich Pavlov — yes, the man famed for Pavlov’s dog — was one of us.
Competitive Cycling
American cyclist Alex Howes says people forget that pro cyclists are people, too.
Speculation is building about two unnamed WorldTour cyclists linked to the latest blood doping scandal. But seriously, the era of doping is over, right?
Finally…
Your next bike could cost a measly $100,000. Don’t leave your shoe at a crash site as you attempt to escape on a girl’s bike unless you want a fairy tale ending.
And nothing like making everyone else responsible for your inability to drive safely.
