Good advice from Riding with the GPS.
https://blog.ridewithgps.com/blog/2013/03/12/Getting-Ready-For-A-Century/
Successes for Cycling in the 2013 Maryland General Assembly
[B’ Spokes: A great run down of this year’s legislative action and I’ll highlight one bit:]
By Jim Titus, WABA
Contributory negligence
The Maryland Court of Appeals is considering a case that could, if successful, repeal the doctrine of contributory negligence. Maryland is one of only five states that retains this legal doctrine, under which a plaintiff who is even minimally at fault cannot successfully sue to recover damages caused by someone else’s negligence. This doctrine is very unfair to cyclists, who may lose the ability to pay for significant medical bills or the loss of earnings after a severe accident.
Last fall, the Maryland Court of Appeals heard oral arguments on whether to replace the doctrine of contributory negligence with comparative fault in the case of Coleman v. Soccer Association of Columbia. The case involves a volunteer soccer coach who smoked pot before practice, tried to swing on a portable goal, and fell on his face. He sued for damages from the soccer league for failing to warn him about this hazard, but the jury found that he was contributorily negligent, so he could not recover damages.
If any such bill has a significant chance of passing, we will work to include an exception for bicyclists who collide with motor-vehicle drivers.
https://www.waba.org/blog/2013/04/successes-for-cycling-in-the-2013-maryland-general-assembly/
How to Bike To Work, Baltimore Style
Great post from our friends at Bmore Bikes.
https://www.bmorebikes.com/how-to-bike-to-work-baltimore-style/
A Driver’s Guide to Mastering Public Transit
[B’ Spokes: I thought this was a cute angle.]
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Via Lifehacker
If you’re used to driving everywhere, taking the subway or the bus might seem overwhelming. Even so, if you live in an urban area where it makes more sense, or you’re just tired of car payments, gas prices, and vehicle maintenance, it’s a good option. Here’s how to learn the ropes of your public transit system quickly and painlessly.
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https://lifehacker.com/a-drivers-guide-to-mastering-public-transit-480119176
The Growing Trend That Should Terrify Walmarts Everywhere
[B’ Spokes: Just look how much gas has increased!]
Via Upworthy
Continue reading “The Growing Trend That Should Terrify Walmarts Everywhere”
Why There’s No War Between Drivers and Cyclists in the Netherlands
By SARAH GOODYEAR, The Atlantic Cities
Bicycling is such an integral part of life in the Netherlands, you might think that Dutch people are born knowing how to cycle.
They aren’t, of course. What’s kind of wonderful is the way that they learn.
It’s not just a matter of going to the park with a parent, getting a push, and falling down a bunch of times until you can pedal on your own. Dutch children are expected to learn and follow the rules of the road, because starting in secondary school – at age 12 – they are expected to be able to ride their bikes on their own to school, sometimes as far as nine or 10 miles.
Because this independent travel for children is valued in Dutch society, education about traffic safety is something that every Dutch child receives. There’s even a bicycle road test that Dutch children are required to take at age 12 in order to prove that they are responsible cycling citizens.
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https://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2012/05/why-theres-no-war-between-drivers-and-cyclists-netherlands/1955/
I am
Instead of tickets, turn lights red for speeders
[B’ Spokes: An interesting idea but I still like the speed camera lottery better (Ref: https://www.baltimorespokes.org/article.php?story=20101223194142460 )]
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by Ben Ross, Greater Greater Washington
Opponents of speed cameras often insist that they don’t want drivers to speed—what they object to is the revenue-raising function of the cameras and their invasion of privacy. There may be a way to give these critics what they say they want, at least on some roads, while curbing excess speed more effectively.
How about wiring radars to turn the next traffic light red whenever a speeder passes? Instead of getting a ticket in the mail, a speeder would just get a red light. With the right settings, this would slow down all speeders—including those who speed by less than 12 mph.
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https://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/18476/instead-of-tickets-turn-lights-red-for-speeders/
Baltimore Bikeshare needs a Tango Partner: Better Bicycle Infrastructure
Via Comeback City
MDOT is requesting $882,000 for the implementation of “Charm City Bikeshare.” 44 stations and 425 bicycles are envisioned. Great news! However, it takes two to tango, and Baltimore will still need better bicycle infrastructure to create a beautiful dance in Charm City. Baltimore has made strides, but Bicycle Magazine is probably on target ranking Charm City 48th out of its top 50 US bicycling cities. Baltimore falls right behind Fargo, North Dakota and Anchorage, Alaska on the list.
To leap ahead of our frost covered competition, Baltimore should build a bike friendly infrastructure network, focusing on its destination rich center to complement Bikeshare. Envision a resident or a visitor starting their Charm City Bikeshare experience in Inner Harbor East. “Sharing” a bike to reach the Convention Center, Camden Yards, University of Maryland Baltimore/Hippodrome, or Penn Station, are all indirect awkward bicycle trips. However, these are the kind of bread and butter trips that make for a successful Bikeshare system.
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Montgomery County police say "Get out of the way" or something
Via Washcycle
Disappointing article on WTOP.
Washington Area Bicyclist Association Director Shane Farthing says bicyclists have the right to use the full travel lanes at all times and that cars must yield and simply wait behind a slow-moving bike.
“Cyclists can’t necessarily always go as fast as traffic, but the law does give cyclists the right to use the road,” says Farthing.
So far, so good…
But Montgomery County Police Lt. Bob McCullough, deputy director of the traffic division, says that’s not the case.
Slow-moving bikes need to move to the right-hand side of the roadway particularly “when they reach a point that they are impeding traffic.”
Is Bob McCullough calling in from the 80’s? But it gets worse.
D.C., Maryland and Virginia law states bicyclists can ride the center of the travel lane only if they’re going the speed limit.
There is no such law. The speed limit is an UPPER limit, not a lower limit. You are not required to maintain that speed, and there is no law against “impeding traffic”. The law in Maryland reads:
Riding to the right not required when traveling at the speed of traffic, operating on a one-way street, passing, preparing for a left turn, avoiding hazards, avoiding a mandatory turn lane or traveling in a lane too narrow to share.
So there are many more excpetions to “riding right” in Maryland than just “traveling at the speed of traffic” which is not the same as “the speed limit.” In DC the law is even farther from what WTOP reports:
Operate a bicycle in a safe and non-hazardous manner… so as not to endanger himself or herself or any other person.
WTOP, you are not the New York Post. Don’t try to be.