Category: Biking Elsewhere

https://bikeportland.org/2013/05/30/kids-are-the-true-indicator-species-of-a-bike-friendly-city-87599
[B’ Spokes: Seriously just look at the pictures and ask yourself "Why don’t we want this here?" Oh because the roads have to be made unsafe for cyclists… really? I realize most would say "The roads are unsafe but that leads to a conversation where either the design of the road and its laws governing it use should change (very rare) or we need to maintain the status quo (more average,)]

By ERIC JAFFE, The Atlantic Cities
Typically in transportation — and most social arenas, for that matter — laws promoting safety precautions lead to an increase in public health. Legislation on speed limits, drunk driving, and seatbelt are a few of the most obvious examples. Even bans on the relatively new phenomenon of driver-texting seem to be doing the trick, according to early evidence.
With bike helmet laws, however, the connection isn’t quite so clear.
Take a recent study published earlier this month in BMJ [PDF]. The Canadian research team, led by Jessica Dennis of the University of Toronto, analyzed the rate of cycling-related hospital admissions for head injuries across the country between 1994 and 2008 — an enormous research sample of more than 66,000 people. The size and length of the study allowed Dennis and collaborators to track the injuries against the emergence of bike helmet laws in various provinces.
What they found initially seemed to suggest that this legislation improved public safety. In provinces with helmet laws, the rate of head injuries among young people decreased 54 percent and the rate among adults decreased 26 percent. At the same time, in provinces without the laws, the rate among youth riders dropped only 33 percent and among adults remained constant. (It bears mention that the study was the first to examine the effects of helmet laws on adults.)
But upon closer inspection, according to Dennis and company, this positive effect failed to stand. On the contrary, the researchers concluded that head injuries were decreasing across the country at a rate that wasn’t "appreciably altered" by the new helmet laws. Other rider health initiatives — namely, public safety campaigns and the introduction of better bike infrastructure — rendered the contribution of helmet laws "minimal":
…
https://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2013/05/do-bike-helmet-laws-really-make-people-safer/5732/

Via Health News Digest
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — People who walk or bike to work are likely to influence their co-workers and partners to do the same, according to health researchers.
"Social influences are important, specifically interpersonal influences, such as spouses and co-workers," said Melissa Bopp, assistant professor of kinesiology, Penn State. She emphasized that community and employers also significantly influence whether people choose to actively commute.
More than 80 percent of American adults do not meet the guidelines for aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities, according to Healthy People 2020, a federal initiative that sets national objectives and monitors progress concerning the health of the population. Regardless of a chronic disease or disability, any regular physical activity can improve health and quality of life. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends at least two and a half hours of moderate-intensity aerobic activity a week or one hour and 15 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity a week for adults.
Active commuting (AC) — physical exercise, such as bicycling or walking, as a way to travel to and from work — is one way to help adults integrate the recommended activity into their daily routine.
…
https://www.healthnewsdigest.com/news/Exercise_480/Walking-or-Bicycling-to-Work-Influenced-by-Others.shtml

By Ashley Halsey III, Washington Post
Cellphone use is a factor in far more fatal crashes than anyone realized, according to a report released Tuesday by the National Safety Council.
…
https://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-05-07/local/39086806_1_fatal-crashes-cellphone-use-jonathan-adkins

Continue reading “50 people going to work”

[B’ Spokes: I find this interesting that it comes from Bike Portland and not some Washington based group. But hey, at least I found it via The WashCycle]

---

From BikePortland

Official Statement on Department of Labor Federal Wage Inquiry

In mid-April of this year, the U.S. Department of Labor requested information from Capital Bikeshare operator Alta Bicycle Share about compliance with federal wage guidelines in our contract with the District Department of Transportation. Since that time, we have been working diligently to provide the department with the information they have requested. This process began well before any mention of the request was highlighted by the media or any other organization, and Alta is committed to ensuring that we are in complete compliance with the wage and benefit components of all our contracts. Accordingly, Alta has undertaken an exhaustive review of the four Capital Bikeshare-related contracts in the DC area, as well as all other contracts for systems we operate, to further ensure we are treating our employees with the respect they deserve. As most of our jobs in this cutting edge industry are not currently listed in the prevailing wage guidelines,

Capital Bikeshare was Alta’s first system in the US, and we are very proud of its success. Since we started in September of 2010, Capital Bikeshare’s more than 20,000 annual and monthly members, plus hundreds of thousands for short term users, have logged over 4 million bike trips in the region. Alta strongly believes in the power of bicycling to transform cities into more livable spaces. We also strongly believe that success of our company, and of bike share as a concept in the US, has been due in large part to the people we have tasked with making the system work. From rebalancers and bike mechanics, to our station technicians and support staff, we value the hard work of each and every employee and the contribution they have made to our successes. A bike share system is nothing without the staff to make it work.

This has been a time consuming process, and one that necessarily has to be done under the oversight of the Department of Labor. We intend to resolve as soon as possible, but the timeline will depend on the Department of Labor.

We ask for your patience and hope you continue to enjoy Capital Bikeshare.

 

Via https://www.coworker.org/petitions/play-fair-bikeshare-backpay-benefits-for-alta-capital-bikeshare-workers-in-dc?source=facebook-share-button&time=1369771679
TO: MIA BIRK, PRINCIPAL, ALTA BICYCLE SHARE; PRESIDENT, ALTA PLANNING & DESIGN (DC CAPITAL BIKESHARE, NYC CITI BIKE, CHICAGO DIVVY BIKE)
Dear Mia,
We are the mechanics, drivers, technicians, dispatchers, and office workers who helped build Capital Bikeshare and set the standard for bikesharing programs nationwide. We’re writing to ask you to do the right thing: comply with the Service Contract Act and pay us all the wages and health & welfare benefits that you committed to pay in Alta’s contract with the Washington DC Department of Transportation (DDOT).
In 2010, former paratrooper and 25-year bike industry veteran, Bernie, helped build the first Capital Bikeshare bikes to hit the street. He worked for 2 years, half-time, doing fleet repairs and never saw a dollar of health & welfare benefits. At 2010 contract rates, Alta owes Bernie about $6,500 in backpay. His fellow mechanics, Samuel, Jeff, and Fhar are each due over $5,000.
Omar and Spencer pedaled the city streets for two years, doing on-site bike repairs and responding to emergencies. They were hired with the promise of immediate benefits but had them revoked within a month of hire. Working 35-40 hour weeks, Omar and Spencer are each due over $12,000 in Federally-mandated health & welfare benefits.
Anibal, Scott, Greg, Zeek, John, Kermit, and other rebalancers* have hauled countless truckloads of bikes between docking stations in grueling 9-hour shifts. All were hired with the promise of raises within 90 days and benefits soon after. Scott worked for $13 an hour for over 6 months while the contract wage was $15.66. Multiple rebalancers are still waiting for benefits a year after hire and still get paid below the contract wage. A year’s benefits at the 2012 contract rate is over $7,400.
Why is this important?
Mia, do you remember when you shipped us free copies of your book, Joyride: Pedaling Toward a Healthier Planet? It was inspiring to read that we must, "See the bicycle as a tool for empowerment and social change, not just sport or transportation." We couldn’t agree more. However, the title left some of us wondering where we fit into that “healthier planet” as we worked without healthcare, doing dangerous jobs on busy streets and in a filthy warehouse by the Superfund section of Southwest DC.
Given our situation, we were surprised to discover that Alta repeatedly signed a Federal contract with DDOT, agreeing to pay specific prevailing wages and health & welfare benefits to all Capital Bikeshare workers in compliance with the McNamara-O’Hara Service Contract Act. These wages and benefits apply to all workers under the contract regardless of full or part-time status (29 C.F.R. § 4.176).
We helped build Alta’s flagship bikesharing program in DC and we’re proud to see Alta landing big contracts all over the USA as a result of our hard work: Citi Bike in New York, Divvy in Chicago, Hubway in Boston; Puget Sound Bikeshare in Seattle; San Francisco, Columbus, Baltimore, Portland… It would be a shame to see bad labor practices pollute the growth of such a socially and environmentally important industry.
Mia, it’s time for Alta Bicycle Share to play fair and set an example as a leader in good green jobs. Here’s how:
1) Honor the Alta-DDOT contracts and immediately pay full back-pay for all unpaid wages and unpaid health & welfare benefits.
2) Comply with the letter and the spirit of the Service Contract Act, from here on out.
3) Commit to paying strong living wages and benefits to Bikeshare workers at every Alta-operated Bikesharing program from New York City to the San Francisco Bay.
We trust that you will take prompt action to address these challenges as we all pedal together towards a sustainable future.
Capital Bikeshare Workers past & present,
…
https://www.coworker.org/petitions/play-fair-bikeshare-backpay-benefits-for-alta-capital-bikeshare-workers-in-dc?source=facebook-share-button&time=1369771679

By BOB NORBERG, THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Sebastopol became the first city in Sonoma County and one of few in the nation to pass an ordinance that makes it easier for bicyclists and pedestrians to sue drivers who threaten or harass them.
"It’s a way to send a message that people who are not in cars have rights too," said Councilman Patrick Slayter. "Just because you are driving a 5,000-pound weapon doesn’t mean might makes right."
The "vulnerable road users" ordinance was passed on a unanimous vote, paving the way for it to become law when it comes back for a second reading at a future meeting.
"Hate is hate, it doesn’t matter what it’s for, anything we can do to stop bullying," said Vice Mayor Robert Jacob.
…
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20121218/ARTICLES/121219536/1350?Title=Sebastopol-adopts-law-to-help-bicyclists-pedestrians

Cities can thrive again by making their downtowns more pedestrian friendly
By MONICA WILLIAMS, US News
…
Why do we need more walkable cities in America?
There are three fundamental reasons. About 15 years ago three distinct groups—the economists, the epidemiologists, and the environmentalists—started saying the same thing, each for their own reasons. The economists have shown us that people are more efficient in cities and more productive. The epidemiological argument has to do mostly with the obesity epidemic. Recent studies have shown that we’ve been focused for too long on diet and not enough on activity. That’s what a walkable city gives us. Finally, there’s the environmental angle: a fundamental rethinking of the way that Americans have always thought about environmentalism and this idea that countryside is good, cities are bad.
…
https://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2012/12/13/how-american-cities-can-thrive-again

By GRETCHEN REYNOLDS, New York Times
An important new study suggests that statins, the cholesterol-lowering medications that are the most prescribed drugs in the world, may block some of the fitness benefits of exercise, one of the surest ways to improve health.
No one is saying that people with high cholesterol or a family history of heart disease should avoid statins, which studies show can be lifesaving. But the discovery could create something of dilemma for doctors and patients, since the people who should benefit the most from exercise — those who are sedentary, overweight, at risk of heart disease or middle-aged — are also the people most likely to be put on statins, possibly undoing some of the good of their workouts.
…
https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/22/can-statins-curb-the-benefits-of-exercise/