Tag Archive for Presidio

Metro reneges on pledge to complete LA River path by ’28, and life is cheap for Ethan Boyes in San Francisco’s Presidio

March 21, 2024 / / Comments Off on Metro reneges on pledge to complete LA River path by ’28, and life is cheap for Ethan Boyes in San Francisco’s Presidio
Just 285 days until Los Angeles fails to meet its Vision Zero pledge to eliminate traffic deaths by 2025.
So stop what you’re doing and sign this petition to demand Mayor Bass hold a public meeting to listen to the dangers we face walking and biking on the mean streets of LA.

Then share it — and keep sharing it — with everyone you know, on every platform you can.

We’re still stuck at 1,018 signatures, so let’s keep it going! Urge everyone you know to sign the petition, until the mayor agrees to meet with us! 

Actual image of Metro executive promising to complete LA River bike path, by Schwerdhöfer for Pixabay.

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It’s now 92 days since the California ebike incentive program’s latest failure to launch, which was promised no later than fall 2023. And 33 months since it was approved by the legislature and signed into law — and counting.

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

No bias here. A Toronto bike lawyer suddenly had his mic cut after asking a city counselor to denounce anti-bicyclist comments made at a recent public forum that had devolved into a war of words, with one commenter threatening to run over any bike riders that get in his way.

No bias here, either. A UK petition calling for bicyclists to “display registration, pay road tax and have insurance” has closed after drawing just 353 signatures in six months.

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Local 

Investing in Place considers the implications of LA’s newly approved Measure HLA, and what needs to be done to prevent implantation from devolving into a chaotic mess, and leaving already underserved communities behind.

Streets Are For Everyone, aka SAFE, is looking for volunteers to help with next month’s Finish the Ride and Finish the Run in Griffith Park.

Metro is offering a new and improved on-demand process to rent their new and improved electronic bike lockers.

West Hollywood approved a Complete Streets makeover for Willoughby Ave, as well as parts of Gardner Street, Vista Street and Kings Road, replacing the existing sharrows with curb extensions, scaled traffic circles, protected bike lanes, wayfinding signs, a mini-park, and enhanced crosswalks near schools.

Pasadena wants your input on a proposal for quick-build Complete Streets improvements along Allen Ave to improve access to the Metro A Line Station, and connect to existing bike lanes on the city’s north side.

Santa Monica cops will conduct yet another Bike & Pedestrian Safety Enforcement Operation on Saturday, ticketing any driver, bicyclist or pedestrian who commits a traffic violation that could endanger anyone on two wheels or two feet. As usual, ride to the letter of the law until you cross the city limits so you’re not the one who gets written up.

 

State

More on the Encinitas bicyclists calling for removal of a curb-protected bike lane on the coast highway, after a 48-year old man was found dead next to his cruiser bike early Sunday morning, even though there is no indication yet that the barriers played any role in his solo crash; Oceanside bike lawyer and BikinginLA sponsor Richard Duquette says the rash of bike crashes since the lanes were installed may be an argument to remove those barriers, but not all protected bike lanes.

A Palo Alto website says a proposal by Caltrans to install green bike lanes on busy El Camino Real is the wrong way to go, because it would encourage bicyclists to ride on a busy street interrupted with frequent entrances and exits, and other “ingress and egress interruptions.” Or is it just that only drivers deserve safe, direct routes to wherever they happen to be going?

 

National

Bicycling reports Strava is now giving you even more data to obsess over. Or you could just, you know, enjoy riding your bike, instead. Read it on AOL this time if the magazine blocks you. 

Cycling Weekly says forget Amazon’s Big Spring Sale if you’re looking for good deals on quality bikewear, although you can find some deals on bike tech.

Bike Portland says a whopping 94.5% of women and non-binary bicyclists responding to a recent survey reported some form of traumatic harassment while riding on the streets. Which should be astonishing, but sadly isn’t. 

A Montana man says he hated ebikes, but using one to go elk hunting changed his mind. Although I suspect the elk might have a different opinion.

 

International

Cyclist considers the best titanium road and gravel bikes, as prices for Ti bikes continue to drop, while simultaneously going pretty damn far in the other direction, too.

Strong Towns examines how cold, hilly Montreal became a year-round bicycling success story.

With a timeline only Los Angeles could envy, Edinburgh, Scotland officially opened the city’s longest bike lane after a ten-year process, with a local councilor complaining that contractors had made a “pigs ear” of the installation work.

Manchester, England bike advocates are calling for the removal of new barriers recently installed to keep “antisocial motorcyclists” off a bridge forming part of the UK’s National Cycle Network, warning that the “unlawful, discriminatory” barriers would block access to anyone with a disability.

New hiking and biking trains will roll out of Prague to take bike riders and hikers to trails throughout the Czech countryside.

After nearly 60 years of riding, a 70-year old Gibraltar man calls for more bike lanes, as well as stricter regulation of e-scooters.

 

Finally…

Your next ebike could have an electronic crankset with an automatic transmission, and no chain or belt drive. That feeling when a groundbreaking rock opera becomes a Broadway musical because you fell off your bike.

And who needs a mountain when you’ve got an e-mountain bike in DTLA?

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

Oh, and fuck Putin

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

Bike the Vote today, DUI death of Master’s champ Boyes worth one lousy year, and LA approves $13m Mobility Hub contract

March 5, 2024 / / Comments Off on Bike the Vote today, DUI death of Master’s champ Boyes worth one lousy year, and LA approves $13m Mobility Hub contract
Just 301 days until Los Angeles fails to meet its Vision Zero pledge to eliminate traffic deaths by 2025.
So stop what you’re doing and sign this petition to demand Mayor Bass hold a public meeting to listen to the dangers we face walking and biking on the mean streets of LA.

Then share it — and keep sharing it — with everyone you know, on every platform you can.

As of this writing, we’re up to 1,006 signatures, so let’s keep it going! Urge everyone you know to sign the petition, until the mayor agrees to meet with us!

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It was a busy weekend in the bike world, so we’ve got a lot to catch up on.

But before we start, if you haven’t done it yet, find the ballot you got in the mail, fill it out, and drop it off at your nearest drop box. Or hop on your bike, and ride to the nearest vote center to cast your vote in person.

You can also get fare-free rides on Metro trains, buses and Metro Bike bikeshare today.

And if you live in the City of Angels, don’t forget to vote yes on Measure HLA, which will require the city to build out the Mobility Plan they already agreed to, before letting it gather dust on the shelf.

Lives literally depend on it.

If you need a little more guidance, you can find voter guides here from Streets For All, the Los Angeles Times and LAist’s Guide to the Voter Guides.

It’s okay, we’ll wait.

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While we’re waiting for everyone to get back, my brother Eric is headed east from San Dimas on Adventure Cycling’s Bicycle Route 66 today on his way to Las Vegas, and eventually on to Savannah, Georgia, after starting from Santa Monica on Sunday.

Let me give a shoutout to the folks at Trek Bicycle Beverly Hills, the former I. Martin on Beverly Blvd, for giving him an emergency valve repair Saturday to help get him on the road — and not charging a cent.

And no, they didn’t know who I am before doing it.

Then again, who does?

And if you’re hankering to follow my brother’s lead, National Geographic highlights five “stress-free and sustainable” US bike trails to ease you into bike camping.

Eric thanking Camden at Trek Bicycle Beverly Hills for fixing his tire

Loading the bigass touring bike his daughter had custom built for him

A very sad corgi watching her new favorite human disappear up the sidewalk

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An “incredulous” federal judge questioned a proposed plea deal in the death of US Masters Champ Ethan Boyes.

Prosecutors said they were nearing a deal on a one-year misdemeanor sentence for the drunken crash that killed Boyes in San Francisco’s Presidio Park, reducing the charges to one count of unlawfully killing a human being without malice and without gross negligence.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle,

“Isn’t being intoxicated gross negligence in itself?” the judge said, incredulous.

That question, (Assistant U.S. Attorney George) Hageman said, was “up for interpretation.”

The judge replied that interpreting the severity of the alleged crime was Hageman’s job as federal prosecutor…

Eighty-one-year old Arnold Kinman Low is currently facing one count of vehicular manslaughter and one count of driving under the influence of alcohol in the fatal crash.

Felony vehicular manslaughter and felony DUI causing death could result in a maximum sentence of 16 years behind bars, while dropping the DUI count could reduce it to just 12 months.

For killing someone while too drunk to drive in a straight line.

Allegedly.

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Los Angeles officials approved a five-year, $10 million contract with transit firm Tranzito to provide a series of integrated mobility hubs,

The firm will establish 13 of the centers throughout DTLA, Hollywood and Long Beach to provide “bike sharing, car sharing, secure bike parking and on-demand microtransit services” for first mile/last mile transportation from Metro  stations.

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This is who we share the road with.

This is who we share the road with, part two.

Missouri Governor Mike Parsons sent a clear message that driving drunk and severely injuring a little kid is just no big deal, celebrating the Kansas City Chief’s Super Bowl win by commuting the DUI sentence of former Kansas City Chiefs Assistant Coach Britt Reid, son of head coach Andy Reid.

So if you ever wonder why people keep dying on our streets, that’s Exhibit A.

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It’s now 76 days since the California ebike incentive program’s latest failure to launch, which was promised no later than fall 2023. And 33 months since it was approved by the legislature and signed into law — and counting.

Meanwhile, Pasadena is already launching its own ebike rebate, offering residents up to $750 for an e-cargo bike, or $1,000 for income-qualified residents.

So why is it taking California so damn long?

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

Momentum argues that anti-cycling zealots in Toronto would like to run over bicyclists just to save a little commuting time.

No bias here. An anonymous London school kid bemoans the “plagues of two-wheeled vermin” making them late for music lessons, but suggests the bright side to global warming is the torrential rains that free the road up for drivers.

And no bias here, either.

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

When you’re riding your bike in Capitola, California with an outstanding warrant while carrying meth and fentanyl, put some damn lights on it — and don’t try to pass yourself off as your sister.

A Madison, Wisconsin man was arrested for riding a stolen bicycle while on his way to the courthouse to be sentenced for a series of other burglaries — after he had already been banned from riding a bike.

When you’re carrying coke and a crack pipe on your bike in Kentucky, put some damn lights on it, already — and don’t jump off a roof to escape the cops.

An English town dealt with “anti-social cyclists,” as police responded to complaints from the public for such horrendous activities as riding without lights. Which isn’t exactly what I would describe as antisocial, but still. 

A clinically blind bicyclist in the UK was fined the equivalent of $253 for riding on a highway while “extremely” drunk, less than a year after he crashed into a passing car while riding under the influence. And giving a whole new meaning to being blind drunk.

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Local 

A homeless man in DTLA learns the hard way it ain’t easy to steal a robocab.

Ride On! Bike Shop/Co-Op founder Adé Neff describes how he was repeatedly stopped for Riding While Black in Beverly Hills because he “fit” a description of someone who had committed a crime. Read it on AOL if Bicycling blocks you.

The rich get richer, as Santa Monica pledges to improve its Vision Zero and Bike Action plans.

South Pasadena residents learn the hard way what happens when only seven people out of 104 bother to return a resident survey — and all of those ask for bike lanes on Grand Ave. And the city is apparently all out of temporary street paint. Thanks to Wesley for the heads-up.

Hermosa Beach is considering a proposal to geofence ebike rentals to prevent speeding on The Strand, as well as a proposal to ban ebikes entirely from the popular oceanfront walkway.

Long Beach plans to unveil a $60 million overhaul of Studebaker Road in East Long Beach to improve safety for pedestrians, bicyclists and, yes, drivers.

 

State

Caltrans is teaming with the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) to offer a new tool to address the inequitable distribution of transportation benefits and burdens, including mapping out crash rates.

Calbike promotes their upcoming Bicycle Summit Plenary in San Diego next month, saying it will promote the city’s bike cultures.

A California man rode 625 miles around Taiwan in twelve days, despite never riding for more than half an hour before his trip.

 

National

Road & Track offers the year’s best ebikes, as rated by Bicycling and reposted by AOL. Raising the question of why the hell does Bicycling even have a paywall?

Discover says ebikes may be expensive, but worth it for their health, equity and clean air benefits.

The case against a Salem, Oregon DEA agent for killing a woman on a bicycle after running a stop sign remains in legal limbo, pending an appeal to the Oregon Supreme Court over a decision to transfer the case to federal court, which would likely result in dropping the case.

Actor Matthew Modine leads a “ragtag” bicycle krewe to the Grand Canyon in the new fact-based dramedy movie Hard Miles.

A Colorado woman switched gears after a serious mountain biking crash, leaving her marketing job to become a nomadic artist.

Hoboken NJ credits removing parking spaces as one key factor for the city’s remarkable lack of traffic deaths for the last seven years.

Now you, too, can have a new limited edition DC-only Cherry Blossom Brompton.

Meet Charlotte NC bike lane sweeper Sweepy McSweepface.

A Georgia man was charged with hit-and-run for driving away after driving onto a sidewalk and leaving a 78-year old man riding a bicycle with life-threatening injuries, apparently while driving distracted.

 

International

London’s Evening Standard rates the best road bikes below £2,000 — the equivalent of $2,500.

Over 800 bicyclists took to the streets of London to call for safer infrastructure and streets for women bike riders.

Completing our London trifecta, a London business site questions whether the UK’s bike riders are really any safer after bike-friendly changes to the country’s Highway Code.

A campaign by disabled bicyclists in the UK tackles Shedgate, arguing that disabled riders should be allowed to build a bike shed in their front garden if they don’t have a back one, after several people were fined or ordered to remove them.

Over 35 percent the residents of Dutch cities Groningen and Amsterdam, and Copenhagen, Denmark ride a bicycle on a daily basis, compared to just 5% of Rome residents. Yet most American cities would be overjoyed by even the latter rate. 

Mumbai bicyclists plan a mid-March silent protest to demand safer streets for bicyclists, runners and pedestrians, in response to the bicycling death of former Intel India chief Avtar Saini, who is credited with the development of the Pentium processor; meanwhile, an Indian columnist calls for making the bicycling safe, for everyone’s sake.

An Aussie bicyclist credits his Apple Watch’s fall detection feature for saving his life after crashing with a ‘roo.

 

Competitive Cycling

Paris-Nice is already upon us, with American Matteo Jorgenson in 4th place, behind Laurence Pithie, Mads Petersen and Olav Kooij after three stages; Dutch cyclist Arvid de Kleijn got his first WorldTour win Monday, as his Tudor Pro Cycling team “broke their duck for 2024.” Which has to be one of the strangest terms I’ve heard in pro cycling, or anywhere else.

Evidently, the cycling world forgot the 2022 Strade Bianche, because history repeated itself with winners Lotte Kopecky and Tadej Pogačar once again winning the event two years later.

Giro and Dutch Team Visma/Lease a Bike have teamed for what has to be the weirdest looking, bizarrely futuristic aero bike helmet, which looks more like an AI rendering error.

NBA legend Reggie Miller may, in fact, be better on a mountain bike than you are, winning his first two races of the year this past weekend.

 

Finally…

Just because you’re legally required to wear a bike helmet doesn’t mean it can’t look like a dorky hat. That feeling when your bicycle looks like a bigass custom motorcycle.

And that feeling when it’s just a tad windy out there.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin

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

No charges for killing 2 AZ bike riders and injuring 19, more on charges in Boyes killing; and DUI murder in Solano County

December 1, 2023 / / One comment

It’s the First Day of the Last Month of the 9th Annual BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive!

We’re already way ahead of last year at this time, both in the number of donations and the amount of donations!

So please join me in thanking D-J H and Stephen H, who gave yesterday.

And each of the other 35 people who’ve so kindly opened their hearts and wallets to help keep Southern California’s best source for bike news and advocacy coming your way every day. 

So what are you waiting for? Give now!

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Rght after begging for your hard-earned money may not be the best time to mention that I’ll be tied up with a family matter over the weekend, so there won’t be a new BikinginLA post on Monday.

But we’ll be back bright and early on Tuesday to catch up on anything we missed over the weekend.

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You’ve got to be kidding.

Life is cheap in Arizona, where a Phoenix DA has declined to file felony charges against the driver who slammed into an entire group of bicyclists, killing two people and injuring 19 others.

Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell refused to file charges against 26-year old Pedro Quintana-Lujan, saying there was no evidence he was speeding, distracted or under the influence of alcohol, though he did still have cannabis in his system from the night before.

Because evidently, that’s the only way someone can be responsible for killing two innocent people, and mowing down a group of people on bicycles like an overgrown lawn.

Quintana-Lujan told investigators his steering locked up and he was unable to control his pickup, which was pulling a trailer at the time of the crash. Although you’d think a forensic examination of the truck would be able to determine whether that was true.

Mitchell tried to position her lack of action as a refusal to let the case go by referring it to the city prosecutor in Goodyear AZ, where the crash occurred.

However, that means Quintana-Lujan could be charged with just a misdemeanor, at best, making the whole damn thing just another fatal “oopsie.”

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More on the 81-year old driver charged with DUI and involuntary manslaughter for killing US Masters track champ and national record holder Ethan Boyes earlier this year.

San Francisco resident Arnold Kinman Low faces federal charges because Boyes was riding on Arguello Blvd in Presidio National Park when Low lost control of his car, and hit Boyes head-on as he rode in an unprotected bike lane.

In addition to the recently installed guard rails separating the bike lane from traffic lanes in the park where Boyes was killed, San Francisco has secured $1.2 million in funding to install protected bike lanes connecting Golden Gate Park and The Presidio.

Normally I say that once again raises the question of how old is too old to drive safely, but the allegation that Low was under the influence probably had more to do with his deadly driving skills than his advanced age, although there’s no word yet on just how drunk he was.

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A 47-year old Solano County driver faces a murder charge for the alleged drunken hit-and-run that killed a bike rider in Fairfield last year.

Witnesses testified at a preliminary hearing this week that Sean Richard Miron crashed into another vehicle as he fled the scene of the original crash, leaving Suisun City resident Christopher Blake Sudat lying in the roadway next to his shattered bicycle.

Miron was detained, along with his passenger, at the second crash, where officers said he appeared to be under the influence. Police also recovered a semi-automatic pistol with an illegal threaded barrel from Miron’s pickup, even though he was barred from having a weapon as a convicted felon.

He faces the murder count due to three prior DUI convictions, suggesting he likely signed a Watson advisement indicating he could be charged with murder if he killed someone while driving under the influence.

However, even without that, his prior convictions indicate he was well aware of the dangers of driving while intoxicated before he sat down behind the wheel that night.

Miron faces charges of murder, hit-and-run causing death, hit-and-run driving resulting in property damage, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of an assault weapon.

Then again, if Miron had been charged in Southern California, he could probably plead out on a misdemeanor and walk with time served.

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

A driver in Boston’s South End parked in the bike lane, leaving a note tucked under his windshield wiper reading, “I don’t care that I’m parked in a bike lane. Just go around me!!” To which bike-riding commenters to the local website responded both emphatically and poetically.

A “mean spirited” saboteur continues to put bike riders outside a London subway station at deliberate risk by tossing thumb tacks in a protected bike lane — and has somehow managed to go uncaught for the past two years. Although we can probably surmise that police indifference could be the likely cause for why they’ve gotten away with it so long.  

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

A Florida city manager is asking for the public’s understanding after he wrecked his bike following a night of drinking. Although I’d much rather see a drunk on a bicycle than behind the wheel of a multi-ton vehicle.

Scofflaw bike riders in Salisbury, England are accused of “endangering the public and traffic” by riding salmon on a one-way street, which local police called “incredibly dangerous.” Although how traffic can be endangered is beyond me. 

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Local 

Um, okay. The Journal of the Congress for the New Urbanism examines the successful Move Culver City project, calling the 1.3-mile bus lane and bike lane installation the first quick build Tactical Urbanism project in the Los Angeles area — without mentioning that the newly conservative city council voted to rip it out, or that the city is being sued to keep that from happening.

The San Gabriel Valley Tribune says freeway cams counted 45,000 people taking part in the all-too-brief Arroyo Fest that shut the Pasadena Freeway down to cars, and opened it up to people on foot, skates and bikes.

Pasadena police will mark today’s first day of December with a bicycle and pedestrian safety operation, ticketing anyone who commits a traffic violation that could endanger either group — even if it’s the bike rider or pedestrian who commits it. So as usual, ride to the letter of the law until you leave the city, or you could be the one who gets a ticket.

 

State

The California Coastal Commission is standing in the way of traffic safety in San Diego, stalling the installation of bike lanes on a deadly Point Loma roadway.

An emergency inter-agency operation was mounted to save the life of a mountain biker who suffered life-threatening injuries in the remote mountains of Boulevard, California last Friday, requiring the services of the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office, US Border Patrol, a San Diego Air and Marine Operations helicopter, and CalFire to bring the victim out to safety. So remote, in fact, that I’ve never hear of Boulevard before. 

A San Francisco bar owner blames the installation of the centerline Valencia Street protected bike lane for the demise of his 150-year old subterranean establishment, suggesting the loss of parking and reduced foot traffic resulted in an 80% drop in revenue. And not, a business model resulting in a bar that no one wants to go to if it means being slightly inconvenienced.

 

National

Bicycling reports that Portland’s MADE Bike Show will be back next year, promising to be even larger than this year’s 200 exhibitors and 5,000 attendees. As usual, read it on Yahoo if the magazine blocks you. 

An Arizona man reminisces about his life on two wheels, and dreams of coming back in the next life to live and ride in Amsterdam. But it’s the archival photo of young boys riding for Western Union that’s worth the click.

In a big win for injured bike riders, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that pedestrians and bicyclists must be covered by the uninsured motorist provision in their auto insurance if they’re stuck by an uninsured driver while walking or biking.

Call it the new normal. New York City landlords are banning ebikes from their properties to prevent fires, even though only certain lithium-ion batteries, or batteries with mismatched chargers, are at risk.

 

International

Momentum explains what daylighting intersections means, and how it enhances the safety of bicyclists. Governor Newsom signed a daylighting bill passed in the last legislative session, which will require open spaces on the curbs near intersections to improve visibility.

A 23-year old Florida woman thanked first responders in the Bahamas for saving her life after she rode her bike off an embankment in Walker’s Cay earlier this year, saying the moon and the stars aligned to enable her to survive.

A pair of London teenagers have been convicted of murdering an 18-year old man as he rode his bike to see his girlfriend; a then 14-year old boy, who can’t be named because of his age under British law, killed the victim with a machete in an apparent attempt to steal his bicycle.

While US traffic deaths continue to climb, Great Britain saw a significant decline in bicycling fatalities, with deaths dropping nearly 25% over the past year. Which is more evidence that the dangers on American roads are due to official indifference, as other nations show that reducing deaths is possible when they’re willing to make the necessary changes.

A new Dutch AI tool can demonstrate how any street or neighborhood can be made more livable and bike-friendly.

Professors at a Zurich, Switzerland university are investigating what changes would be required to the city’s streets to encourage more ebike riding than driving.

 

Competitive Cycling

GCN asks if the high cost of entry to cycling is killing the sport. Maybe at the highest levels, but you can spend as much or as little as you want and still compete, if you’re willing to build your own bike and do your own wrenching. 

Cycling Weekly talks with newly retired time trial specialist Alex Dowsett about the moment he realized cycling was his sport when he was just 14.

A top amateur cyclist says British Cycling’s recent ban on transgender athletes competing in women’s bike racing events makes the sport is less inclusive and welcoming than ever by denying the identity of trans women as women; 31-year old Josh Jones is believed to be the only openly gay rider to hold a world ranking in any cycling discipline

 

Finally…

It’s time for Santas and elves on bikes. Why wait to run down a bicycle when you can kill it and the entire bike corral it’s locked to?

And forget bike skills, they’re probably better with a basketball than you are, too.

Or me, anyway.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin

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

Elderly alleged DUI driver finally charged with killing national Masters champ Ethan Boyes, and Calbike talks ebike incentives

November 30, 2023 / / 3 comments

It’s Day 7 of the 9th Annual BikinginLA Holiday Fund Drive!

Thanks to Kathryn R, Kathleen S, Bryan B and Kent S for their generous donations to help keep all the best bike news and advocacy coming your way every day. 

So stop what you’re doing, and join them by giving now!

Besides, how can anyone resist this much AI-created bike-riding corgi cuteness?

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The alleged drunk driver who killed San Francisco cycling champ Ethan Boyes has finally been charged by federal officials.

The 44-year old national masters cycling champ was riding in the Presidio National Park when he was run down by 81-year old Arnold Kinman Low this past April.

Low is set to be arraigned Wednesday on charges of involuntary manslaughter and driving under the influence.

In addition to being an age-group national champ, Boyes held the national record for the “flying start” 500-meter time trial.

His death led to demands for protected bike lanes on Arguello Blvd in the park, where officials have recently narrowed traffic lanes and installed guard rails protecting bike lanes in response.

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Calbike posted video of a panel discussion on How Cities Can Incentivize Electric Bikes at October’s Micromobility America in Richmond, California.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlutblFt-dM

Which is yet another opportunity to mention that California’s ebike voucher program continues to suffer from a failure to launch, over a year after it was originally promised.

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I want to be like him when I grow up.

The latest BMX star on YouTube is just 71 years old. Then again, if he was any younger, he’d probably be on TikTok.

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

Once again, someone riding a bicycle has been intentionally injured by a driver in a stolen car, as security cam video showed a driver in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania deliberately ram a 72-year old man riding a bicycle, who escaped without serious injuries; the driver has been identified, but no word on whether charges have been filed. This appears to be part of a troubling nationwide trend, possibly inspired by a TikTok stolen car challenge.

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

A former British news producer and regular anti-bike crank has turned the tables on BBC host Jeremy Vine, who frequently posts bike cam video of scofflaw drivers, by recording video of lawbreaking bicyclists while out walking.

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Local 

Long Beach will stripe new and improved bike lanes on Alamitos Ave following a slurry sealing treatment scheduled to begin next week.

 

State

San Diego County received a $125,000 state grant to fund bicycle and pedestrian safety programs, ranging from social media campaigns to open streets events.

You can now check out ebikes from the public library in Santa Barbara for up to a week, giving borrowers a chance to try out the city’s e-bikeshare for free.

A San Francisco TV station reports on efforts to put age restrictions on throttle-controlled Class 2 ebikes, as 71% of Bay Area children who suffered bicycling injuries were hurt riding ebikes. Although that stat could just reflect the popularity of ebikes with kids under 18, and says nothing about whether the kids were on ped-assist or throttle-controlled bikes.

For a change, San Francisco Streetsblog says the Bay Area can learn from Los Angeles by imitating the recent Arroyo Fest, which shut down the Pasadena Freeway for a few hours to open it up to people on bicycles and on foot.

 

National

Streetsblog’s Joe Linton examines new bike infrastructure on a visit to Medford, Oregon, including the city’s first two-way protected bike lane.

A “cavernous” Salt Lake City bike shop is the new storefront for a statewide nonprofit dedicated to selling spare parts and refurbished bicycles to “provide self-reliant and independent transportation for people in need.”

The rich get richer. Long Island City in Queens, New York received three new protected bike lanes on Wednesday. Although the guy riding in icy temperatures in the photo is somehow choosing to ride in the buffer, rather than the actual bike lane. 

A New York TV station reassures viewers that ebikes are a safe holiday gift, despite the city’s well-publicized recent rash of ebike battery fires.

Doylestown PA is making a series of popup bike lanes permanent, after receiving “rave” reviews from the public.

Public schools in Florida’s Miami-Dade County are starting a pilot program to build bike lanes to help kids get to class safely in one of the nation’s deadliest counties for people on bicycles.

 

International

Road.cc says a gravel bike could be the ultimate winter bicycle.

Environmental activists in Plymouth, England are fighting plans for a proposed bike path through the center of the city that would require transplanting a half dozen trees that survived a recent “chainsaw massacre,” which saw the city chop down 100 trees earlier this year.

Momentum reports Paris is putting people — and bicycles — at the heart of the city’s ambitious new climate plan. Which is what cities that actually give a damn about the climate do, as opposed to just paying lip service to confronting the climate crisis like a certain SoCal megalopolis we could name.

French residents can now buy or lease a new bucket ebike from their friendly neighborhood Toyota dealer.

The Jerusalem Post offers the 23 best bike charities for 2023.

South Africa’s largest membership-based bicycling organization warned bicyclists to avoid crime hotspots and be careful when riding, as the country has seen a dramatic increase in violent crimes targeting bike riders.

Bicycling says the biggest challenge Italian ultra-adventure bicyclist Omar De Felice faces in his two month solo, unassisted bike ride across Antarctica is his own mind. Unfortunately, this one doesn’t seem to be available anywhere else, so you’re on your own if the magazine blocks you.

 

Competitive Cycling

New York City will host a one-day UCI men’s pro road race next May in conjunction with a previously scheduled gran fondo. But women cyclists need not apply.

 

Finally…

Add Tadej Pogačar’s actual 2023 time trial bike to your holiday wish list. Now you, too, can improve safety by adding a seat belt to your bike saddle.

And nothing like intentionally riding a perfectly good bicycle off a cliff.

………

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

Oh, and fuck Putin

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

Secrecy in Ethan Boyes death, DEA agent killed Oregon bike rider, and dangerous conditions on new SaMo bike lanes

June 6, 2023 / / 2 comments

My apologies if you received an incomplete, premature version of this post, after I inadvertently hit the Post button.

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Two month’s later, the driver who killed Master’s cycling champ and world record holder Ethan Boyes in San Francisco’s Presidio National Park has still not been identified.

And federal officials are being unusually tight-lipped about the case.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, a medical examiner’s report obtained through a public records request shows officials suspected his killer was under the influence at the time of the crash.

But there’s no word on whether the driver was tested, or whether he or she has been or will be charged with a crime.

The story also confirms that Boyes was wearing a helmet, which was shattered by the force of the impact, and that he died of multiple head and body injuries, suggesting he was hit at a high rate of speed.

Yet the ongoing secrecy raises inevitable questions of just who the driver was, and why the government is taking so long to release any information.

Photo by Artyom Kulakov from Pexels.

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Speaking of federal coverups, officials in Salem, Oregon kept in close contact with officials from the Drug Enforcement Administration after one of their agents killed Salem, Oregon woman as she rode her bike in March.

The local police went so far as to allow officials with the DEA to review a press release before it was given to the media, and secretly forwarded photographic evidence to the DEA.

Yet officials kept information about the crash from the public, despite appearing to be an open book to the feds, even though it was their own employee who was under investigation.

While there’s a case to be made for allowing the DEA to keep the identity of an agent under wraps, any further involvement in the investigation would in inappropriate under any circumstances.

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Mitchell Guzik writes to warn bike riders of dangerous conditions on Ocean Ave in Santa Monica, after he took a bad fall when he struck a newly installed curb, saying construction work that closed the bike lane means there’s no safe place to ride.

The street recently received a new curb protecting the two-way bike lane, but it doesn’t do any good if the bike lane is closed.

Although Guzik reports some people were riding in the closed bike lane anyway.

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The West Hollywood Bike Coalition will hold its monthly meeting tomorrow.

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

No bias here. A news site lists the dangers of ebikes, including a lack of licensing and registration, implying that they somehow should be.

No bias here, either. A La Jolla website suggests Encinitas residents are up in arms over the removal of parking spaces near Swami’s Beach to build bike paths and a walkway on the Coast Highway — even though the project actually adds 50 spaces a short walk away.

Australian bicyclists aren’t the least bike surprised by new research showing drivers see people wearing bike helmets and spandex as less than human. Thanks to Geri for the heads-up.

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

A London bike rider needed extensive surgery for a broken jaw after he crashed into a young girl walking in a crosswalk — not because he was injured in the crash, but because someone walked up to him afterwards and punched him in the face.

Several British bike riders were charged the equivalent of $625 in fines and fees after illegally riding their bikes through a pedestrian zone.

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Local 

Torrance has backed out of an agreement with Redondo Beach to build a network of bike paths throughout South Bay, after receiving opposition to a plan for a short connector bike path on Diamond Street, which will now stop at the city limit between the two cities.

 

State

Sadly, no surprise here, as Black residents of San Diego are four times more likely to be stopped by police while walking or biking as white people.

San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties are looking forward to the arrival of over 2,000 bicyclists later this week participating in the annual AIDS/LifeCycle fundraising ride between San Francisco and Los Angeles; the ride is raising $11.7 million for HIV and AIDS services in the two cities.

This is who we share the road with. A Bay Area man faces multiple charges for a South Bay crime rampage that included a series of carjackings, stabbings and deadly collisions across several cities and neighborhoods, leaving three people dead and five others injured.

 

National

PeopleForBikes offers the second part of a three-part series on the 15 best arguments to advocate for bikes and counteract anti-bike lane activists at your next public meeting; you can read part one here, while part three will be released tomorrow.

It could be a good time to shop for a bike, as American bike shops face a glut of bicycles as demand softens, except for gravel bikes and ebikes. Meanwhile, Axios offers advice on how to pick the right ebike with your rebate, assuming you can get one.

It turns out it was kindhearted Miami Dolphins offensive lineman Terron Armstead who donated a $5,500 ebike to a 14-year old St. Louis boy who walked two hours to attend his middle school graduation; the boy’s grandfather, who is raising the boy and his five siblings after their mother died, also received a new minivan from a local car dealer.

This is who we share the road with, too. A Missouri woman faces charges for the stoned crash that killed four motorcyclists on Saturday, including a 17-year old girl, when she jumped the center line and hit a group of ten motorcycle riders head-on after taking several anti-psychotic meds just hours before the crash.

A 15-year old Chicago boy took the stand to testify against a former police sergeant accused of pinning him down after falsely accusing him of stealing a bicycle.

A 26-year old man faces charges after swerving into a group of pedestrians and bike riders in New York’s Gramercy Park while allegedly under the influence, killing a 23-year old man and injuring three other people, one critically, while destroying two ebikes; the driver had a blood alcohol level of .08, just over the legal limit.

After Raleigh, North Carolina’s self-proclaimed “No-Hands King” disappeared from the streets, a reporter discovers he was busted for selling a half ounce of crack cocaine out of the back of his SUV; he was famed locally for riding shirtless, with nor hands, on one wheel of a cruiser bike festooned with American flags.

 

International

British Columbia’s new ebike rebate program received 12,000 applications within the first 24 hours; only the first 4,000 people with get a rebate now, while the other 8,000 will be waitlisted.

Unbelievable. Life is cheap in New Brunswick, Canada, where a 25-year old woman was sentenced to one year home vacation detention for the hit-and-run death of a 62-year old man — but she can leave home for work or school, to care for her daughter or go to medical appointments, or just run errands for four hours every Saturday. Meanwhile, her victim received the death penalty for the crime of riding a bicycle.

English bicyclists planned to take over all lanes of a major highway to demand a separate bikeway between two towns, while asking participants to leave their Lycra at home to demonstrate that the purpose of the bikeway would be for transportation, not for sport.

Life is cheap in the UK, where a 26-year old driver won’t spend a day behind bars for the hit-and-run crash that left a 10-year old girl with serious injuries when he jumped a red light, and slammed into her as she rode her bike home — and faced the equivalent of just over $1,100 in restitution.

Britain bikemaker and online retailer Planet X is going belly up, and will be dissolved in the country’s equivalent to bankruptcy court.

A British three-time cycling world record holder plans a 3,000-mile ride around the circumference of the country on a handmade bamboo bike to call attention to the climate crisis.

Nigeria’s Federal Road Safety agency recommended that residents of the country cope with rising gas prices by taking to their bicycles.

 

Competitive Cycling

A Danish triathlete relates what happened in the crash that killed a race moto driver during a German Ironman last weekend, explaining the victim hit a triathlete head-on in a section where competitors where riding in both directions on the roadway at speeds up to 30 mph.

The Netherland’s Mathieu van der Poel returns to racing after a two-month layoff, with plans to compete in the Tour de France, and both road and mountain biking at the world championships.

 

Finally…

Probably not the best idea to lead cops on a bike chase when you’re already wanted to failing to appear. When you’re riding your ebike carrying a meth pipe, it may not be the best idea to lead cops on a chase after threatening people with a knife.

And it’s definitely not the best idea to lead police on a wild two-and-a-half minute bicycle chase, before dropping your bike and violently confronting officers.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin, too.

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