According to those who oppose Boston’s plan to shrink the size of the school assignment zones from three to five zones that would encompass fewer neighborhoods it would also reestablish segregation.

Proponents argue, there’s also a financial incentive to the plan. Sending students to “neighborhood schools” means fewer kids would need transport across the city, theoretically saving the city money on transportation.

Sadly no one is talking about children heath and the rising obesity epidemic among Boston’s children and the need for exercise but at least they are talking about a 5% premium on sweets.

Continue reading “Does having walkable and bikeable schools mean segregation?”

A Ramble Through Baltimore

by Greg Hinchliffe

[Author Greg Hinchliffe is chair of Baltimore’s Mayor’s Bicycle Advisory Committee, and has been writing and marking the routes for the Tour dem Parks ride since 2003.  He lives and cycles in Baltimore City.]

In the spring of 2003, the Mayor’s Bicycle Advisory Committee of Baltimore had a problem: the brand new Gwynns Falls Trail was not being used to its potential.  The city, the Trust for Public Land, and many others had put a great deal of time, money, and effort into building the trail, but the cyclists weren’t there, either because they were unaware that the trail existed, or they were reluctant to use it, wary of urban cycling in general.  
 
To Penny Troutner, owner of Light Street Cycles and then chair of the committee, the answer was obvious:  host an organized ride through the city, passing by or through most of its major parks and trails, thereby not only showcasing the parks themselves, but reassuring local riders that it could be safe and pleasant to cycle within the city limits.  This was no small order.  Back in the days before the city’s Bicycle Master Plan, before we had a full-time bike-ped planner, in a city that hadn’t installed a bike lane or much of any kind of bike accommodation in the previous 20 years, Baltimore did not exactly have a
reputation as a Bike-Friendly Community.  
 

Nonetheless, those of us who lived and cycled in the city knew that there was some good riding and wanted to show it off with a ride.  Any money raised by the event would go right back to the parks, through donations to citizen support groups.  Thus the Tour dem Parks was born. Or Tour du Parks, as it was known for its first few years, to the considerable chagrin of the more linguistically talented members of the committee, who insisted it should either be  Tour du Park or Tour des Parks.  After years of haggling, we decided to embrace our inner Baltimoron and go with Tour dem Parks, as in “How ‘bout dem Oreos?”  (You know,
the baseball team?)  It seemed only natural to throw in “Hon” at the end. So . . . Tour dem Parks, Hon!  John Waters legendary Baltimore filmmaker of “Pink Flamingos” fame) would be proud.
Continue reading “Tour dem Parks, in Spokes Magazine”

[An excerpt from a community list serve to the police:]

Greetings,

Please, Please come back. Even with "Your Speed" sign, cars are whizzing at 40 + in a 25 zone
…
MTA BUSES are guilty with every passing in both direction.

Suggest you make personal visit in unmarked car and observe.

Don’t get out of your car. You might get hit by a bus !

Pedestrian & Bike traffic sharing the road is UP.

SAFETY FIRST,

Will look forward to seeing the officers.

The results of an eight-year study examining whether physical attributes of a community contribute to physical activity have been published in the April 2009 volume of Social Science and Medicine. Researcher Jim Sallis, funded by the National Institutes of Health, evaluated 32 communities in the Seattle WA and Baltimore MD regions and found those who lived in walkable neighborhoods got substantially more exercise each week than those living in low-walkable areas. Residents of walkable communities were also less likely to be overweight or obese. USA Today provides more details on the study. The findings are available to purchase online.

Can you imagine this space being bike/ped friendly? BaltiMore BaltiMorphsis can, check them out.
Continue reading “BaltiMorphosis”

Next date May 16 in Druid Hill Park Disk Golf Course and free loner bikes are available if you RSVP

The first bicycle (1818) the bicycle rider’s feet were in contact with the ground and over time the bicycle evolved to be the most energy efficient forms of locomotion (not to mention the most fun!) So for those who are having trouble with these newfangled bicycles are invited to join us and Baltimore City Rec and Parks for a beginners bike clinic were we mimic the Draisine (pictured) by lowering the seat and (temporarily) removing the pedals and practice mastering these magnificent machines on some gentle grassy slopes of Druid Hill Park.

This clinic is by appointment only and only for adults, so please contact us and let us know about your availability and if you need a bike and helmet. twowheelparkrider”at”yahoo.com
Continue reading “Back to the Beginning Bike Clinic (B2BBC)”

Thank you for subscribing to the BIKE BALTIMORE e-newsletter distributed by
the Baltimore
City , Department of
Transportation.  Here you will find the latest information regarding the
city’s efforts to make Baltimore
a safer and more enjoyable place to bike.

SUPPORT!

Contact your congressional representatives and ask them to
support new active transportation projects for the
Baltimore area!  The City of Baltimore
has 4 projects that will need federal funding – Herring Run Trail
extension, Baltimore & Annapolis Trail extension, Bike Station improvements
and reconstructing the Middle Branch Bridge for cyclists and pedestrians! 
A brief description of these projects can be found at www.baltimorecity.gov/bike

BIKE INFRASTRUCTURE

New Bike Lanes – The first bike lanes of the 2009
construction season are installed on Wabash
Avenue between
Bareva Rd and
Hilton Rd.   These bike lanes are
along the left side of the road to improve access for the residents in this
area.  The lanes will further extend to the Cold Spring Metro Station and
West Cold Spring Lane .

New Bike Parking –
Baltimore has 2 new bike parking
facilities:  The on-street bike parking in
Charles Village
and new bike lids at the West Baltimore MARC Station.  The on-street
facility in Charles
Village converts a
vehicular space and provides parking for 10-12 bicycles.  The bike lids
provide longer term parking to commuters at the MARC Station.  The lids
effectively cover the bike protecting it from vandals and weather.

BIKE EVENTS

The Bike Blast on
April 25^th and the Bike Summit on
May 1^st were both a huge success!  The Bike Summit laid out a
vision of what biking in Baltimore
will look like in 10-15 years.  Cycling advocates, city and state
officials came together to share ideas and resources to improve biking in
Baltimore . Results from
the Bike Summit will be posted online when available.

Bike To Work Day is Friday, May 15^th,
2009.  The annual downtown rally at War
Memorial Plaza
is one of many rallies taking place in Baltimore . 
Register online here.

Tour Dem Parks, Hon is Sunday, June 14^th!

All these events and more can be found on the Bike
Baltimore website at www.baltimorecity.gov/bike

Can’t make the Bike2Work Day rally?

Have to be work too early?

Just not a morning person?

Seems to me if you bike TO work on Friday, May 15th, you’re gonna bike back home FROM work, too.

Ahem,

INTRODUCING:

(drum roll)

The First . . .

Annual . . .

BIKE FROM WORK DAY CELEBRATION!

4:30PM – ?
DuClaw Brewery
901 S. Bond Street (at Thames Street)
Fells Point (21231)

Happy Hour Specials
(3PM – 7PM)
Givaways!
(depending what I can get anybody to donate)

This is a viral gathering, NOT officially sponsored by:

DuClaw
The Baltimore Metropolitan Council
The Baltimore City Dept of Transportation
The Mayor’s Bicycle I-wouldn’t-advise-that Committee

OK, not even unofficially sponsored by the above.

Come meet your fellow city cyclists.
Trade MTA horror stories.
Compare routes.
Compare equipment (you know you always are anyway).
Refuel for the evening ride.
But don’t get too hammered to track a straight line.

Be there or be square!

Greg Hinchliffe

(Who?)