Something of interest for those promoting Baltimore’s Sunday Streets:
HOW CHILDREN GET TO SCHOOL: SCHOOL TRAVEL PATTERNS FROM 1969 TO 2009
– Personal vehicles taking K-12th grade students to school accounted for five to seven percent of vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and 10 to 14 percent of all personal vehicle trips made during the morning peak period in 2009
– In 1969, 48 percent of K-8th grade students usually walked or bicycled to school. By 2009, only 13 percent of K-8th grade students usually walked or bicycled to school.
– In 1969, 89 percent of K-8th grade students who lived within one mile of school usually walked or bicycled to school. By 2009, only 35 percent of K-8th grade students who lived within a mile of school usually walked or bicycled to school even once a week
Continue reading “HOW CHILDREN GET TO SCHOOL: SCHOOL TRAVEL PATTERNS FROM 1969 TO 2009”
Everybody runs [stops], sometimes
TheWashCycle has some good coverage of runny stops by motorist and cyclists alike.
https://www.thewashcycle.com/2011/12/friday-afternoon-commute-everybody-runs-sometimes.html
LAB is looking for a few good men (the fewer good ones the better)
- Do you have a vested interest in seeing Maryland in the top ten rankings irregardless of the facts?
- Are you willing to exaggerate, state falsehoods and vehemently oppose all those who disagree with this lofty goal?
- Do you agree that Maryland’s mandatory bike lane law is equivalent to states that have no mandatory use laws? (To be fair, LAB “might” change that this year.)
- Do you believe that telling truck drivers to “tap” the horn at bicyclists is telling them their responsibilities towards bicyclists? (I could go on but you get the idea.)
- Do you like getting zero feedback on any questions or concerns you might have?
If so the League of American Bicyclists is looking for you to become a reviewer for their Bicycle Friendly America Program!
-= Or =-
Join me in respectfully having Maryland withdraw from this program till such time LAB responds to our feedback from last year and provides objective goals that will actually help make Maryland a better place to bike. I have been three years patient and still no response from LAB (sans just one issue) this total lack of communication has to end!
How this has workout out (just one example) is that LAB was of zero help in getting our new Drivers’ Manual because our old one was good enough by this program. Maryland’s ranking will not improve because of this and Maryland will be not be given kudos from LAB for working with the cycling advocates and getting this done.
So I have to ask, “Then what’s the point of LAB’s Bicycle Friendly America Program if this is the kind of result we get?”
-= The Ask =-
Write Nicole@bikeleague.org and ask to kindly respond to our issues or remove Maryland from the rankings.
Write president@baltobikeclub.org and respectfully ask that the Baltimore Bicycling Club stop giving extra money to LAB while they are blatantly refusing to work with Maryland’s advocates.
If you are a LAB member I encourage to support The Alliance for Biking and Walking (The Donate button is on the left) rather then LAB and tell Nicole you intend to remove your financial support for LAB.
Open Streets Project
For those of you working on Sunday Streets or Cyclovia check this out: https://openstreetsproject.org/
Construction zone man
Construction zone man: he will save us from needless traffic delays by building more and more highway expansion projects at a cost of a “mere” several trillion dollars.
Photo from https://fastlane.dot.gov/2011/12/delaware-interchange.html There is a video at the end showing “how marvelous” this project will be in accommodating all the Dale Earnhardt Jr. wannabes without a pedestrian or cyclists in sight.
Turning rubbish heaps into car sewers
This original (and hilarious, sad) report from 1961 on David Troy’s website as a PDF — warning, it’s 238MB, so it may take a few minutes to load. MUST READ. https://davetroy.com/docs/jfp-gbc1961.pdf
”Time is running out. Truly this is a time of decision. Shall the Jones Falls Valley continue to be a rubbish heap — an object of catch-as-catch-can speculation and abuse? Will we travel on the Jones Falls Expressway, past derelict factories with bricked-up windows, through a treeless landscape with billboards glaring at us from every conceivable angle?
Or will the Valley become, by one master stroke, a great Valley Parkway, making travel on it — by expressway, by scenic road, by commuter train, on foot — a pleasure and relief for the daily traveler?
To delay our decision will mean that the opportunity will be lost forever. Jones Falls Valley must be saved!” – Greater Baltimore Committee, 1961
[B’ Spokes: It is absolutely amazing how this vision has failed. The car has sold us so many false visions of the future.]
The power of the bicycle through Bikes for the World
2011 Holiday Lights Ride [video]
The 3rd Annual Holiday Lights Bike Ride tours the famous Christmas lights of Baltimore including the Washington Monument and 34th Street in Hampden.
December 19th – Bike Maryland Legislative Task Force Meeting
Please join Bike Maryland in a discussion of our state legislative agenda. At the upcoming legislative task force meeting we will discuss pro-bike priorities and set a strategy for action!
Monday, December 19, 2011
6:30 to 8:00 pm
Maryland Department of Transportation Headquarters/Harry Hughes Transportation Building
Richard Trainor Conference Room – 1st Floor
7201 Corporate Center Drive
Hanover, MD 21076
Please RSVP – this is my email link click here to RSVP
even if you will be calling in to the conference call – conference call number is: 410-865-1298
The Maryland General Assembly meets in Annapolis each year for 90 days to act on more than 2300 bills including the State’s annual budget. The 430th Session begins January 11, 2012. The General Assembly has 47 Senators and 141 Delegates elected from 47 districts.
While the Maryland General Assembly is in session we have a tremendous opportunity to promote state level pro-bike legislation. Bike Maryland seeks active advocates to assist with the promotion of pro-bike legislation during this short and fast paced legislative session. Active advocates can assist by contacting legislators, obtaining support from business, government and community leaders, performing research and increasing grass roots support!
Priorities:
• Dedicated funding for bicycling – requiring a dedicated percentage of funds from a potential Gas Tax increase be used to enhance and increase the number of bicycling lanes and paths (especially to connect existing sections of paths), improve signage relating to bicyclists’ use of the roads and three feet to pass, and to implement plans for cycling infrastructure already included in the State’s Master Plan.
• Strengthen Passing Legislation by requiring motorists to pass cyclists safely, including a combination of:
- Slowing Down: perhaps to within 15 mph of the speed of the cyclist
- Moving Left: to allow three feet to pass
- Crossing a Solid Line: when it is safe to do so (applies to any slow-moving vehicle)
- Waiting: until it is safe to pass and allow three feet of clearance
• Distracted driving legislation to make a driver’s use of a hand-held mobile phone a primary offense.
• Other items of interest (research assistance is needed here): determining a fair transportation enhancement match, allowance of bicycles on MARC trains, development of ICC bicycle infrastructure, strengthen enforcement of the Complete Streets statute in road design, 24 hour trail access for bicyclists for commuting purposes and more.
Continue reading “December 19th – Bike Maryland Legislative Task Force Meeting”