The Monday Roundup

The NTSB wants to see far fewer
of these in cars on U.S. roads.
(Photo: Will Vanlue)

Here’s the news that caught our eyes this past week…

– Oregon’s ban on cellphones use by motor vehicle operators may have been controversial at first, but now even the National Transportation Safety Board says that distracted driving is an epidemic that should be addressed with a ban on cellphone use in the car. During their announcement, distracted driving was compared to other public health dangers like drunk driving and smoking.

– If there’s anyone in your life who’s keenly aware of the dangers of distracted driving, they might night appreciate unwrapping the iDrive Steering Wheel Mount for iPad. Before you panic, the iDrive is nothing more than a prank gift consisting of a cardboard box covered in convincing, if unnerving, photos of people using their Kindles, iPads, and calculators on a steering wheel mount.

– After coming out as a “big, big, huge” supporter of the Columbia River Crossing highway expansion project, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood stopped in Chicago to announce a $20 million federal grant to make repairs to the Windy City’s rail network.

– One argument against using tolls and congestion pricing to reduce traffic in a city is that drivers will adapt to the fees and eventually go back to driving as much as they did before the fees were in place. Based on some numbers out of Sweden, that seems to not be the case. Not only does congestion pricing reduce congestion while winning over public opinion, the reduction in congestion is sustained long after fees were in place.

– The New York Times explains why, if congress doesn’t take action before the end of the year, federal tax incentives for driving to work will increase while incentives for taking public transit will nearly be cut in half.

– Even with the uncertainty of federal tax credits, USA Today reports on a drop in the mileage driven by Americans in 2011. They point to the economy and gas prices as the likely cause, but others believe the connection may simply be a result of younger people not wanting to drive as much.

– Like many cities in the U.S., Washington D.C. has a gender gap in the people who ride bikes in the city. Recently a group of women met up to discuss the problem with some saying that cultural norms in bike shops and at home are to blame for much of the gap between women — who make up only about a third of the city’s bicycle riders — and men.

– Bend, Oregon resident Sara Salo is out on a bike ride to encourage children to eat healthy, locally grown food. Now 10 months and 2,000 miles into her journey, Salo has made her presentation at elementary, middle, and high schools around Oregon, California, Arizona, and New Mexico and heads to Texas soon.

– The Blue Ridge Parkway, a highway running through Roanoke, VA, may be reclassified as “as a traditional, self-contained, scenic recreational driving experience.” People who ride their bicycles along the road are naturally concerned that this will diminish their status on the popular route, a trend that allegedly is starting with the behavior of some Park Service employees who oversee sections of the highway.

– Citing budgetary concerns coupled with high projected maintenance costs, Detroit is swapping out an expensive proposal for a light rail project for less expensive Bus Rapid Transit routes. The switch is seen as a defeat in many circles but StreetsBlog reminds us that a BRT system in Cleveland, Ohio has already been a draw for commercial development.

– Bus Rapid Transit may be a good addition to a city but people in the city of Bristol in the U.K. are fighting back against a push for a popular route for bicycle to be torn up to make way for a BRT route. The Bristol Bike Path is a safe, direct route for people on bicycles to access the city and ridership on the path has been steadily increasing since it was built.

– The Atlantic Cities looks closely at why Tea Partiers often oppose urban planning projects. Their conclusion is that, although some of the arguments against the projects seem rational, most of their efforts are an attack on the process of public feedback itself instead of discussing the merits of each project.

– Popular culture paints the future as a place with increasingly speedy traffic but citizens and city planners alike are starting to realize a successful “city of the future” may operate slower than we assume, with a lot more bicycles and pedestrians than you see in The Jetsons.

– Concerns are being raised about the cost bicycle and pedestrian path being planned for the west span of the Bay Bridge. Figures for the planning and construction of the path pale in comparison to costs associated with motor vehicle-specific projects and members of the “savvy bicyclist lobby” are hoping the path will allow people to safely travel on their bicycles between Oakland and San Francisco.

– Are cities like Portland and Minneapolis, MN “at a tipping point” in the number of people who chose to ride a bike? One journalist at Minneapolis’ Star Tribune thinks so after seeing a 22% jump in bicycle ridership in their city.

– When you’re shopping for bike gear this holiday season, remember that the “Made in China” sticker may be a sign of high-quality manufacturing — at least according to this article from Rapha.

– And with only six more days until Christmas, if you haven’t done so already, you may want to bring home a Christmas tree on your bike.

Did you find something interesting that should be in next week’s Monday Roundup? Drop us a line.