with a little “urban hacktion.”
(Photo: Will Vanlue/BikePortland)
Here’s the news and other cool stuff that caught our eyes this past week…
– An “expert cyclist” was struck by a 17-year-old driving a car in Bethlehem, PA. When the teen tried to flee the scene his escape was stopped by a quick-thinking bus driver and another witness to the crash.
– A man riding a bicycle in San Francisco allegedly plowed into a crowd of pedestrians, causing the death of a 71-year-old, then later took to the internet to confess the details of the crash.
– Seattle’s Bill Nye the Science Guy thinks the city of the future will be a bike-friendly one, including “bicycle arterials” that protect people on bikes from weather and propel them with artificial tailwinds.
– Evanston, IL (a suburb north of Chicago) is getting its own protected bike lane to connect its downtown to the lakefront.
– Politifact Oregon looked into a statement made by light rail booster and mayoral candidate Charlie Hales that streetcars beat buses in ridership, capacity, and cost. Their conclusion? He’s right.
– Washington County was recently ranked as the second healthiest county in Oregon coming in behind Benton and ahead of Clackamas (4th) and Multnomah (14th) Counties.
-Tom Vanderbilt took to Twitter to see if there really are people stuck in traffic on the way to ride a stationary bike, as Earl Blumenauer has famously suggested (turns out there are!).
– Brompton is showing “an increased level of confidence” in the market for folding bikes in North American and they’ve opened a new office right here in Portland.
– Another major bike brand headquartered in Portland, Rapha, was the subject of an article in The Oregonian’s ‘Playbooks and Profits’ column. The story chronicles Rapha’s rise, current success, and outlook for the future.
– One mom discovered how a few supervised, controlled, very low speed crashes can be a useful educational tool.
– People on bikes in Pennsylvania can breathe a little easier now that a state law requires people in motor vehicles to give at least four feet when passing.
– The “bike contingent” in San Diego, CA is becoming more active in local politics and candidates are beginning to pay attention.
– Stephanie Edman from Sweatpea Bicycles helped Treehugger address the question: “Are female city cyclists’ vulvas at risk?”
– Breaking traffic laws on a bicycle is monkey business in this short film from 1952 (the monkey gets on a bike around the 2-minute mark).
– A computer scientist introduced a new wireless braking system that “works with 99.9999999999997 percent reliability.”
– Two “urban hacktions” show how to turn bike parking into an outdoor chair or a make-shift gym.
– The City of Minneapolis released two PSAs explaining how to ride and drive on streets with new pavement markings. Check out their take on shared bike lanes in the video below:
– This week’s dose of Netherlands-envy comes via video from Hertogenbosch. It shows 25 low-stress crossings for people on bikes highway over one major highway…
– And finally, check out this amazing photo of what appears to be a praying mantis riding a tiny green bicycle (found via Popperfont):
Did you find something interesting that should be in next week’s Monday Roundup? Drop us a line. For more great links from around the web, follow us on Twitter @BikePortland.