Category: Biking Elsewhere

-> In his Dec. 9th Fast Lane blog entry, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood asked, "Should biking advocates be angry that Senator Tom Coburn included two bike paths in his latest list of stimulus ‘waste’? Or thrilled that the Senator singled them out? As reported by the Washington Times, Coburn said, ‘When we run $1.4 trillion deficits, the money we spend ought to be a high priority for the American people as a whole.’"
"What he really means is that, because he doesn’t get bikes, no one else does either. His report calls-out an extension of Minnesota’s Cedar Lake Bike Trail that would allow people to commute to and from downtown Minneapolis all the way to the new Minnesota Twins stadium. It’s a project supported by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. I guess a better bike connection to Minneapolis’s central business district doesn’t count as infrastructure to some folks…"
"And he calls-out the Meridian Bridge conversion to bike and pedestrian use. A newer bridge now carries automobile traffic over the Missouri River between Yankton, SD, and Nebraska. Hmm…demolish Yankton’s signature landmark, listed on the National Register of Historic Places? Or use Recovery Act money to connect an extensive network of trails on the Nebraska side with a similarly extensive network of trails on the South Dakota side?…"
Continue reading “LAHOOD RESPONDS TO SEN. COBURN RANT ON BIKE PATHS”

Continue reading “New Device To Possably Encourage 3′ Safe Passing?”

The California physician, convicted of assaulting a pair of cyclists with his car, was sentenced to five years in prison at the close of a hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday morning.
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Teach them a lesson
As Peterson lay on the side of the road, Thompson called 911, told the operator of the accident and added that the riders would probably “tell you they are seriously injured, but they’re not.”
Thompson also told the first police officer on the scene that he intentionally hit his brakes in order to “teach (the two riders) a lesson.”
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Following news reports of the July 4th assault, Watson called the attorney’s office to remind them that it was not Thompson’s first encounter with cyclists. Prosecutors then decided to pursue charges in the March case and were successful in efforts to join those with charges stemming from the July assault.
[Note the importance of at least getting a police report on all incidents, something that is not standard policy in Maryland.]
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With his client facing up to 10 years in prison, Swarth asked the court to exhibit a degree of compassion in handing down a sentence. Swarth argued that a lengthy prison sentence could prove fatal to Thompson, who suffers from coronary artery disease.
[Let’s have a moment of compassion for people who live sedentary lifestyles and harass cyclists. Sorry I say show compassion if you want compassion.]
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Thompson’s troubles will probably not end with his Friday sentencing. His medical license was suspended last month, and a permanent revocation is probable, pending a hearing by the state’s medical licensing board.
Although now reportedly near bankrupt, the founder of a successful medical records technology company, Thompson still faces likely civil action from the victims in the case.
Continue reading “L.A. road rage doctor gets five years”

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If you saw Avatar, we were the big blue monkeys. We existed in harmony with our surroundings, linked by the primitive desire to go faster, each warrior judged only by his ability to hang on.
And then the army of metallic vehicles descended, determined to take our roads by force.
They ran us down and danced on our guts. Our banana peels and water bottles bounced harmlessly off their armored hides.
The Cycle-Haters issued their terms of surrender: Ride single file. Stop at the stop signs. Get on the bike trail. Get off our roads.
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The roads do not belong to the fossil-fuel demons, their expansive bellies grazing their steering wheels, their Big Gulps clamped between wobbly thighs.
Put them in the Lycra they ridicule and they would look like Jimmy Dean sausages.
We will not allow them to banish us from what is as much ours as it is theirs.
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Continue reading “Dear Cycle-Hater, You can kiss my skinny Lycra butt.”

From the League of American Bicyclists:
“There’s a perfectly good path right next to the road you stupid cyclist!” Facebook Fan Page
What the page says:
The Facebook Fan Page "There’s a perfectly good path right next to the road you stupid cyclist!" (which frighteningly has more than 30,000 fans) is an Australian based anti-cyclists forum. The page is filled with violent comments about hitting cyclists, who the page refers to as "road hogging rats." The profile picture is even of a car dooring a cyclist. The page claims that bicycles only belong on bike paths and should not be allowed on roads. The about me box states, "No matter how far to the left you are, you’re taking up my road. My car is hard, and i am not slowing down!"
What’s the issue:
Cyclists have the legal right to be on the road in Australia and are considered vehicles, as are cyclists in all 50 US states. Endorsing violence should not be tolerated, and the ignorance endorsed on this Facebook page simply begets more ignorance towards cyclists. Or as Charles Darwin said, "Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge." The page’s crass content, "The road belongs to engine driven cars," and photos are legally incorrect – and offensive.
What are the facts:
The sad reality is that every year an average of 700 people are killed while riding their bikes and round 45,000 riders are injured each year in collisions with motor vehicles. These accidents are usually caused by distracted driving, speeding, recklessness and drinking and driving. These reasons are not comforting and can be prevented. However, road rage and a violent disregard for human life should NEVER be the reason a cyclist is killed or injured. These types of incidents are not "accidents."
What they could have said:
Frankly, the page should have never been created. If the author said anything, he should have provided information about sharing the road safely. Unfortunately, incorrect or hateful information is easily shared on Facebook. The social networking site allows people to network, post pictures and comment without pre-approval.
However, this page crosses the line into inappropriate content and there is something we can do. First, report the page for inappropriate content by scrolling to the bottom left hand corner of the fan page and clicking on Report Page. A dialogue box appears. Click on Inappropriate Content as your reason and feel free to add comments.
Sample comment: Australian cyclists have a legal right to the road as do all American cyclists. We are considered vehicles. Advocating violence against anyone, including bicyclists, is reprehensible. Some 700 bicyclists, nearly 200 of them children, are killed in traffic crashes every year, and some 45,000 are injured. Both cities and states are passing laws to protect cyclists from the despicable mentality that is exhibited on this page.
Secondly, you can join the "Help Remove This Hate Group Against Cyclists" page. Most importantly, advocate for cyclists rights and spread the word about our legal and rightful space on roads and highways. Attending the National Bike Summit or supporting the League is an easy way to participate in the national bicycle movement.
Continue reading “Who’s Trash Talking Bikes?”

Continue reading “LOL Health Warning”

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Okay, ORS 742.502 requires an insurance company offering liability coverage to also provide uninsured/underinsured (UIM) motorist coverage as part of the package, so at least I had something to fall back on. And just to be completely clear about this: if you own a car and you have a liability policy and it has the required UIM endorsement, you are covered even if you get hit while you are on your bike or on foot.
But you gotta have the liability policy, which means you gotta have a car. Nobody is offering UIM coverage as a freestanding product to people that don’t drive. So when I got rid of the car about a year ago, I had to figure out what, if anything, I was going to do to insure against the risk that someone driving a car might hit and/or injure me.
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Continue reading “Editorial: The bicycle insurance gap and what we can do about it”

Be in the Know. Read bikeleague.org/blog

National News

Advocacy Advance Helps you Find Federal Funding As part of the continuing partnership between the League of American Bicyclists and the Alliance for Bicycling & Walking, the Advocacy Advance Team has created a series of reports to help Alliance member organizations access Federal funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects including: Section 402 – Highway Safety Grants, Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP), and Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Plan (CMAQ). For a brief description of each report, a request for more of your stories, and links to other Advocacy Advance resources, visit our blog or the Advocacy Advance section of bikeleague.org.

NHTSA Comments Recently the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Federal Transit Administration (FTA) published Federal Register notices requesting public comment on several issues important to bicycling. Comments are due today but late entries might be considered. Review the League’s comments here.

Other News

Bumper Issue of Active Living Research Published No fewer than 20 papers on Active Living topics are now available in a special issue of Preventive Medicine – thanks to the Active Living Research program at San Diego State University. This incredible body of work includes another epic paper by John Pucher, Susan Handy and Jennifer Dill titled “Infrastructure, Programs and Policies to Increase Bicycling:  An International Review,” as well as numerous studies of youth health issues and strategies for promoting more active lifestyles.

The League of American Bicyclists promotes bicycling for fun, fitness and transportation, and works through advocacy and education for a bicycle-friendly America. The League represents the interests of America’s 57 million bicyclists, including its 300,000 members and affiliates. For more information or to support the League, visit www.bikeleague.org.

While not a follow up to Cyclist tased while leaving an airport by bike the decision may be of interest:
By David Hambling – Wired
The use of Tasers has become increasingly controversial over the last year, following high-profile cases such as the Tasering of a 10-year-old girl who had refused to take a shower and video of a 72-year-old great-grandmother who was Tasered following a driving offense. Now a federal appeals court in San Francisco has set down new rules for when police officers are allowed to use Tasers. In particular, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Tasers can’t be used simply to force a non-violent person to bend to an officer’s will. The court’s reason was that Taser’s X26 stun gun inflicts more pain than other “non-lethal” options
Continue reading “Court to Cops: Stop Tasing People into Compliance”