Day 234 of LA’s Vision Zero failure to end traffic deaths by 2025.
………
No surprise here.
A petition to oppose the redesign of deadly Fountain Ave in West Hollywood has over 2,300 signatures, proving once again that some people will always value their own convenience more than human lives.
Although that represents less than seven percent of the city’s population. And many of those signers are likely pass-through drivers from other cities, who are used to using the neighborhood street to bypass busier Santa Monica and Sunset Blvds.
Never mind that it has taken nearly a full year to draw those relatively few signatures.
But according to the somewhat less than unbiased WeHo Times,
Petition organizers argue Fountain is too narrow for the project and accuse city leaders of failing to adequately consult with residents, including those in adjacent Los Angeles neighborhoods. They point to other cities, including Culver City, Beverly Hills and South Pasadena, that have scaled back or removed bike lanes in response to public opposition.
Concerns listed in the petition include the diversion of an estimated 900 cars per hour to nearby Santa Monica and Sunset boulevards, the inability for cars to pull over for emergency vehicles or passenger drop-offs, and increased pollution from idling traffic. The project’s estimated cost is $35–40 million.
Not mentioned, however, are any benefits of the redesign, from slowing speeding drivers and improving safety for all road users to reducing noise pollution and revitalizing the residential corridor.
Nor is there any mention of the recent death of Blake Ackerman, who was killed by a hit-and-run driver while riding his bike home from work on Fountain just last month. Or any of the other people who have been killed or seriously injured just walking, biking or driving on the corridor.
There’s also no mention that both the sheriff’s department and the county fire department said the redesign would not affect their ability to respond to emergencies along the corridor.
A petition in support of the street makeover has gathered 612 signatures since it was posted in October. And yes, that includes mine.
There’s no mention of that, either.
Photo of protestors opposed to Fountain safety project by Joe Linton for Streetsblog.
………
No bias here.
After Pasadena’s mayor said he can’t see anyone riding bicycles on Union Street, a volunteer with the Pasadena Complete Streets Coalition planted tongue firmly in cheek, and conducted his own highly scientific study.
According to Jonah Kanner’s highly entertaining piece, bicyclists may be using advanced technology, such as an alien cloaking device, to remain hidden from view.
Mayor Victor Gordo, in January, 2024, noted that he is unable to see the cyclists, saying “… we’ve gotta be careful about that, now that we’ve seen what’s happening on Union Street. We were told there would be hundreds and thousands of bicyclists going back and forth—that’s— that’s not what we’ve seen.” Also tricked by the advanced technology, Pasadena Chamber of Commerce CEO Paul Little told the Planning Commission in July, 2025, “As we see with Union Street, the installation of millions of dollars in signals, curbs and re-striping has not significantly increased bicycle usage there.”
A recent study used sophisticated measurement techniques to reveal the invisible cyclists: the author stood on the corner of Lake and Union Street for about 20 minutes holding his phone. In that time, he was able to photograph more than 30 people riding bikes, both on the Union Street bike path and on Lake Avenue. Statistical analysis suggests that over the course of a whole day, a lot of people are riding bikes on Union Street.
Let’s not forget that the city is home to Caltech and a stone’s throw from the Jet Propulsion Lab. So advanced tech is not entirely out of the question.
Although based on the reaction from drivers, I seem to have been using some form of it since I bought my bike back when Reagan was president.
………
California Streetsblog editor Damien Newton says Angelenos are crying out for safe streets.
But he asks if anyone is listening, noting that eight appeals have already been filed against the city for failing to observe the requirements of Measure HLA, which mandates that the city mobility plan must be built out when streets are resurfaced or significantly re-striped.
The appeals, nearly all for missing crosswalks, come on the heels of the saga of the Stoner Park crosswalks where advocates painted crosswalks around the park, two of which were on a “Slow Street,” the city removed the crosswalks, and after bad press and intervention from the local City Councilmember re-installed the crosswalks. While it’s encouraging that in the end the crosswalks were installed, it shouldn’t be this hard.
In March of 2024, voters passed Measure HLA which required the city to implement its own mobility plan when completing repaving projects of a certain size. The popular measure received a majority of votes in all fifteen council districts while cruising to an easy victory. Since then the city dragged its feet, and nearly a year and a half after the measure was passed the city’s implementation ordinance went into effect on Monday. So did the ability of residents to appeal out-of-court if they believe the city is failing to implement the law.
It’s a good question, even though Los Angeles voters passed HLA with a two-thirds margin.
You would think that after that meany LA voters voiced a strong preference for safer and more livable streets, city leaders would be quick to respond.
But evidently, you’d be wrong.
………
The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
Here’s a new one. Welsh residents opposed plans for a newly approved bike path because it would a) disturb a territorial dog, leading to excessive barking, and b) force the removal of a van that’s been parked in the area since 1990.
………
Local
No news is good news, right?
State
The US head of Upway says California’s clean energy push is leaving low-income residents behind, even though ebikes and e-scooters are among the cleanest and least expensive transportation modes.
Yorba Linda is just the latest Orange County city to crackdown on ebike riders.
San Diego bike riders will have their annual opportunity to ride around the bay and across the San Diego-Coronado Bay Bridge when Bike the Bay returns this Sunday.
Sad news from Kern County, where an 81-year old man was killed by a driver while riding his bike on Tehachapi’s Highline Road yesterday morning.
San Francisco’s experiment with a carfree Market Street will come to an end next week, when the city will allow Waymo, Uber and Lyft to pick up and drop off passengers, in a move strongly opposed by local advocates.
National
Streetsblog’s Talking Headways Podcast speaks with NACTO Executive Director Ryan Russo about how to design and deliver bike networks.
The semi-legendary Tour de Fat returns to my bike-friendly Colorado hometown this weekend for the annual celebration of bikes and beer.
A Denver TV station listens to the concerns of regular bike riders and advocates, after reporting on the dangers faced by vulnerable road users in the Mile High City. So when was the last time a Los Angeles TV station did anything like that? Bueller? Bueller?
Perhaps taking a cue from LA’s successful Streets For All PAC, Chicago’s new Bike PAC political action committee launched to elect pro-bike candidates to the city council.
A 14-year old Miami e-dirt bike rider will face charges for riding without a license after killing a 54-year old man riding a bicycle last Friday.
International
Momentum takes another look at some of the world’s worst bike lanes.
A Toronto petition is calling for local venues to allow bike riders to bring their helmets into concerts and sporting events, without charging bag check fees up to $20.
Life is cheap in the UK, where a garbage truck driver walked without a day behind bars for killing an 11-year old boy riding his bike to school, after admitting to using his phone several times while driving prior to the crash.
Twenty-five percent of bike theft victims in England and Wales gave up bicycling completely after their bikes were stolen.
Turns out that the “incremental gains” theory developed by British cycling coach David Brailsford can help ranchers squeeze out a few more bucks in profit.
Police in the Netherlands are looking for a possible bike-riding suspect in the brutal murder of a 17-year old girl as she rode her bike home from a night out.
Another one bites the dust, as the Polish parent company of gravel bike brands Rondo, Creme Cycles, NS Bikes and Octane One has filed for bankruptcy after two to three “really tough years.”
The LCR Honda racing team will be down one rider at this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix, after Spanish motorcycle racer Aleix Espargaro injured his back in a bicycle crash.
The Indian city of Chandigarh discovered the hard way that using paving stones on cycle tracks isn’t compatible with heavy rain storms.
Competitive Cycling
Cyclist looks at the six Americans and two Canadians who will take part in the Vuelta, starting tomorrow.
Despite retiring last year while under investigation, French cyclist Franck Bonnamour was banned for four years, after the 30-year old former most most combative rider at the Tour de France showed signs of doping on his biological passport.
The co-founder of Formula Fixed wants to bring bike racing into the TikTok era, with stops including the District of Columbia, San Francisco and, yes, Los Angeles.
Mountain biker Ryan Standish makes a second attempt at setting the fastest known time from Fruita, Colorado to Moab, Utah along the Kokopelli and White Rim Trails after failing last year, traveling 310 miles with 26,000 feet of climbing through stunning desert landscapes.
Finally…
A new Ti bike could be yours for the low, low price of just 24 grand. Now you, too, can turn your expensive racing bike into a cargo bike.
And anyone can ride a century facing forward — so try doing it backwards.
………
Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.
Oh, and fuck Putin.
