Tag Archive for quick-build

CA legislature making bike-unfriendly sausage, and bike riders deserve more than bare minimum — but usually get it

Day 141 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

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The California legislature continues to make the sausage this year.

Or maybe not.

Momentum says California remains on-track for a “game-changing” new bike highways program.

Ventura Assemblymember Steve Bennett’s AB 954 would create a Caltrans pilot program in two parts of the state, instructing the agency to connect existing bikeways into bicycle highways.

If it passes, that is. Which is a big “if” right now, since it remains in the Appropriation Committee’s Suspense File.

Unfortunately, there’s no suspense about what happens if it doesn’t get out. Calbike has a quick email format to urge the committee chair to bring it up for a vote before it dies for this year.

Meanwhile, Calbike put out an urgent call to help get the Quick-Build Project Pilot Program out of committee before Friday, when it must either advance or die for the year.

Santa Monica Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur’s AB 891 instructs Caltrans to develop quick-build bike lane and intersection projects on state roadways to improve safety for people walking and on bicycles.

If it’s passed into law, Zbur’s bill would require that Caltrans speed up its glacial planning process, which can easily take years from inception to construction, no matter how desperately it’s needed.

Case in point, PCH, where we’re just now seeing a draft of possible improvements.

And possible improvements have never saved a single life.

Photo by Ján Števonka from Pixabay.

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He gets it.

Responding to the Boulder County, Colorado hit-and-run we mentioned yesterday, Velo’s Alvin Holbrook quotes The White Line Foundation in stressing that bicycling deaths are preventable.

Then he goes on to add,

Still, cyclists doing everything right can still be hit by a car. Reflective gear isn’t enough to prevent cyclists from being hit by cars, either.

Bike lanes are proven to make streets safer for everyone, and ensuring cyclists have proper infrastructure that protects them is the bare minimum.

Problem is, that’s exactly what too many places do, Los Angeles included.

The bare minimum.

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The annual Ride of Silence to remember fallen bicyclists will roll tonight, with local rides at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena (scroll down) and in Koreatown.

You can find other locations on the Ride of Silence website, though not every ride leader registers with the site, so there may be other rides in your area.

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Streets For All is hosting their monthly virtual happy hour tonight, with City Attorney candidate Marissa Roy.

Personally, I’m voting for ABHFS — anyone but current LA CA Hydee Feldstein Soto.

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

Despite pleading poverty, San Francisco wasted no time in ripping out DIY neighborhood-installed safety improvements along the city’s popular Wiggle bike route, including benches, bike racks and planters installed less than a month ago.

Hats off to New York Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, who is doing her best to keep the streets of Brooklyn deadly by personally blocking new bike lanes in the borough, despite the high rate of bicyclists killed or seriously injured in the district.

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

Sad news from the UK, where a man in his 60s died over a month after he was struck by an ebike rider after stepping out from in front of a bus while crossing the street.

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Local 

He gets it. Colin Bogart, Active Transportation Director at Pasadena nonprofit Day One, says if you saw an ebike going any faster than 28 mph, it’s not an ebike — even if it had pedals.

You’re invited to celebrate the grand opening of Long Beach’s Artesia Great Boulevard Project on the last day of this month, featuring “family-friendly activities, a ceremonial ribbon cutting and a community bike ride.” Although you wouldn’t think they’d make it so hard to find the damn date. 

Streetsblog examines the new sidewalk-level curb-protected bike lanes on Long Beach Blvd in the eponymously named city.

 

State

Newport Beach gave the boot to bicycles, ebikes, pedicabs and motorized bikes from the sand on the beach, as well as any other assorted bikes, boards and scooters.

New protected bike lanes in Vista are just the latest to cause controversy in San Diego County, where the media seems to search high and low for people hating on any new bicycling improvements.

Bakersfield’s triathlete-favorite Finish Line bike shop is just the latest in the state to go belly-up.

Both a sidewalk memorial and a crowdfunding page are growing for the Santa Barbara man killed by an alleged drunk driver while riding his ebike home from work Sunday night; 29-year old Joel Gonzalez leaves behind a nine-year old daughter.

Showing an unusual degree of spine, Caltrans put its foot down and is adamant that new protected bike lanes will remain part of the repaving project for the Bay Area’s Tiburon Blvd, despite predictable opposition from the Belvedere city council.

Sad news from Sacramento, where a 76-year old man died in the hospital, eight days after he was struck by a heartless, cowardly hit-and-run driver while riding his bike; a 29-year old suspect was booked and released following the crash.

 

National

The famed Mayo Clinic offers moderately useful tips on how to avoid injuries on your bike, including all-time favorites like wear a helmet and don’t fall off.

US Senate Republicans are prepared to ignore the chamber’s parliamentarian to overturn waivers granted to California by the EPA, which enable the state to regulate emissions and fuel efficiency for gas-powered cars, and could cause chaos for carmakers if they were cancelled.

A Chattanooga, Tennessee man faces attempted murder charges after he came to a woman’s apartment to return her bicycle, then stabbed her in the chest, palm and thigh when he refused to leave.

 

International

Sarah Ruggins, a Canadian woman living in England, succeeded in her attempt to set a new record for biking up and down the full length of the UK, riding 1,677 miles from John O’Groats to Land’s End and back in five days, 11 hours and 14 minutes, despite suffering from a rare neurological disorder that left her unable to walk as a teen.

Anyone know good lawyer in the UK? A British doctor reportedly gave “false, outdated and misleading” information to a colleague just days before a 13-year-old girl died of sepsis, more than a month after the girl fell off her bike, injuring her pancreas.

Heartbreaking news from Palestine, where a beloved member of the Gaza Sunbirds paracycling team was killed in an Israeli strike on Khan Younis, ten years after losing his leg in another Israeli bombing.

 

Competitive Cycling

Mexico’s Isaac del Toro spent a second day in the pink Giro leader’s jersey, as Dutch cyclist Daan Hoole upset overwhelming favorite Josh Tarling to win the stage 10 time trial. Something tells me I’ll smile just as big every other day del Toro leads the race, too.

The Tour de France’s final stage ascent of Paris’ famed Montmartre promises plenty of spectacle, if nothing else.

Watch the elite classes of this year’s 2025 Unbound Gravel for free on the Life Time Grand Prix YouTube channel.

 

Finally…

That feeling when Wired rates bike helmets, which is kinda like Bicycling rating rack servers. Or when you set off on a fundraising ride around the world with only the most essential gear — like your pickleball paddle.

And how to ride a bike with your dogs — and how not to.

I tried to ride a bike with our corgi, but her feet didn’t reach the stoker’s pedals.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin. 

New bill requires quick-build bikeways on CA highways, turns out swearing is damn good for you, and mind the bridge gap

Day 64 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025. 

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Maybe there’s hope for Caltrans yet.

That’s because a new bill introduced by Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur, who represents a sprawling district stretching from Santa Monica to Glendale, would require the agency to develop quick-build bike lane and intersection projects on state highways.

Streetsblog defines a quick build project as a “temporary, easily adjustable infrastructure improvement that can be installed rapidly using readily available materials,” installed as a pilot project to gauge community feedback, or as a temporary placeholder for a larger, more permanent project.

The point of the bill, AB 891, is to get something on the street quickly while reducing planning and engineering costs, rather than waiting years to go through the usual process that moves with the speed of a snail stuck in molasses.

According to Streetsblog,

Santa Monica has made use of quick-build projects on local streets in recent years. Some examples: the plastic-bollard parking protected bike lane on Broadway in 2023,  a series of Safe Routes to School’s Projects also in 2023, and the city is planning to use quick build for the East Pico Safety Project.

One example of a state highway that would benefit from this legislation is the Pacific Coast Highway, State Route 1. Following a high-profile fatal crash in 2023, the City of Malibu has worked with the state to change the character of the highway which currently features high speed limits, beautiful views of the ocean and mountains and high volumes of bicycle traffic.

We can only hope.

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Good news for all of us who struggle to control our language after getting cut off by a driver, or yet another too-close pass.

And by us, I mean me.

Because new research shows that swearing can increase hypoalgesia, aka improve your tolerance for pain.

Foul language has also been shown to improve physical strength, improve memory, bolster social bonds, and ease the pain of rejection.

So go the hell ahead and swear up a mother-effing blue streak.

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Finish The Ride is going back to the beach to finish the job they started.

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Clear your schedule this Sunday for the first ever Cargopalooza.

Weather looking good. Bring the family along the LA River Bike Path Sunday for our first Cargopalooza!@bikinginla.bsky.social @streetsforall.org @streetsblogla.bsky.social gravelbikecalifornia.com/cargopalooza…

CiclaValley (@ciclavalley.bsky.social) 2025-03-05T00:08:44.173Z

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Yeah, this British ad kinda gets the point across.

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

Bloomington, Indiana wants bike riders to stop not stopping, as the city council votes to re-install stop signs along a protected bike path, after they were removed because bicyclists complained about losing their momentum having to repeatedly stop while riding up and down hills. And because there was no reason to have them there in the first place, let alone the second place. Thanks to Ben Fulton for the heads-up

An Irish bike advocacy group highlights the anti-bike lies, exaggerations, misinformation and disinformation that local leaders take all too seriously.

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Local  

Pasadena explains California’s new Daylighting Law that prevents parking within 20 feet of an intersection, but doesn’t say when the city will begin enforcement.

Pasadena’s iconic Colorado Street Bridge will close to cars for a one-night party on July 19th, but you’ll need a ticket to take part.

 

State

San Diego will take advantage of a 2022 state law addressing “speed creep” due to the deadly 85th Percentile Law by reducing speed limits on 17 road segments.

 

National

A writer for Bicycling says modern bike computers can tell you everything but what time it is. This time you can read it on MSN if the magazine blocks you.

US bikemakers say if you want a bargain on a new bicycle, buy it now before Trump’s tariffs take hold.

Your next bicycling sunglasses could have a built-in dashcam and AI-powered heads-up display.

A Nebraska man traveled 400 miles to testify in support of a bill to stiffen penalties for drivers who kill bicyclists, after the drunk driver who killed his 76-year old father got off with a lousy year behind bars and a thousand dollar fine.

Georgia legislators apparently put more value on the wallets of drivers than the lives of school kids, as they push to ban speed cameras in school zones.

 

International

Canada’s National Observer say ebike sales are booming, and the country’s cities and laws need to catch up or squander the opportunity.

A new report says one out of every ten Lime bikes on London streets has bad brakes, which could be just a tad inconvenient.

A professional football, uh, soccer player for England’s third tier Mansfield Town appeared in court to plead guilty to killing a 33-year old man riding a bicycle by “careless or inconsiderate driving,” which has a maximum five-year sentence, then started a match for his team team just hours later.

Women now make up a quarter of the membership of Cycling UK, the country’s national bicycling nonprofit.

Residents of the Netherlands bought 858,000 new bicycles last year, a drop of 7% over the year before, while nearly half were ebikes.

A European environmental website profiles Olso, Norway’s cargo bicyclist, who traded his delivery truck for a box cargo bike.

Czech carmaker Škoda’s We Love Cycling website says you need a mountain bike to improve your riding skills.

 

Finally….

Your next e-foldie could fit in a suitcase. Who wouldn’t want purple bike brakes — or a Grateful Dead ebike, for that matter?

And that’s one way to open a gate.

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

Oh, and fuck Putin.