“If I didn’t bike to work, I’d spend my weekdays almost entirely indoors… On the bike, I get trees, air and a great way to get to know city neighborhoods.”
— David Keegan,
The New York Times
Here’s the news and other cool stuff that caught our eyes this past week…
– The Chicago Tribune talks to officials in San Francisco and Chicago who expect a “bicycle boom” thanks to those cities’ ambitious plans for expanding and improving infrastructure for bicycles and car sharing systems.
– There’s some confusion as to whether the new federal transportation bill increases or decreases funding for bicycling infrastructure and if you’re looking to do your own research you might want to have a look at this extensive collection of information about the bill.
– Radio hosts working for Colorado’s KGNU recently recorded an entire show while riding around Boulder’s bike paths.
– Cargo bikes are continuing to gain momentum in North America so, appropriately, Momentum Magazine has a look at the growing interest.
– Even the New York Times knows that commuting to work on a bicycle helps you relax and “smell the roses.”
– The New York City Department of Transportation is starting door-to-door inspections of bicycle delivery services to ensure businesses know how to operate their delivery vehicles safely and legally.
– A professional triathlon coach recovered over $18,000 worth of stolen bicycles by tapping into his social network to ask friends online to watch for the four bicycles that were taken from his garage.
– Similar to Portland’s Wrench Raiders, a group of volunteers in Baton Rouge are repairing bicycles for people who live outdoors or who can’t afford the cost of owning a car.
– An interesting set of statistics finds bicycling in urban Chicago is safer than riding in the city’s suburbs.
– The author of Bike Hacks visited Portland recently and has a collection of interesting DIY bicycle projects seen around our city.
– John Forester and “vehicular cycling” has many detractors but the skills presented in Effective Cycling can come in handy when you have to navigate streets lacking complete, safe bicycling infrastructure.
– Considering bicycling with your kids? Check out this comprehensive list of tips for success and resulting benefits of pedal-powered family transportation.
– New York City’s “Heads Up” safety campaign posters depict scenes that are “unsafe and rife with confrontation” and probably do very little to encourage women (or other people in the interested-but-concerned crowd) to try riding a bicycle.
– Another dispatch from June’s Velo-City conference explains why the economic benefits of bicycling mean it’s not “just for hippies, communists, and poor people.”
– A new concept in bicycle lights aims to protect people on bicycles from being struck by passing cars by projecting a red arrow on the ground to the side of the bicycle, encouraging people in cars to pass at a safe distance.
– And a new concept in car headlights detects rain drops infront of the headlight to prevent the drops from being illuminated, greatly increasing visibility. It begs raises the question: could the technology be applied to bicycle lights as well?
– Seattle is just about done with the Beacon Hill neighborhood greenway which will connect the I-90 trail with Jefferson Park.
– Also in Seattle, The Whistle Stop Co-op, combination coffee shop and bike shop, is giving away free bicycles and offering route-planning services to help remove barriers to bicycling.
– One man in Cuba is hoping to set a world record for riding a tall bike that comes in at over 18-feet tall.
– And finally, you have about a week left to give your interpretation of a classic artwork and have a chance at winning a Beater Bicycles Roadster.
— 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.