Welcome to the week.
Everything has changed in America with the killing of Alex Pretti by U.S. Border Patrol officer. Pretti was the second person to be fatally shot as part of the Trump Administration’s occupation of Minneapolis. Now the line is crystal clear that Trump is the leader of a fascist government and to make matters worse, his top officers and spokespeople have doubled-down on blatant lies and propaganda. While cycling and transportation news feels less important against this backdrop, let’s remember that what we do here (in a broad, general sense beyond this blog), has never been just about news and information. It’s about building bonds between each other — one event, one ride, one story, one comment, one person at a time.
On that note, I look forward to seeing you at Bike Happy Hour this week. We’ll have a special open mic where I’ll ask folks to introduce themselves and share what they need from our community and/or what they can share with our community. Together we can process what’s going on and we can help each other respond. See you Wednesday from 3:00 to 6:00 pm at Migration Brewing on North Williams Avenue. (Yummy snacks on me at 4:00 pm!)
And now, a few notable stories that came across my inbox in the past week…
Industry reacts to Alex Pretti killing: Pretti was a bicycle rider and customer of a bike shop in Minneapolis. His death has shaken that state’s bike industry to the core. (Bicycle Retailer)
“Thermal incident”: A Rad Power Bikes retail store in southern California caught fire. The company confirmed it was a “thermal incident” and given the recent battery recall and other problems with the once mega-brand, this will stoke concerns and speculations. (Seattle Bike Blog)
Delay on trail vote: A key vote that would strip the Yamhelas Westsider Trail from the Yamhill County Transportation System Plan has been postponed until January 29th due to a high volume of testimony. Advocates should see this as a win and commissioners should see this as a sign that a lot of folks care about this trail! (Newberg Graphic)
That’s clever: A company in New York City has adapted their technology to provide swappable e-bike batteries to food cart owners in bid to replace loud and toxic gas and diesel generators. (Electrek)
Transit cheaper than highways: How much would it cost to build world-class transit in the U.S.? “It’s not as much as a skeptic might assume, and it’s substantially less than what the country already spends on maintaining its highways, according to a new report. (Governing)
A good sign: Bike and scooter share is alive and well in Seattle as new numbers from Lime report a 61% (!) jump in 2025, with rides to Pike Place Market becoming a top destination. (Geek Wire)
Kids these days: Amid growing popularity of young people riding together in large groups, a man in San Francisco was attacked and beaten by riders after he told them to slow down. (ABC SF)
Thanks to everyone who sent in links this week. The Monday Roundup is a community effort, so please feel free to send us any great stories you come across.
Thanks for reading.
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I wonder how much Seattle closing Pike Place Market to vehicles last spring/summer contributed to the uptick in trips there on lime. It’d be cool if they released more granular data for the time it was closed to non-essential vehicles.
Transit cheaper than highways: My main issue with stories like these it that it would require all members of Congress and all 50 states’ legislatures to end their addictions to highway funding. Most Democratic politicians are just as addicted to highway funding as Republicans, both nationally and locally, be it in California, Texas, Florida, or NY. It basically ain’t gonna happen – you’ll have an easier sell getting legislators to defund the $9 Billion ICE program.