The Monday Roundup

David Byrne discusses NYC’s
upcoming bike share program
in the Sunday New York Times.

We hope everyone takes time today, on Memorial Day, to remember those who have served our country.

Once you’ve done that, have a read of the top news and other cool stuff that caught our eyes this past week…

– If you’re out riding today you might want to be extra-vigilant; it turns out more people run red lights while driving a car on Memorial Day than on other comparable days.

Three new routes in the US Bicycle Route (USBR) system were approved and received their official designations: USBR 35 in Michigan, USBR 45 in Minnesota, and a realignment for USBR 1 in North Carolina.

– A study from the Brookings Institue has found real estate values are higher in neighborhoods which are more accesible to walking, biking, and taking transit and the study has already received attention from The New York Times.

– There’s continued pressure to eliminate funding for bicycle and pedestrian programs in the transportation bill from some tea party-backed members of congress.

– Have you heard people say the Keystone XL pipeline, which some want to cram into the transportation bill reauthorization, will make gas cheaper? It turns out a report says the pipeline mega-project could easily raise the price of oil in the United States.

– Also in transportation bill news, the Freight Stakeholders Coalition is asking the federal government to spend $2 billion on “improving freight mobility.”

– One job training program in Eugene is putting veterans back to work in local bike shops.

– The economy is recovering slowly but some businesses in Oregon, including bike shops, are seeing consistent, steady growth.

– Saving on gas can really add up: new statistics show people who ride bikes in the United States collectively save at least $4.6 billion a year.

– Neighbors in Wisconsin have successfully delayed a freeway expansion project that would have severed land on local farms.

– A safe-passing bill under consideration in California doesn’t go far enough to fully protect people on bicycles according to an opinion in the Los Angeles Times, despite receiving sponsorship from Democrats and support from the city of L.A.

– A woman was reunited with her missing childhood bicycle and some of the recent reporting on her story is gaining attention in its own right.

PinkBike sat down with renown local manufacturer Chris King to talk about how Chris King Components got started and takes a look at the life of a Chris King hub from raw material to finished product.

– Portland’s own April Streeter has a new book out titled “Women on Wheels: A Handbook and How-To for City Cyclists.”

– A charter school in Gilbert, Arizona (named a bicycle-friendly community by the League of American Bicyclists) provides no transportation options for students yet has barred students from riding a bike to school and requires a signed waiver if they want to walk to school alone.

– Musician and bicycle advocate David Byrne shares his perspective on New York City’s upcoming bike share program.

– In another take on NYC’s impending installation of bike share, The Atlantic Cities asks if the program will mean fewer helmets and more crashes.

– For another look at bike sharing, have a look at Tel Aviv’s “Tel O Fun” bike share system.

– A woman has died after being struck by a person driving a car only a few miles from the scene of a collision that killed her husband in 2008.

– A French-language bicycle blog takes a look at Portland, tracing the history of bicycling in our city and comparing us to bicycle-friendly Copenhagen.

– The “psychology of sharing the road” is deep and complex according to GOOD‘s Lifestyle Editor.

– A new bikeway proposed for Los Angeles is under attack because opponents say it violates environmental laws and because some of the trail’s alleged side-effects like “traffic congestion and other environmental impacts” haven’t been fully studied.

– The Cascade Bicycle Club has announced they will be training 15 people to “effectively create an advocacy campaign that gets results” this summer through the Advocacy Leadership Institute.

– Parents of a young man who died when an open car door forced him into traffic say a stronger deterrent is needed to prevent similar accidents.

– Some say there’s a “war between bikes and cars” but one reporter in Toronto says if there is any “war” it’s more like “a skirmish between a weak civilian milita and a military giant.”

– Some accident reports describe cars as if they drive themselves but that may become reality now that autonomous-car legislation, supported by Google, has passed in California’s senate with unanimous support.

– Blind spots in cars are getting more attention, this time from USA Today, which takes a look at the “most dangerous blind spots in cars.”

– Despite Portland’s recent gains in national bike-friendliness ratings, the League of American Bicyclists named Washington the bike-friendliest state in the nation.

– Alan Oakley, the designer of the iconic Raleigh Chopper, passed away recently and The Sun took a look at his iconic bicycle “that defined a generation.”

– Last week huge crowds turned out for Atlanta Streets Alive, the semi-annual car-free event put on by the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition.

– A study from UCLA finds men who ride regularly are more likely to produce higher levels of estrogen.

– And finally, did you forget your bike lock? That’s not a problem if you’re a police officer.


— 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.

Thanks for reading.

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9watts
9watts
12 years ago

Ironic? Memorial day = death by red-light-running drivers?

From the article:
“In 2009, the most recent year for which numbers are available, 676 people were killed and roughly 130,000 were injured in crashes that involved that moving violation, says Russ Rader, spokesman for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Often, the person killed is not in the car that sped through the intersection, Kelly says.”

Amanda Fritz, are you reading this?

wsbob
wsbob
12 years ago
Reply to  9watts

Example of a USA Today story typically written with an inflammatory bent. Its’ opening line:

“When it comes to folks running red lights, Memorial Day weekend could be more dangerous than any other holiday.”

A suggestion the paper and the writer doesn’t support in the story itself. The story doesn’t compare Memorial Day red-light running to other holiday red-light running, but simply to red-light running “…on an average non-holiday weekend.”.

are
are
12 years ago

the LATimes editorial actually does support the three-foot passing bill, albeit grudgingly. the existing california statute requires a safe passing distance. the three-foot passing bill jerry brown vetoed last year also required that the motorist pass at no more than 15 mph, which he said could cause rear-end collisions on faster roads, and of course would not be practical if the cyclist were also going 15 mph. those are actually pretty weak arguments, but if you do not have a veto-proof majority in the legislature you do what you have to do. the present bill
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/11-12/bill/sen/sb_1451-1500/sb_1464_bill_20120424_amended_sen_v97.pdf
substitutes a “reasonable and prudent” passing speed requirement, and this is what the editorial quibbles with, though of course traffic regulations are peppered with that or similar phrasing.

the bill would impose only minor traffic fines for violation, even if the cyclist was injured (or killed). but it sets a standard of negligence which you could in theory use in proving a civil personal injury case (or wrongful death). and maybe eventually the negligence indicated by violating the three-foot rule could support a manslaughter prosecution. very long term.

Pete
Pete
12 years ago
Reply to  are

Thanks for the link and explanation. I was bummed when Gov. Brown vetoed the original bill and surprised that the police organizations didn’t support it, but the 15 mph clause wasn’t written well or sensible. A few years back when I first moved here I felt something hot on my left arm only to see the front wheel of an Acura MDX inches away. I had just passed a CHP officer on a motorcycle watching the carpool lane who saw it and pulled the car over a few blocks ahead. When I caught up I saw him writing her a citation and I thanked him; I suspect it was for improper mobile phone use. It makes sense to me that the police should support a well-written passing statute, if only to put another weapon in their arsenal for pulling over suspect drivers.

oskarbaanks
oskarbaanks
12 years ago

I love the link to the Keystone pipeline story. The first thing at the top of the page you see BTW, is a report on smog killing old growth in California. Any statements or projections by oil industry reps concerning lower prices/job growth in the future is complete hog wash.

oskarbaanks
oskarbaanks
12 years ago

also, regarding the LofAB announcement, in case someone forgot, Portland is a city, while Washington is a state.

oskarbaanks
oskarbaanks
12 years ago

I have faith it will improve for sure. This state is primed and ready. The possibilities for cycle tourism are awesome IMO.

Dude
Dude
12 years ago

I run a red light every year on memorial day.

Perry Hunter
Perry Hunter
12 years ago

“Women on Wheels: A Handbook and Hot-To for City Cyclists.” should probably be a “How-To”…Dr. Freud would have something to say about this one, Jonathan.

Tom M
Tom M
12 years ago

Does anyone have a good set of suggestions on how make sure the 1%’s politicians, aka the Tea Party, are voted out of office? After reading case after case of legislation that hurts 99.9% of the population of the world (fossil fuel dependence anyone?), it’s time to vote out the cancer.

abc
abc
12 years ago
Reply to  Tom M

@ Tom M and others — the best place to do that locally right now: Clackamas County. There’s a major onslaught, and the Clackamas County Chair race is key.

The incumbent, Charlotte Lehan, is a great leader who cares about good land use planning and protecting open space. Her challenger, John Ludlow, is backed by right wing and Tea Party money, and is running on an anti-Portland platform of “Stop Portland Creep.”

Dude
Dude
12 years ago
Reply to  Tom M

I grew up outside the United States.
I went to Harvard and Yale.
I never held a real job in my life.
I have one of the largest private jets in the world waiting to take me where ever I want.
I play golf every weekend at some of the most exclusive resorts in the world.
When I retire I’ll make millions of dollars in speaking fees and millions more by sering on the boards of the corporations you are protesting.
My name is Barrack Obama, I am the 1%

q`Tzal
q`Tzal
12 years ago
Reply to  Dude

Dude
I grew up outside the United States.

Many children of active duty US military service members grow up outside the US; does this make them any less American? Are they somehow worth less than you?

Dude
I went to Harvard and Yale.

Perpetuating the Anti-education/”learnin` is bad” myth that has contributed to the downward spiral of out ONCE great nation’s economy.

Dude
I never held a real job in my life.

What is a REAL job?
Have YOU ever done manual labor for more than 1 week? 1 month? 1 year?
Worked the fields picking fruits or vegetables?
Worked in a factory longer than 40 hours a week for years?
Worked 3 jobs as a single mother to feed your children only to go hungry yourself?
How, in comparison, is ANY white collar job a “real job”? By your metric every person who’s hands don’t get dirty has never held a real job.

Dude
I have one of the largest private jets in the world waiting to take me where ever I want.

So does every president.

Dude
I play golf every weekend at some of the most exclusive resorts in the world.

I’ll agree that golf is a sign of bad character because golfing means you must be evil.

When I retire I’ll make millions of dollars in speaking fees and millions more by sering on the boards of the corporations you are protesting.

So has every modern president; capitalism at work. That makes capitalism evil, all presidents evil or both.

Dude
Dude
12 years ago
Reply to  q`Tzal

What? No comment on the last line?

q`Tzal
q`Tzal
12 years ago
Reply to  Dude

“The major problem – one of the major problems – for there are several – one of the many major problems with governing people is that of who you get to do it. Or, rather, of who manages to get people to let them do it to them.
To summarize: it is a well-known and much lamented fact that those people who most want to rule people are, ipso facto, those least suited to do it.
To summarize the summary: anyone who is capable of getting themselves made president should, on no account, be allowed to do the job.
To summarize the summary of the summary: people are a problem.
And so this is the situation we find. A succession of Galactic Presidents who so much enjoy the fun and palaver of being in power that they never really notice that they’re not. And somewhere in the shadows behind them, who? Who can possibly rule if no one who wants to, can be allowed to?”

Dude
Dude
12 years ago
Reply to  q`Tzal

That is a reallylong answer to say -yeah he is a 1%er

q`Tzal
q`Tzal
12 years ago
Reply to  Dude

He may be but he’s a pawn. As has been every US president.
The office president in the US is the official position of government target.
Throughout history violent and bloody revolutions have resulted when the general public wanted to change their government. The founding fathers that wrote the US constitution recognized this and wrote the constitution to govern government.
In particular, while the office of US president is the most powerful position occupied by a single person, it is not the most powerful part of the government.
The office of US president seems to have been tailor made to codify and streamline the process of “kicking the evil leader out” while avoiding the most destructive parts of regime change: anarchy, looting, pillaging, burning, killing. We all get the catharsis of getting rid of a figurehead we see as the source of all our problems when in reality the source of our problems come from the elected representative body that we the people put in power.
WE ARE THE PROBLEM

dwainedibbly
dwainedibbly
12 years ago

Bike & ped facilities increase property values? Too bad the property owners in the Lloyd area don’t understand that.

Spiffy
Spiffy
12 years ago

I saw somebody on the train last week with their bike handcuffed to the bike hook while they were seated… I thought it was pretty clever…

April
April
12 years ago
Reply to  Spiffy

Back when I commuted to the suburbs via the max, I would lock my front wheel to the bar the hook hangs from. In the mornings it meant I could sit down and take a nap and not worry about my bicycle being stolen.

Spiffy
Spiffy
12 years ago

speaking of Los Angeles… cyclist wa hit by an SUV, the driver got out and shot him dead while he was still laying on the ground… another victim barely got away…

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/05/27/cyclist-shot-dead-after-being-hit-by-suv-at-los-angeles-intersection/

unfortunately it’s lucky they used a gun because at least then it’ll be a murder charge… if they ever catch the people…

my helmet cam is in the mail…

Todd Boulanger
Todd Boulanger
12 years ago

Wow…. Alan, thanks for the memories and the 6+ years of rides I took on my Blue 1972 Mk1 chopper with aftermarket turn signals throughout West London UK, MD and NJ. I wonder where it is now.

I might have ridden it longer to do my paper route and carry a ‘chick or two’, if my [blank] little brother had not ratted me out for mounting an ex-reel lawn mower engine to the back end. Oh all those hours assembling the project in secret…just like in the Great Escape…but then right before the test ride it was gone!

No bike since – except possibly for my Lemond Fillmore – has captured the magic that bicycle had for me.

Alan, RIP and ride the Chopper in the sky.

Darrel Stamp
12 years ago

It seems that the ‘war’ between bikes and cars occurs the world over. I agree with the Canadian journalist, though- it’s not exactly an even fight!