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Elly Blue (Columnist)

Elly Blue has been writing about bicycling and carfree issues for BikePortland.org since 2006. Find her at http://takingthelane.com

Stories by Elly Blue (Columnist)

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The Monday Roundup

[Publisher’s note: Thanks to the non-profit Community Vision and their annual Harvest Century (October 8th) for support of the Monday Roundup! – JM.] Here’s the news that caught our eye this week: – “Why are American’s driving less?” asks the Washington Post/Bloomberg business blog. It’s important food for thought for transportation planning. – A new … Read more


The Monday Roundup

[Publisher’s note: Thanks to the non-profit Community Vision and their annual Harvest Century (October 8th) for support of the Monday Roundup! – JM.] Here’s the bike news from around the world that caught my eye this week: – The ban on bicycling in the casino town of Black Hawk, Colorado is now headed to that … Read more


Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The Monday Roundup

Here’s the news from around the world that caught my eye in the last week: – A look at the Slow Bike Movement, which means not just riding slowly, but purchasing a slow bicycle. – No slow bicycling here: A profile of a new bike courier company in bike-unfriendly Indianapolis. – A new report shows … Read more


The Monday Roundup

Here’s the bike news from around the world that caught my eye last week: – Oregon is home to a thriving artisan bicycle building economy, but it’s hard to make a living that way. – A Sunday Opinion piece in the New York Times reflects on why America is so “manacled to the car” while … Read more


Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The Monday Roundup

Here’s the bike news that caught my eye in the past week: – In Toronto, a thousand people turned out on bikes to protest the planned removal of a bike lane on a major street. – Los Angeles has passed a law that makes it illegal to physically or verbally harass anyone who is riding … Read more


Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The Monday Roundup

The bikes won! (see first item for explanation) Here’s the bike news from around the world that caught our eye this week: – First, the fun news. LA’s much hyped freeway closure this weekend resulted in traffic free streets throughout the city — and a friendly, ad hoc race between contestants traveling across the city … Read more


Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The Monday Roundup

“Who said riding a bike had to be a white thing?” Here’s the bike news from around the world that caught my eye this week: – As LA braces for the “Carmageddon” freeway closure next weekend, Santa Monica lifeguards have a different kind of traffic complaint — bumper-to-bumper bike traffic on the beachfront path. – … Read more


The Monday Roundup

Special Tuesday double edition! Here’s the bike news from around the word that caught my eye in the last two weeks and one day: – A new study finds that cities with a high rate of bicycling enjoy safer streets — and not just for people on bicycles. – Some parts of London now have … Read more


Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The Monday Roundup

A design student claims that a bike helmet made of corrugated cardboard can outperform the regular helmets you buy at the store. Here’s the bike news from around the world that caught my eye this week: – As gas prices rise, many are taking up bicycling to save money — even in small towns and … Read more


Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The Monday Roundup

NYC Is buzzing about an incident involving a skirt.(Photo © J. Maus) Here’s the bike news from around the world that caught my eye in the last week: – What do you do if your city isn’t home to a summer season of grassroots bike fun, like Portland’s Pedalpalooza, Vancouver B.C.’s Velopalooza, and now Calgary’s … Read more


Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The Monday Roundup

Here’s the news that caught my eye this week: – Hangzhou, China boasts the largest bike sharing system in the world, with 50,000 bicycles and strong integration with public transit. – Bicycle transportation is hardly the proprietary realm of creative class residents of gentrified inner cities–in fact, bicycling has a rich heritage all over the … Read more


Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The Monday Roundup

Here’s the news that caught our eye this week: – In Mexico City, the year-old bike sharing system ECOBICI is at capacity with a waiting list for memberships, and is said to have contributed to a 50% jump in ridership of privately owned bikes. – Jakarta, Indonesia gets its first bike lane, and 5,000 people … Read more