baltimorespokes

Dear Mountain Biking Enthusiast:

I recently had the pleasure of meeting with a number of you to discuss the issue of mountain biking at our reservoirs. At that meeting it was determined that a new task force would be convened to review and revise the current Mountain Biking Plan. The task force will have broad-based representation so that all interested groups have the opportunity for input. Please note that our Watershed Rangers have not ticketed mountain bikers for going off-trail, they have enforced, and will continue to enforce, all other regulations including after-sunset trespassing.

I thank all of you who have taken the time to write. I am confident that by working together we can protect our reservoir lands as well as enjoy the recreational opportunities they afford. Please share this message with your fellow mountain bikers.

Sincerely,

Sheila Dixon
Mayor
Baltimore City
Continue reading “Dear Mountain Biking Enthusiast:”

Oops. Another year (or is it a decade?) has come and gone, and you’re no closer to being in shape and feeling healthy than you were last year at this time. You meant to join a gym and start a yoga program and bike to work and go for long walks and wake up early and work out … you really did. So what happened? You got busy, or bored, or you re-aggravated that trick knee from college and had to drop the regimen after a week. Or maybe you didn’t even know where to start.

Look around and you will find yourself in good company. Despite a burgeoning fitness industry and ever-more-compelling evidence linking excess weight to a constellation of public health problems, we keep getting bigger and bigger: The average Marylander has put on at least 18 pounds since 1988. The nonprofit United Health Foundation estimates that by 2018 more than half of Maryland residents will be obese, with the projected cost of additional health care to treat increased illness landing north of $7 billion. Kind of makes the cost of gym membership [or a bike] pale in comparison.
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Continue reading “FIT! The Urbanite Guide to Getting Healthy and Being Well”

BALTIMORE (WJZ) ― A new study ranks Maryland and the Baltimore area among the worst when it comes to pedestrian and bicycling safety.

Derek Valcourt has details on the study and why some question its findings.

Johns Hopkins student Miriam Frankl was killed by a driver while crossing the road, Chuck Yates, 67, was run over by a truck as he rode his bike through Baltimore and a 20-year-old ballet dancer was struck and killed as she was trying to cross Rt. 24 in Harford County.

The horrible headlines have become all too common and, according to a new study by Transportation for America, pedestrians and bicyclists make up 19.4% of Maryland’s traffic-related deaths. That study labels the Baltimore/Towson area as the 29th most dangerous metropolitan area in the nation for both walkers and bikers. That’s no surprise to many Baltimore natives.

“I’ve almost gotten hit down here and I’ve been working down here for over 10 years, at least three times trying to cross the street,” said Carolyn Winder.

The study examines the amount of money being spent on pedestrian safety in Maryland. It ranks the state as second worst in the nation, spending only six-tenths of one percent of its total federal transportation funds on bicycling and walking projects.

State highway officials fault the study for only looking at federal dollars and not looking at how state dollars are spent, and they say more federal dollars are going toward pedestrian improvements than the study indicates.

“We’re really probably a leader in the pack if you look at all of our spending and the whole picture,” said Valerie Burnette Edgar, State Highway Administration.

[Baltimore Spokes: I can not emphasize enough the absurdity of the above statement, imagine going to a doctor to review your progress on your diet and he asks you how much money you have spent on diet food. And he responds you are making great progress as you are spending a lot on diet food. And you are thinking but I gained 100 lbs how is this good progress? Similarly Maryland’s pedestrian fatality rate is now the 6th worst per FARS. Road safety is a lot like a diet as it requires a proper mix of a variety of items and some of those are very low cost items. In rearguards to supporting a variety of items for road safety Maryland is an epic failure. It’s not about how much you are spending it’s about results and how smart you are with spending.]

“I think the report does have some methodological problems to it, but the point is well taken that we need to be doing a lot more in terms of pedestrian safety,” said City Transportation Deputy Director Jamie Kendricks.

[Baltimore Spokes: While I applaud the efforts the City is doing what Federal Aid money I can trace to Baltimore has been Federally earmark funds. That is to say we had to do an end run around the State to bypass the State not following recommend Federal policies in administering Federal Funds. And the absurd bit is now this counts as the State spending funds on our behalf.]

State highway officials say they plan to spend more than $113 million in bicycle and pedestrian improvements over the next five years.

City officials say they’ve already added 45 miles of bike paths in Baltimore and have plans to add another 60 miles of bike lanes next year.

[Baltimore Spokes: Here’s a novel idea; (just to name one) how about also enforcing crosswalk laws? As I said it’s about supporting a variety of items for road safety.and not what is being spent, not mention some things are very low cost.]
Continue reading “Study: Baltimore Unsafe For Pedestrians, Cyclists”

The problem: The bicycle rack at Baltimore’s first on-street bike parking area in Charles Village is missing.
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"It was a big deal. … To have it go away so quickly, it was like, ‘Well, that’s no fun,’ " Walther said.

The good news is, the bike racks will return – although there will be fewer spots for bikes than before, to balance with demand for car parking, said Nate Evans, the bicycle and pedestrian planner for Baltimore’s Department of Transportation.
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[Baltimore Spokes: IMHO the problem was the two hour limit on the bike Parking, people were afraid to park there and then have their bikes confiscated. That is after all the impression you get when you see a warning sign and no bikes. Please next time no time limit unless there is over use by commuters.]
Continue reading “This time, someone took the whole bike rack in Charles Village”

OK nothing about bicycling but boy has the view from Federal Hill changed.
Continue reading “Charm City: 1903”