The lesson for cyclists in new awareness test videos is: if you behave in unexpected ways, you probably won’t be seen. Several new videos have been released by the creators of the Dancing Bear video. I suspect you remember that one, I think every cyclist in the world saw it. I wrote a post...
Read More »
My rat-path routes from home to the office are familiar and tame. I live within the core where there are many options, speeds are lower and motorist expectations are reasonable. There are very few trouble spots (places where motorists can sometimes be pissy). I even have work-around routes for those, to use on days...
Read More »
Last Sunday, over 1,000 people biked, walked, ran and skated on car-free streets in downtown Miami — Ciclovía-style. Bike Miami is an initiative by City of Miami Mayor Manny Diaz to promote bicycling, liveable streets and the growing urban neighborhood of Downtown Miami. Because of the success and enthusiasm of participants, Miami will be...
Read More »
I read with interest a Chain Gang article on how bike sharing is taking off in Europe. While I was thinking about how this might work in certain American cities, it was the last paragraph that really caught my attention. “The critical mass of bikes on the road has pacified traffic,” said Gilles Vesco,...
Read More »
Following are photos of what happens when governments, planners and cycling advocates lose sight of the safety and well-being of cyclists in their quest to promote cycling (or to appear to be “accommodating” cyclists). This IS the natural end result of the current facilities-first, cycling advocacy paradigm. It is what the mindless clamoring for...
Read More »
According to Politico.com, Oregon’s Earl Blumenaur and Minnesota’s Jim Oberstar are on the short list for US Secretary of Transportation. Both are avid cyclists and long-time proponents of federal cycling programs. Oberstar is already in line to become the chair of the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee. I’ve also heard that Obama himself, while...
Read More »
A freeway entrance can create an intimidating road configuration for cyclists. It often involves a long right lane which diverges into an on-ramp. Cyclists operating with a typical far-right-curb bias can find themselves suddenly cut off by high-speed, right-turning traffic. Some will ride a foot to the right of the thru lane, blocking the...
Read More »
This is an article about REI’s new website called Bike your drive. A quote from the article: “REI continues to see increased interest in using bicycles to get to work, the coffee shop or just for running errands around town,” says Brian Foley, REI’s product manager for cycling. “You don’t have to wear spandex...
Read More »
Photo by Keri I dream that some day this gentleman will feel comfortable, safe and welcome riding on the road with his dogs, his kids or a load of groceries. It is already safe to ride on the road—far safer than the sidewalk—no matter your cargo. But people can’t get their heads around that...
Read More »
So, being a good treehugger, I strapped our old, busted (the tree-trimming crew dropped a limb on it) TV antenna to Lakshmi for a trip to the metals recycling company on Kaley near Division. But when I pulled up to the gate, the attendant told me they cannot take anything but aluminum cans from...
Read More »
