Day: October 2, 2008
Manifest preview: Neal Fegan of Montana Transit Authority
View slideshow below
(Photos © J. Maus)
A small victory in the war of perception
The BTA’s Government Affairs Director Karl Rohde and I have something in common; we can’t stand the outdated perception (held by all too many legislators and decision makers) that bikes are simply a means of recreation and that funding bike infrastructure is some sort of frivolous, non-essential expenditure.
Mr. Rohde is on a crusade of sorts to rid politicians of that notion. Part of the legislative package he’ll fight for in Salem next session will be a resolution that tries to re-frame “bike funding” and “bike trails” as “non-motorized transportation funding” and “non-motorized transportation corridors” respectively.
Another front in his campaign is simple propaganda.
Bike-mounted State Trooper pedals down reckless driver
Here’s an unusual bike story that just landed in my inbox from the Oregon State Police.
“The incident happened Wednesday, October 1st, in Salem at about 1:00 p.m. when OSP Trooper Perry Rhoades was patrolling the Capitol Mall area on a bicycle and spotted a 1997 Ford four-door drive recklessly near the State Capitol building nearly striking pedestrians in a crosswalk on Court Street near Winter Street.
Trooper Rhoades caught up with the car and made several attempts to get the driver to stop, including riding alongside the driver’s door and ordering the female driver to stop. The driver, identified as SUZANNE L. FUTRELL, age 44, from Dallas, refused to stop and yelled through her rolled up window she didn’t do anything wrong.
UPDATED: Senate sweetens bailout bill with Bike Commuter Act
[See below for updates: Hint, Blumenauer is saying he won’t support the bailout package.]
“The (bailout) bill now includes a… tax benefit for bicycle commuting sought by Rep. Earl Blumenauer, an Oregon Democrat, also a “no” vote on Monday.”
— from an article in the Baltimore Sun
Hoping to garner votes from House members who previously voted “no” on the $700 billion financial bailout package, the U.S. Senate has added several sweeteners to the bill (now known as the “Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008”).
Among those enhancements (according to this article in the Baltimore Sun) is the Bike Commuter Act, a piece of legislation championed by Rep. Earl Blumenauer for many years. Blumenauer voted “no” on the bailout on Monday and the move by the Senate is being done in hopes to turn that into a “yes”.
Facing “financial obstacles” Jorg & Olif looks for investor
The founders of Jorg & Olif, a company that was around at the inception of the Dutch Bike Invasion in America, have announced that they’ll sell off the company if they don’t find an investor.
In a statement posted to their website on September 16th, co-founders Rob MacDonald and Jane Cox wrote that their company, “faces some financial obstacles that need immediate attention” and that “Without new capital injection, the partners are considering new paths.”