Welcome to the week.
Today’s Monday Roundup is made possible by Splendid Cycles, who reminds you to check out their BIG Year-end Bike Sale for great deals on electric bikes from Xtracycle, Tern, Larry vs Harry, and more.
Here are the most notable items we came across in the past seven days…
You mad Nike?: The sports apparel juggernaut spent over $900,000 to help kill the Metro transportation funding measure.
Bidens on bikes: TMZ has video of President-elect Joe Biden and First Lady-to-be Jill Biden riding bikes on a bike path in Delaware. My fave part of the clip is at the end when someone says “Oh you can’t drive there!” when someone in Biden’s protective unit drives a big SUV on the bike-only path.
The view from London: In an interview with Streetsblog, London’s walking and cycling commissioner said the key to moving the needle is for the transportation system to “own the health agenda”. “Unless the transport agencies are responsible for the health outcomes, it won’t happen.”
Collegiate cycling strides: Two major professional cycling teams plan to fund new teams at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in a bid to make the sport of cycling sport less white.
Legalizing vigilantism: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has put forth changes to the state’s “Stand your ground” law that would increase penalties for protestors who block roads and allow drivers more loopholes to get away with using cars as weapons.
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Bikes can save cities: Bogota, Colombia — the place that invested big on BRT (bus rapid transit) and pioneered the ciclovia — is now betting that the key to Covid recovery will be bicycles.
Grids gird against car ownership: New research shows that as the U.S. strengthens its street grid car ownership rates decline.
Hype-worthy clothing: Thank you Rapha for making stuff that transcends the cycling world. The apparel maker’s dedication to design and fashion is getting new eyes on our sport.
Kids and traffic trauma: “Police in the west German city of Hamm are using drawings by six-year-olds to trace a rogue driver who allegedly smashed through a road barrier,” says this report from the BBC.
EU on the right path: As a new administration enters the White House, they’d be wise to read this overview of how transport policy in the EU is becoming more bike-friendly. One line that caught my eye: “The shift in political will is backed up by significant funding.” Funny that.
Older riders: Research from the Netherlands shows a worrying trend that older electric bike operators are involved in more injuries and fatal crashes.
— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org
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