Tag Archive for people not cars

Getting the mythical war on cars all wrong, road rage rising on LA streets, and LA Streets chief Greg Spotts heads to Seattle

July 28, 2022 / / One comment

No bias here.

An economics professor and former deputy assistant secretary for research and technology at the US Department of Transportation gets it exactly wrong, saying the US shouldn’t follow Europe’s lead in the mythical war on cars.

Cities are being hollowed out by pedestrian precincts, with commerce for residents moving outside the centers of town, leaving the quaint city streets for tourists. Locals need not visit.

American transportation policy is mistakenly copying Europe, and it’s not only the higher gas prices and smaller planned electric vehicles. Bike lanes are proliferating and parking spaces vanishing. One example: the District Department of Transportation in Washington, D.C., is planning to reconfigure Connecticut Avenue, one of the major arteries into the city, by removing two major lanes of traffic and replacing them with bike lanes. The plan doesn’t account for fire engines pulling out of their stations or existing right-turn lanes. Other bike lanes in Washington see minimal commuter traffic.

With regard to parking spaces, the motto among U.S. transportation planners seems to be “if you don’t build them, they won’t come.” A planned reconfiguration of Union Station in Washington, D.C., will result in the loss of hundreds of parking spaces. Restaurants are taking over valuable curbside spaces for dining.

She goes on to decry city centers filled with pedestrians and thriving merchants, as well as areas where driving is actively discouraged in favor of more beneficial forms of transportation.

Which is a good thing, actually.

And which makes it kind of frightening that someone like her was helping to form transportation policy in the Trump administration.

Then again, that explains a lot.

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No, it’s not just your imagination.

There really is more anger out there on the streets. And more people willing to act on it.

Too often, with guns.

Crosstown LA reports Los Angeles set a record in June with 90 reported incidents of road rage, topping the previous record set just one month earlier.

From Jan. 1–June 30 there were 459 reports of road rage in the city, according to publicly available Los Angeles Police Department data. That is a 32.7% increase over the same period last year, and almost 140 more incidents than were tallied in the first half of 2019.

Never mind that most road rage incidents never get reported to the police, making those record figures just the tip of the iceberg.

So be careful out there. Drivers don’t need a weapon when they’re already in one.

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In a surprise announcement, Seattle’s Department of Transportation reveled LA Street Services head Greg Spotts is taking over their new leader.

Damien gets it right.

Spotts is, or was, one of the few Los Angeles department heads who really seemed to get it, and will be sorely missed.

Besides, he’s one of us. And it made sense to have a bike rider in charge of LA streets for a change.

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The LAPD’s official Twitter account shares a great story, as their officers pitched in with other organizations for LA’s first Bike Safety Camp Day, including a new bike for 30 lucky kids.

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The popular Eastside Mural Ride returns a week from Saturday.

I’m told from people who’ve done it in previous years that this is one ride you don’t want to miss.

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The California Office of Traffic Safety presents the winner in the completion for a DIY traffic safety ad.

Maybe you’ll like it more than I do.

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

No bias here, either. After a Jersey City city councilwoman flees the scene after crashing her car into someone on a bicycle, a writer for a New Jersey website insists the real problem is irresponsible bike riders who blow through stop signs and red lights.

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

Police in Cleveland are looking for a bike-riding man who got into an argument a street vendor, then pulled out a gun and shot the victim several times when the argument got physical.

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Local

Road closures keep coming on the new 6th Street Viaduct as police struggle to halt bad driver behavior, with speed bumps likely coming to the new bridge. Which couldn’t be better proof of a bad road design.

The LA Times says just forget the whole thing, and close the 6th Street Bridge to cars and let the people on foot and two wheels take it over.

An artist in South LA was struck by a hit-and-run driver while he was riding his ebike to finish a mural; the woman got out of her car to help him, but took off without identifying herself. A crowdfunding account to help pay his medical bills and replace the ebike he relied on for transportation has raised over $6,000 of the modest $10,000 goal.

This is who we share the road with. A woman driving with a bunny crashed into a Lyft driver, a utility box and a fire hydrant, knocking out power in DTLA.

This is who we share the road with, part two. A pickup driver injured 11 people in Pacoima when he struck three vehicles in a gas station, and knocked over one of the pumps. Oops.

 

State 

Police arrested a 39-year old suspect in the stabbing death of 26-year old Marcos Guzman Reyes, who was killed as he stood next to his bike on a Ventura bike path.

The director of Strategic Initiatives for COAST+SBBIKE writes to clear up misconceptions about a planned Santa Barbara bike path that’s been under attack, over fears it would lead to the removal of trees in a protected sanctuary.

 

National

CNN recommends accessories for your next bike trip.

Streetsblog examines why US cities are so bad at counting bike riders, and why it matters.

Great piece from The Radavist, about the bicycle nomad who rode 1,900 miles to retrace the route of the famed Buffalo Soldiers on the 125th anniversary of their bike ride from Missoula, Montana to St. Louis.

Sadly, it’s not even surprising anymore when the NYPD blames the bike-riding victim, insisting a woman was riding salmon when video of the fatal crash shows just the opposite.

New York bizarrely turns its speed cams off at night and on weekends when speeding is the worst, even though speeding is a leading cause of fatal crashes.

DC advocates rallied to protest the city’s 22 traffic deaths this year, including three cyclists and a pedestrian killed just this month.

 

International

After a London thief stole a kid’s dirt bike-style bicycle, he returned it the next day with a note of apology, explaining he was drunk and stupid.

British bicyclists can be fined the equivalent of up to $3,000 for riding dangerously, as well as other infractions.

 

Competitive Cycling

European time trial champ Marlen Reuser soloed to victory in Wednesday’s stage four of the Tour de France Femmes, winning by nearly a minute and a half.

Dutch great Marianne Vos held on to the yellow jersey after stage four, leading Silvia Persico  and Kasia Niewiadoma by 16 seconds.

SBS Sport captures five moments of chaos on the gravel of Wednesday’s stage, questioning whether including gravel sections in the race was a good idea.

Spanish champ Mavi García was taken out by her own team car as she tried to catch up to the peloton after a pair of flats.

F1 star Valtteri Bottas is taking some time off from the car racing circuit to assist his girlfriend, Australian cyclist Tiffany Cromwell, as she competes in the TdFF.

Paracyclist and Air Force vet Dustin Baker’s hopes of competing in next month’s Para-cycling Road World Championships were dashed when a driver read-ended his bike on a North Carolina training ride, leaving him with broken ribs, a damaged rotator cuff, a concussion and road rash. Not to mention a shattered bike.

Danish fans seemed kind of happy to see Tour de France champ Jonas Vingegaard in his first post-race appearance back home.

 

Finally…

That feeling when a visibly drunk hit-and-run driver is captured by a chef — and an emu. Your next ebike could look like a 1920s motorcycle, and do up to 40 mph, which is kind of illegal in most states.

And we’ll leave you with this today, marking the intersection of bicycling, feminism and motherhood a hundred years ago.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin, too.

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

Koretz gas ban called election gimmick, 6th Street Viaduct values cars above people, and Metro Bike wants your opinion

July 15, 2022 / / Comments Off on Koretz gas ban called election gimmick, 6th Street Viaduct values cars above people, and Metro Bike wants your opinion

My apologies once again for yesterday’s unexcused absence. 

I’m still dealing with bouts of disabling dizziness and queasiness that can stop me in my tracks, as it did Wednesday night. 

My doctors continue to assure me that it’s a form of migraine. Even if it hasn’t responded to diet, medication or any of the other treatments they were just darn sure would work. 

Which means this probably won’t be the last time it happens. 

And the next time won’t, either. 

Photo by Harrison Haines from Pexels.

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He gets it.

Rick Cole has lead a handful of SoCal cities, including Ventura and Santa Monica, as well as serving as a deputy mayor in Los Angeles.

Which is to say, he knows what he’s talking about. And can spot a cheap political stunt a mile away.

Sorry, Paul Koretz.

The tweet may be hidden behind a sensitive content warning, for reasons that will forever escape me. Just click the View link to display it, or you can read it here. 

https://twitter.com/urbanistcole/status/1547228947489775616

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More proof that the designers of the new 6th Street Viaduct put cars ahead of people.

Especially people on two wheels.

https://twitter.com/multimodalLA/status/1547453551613444096

Speaking of which, the Bicycle Advisory Committee’s Planning and Bikeways Engineering Subcommittees will discuss the bridge’s “bikeway shortcomings” at Tuesday’s Virtual meeting.

The committees will also discuss the Northvale Gap on the Expo bike path, and bike safety in Griffith Park, among other issues.

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Someone tell LADOT it would help if they put a link to the survey in their tweets.

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Metro is teaming with Active SGV to host a ride in Pomona tomorrow.

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Gravel Bike California takes a ride through the redwoods of Santa Cruz.

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

A naked Scottish couple riding a tandem were attacked by a driver, who made a U-turn to come back and hurl abuse at them — calling them prostitutes — before swerving his car into the couple; they’re continuing on their 837-mile fundraising ride despite suffering minor injuries.

British bike riders were quick to point out to a local police department why urging people to Cycle Like You Drive is a very, very bad idea.

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

Heartbreaking story from the UK, where a hit-and-run bicyclist will spend the next year behind bars for killing a 79-year old woman after rounding a corner while riding on the sidewalk.

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Local

A writer for the LA Times recommends exploring Griffith Park on your bike, particularly since Griffith Park Drive has been closed to cars through Monday. And hopefully longer.

CicLAvia is hosting a CivSalon panel discussion on Wednesday to discuss how innovation can make our streets safer and more equitable.

 

State 

Calbike joins with 17 other agencies to call for and end to freeway expansion in the Golden State.

Streetsblog says Caltran’s Complete Streets Action plan is basically a list of specific actions the agency will take to encourage a shift towards equitable and safer transportation. Let’s hope so, anyway.

Call it a win-win. San Diego’s new 2.3-mile bike lane on Pershing Drive through Balboa Park will improve safety for bike riders and pedestrians, as well as including a project to replace aging stormwater lines to prevent flooding and reduce water pollution.

A 58-year Rancho Bernardo man completed a 3,300-mile ride across the US, raising over $20,000 for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation to fight type 1 diabetes.

Berkeley’s new 12-block parking and barrier protected bike lane connects the north and south sections of the city’s downtown.

Sonoma Magazine offers the ultimate guide to riding in the wine country county.

 

National

They get it. A retail business website says retailers usually fight new bike lanes, arguing they will hurt their business — but usually end up with higher sales after they’re built.

A British man completed his 4,000-mile bike ride across the US, raising nearly $30,000 for charity in the process — including the equivalent of over $2,300 from Dame Judy Dench.

The Pro’s Closet and The Radavist’s John Watson have teamed up on a special-edition gravel bike inspired by a Toyota Land Cruiser; only eight will be made, selling for just under nine grand.

Walmart is recalling a bike helmet that was a replacement for a recalled bike helmet.

It’s the 125th anniversary of the legendary Buffalo Soldier’s 41-day, 1,900 mile bike ride, proving bicycles could efficiently move troops. Until those damn cars and trucks took their place.

Pay full freight for a bike from Colorado bikemaker Alchemy Bikes, and they’ll put you up in a Golden CO hotel, and spring for beer and a breakfast burrito.

Tragic news from Colorado, whee a six-year old boy died days after he was bitten by a rattlesnake while riding bikes with his family.

Cars are still banned from the Northern entrances to Yellowstone due to flooding damage, but bikes are being allowed in for short rides; bicyclists call the carefree carfree experience “magical.”

It’s illegal to stand on the pedals while you ride your bike in Indiana.

Sad news from Missouri, where a 44-year old man was killed when a sheriff’s deputy rear-ended his bicycle; no word on why the deputy couldn’t see a grown man on a bike directly in front of him.

The alleged DUI driver who hit three pedestrians standing on an Illinois bike path, killing two young men, saw half the charges against her dismissed, but will face trial on the seven remaining counts.

A self-described “avid cyclist” says there has to be a better use for St. Paul, Minnesota’s money than removing parking spaces to build a two-way bikeway. There are no more chilling words than those that begin with “I’m an avid cyclist, but…”

There’s a special place in hell for whoever attacked a popular New York restaurant worker to steal his ebike as the man ride home from work, putting him in a coma he never recovered from.

Once again, a driver ran down a bike rider, then got out of his car to remove the victim’s bicycle from underneath before fleeing the scene, this time in North Carolina. Thanks to Victor Bale for the heads-up.

A Florida woman was lucky to survive after a driver hit her and a friend as they were riding their bikes, dragging the woman 50 feet beneath the car as the driver fled the scene; her friend escaped with just minor injuries.

 

International

London’s Evening Standard takes a look at the city’s bikeshare tribes, with tongue placed firmly in cheek.

Police in Britain’s New Forest urge drivers to slow down so they don’t crash into the donkeys. Or the people on bicycles .

That feeling when you fly to London, but your $16,500 bike and luggage fly to Naples.

Former pro cyclist and Rwandan genocide survivor Adrien Niyonshuti beat the pro peloton to the top of France’s legendary Alpe d’Huez, despite riding a 40 pound, single speed Qhubeka bike built for use in Africa.

Bike Radar looks at the best “weird and wonderful” tech from Germany’s Eurobike trade show.

The head of Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency reportedly is in intensive care after suffering multiple injuries falling off his bicycle; as usual, the country denies anything even happened. Although his injuries suggest something more serious than a simple fall off a bike.

A 36-year old Indian man has been riding throughout the country for the past three years to call attention to organic farming and the problem of single-use plastics.

CNN looks at how Abu Dhabi became the world’s hottest bicycling city. No, literally.

Hong Kong is considering requiring a helmet for anyone riding a bicycle, tricycle or multi-wheeled bike. Evidently, they have a lot of five, six and seven wheeled bikes. 

 

Competitive Cycling

Yellow jersey bearer Tadej Pogačar cracked on Wednesday’s 11th stage of the Tour de France, allowing Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard to slip into the lead.

He wasn’t the only Slovenian to crack. Primož Roglič followed suit the next day after a series of attacks by his Jumbo-Visma team, in an effort to widen Vingegaard’s lead; Vingegaard ended the day 2:22 ahead of Pogačar, who was unable to successfully attack on Thursday’s ride up Alpe d’Huez.

Twenty-two-year old Brit Tom Piddock won Thursday’s stage, besting veteran Chris Froome on the mountain top finish.

The top American is now Sepp Kuss, nearly 25 minutes behind the leader in 17th place, and one notch above Nielson Powless in 18th. Meanwhile, 21-year old Tour rookie Quinn Simmons vows to keep attacking.

Atlas Obscura dives into the chaos of the Tour’s Fast and Furious Feed Zone.

 

Finally…

Your next ebike could be good for 125 miles. Why stop riding at the water’s edge?

And let your bike be your tent pole on your next bikepacking trip.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin, too.

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

Redesigning our cities for people, Metro planner killed in SaMo, and illegal bike dismount signs on Wilshire Blvd

February 18, 2020 / / Comments Off on Redesigning our cities for people, Metro planner killed in SaMo, and illegal bike dismount signs on Wilshire Blvd

My apologies to anyone who saw a premature draft of today’s page while it was still under construction; I somehow hit the Post button instead of Save. 

Blame a daylong rollercoaster dealing with the literal highs and lows of diabetes.

Photo by Emre Kuzu from Pexels.

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He gets it.

Writing for Forbes, an instructor at a Spanish university says it’s time to redesign our cities around people, not cars.

The message is clear: cars must go, they have made our cities unhealthy and expensive for everyone, and while bicycles and pedestrians are part of the solution, we need to redesign streets for pedestrians and for autonomous vehicles. This needs to be backed up by competitive public transport that is more intelligent and versatile, and powered by real-time data.

Shops on streets that are closed to private cars do not suffer, but quite the opposite. Living in a city without a car is perfectly possible: it is already significantly cheaper to rent a car as often as you need than to own one and have to face expenses such as insurance, parking or taxes. But all these solutions raise a fundamental question about changing our habits, about how we get to work, for example: working from home or flexible hours are increasingly established trends.

Someone should mention that part about business thriving on streets that are closed to cars to the business owners on Broadway, who could be looking at exactly that in the near future.

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Sad news from Santa Monica, where Metro Transportation Planner Daniel Chuong was killed when he was struck by a driver while training with his brother for the LA Marathon.

It’s long past time to stop traffic violence in Southern California.

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Signs telling bicyclists to walk their bikes have popped up along the subway construction zones on Wilshire Blvd.

However, the signs do not appear to be compliant with the California MUTCD manual — the state’s official traffic sign guide — and not legally enforceable.

Although I could be wrong on that.

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Apparently, the bike lanes on Jefferson have been closed for sewer pipe work for the next year.

And as usual, there doesn’t seem to be any accommodation for bike riders.

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It looks like the Culver Blvd pathway is closed for construction work, as well. But at least this should reopen in a better version soon.

https://twitter.com/M_Sahli_Wells/status/1229797250076823552

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Talk about burying the lede.

A Stanton woman suffered serious, but non-life-threatening injuries when she was struck by a hit-and-run driver while pulling a trailer on her bike.

However, the OC Register mentions that the driver fled the scene almost as an aside, before finally getting to a description of the suspect vehicle near the end of the story.

There’s also video from the scene showing the aftermath of the crash. But be warned, it’s tough to watch. Thanks to Erik Griswold for the link.

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Bike talks mountain bikes, including how to fly like Superman, how to dial in drops, how to ride a step down, how to ride rollers, how to ride turns and berms, and how to do a back flip.

And an English filmmaker looks at what happens when a mountain bike race shuts down and the trail is converted to a new singletrack course.

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Long Beach expats the Path Less Pedaled take a short ride on an LA gravel rollercoaster.

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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes goes on. And on. 

A London driver walked with a warning despite repeatedly brake checking a bike rider — in a bike lane, no less.

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

A Washington credit card thief was busted when he showed up at a hospital with a leg injury, after he was hit by a driver while attempting to make his getaway by bicycle.

A Florida driver asks if bicyclists are allowed to ride salmon in bike lanes, after she nearly hits a wrong way rider who yelled at her and smacked her hood.

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Local

Streetsblog’s Damien Newton says Magnolia Blvd, Broadway, and traffic signal pre-emption are three early tests for Mayor Garcetti’s Climate Directive.

Streets for All has echoed Bike the Vote LA in endorsing Loraine Lundquist in LA’s 12th Council District and Sarah Kate Levy in CD4.

The Bieb took his fat tire ebike out for a spin on the mean streets of Beverly Hills, after first shaving off that cheesy mustache.

Bike thieves made off with a pair of high-end road bikes with electronic shifting from an unlocked Pasadena garage. Let that be a lesson, kids — don’t leave your garage or your bikes unlocked any longer than necessary. Thanks to TJ Knight for the heads-up. 

On the other hand, Santa Monica bike thefts have reached their lowest level in five years.

Long Beach police shot and killed an armed man who refused to cooperate after police ordered him to stop his bicycle, allegedly pointing his gun at them.

 

State

Santa Barbara will conduct a road diet on De la Vina Street, narrowing it to a single one-way traffic lane, along with a bike lane.

A Beaumont bike rider suffered serious injuries Monday morning when he or she was hit by a driver, who actually stuck around and waited for the police, for a change.

A Porterville man faces charges for literally running from police when they tried to pull his bicycle over while he was riding stoned, and illegally loading real bullets into a replica BB gun, which he wasn’t allowed to own as a convicted felon.

There’s a special place in hell for whoever stole a $4,000 ‘bent that an autistic Fresno man used as his only form of transportation.

 

National

The Week argues that the real promise of the electric vehicle revolution lies with ebikes, rather than electric cars.

Americans are addicted to their cars.

Clearly, you can do that on a bike, especially on one like this. Whatever you’re trying to do.

Rapper Jeezy is one of us, going for a Valentine’s Day bike ride with girlfriend Jeannie Mai on the back.

A Missoula, Montana man wants to thank the two women who came to his aid when he broke his leg riding in the snow. And get his bike back from the one who promised to hold it for him, but apparently gave him a fake address for where he could pick it up.

An Oklahoma couple is planning to set a new Guinness world record for the longest ebike ride, traveling 20,000 unsupported miles across 48 states. Get back to me when they actually do it. Because it’s easy to make plans, much harder to actually do it. As I’ve learned the hard way. 

Columbia, Missouri is apparently following the Los Angeles model for Vision Zero, with traffic deaths and serious injuries on the increase four years after adopting the safety plan.

If you build it, they will come. Which apparently works just as well for an Illinois bake shop located across from a popular bike path as it does for anything else.

Seriously? A self-proclaimed bicycle rider blames bike lanes for all that traffic congestion in Pittsburgh, which apparently didn’t exist before they were painted. And compares bike lanes to dogs marking their territory.

A Massachusetts man now owns the same bike shop where he worked as a bike-obsessed teenager.

New York Streetsblog argues that a new survey shows America’s mayors know cars are killing people and ruining our cities, but don’t have the courage to do anything about it.

Closing a section of a busy New York street to cars in favor of a busway is literally saving lives.

Kindhearted cops in Richmond VA gave a new bike and helmet to a woman who was hit by a car while riding, after learning her bike was her only form of transportation.

Evidently, they take distracted driving seriously in Georgia, where a driver faces a vehicular homicide charge for killing a bike rider when he looked down at his coffee cup.

An Orlando, Florida writer confesses to blowing through stop signs while riding a bicycle on a trail dedicated to non-motorized transportation, where bike riders should get priority, but don’t. Each of the past two nights, I’ve watched drivers blow through the stop signs on my block without even slowing down. But let a bike rider do the same thing at 10 – 15 mph, instead of 30 or more, and people get apoplectic.

This is who we share the roads with. A Florida man confessed to intentionally running down a Vietnam veteran, who the killer described as “an old man with a cane,” just because he was curious about what it’s like to kill someone.

 

International

They get it, too. A writer for Rouleur says the one thing all bicyclist have in common, regardless of ability, is how vulnerable we are on the roads. And concludes that the culture, and the laws, have to change.

Mark your calendar for the World Naked Bike Ride in London this June. But pack some clothes anyway.

A London bike rider gets ordered off his bike while riding on a shared-use path after a cop ignores the signage and decides it’s for pedestrians only.

As Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo runs for re-election with a promise of bike lanes on every street, Parisians continue to ride their bikes, even after a disruptive transit strike has ended.

A Pakistani delivery driver working in Dubai faces six months in jail followed by a fast deportation for sexually harassing a customer by kissing her wrist and cheek when he tried to drop off the bicycle she ordered for her husband.

A South African ultra-endurance cyclist has made a remarkable comeback from a solo crash that nearly took his life, but couldn’t stop him.

A Kiwi town gets a new hot pink, car-shaped bike corral.

New Zealand bicyclists demand better infrastructure following a recent bicycling fatality, arguing that paint isn’t protection.

Yet another new study, this time from New Zealand, shows that biking to work can reduce your risk of dying and could extend your life.

A social media backlash erupted after a Formula 1 racing driver unveiled his relationship with an Aussie women’s cyclist, just three months after divorcing his ex-wife.

File this one under you’ve got to be kidding. Melbourne residents are calling for bikes to be banned from shared paths because riders are exceeding the ridiculously low 6.2 mph speed limit. I’m not sure my bike can even go that slow without falling over. Or maybe it can, and I can’t.

Apparently, running over an elderly Singapore bike rider felt just like driving over a plastic bottle to the truck driver who killed him.

 

Competitive Cycling

Dutch pro Tom Dumoulin’s return to racing following a knee injury last June is on hold due to parasites in his gut.

Adults over 50 are invited to compete in the Pasadena Senior Games, which includes cycling as well as a number of other sports. Although it’s not clear from the article whether you have to be a Pasadena resident.

 

Finally…

Pedaling a party bike through a winter bomb cyclone doesn’t look like much of a party. Who needs wheels to join a group ride when wings will do just fine.

And evidently, the San Francisco Chronicle has been reading my Twitter feed.

 

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