Happy Monday everyone.
I don’t make promises very often, but I have one to make this morning (can’t believe I even have to say this): BikePortland will never publish or link to “fake news” — a.k.a. propaganda. The lack of media integrity and media literacy in America has reached a dangerous level so I promise this will continue to remain a conspiracy and bullshit-free zone — just like it has been for nearly 12 years now.
An informed and engaged community that knows how to respectively discuss important issues with each other is the bedrock of our democracy and I will do my part in this tiny little corner of the world to contribute to that.
So with out further adieu, commence your acquisition of knowledge and perspective with the best stories we came across this past week…
Standing with Black Lives Matter: There’s been a lot of talk in transportation reform circles about how best to integrate with burgeoning social and racial justice movements. Leave it to New York City’s Transportation Alternatives for coming out with the most direct call-to-action on the topic yet.
Road design is to blame: A solid commentary from the other Portland about how the design of our roads — and the speeding they encourage — are to blame for traffic deaths.
Can you hear me now?: This is good and bad news. Good because vulnerable road users will be able to hear electric cars approaching; bad because it means a more noisy environment.
Driverless cars versus jerks: A Mercedes-Benz exec said one of the biggest problems with the rollout of driverless cars is something vulnerable road users know about all too well: people behind the wheel of a car tend to get mean and aggressive.
No translation needed: Check out these excellent images from a year-long bike tour through South America. It’s in Dutch, but the images are worth the time.
We never learn: The latest innovative (not) solution to car overuse in Orange County, California is…… Encouraging more car overuse! They want to expand a busy freeway with more lanes at a cost of $1.2 Billion — all based on the promise of free-flowing traffic. Sigh.
Problems at ONI: Portland’s Office of Neighborhood Involvement got a bad report card from the Auditor’s office. With a new mayor and a new commissioner on the way, maybe this is a good opportunity to revamp the neighborhood association system?
Traffic death blame: The NY Times has a must-read on the role distracted driving plays in the U.S. road fatality increase. They blame auto and app makers who have created a false sense of security in drivers by encouraging inattention and distraction via cell phones and other in-car technologies.
Advertisement
Trump the urbanist?: The president-elect could be good for transit and cities says Oregon Business Magazine.
Debt politics and infrastructure: New York Magazine says Democrats on the Hill must not support Trump’s infrastructure spending bill. To do so would cause them to, “cooperate with the subversion of American government and an act of political self-sabotage.”
Tax credits everywhere: Vox takes a deeper dive into Trump’s potential plans and sees a lot of tax credits to private companies.
Real consequence: Here’s some enforcement we know many of you will appreciate: With a focus on unsafe passing, police in north London will confiscate the vehicle of people cited twice for a similar traffic offense within 12 months of each other.
Don’t mess with Bill’s bike: Bill Walton, a member of the Portland Trail Blazers’ sole championship team in 1977 who’s known for biking to practice, was reunited with his bike after it went missing on a flight to Maui last week. He launched d to pressure the airline.
Pedaling patent: Cycling historians are hailing a little known inventor for filing what they say is the first official patent for a bicycle — way back in 1866.
Latest from Copenhagenize: Global bike visionary and influencer Mikael Colville-Andersen is behind a new TV series called “The Life Sized City.”
Tech for your head: A helmet made out of paper won a prestigious design award. Some say its low price and foldability would make it perfect for use in bike share systems.
Less tech, more basics: Modacity says all the techie gimmicks flooding headlines these days aren’t what we need: Just keep it simple and make protected bike lanes instead.
Bike innovation in Houston. Houston!: Remember our interview with Earl Blumenauer last week where he used Houston Texas as an example of a state whose Democratic resurgence mirrors the growth of its cycling network? Well now they’re planning a Dutch-style protected intersection.
Nor-way ahead of the game: Portland wants to elimate traffic fatalities by 2025. Already leaders in Vision Zero, Norway has moved onto a plan to completely eliminate gas-burning cars by 2025.
Thanks to everyone who subscribed last week. I need your support to keep BikePortland alive and thriving.
— Jonathan Maus, (503) 706-8804 – jonathan@bikeportland.org
BikePortland is supported by the community (that means you!). Please become a subscriber or make a donation today.