B’ Spokes: I liked this article but it seemed to overly stress Copenhagenizing cities. Don’t get me wrong, nothing wrong with that as a end result but how do we get from no bicycle accommodations to being Copenhagen, what are the steps? As an example lets switch to an easier to understand accommodating the personal automobile when no accommodation for them exists, let’s say there are dirt "roads everywhere and that’s it. So what’s the first thing that should be stressed, one really expensive regional multi-lane expressway (and keep all local roads dirt) or just paving some dirt roads to create a regional network of roads so people can get around without using that many dirt roads?
So what I am trying to point out is the State’s over stress on trails (like only building a regional expressway with no viable way to get around off that expressway) and what Nate is doing in Baltimore City with wayfaring signs (so cyclists can get around without using car centric roads.) For many this is not as cool as trails or cycletracks but in my opinion this is exactly the correct first steps we need to grow into accommodating more cyclists. Now if we can only get the State to start thinking that way and start working closer with the counties to make a viable cycling network.
Main points in the article:
A Whole Hearted Bicycle Policy
Bicycles as Part of Integrated Transport Thinking
A Comfortable Network
Bicycle Cities and City Bicycles (bike rental/sharing)
On the Way to a New Bicycle Culture (bicycling is just a way to get around vs just for a small group of death-defying bicycle enthusiasts)
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Continue reading “How to Plan Good Cities for Bicycling”
Survey: Two-thirds in region want red light cameras
from Getting There by Michael Dresser
A survey by a prominent highway safety group shows two-thirds support for the use of red light cameras in Baltimore and 13 other large U.S. cities, indicating the public believes study findings that the devices reduce auto fatalities.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said its survey shows that 67 percent of respondents in Baltimore support the use of the camera — a percentage that is in line with the national average.
Other cities in the survey ranged from 78 percent support in Washington to 48 percent favorable in Long Beach, Calif. The survey did not address public acceptance of speed camera.
The institute contends the survey shows that opponents of the red light cameras, while vocal, make up a minority of the driving population. According to the group, another of its studies showed a 24 percent reduction in fatal crashes in the same cities since the introduction of the technology.
“Most drivers don’t buy the argument that it’s somehow wrong to enforce the law just because you’re using a camera to do it,” says Anne McCartt, the Institute’s senior vice president for research. “They understand that this technology is preventing crashes in their cities.”
The survey found that nine in 10 drivers call red-light-running unacceptable, and eight of 10 consider the practice a threat to their own personal safety.
The institute said the survey found that about one-quarter of the respondents firmly oppose use of the cameras. It said the most common reasons given — by 26 percent each — were that cameras make mistakes and that they are installed to raise government revenue rather than to improve safety.
Continue reading “Survey: Two-thirds in region want red light cameras”
County launches StreetSmart campaign to promote bicyclist, pedestrian safety
By Amanda Yeager
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County executive Ken Ulman said the county also needed to prioritize pedestrian and bicycle safety in its future projects. "We have a community that was built for the automobile," he said. "It was not designed for bicyclists. We’ve got to make sure that as we redevelop, we are putting the priority on pedestrian and bicycle safety."
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Continue reading “County launches StreetSmart campaign to promote bicyclist, pedestrian safety”
How to Handle Bike-Car Accidents, Part 2
[B’ Spokes: Just a excerpt, there’s more via the link at the end.]
I Was In A Collision—What Should I Do?
By Bob Mionske
You’ve just been hit by a car, and you’re lying on the roadway. In Part 1 of this article, I advised you to begin documenting what happened. But what if you’re injured and unable to function? Here’s what you need to know:
• A good forensic engineer can reconstruct the accident.
• Police reports and investigations are not the last word or even the best word on what happened.
• If you think that the police got it wrong, you can make an effort to get the accident report amended, and through your attorney, have your own forensic engineer reconstruct the accident.
• If you have a GPS device or GPS on your cell phone, it will track your ride, and the data can be retrieved later to assist in accident reconstruction.
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Continue reading “How to Handle Bike-Car Accidents, Part 2”