“Not knowing what I was in for created a lot of mental room for scenarios of death and disfigurement. So far, the worst thing that’s happened is when my chain popped off on Interstate Avenue.”— Shelby Wood Remember Shelby Wood, the Oregonian columnist who was “too scared to saddle up” and ride her bike in … Read more
The Economist published an interesting blurb and graphic on Monday. They took a look at bicycle and car production since 1950 and found that, “…Bicycle and car production grew pretty much in tandem in the two decades beginning in 1950. But since 1970 bike production has nearly quadrupled while car production has roughly doubled.”
[View update at end of story.] (Photo from OregonLive.com) Portland’s new on-street bike parking corrals are the subject of an editorial in the Hillsboro Argus today (Hillsboro is about 17 miles west of Portland). In OK Bike Corral, Argus publisher Clark Gallagher shares concerns from delivery truck drivers about the new parking. Mr. Gallagher overheard … Read more
KATU-TV has a hot story; bikes should pay to park!(Screenshot from KATU-TV video). I was afraid this might happen. With today’s big rollout of the four new on-street bike parking corrals in downtown Portland, I wondered how the local media would handle the news. KATU-TV is one of the first bits of coverage I’ve seen … Read more
Front page of the O’s How We Live section today. The How We Live section of today’s Oregonian features an article about Portland’s growing unicycling scene. In, It’s a whole new UNI-verse, reporter Melissa Navas introduces us to all manner of one-wheeled bike lovers and even gives it a go herself. Navas calls unicycling “an … Read more
Jason Turner (L) and Greg Fredette are the duo behind Veer, a new documentary feature film on Portland’s bike culture.(Photos © J. Maus) With their just-completed documentary Veer, photographer Jason Turner and writer/director Greg Fredette offer a rare look at the struggles, triumphs, and all-out craziness of Portland’s bike culture. The duo spent an entire … Read more
Clear Channel has 20 of these billboards up in the Portland area.(Photo © J. Maus) A few days ago, I shared a story about the new “Share the Road” billboard campaign in Portland. As I suspected in that story, the billboards are the work of the Portland-based office of Clear Channel Outdoor. The manager of … Read more
Bicycling Magazine has a nice little story about Higgins restaurant in their Cycling Nutrition section this month. Here are a few excerpts: “…Higgins, 50, is the owner and head chef of Higgins Restaurant and Bar, a Portland, Oregon, mainstay that’s home to bistro-style dishes that feature organic, sustainably grown, locally sourced food. And the restaurant … Read more
According to the Federal Highway Administration, Americans drove 12.2 billion fewer miles this past June than a year ago. An Associated Press article published yesterday, Traffic fatalities driven down by high gas prices, highlights a new study that draws a direct connection between less miles being driven and the lowest number of traffic deaths since … Read more
Today on NPR’s Talk of the Nation program, San Francisco bike plan critic Rob Anderson — whose opposition earned him coverage in the Wall Street Journal last week — will debate the merits of his positions against Noah Budnick from NYC-based advocacy group Transportation Alternatives. The show starts at 12 noon P.S.T. — Read more … Read more
A reader (thanks Dan K.!) sent in this photo of a billboard in Eugene. The billboard touts Dodge’s new Journey model and an image of the vehicle is next to the word, “Gasolean” and the phrase, “Best in Class MPG”. Underneath that phrase a graffiti artist has painted an arrow that leads to a bicycle. … Read more
Kaiser Permanente’s “Thrive” ad campaign is nothing new to Portlanders. They’ve run an extensive billboard campaign throughout the city for months now. One of my favorites features a photo of a bike and the copy (I’m paraphrasing), “The latest in the battle against heart disease”. Now they’ve made bikes the centerpiece of a new commercial … Read more