baltimorespokes

By Beth Richards

I can still remember flying down the big hill on the way to my elementary school in Des Moines, Iowa in the 1970s.  My bike was super-girl purple with a sparkly white banana seat and completely oversized basket with big flowers that I eventually pulled off, as the tom-boy in me emerged.  I loved my bike and I loved the freedom of that ride to and from school.

These childhood memories used to be the norm, but not anymore. In 1969, 48% of children walked or biked to school. Today, that number is down to just 13%  Kids who are being driven to school aren’t just missing out on great experiences that turn into cherished memories, they’re missing out on much needed physical activity.

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Continue reading “Getting more kids on bikes more often”

This post highlighting Streets Blog article relates to our featured article asking for more bicycle infrastructure. https://www.baltimorespokes.org/article.php?story=20111004135137190
Highlights:
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“What were seeing right now is an inability to look at how we live and how it relates to our problems, and financial problems,” said Kunstler Tuesday during a speaking engagement with the Congress for the New Urbanism. “Production homebuilders, mortgage lenders, real estate agents, they are all sitting back now waiting for the, quote, bottom of the housing market to come with the expectation that things will go back to the way they were in 2005.”
But despite massive government expenditures to restart the old economic engine driven by suburban homebuilding, recovery is elusive, Kunstler said. The author of “The Geography of Nowhere” and “The Long Emergency” argues that suburbanization has been a multi-decade American experiment, and a failed one.
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In its new booklet Curbside Chat, Strong Towns asserts that since the 1970s, the suburban growth that powered America’s economy operated much like a Ponzi scheme. In towns across the country, politicians traded the short-term payoffs of sprawling development — namely increased taxes — for long-term maintenance obligations that are just now coming due. And they’re coming up short.
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“Our problem was not, and is not, a lack of growth; Our problem is sixty years of unproductive growth,” said Marohn. “The American pattern of development does not create real wealth; it creates the illusion of wealth. Today we are in the process of seeing that illusion destroyed and with it the prosperity we have come to take for granted.”
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“We now have to do things differently.”
Continue reading “New Urbanists: No Economic Recovery Without Smart Growth”

5 bicycle officers injured in 1 month, but police not deterred
->In the latest incident Saturday, a 26-year-old bike officer was struck in a crosswalk at Fond du Lac Ave. and W. Capitol Drive by an 84-year-old driver. The officer is recovering at home from minor injuries. The driver was cited for failure to yield the right of way.
Another officer was struck by a 47-year-old suspected drunken driver from Mequon as the officer conducted a traffic stop shortly before 9 p.m. Sept. 15 in the 1500 block of W. Vliet St., according to police.
Three officers were struck in a hit-and-run incident in the 1100 block of W. Lincoln Ave. shortly before 12:45 a.m. Sept. 9.
https://www.jsonline.com/news/crime/5-injuries-in-1-month-to-bicycle-patrol-officers-131016808.html
SUV crashes into police bike patrol in training, leaving three officers hurt
->Diaz was discharged Thursday but Beaudry and Mercado were still hospitalized in stable condition Friday, Reyes said.
"I don’t think this women intended to hit anyone," Reyes said. "It’s fortunate everyone is going to be able to walk away."
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Traffic investigators will review evidence from cameras at the intersection to see if they can get a clearer picture of what happened. Police did not impound Quintanilla’s vehicle or cite her for a traffic violation.
"Just by her staying on the scene speaks volumes," Reyes said. "I’m sure she didn’t intend for it to happen."
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/florida/mh-miami-bike-cops-hit-20110929,0,7768959.story

[B’ Spokes: This is probably close to here as well.]
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from Greater Greater Washington
Here’s a simple suggestion to improve the morning rush hour: Get more kids to walk, bike, and bus to school.
It is estimated that 20% of morning traffic congestion in Fairfax County is related to parents driving kids to school, and despite the availability of alternates, drop-off lines are only getting longer.
No one wins under the current system. Taxpayers pay too much for kids to get to school, parents lose valuable time serving as chauffeurs, and kids forfeit an opportunity to learn independence and healthy habits. And, of course, everyone suffers when traffic swells.
For the time being, there are almost no programs or policies in Fairfax that promote an alternative to the curbside drop-off. In fact, at several schools, principals prohibit students from walking or biking to school, even though Fairfax County has endorsed these options.
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As a result, taxpayers pay multiple times for students to get to school. They pay teachers and administrators to staff large-scale kiss & ride operations, while at the same time they pay for the empty bus seats that students and their parents choose to forgo. Meanwhile, they also pick up the indirect costs associated with increased traffic congestion and on-road incidents.
There are many reasons why walking and biking to school benefit children and the community. Children develop independence at an earlier age, they get the health benefits of exercise, they are more alert in school, and they develop a lifelong healthy habit of walking or biking.
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Continue reading “Reducing school traffic would help rush hour congestion”