(Image: Sightline Institute)
Here are the great bike links from around the world that caught our eyes this week:
Gas-tax realism: Washington state’s Office of Financial Management has just released what a Sightline Institute analyst calls “far and away the most responsible official traffic forecast I’ve seen from any government agency, ever.”
Sidewalk blocked: Saying there’s not enough parking in the area to “support” it, angry homeowners have blocked installation of a half-block sidewalk in Tulsa.
Texting alarmism? Does texting while driving get more blame than it deserves? Traffic fatalities actually correlate far better to a different statistic.
Seattle bike share: The 500 bikes in Seattle’s Pronto Cycle Share carried 4,000 trips in the system’s first week. Helmets, required by city law for all rides, are available for $13 each free from bins next to each station.
Foggy toll: The most famous bridge in the United States might be one of the first in the world to charge a toll for people biking and walking.
Reflective chic: A New York designer has made a wardrobe of clothes with reflective accents “that would look as good on the bike path as on the runway.”
Unionizing bike share: The workers behind Citi Bike have voted to join the union that operates NYC’s MTA.
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Low rider: Now that‘s a fender:
#fuckyeah you know what time of year it is! #fenderup!
A photo posted by molly cameron (@themollycameron) on
London intrigue: A group of “old men in limos” are publicly supporting the British capital’s plan to build a 2.5-mile Dutch-quality bikeway even as they work quietly to kill it, claims a Guardian contributor.
Self-braking cars: The person-spotting, auto-braking technology available in a few high-end cars is making its way to mainstream Ford sedans.
School safety: When did Edinburgh start leading the UK in cool transportation initiatives? Their latest is a complete ban on cars within 300 yards of 11 primary schools during drop-off times.
Aging in motion: Too many Americans choose their retirement homes without considering the fact that eventually they’re probably going to stop driving, says the New York Times.
Bridge breakup: The left-right coalition that killed the Columbia River Crossing isn’t uniting around alternative plans.
Cargo families: Amy Subach of the PDX Cargo Bike Gang evangelizes her family transport of choice in one of the first few issues of True Parent magazine.
Purple Line? Looks as if it’d be surprisingly easy to start running a direct, evening-only MAX line between Portland Airport and Clackamas Town Center.
If you come across a noteworthy bicycle story, send it in via email, Tweet @bikeportland, or whatever else and we’ll consider adding it to next Monday’s roundup.