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The Monday Roundup: Car ad ban, silly walks, free beer for cycling and more


Here are the most noteworthy items we came across in the last week…

Watch car culture work: An advertising regulatory body in the UK has banned several ads by carmakers — including Ford, Nissan, and Fiat Chrysler — because they encourage dangerous driving. ‘Bout time! If only we could challenge car culture this aggressively in the US.

Trans athlete support: A petition has emerged to document support for transgender cycling athletes following the post-World Championship backlash experienced by track racer Rachel McKinnon.

Right turn ban: As part of their Vision Zero efforts, D.C. transportation officials are considering making it illegal to turn right during a red light.

This week’s Monday Roundup is brought to you by Western Bikeworks. Visit them in Tigard, Portland (NW Lovejoy & 17th), or online.

Come clean on climate: A massive investment group that represents $2 trillion (with a “t”) is pushing carmakers and oil companies to be transparent about, “lobbying to undermine efforts to limit climate change while publicly backing carbon reduction.”

No excuses: The NYPD is reportedly too busy to deal with a horrific collision where a man and his son were struck by an errant driver as they walked across a street in a crosswalk.

Silly walks FTW: Portland has tried a ‘Barnes Dance’ crossing, we’ve done fun crosswalk paint, now we should follow the lead of our friends in Rotterdam and install a “silly walk”.

Aging and racing: As someone who is thinking a lot about age lately, I enjoyed this reflection on the role cycling plays in the life of 69-year-old Cyclocross Magazine writer Lee Waldman.

Charged carbon: New research shows that carbon fiber can store energy. Imagine what that could do to make e-bikes lighter!

Scooter perspective: Some very calm and reasonable words from NY Magazine about why we should stop treating scooters like the enemy and instead embrace them as the “21st century version of the Vespa.”

Scooter users = friends: Bicycling Magazine writer (and online activist) Peter Flax says it’s time to bury the hatchet and embrace our two-wheeled brethren who ride e-scooters.

Blumenauer on the future: Streetsblog grabbed Portland’s U.S. Congressman Earl Blumenauer for an interview during the Railvolution conference and asked him about transit funding and the future of transportation policy in America.

More bad news about Uber and Lyft: A new study suggests that cities with high rates of Uber and Lyft use have experienced more traffic deaths.

Free beer for cycling: A city in Italy has a program where you can gain points for not driving and redeem them for treats like ice cream, movie tickets, and even beer!

— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org

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