DOT Secretary Ray LaHood defined “livability”, as “Being able to take your kids to school, go to work, see a doctor, drop by the grocery or post office, go out to dinner and a movie, and play with your kids in a park, all without having to get in your car."
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Consider the crash tax
Another in a long series of jibes against the myth that cars pay their own way. So the question has come up who pays for the police and fire response to a car crash? And the answer is; all local residents whether they drive or not or if they do drive, the good drivers pay the same as the bad drivers, sort of a subsidy for poor driving I guess.
So Denver in attempt to balance the budget is considering charging at fault non-residents a fee for crashes they cause in attempt to balance the budget. The fee is estimated to raise $1.13 million annually and is expected to be in the $300 to $400 range just for the fire departments response.
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Crash involved a juvenile on a bicycle.
Department responded to the Valley Road at Forest Avenue for a motor vehicle crash with injuries. The crash involved a juvenile on a bicycle. The child was traveling on Forest Avenue and was unable to stop prior to the intersection with Valley Road. Susan Lee, of Cumberland, was traveling south on Valley Road when the cyclist struck the side of her vehicle. Cumberland Fire Department ambulance responded to the scene and transported the juvenile to Western Maryland Regional Medical Center for injuries sustained in the motor vehicle crash. Investigation continuing.
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Howard County bike thefts
Baltimore Avenue, 14800 block, June 16. While eating at McDonald’s, a Laurel man and his son observed two males take their bicycles from the front of the restaurant and ride away. The victims gave chase and one of the males dropped the bicycle and fled on foot. The second male fled with the other bicycle.
Gorman Avenue, 700 block, June 13. Bicycle stolen from a parking lot.
I’m back on the road again
I thought I would mention in case you are like me and need some welding on your bike
or if the local bike shop does not carry the size spokes you need
Try BBW, I am very impressed with their welding work and they can make spokes any length (both black and silver.) Anyway a very cool shop, stop by sometime when you can.
Another lying ped light
On the way home from the BBA meeting I was riding up Roland Ave about to cross W 40th and I see the ped signal nearing zero as I approach. Now by State standards at Zero the light should go yellow so I look for cross traffic and see none so I decide to "run the yellow." But as I entered the intersection and the countdown hit zero the light was still green and the ped light was solid red. About 5 seconds later I look back, and the light is still green … WTF? (Walking I can cross a street twice that size in 5 seconds.)
So I am posting this in case the police give anyone a hassle about not obeying a ped signal as ped lights need to adhere to standard and telling someone that it is unsafe to walk when it is still safe to walk is lying and makes for unsafe conditions. And with so many ped lights that lie it is no wounder we have such a low compliance to them.
Hmm, illegal wire taping good for police investigations
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Investigators also plan to use images taken from police videos, area surveillance cameras and television reports. It could take months to identify more suspects.
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Vernon told the Los Angeles Times that cell phones and video have "in essence deputized the public" in fighting crime.
Using a YouTube video showing people setting fire to the taxi cab, the Fire Department arson squad asked for public help in finding the culprits. Investigators say they’ve gotten several solid tips.
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[B’ Spokes: I guess if this happened in Maryland we would jail the people making the videos and let the people setting fire to the taxi cab off.]
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Curveballs: a case for wearing a helmet
While I stand apposed to mandatory use helmet laws I do encourage their use. Some (Michael Dresser for one) seem to relate to bicycle helmets like a seat belt. Just one problem with that, riding a bike is good for you and the planet, while driving a car at best is a necessary evil. If cyclists should wear helmets for improved safety, drivers should have a steel stake protruding from the steering column to remind drivers to "drive safe or else."
So as some motorist may die or be seriously injured in a car crash despite seat belts and airbags the same applies to cyclists. But still we are struck with the needless tragedy of a cyclist seriously injured when not wearing a helmet. All this serves as an intro to a story about Chris who has been life-lined to the shock trauma unit in Baltimore. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Chris and if you ride without a helmet you may want to read the following story.
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Hit cyclists intentionally, don’t go to jail:
2 drunk Chicago men deliberately hunted down and hit bicyclists in their car. They pled guilty, but got zero jail time for one (and two years probation) and just 10 days in jail for the other. (Streetsblog)
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Was the cyclist at fault?
But investigators found that the cyclist was at fault because he was riding in parking lanes and tried to pass the truck on the right, which is illegal in Maryland, according to a city police spokesman.
The law:
§ 21-101. Definitions.
(v) Shoulder.- “Shoulder” means that portion of a highway contiguous with the roadway for the accommodation of stopped vehicles, …
§ 21-1205.1. Bicycles, motor scooters, and EPAMDs prohibited on certain roadways and highways; speed limit.
(b) Roadway with bike lane or shoulder paved to smooth surface.-
(1) Where there is a bike lane paved to a smooth surface or a shoulder paved to a smooth surface, a person operating a bicycle or a motor scooter shall use the bike lane or shoulder and may not ride on the roadway, except in the following situations:
(i) When overtaking and passing another bicycle, motor scooter, pedestrian, or other vehicle within the bike lane or shoulder if the overtaking and passing cannot be done safely within the bike lane or shoulder;
By my reading a “parking lane” is still a shoulder and one cannot leave the shoulder unless you are passing something in the shoulder. And there is this from Bicycle Law:
Imagine you’re driving your car on a road with multiple lanes. You’re in the right lane, and for some reason, the lane to the left of you backs up, and traffic stops. No problem, your lane is still open, so you continue driving, passing all of the cars stopped in the lane to your left.
Then you see the lights in your rearview mirror—you’re pulled over by a law enforcement officer, who issues you a citation for passing on the right. Later, in traffic court, you explain to the Judge that traffic in the lane to your left was stopped, while your lane was open, and that is why you were passing on the right. Despite your defense, the Judge decides that you were in violation of the law, and tells you that you should have either merged into the left lane, or stopped in your lane and waited for traffic in the left lane to begin moving again.
An absurd interpretation of the law? Absolutely. The decision is not only contrary to what the law actually says, it also leads to a result so absurd that any Judge should realize that it is obviously not the law.
So what are your thoughts? Are the police right and are we forbidden to ride in parking lanes? Are we forbidden to pass on the right in a separate lane? And should a commercial truck driver that fails to signal a turn be the lesser “at fault” party?
Please post your thoughts.
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