Trek Stop
If you happen to be in Madison, Wisconsin during the next few weeks, check out the
If you happen to be in Madison, Wisconsin during the next few weeks, check out the
Cycle-based Breakdown Patrols
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With 60,000 cars and more than 100 breakdowns expected over the two weeks of Wimbledon, the bikes will cut through busy car parks to help ease the chronic delays that often result for thousands of revellers.
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The new pushbikes represent a return to century-old roots for the AA, best known for its familiar yellow vans. The first AA patrols rode cycles from 1905
Arlington Court date for failing to stay to the right
[From Bike Washington list]
Just wanted to post that I had a successful day in court and was found not guilty by the judge.
I had been cited for failure to stay to the right. I was westbound on Wilson between 10th and Monroe, occupying the center of the right hand lane when I was pulled over and cited.
The ticketing officer was there today. She gave her side of events (along the lines of "He was all over the road.") I gave my side which included the fact I was in the center of the right hand lane. That the lane varies in width from 12-10 feet. That AASHTO recommends a minimum width of 14 feet for lanes shared between cars and bikes. That Arlington County's Bike Arlington website hosts a WABA safety guide recommending occupying the center of a lane too narrow for a bike and car to be abreast. And that my center lane position allowed me to pass on the left of a car that actually made a right hand turn in front of me.
The judge listened to both sides, thumbed through the regs, and said not guilty, case closed. I didn't even need to show my photos or testify to my speed (22 in a 25 zone). I think I came off more professional and courteous than the officer. The officer tried to bring up some bogus "And he went through a red light after I cited him, too, but I didn't bother give him a ticket for that." I said that I didn't recall such a thing happening. The judge ignored the officer's claim, which when she said it sounded to me petty and childish. Maybe it came off the same way to the judge, I don't know.
Since I was the first real case of the day (after all the very minor No Registration cases), the best part was the judge taking my side in a courtroom full of a dozen Arlington officers and a room full of drivers.
Of course, wouldn't you know after leaving the Courthouse and biking to work in DC, I had a car honk and curse at me for occupying the center of the rightmost lane on H Street, NW, while keeping up with traffic. It's not a daily occurrence, so the coincidence was uncanny. It just goes to show, even when the cyclist is right, we still have to be careful for the whack jobs who will never understand.
Motorists who endanger bicycle riders crackdown nets 233 tickets
A three-month-old ordinance targeting motorists who endanger bicycle riders has so far netted 233 citations, including 95 for improper left turns and 11 for driving on bicycle paths, Chicago Police said."It's a good start. It shows that they're taking it seriously," said Rob Sadowsky, executive director of the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation.
"I'm a little surprised, actually."
The ordinance, pushed by bike enthusiast Mayor Daley, raised fines for motorists who endanger bicyclists and clarified situations where bikes have the right of way.
The citations were issued between March 12 and May 31. Five bicyclists had been killed in collisions with vehicles in Chicago this year.
Sadowsky said drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians all have to exercise more care. He said he thinks the best news pedestrians and cyclists have had lately was not the ordinance, but the police sting targeting drivers who didn't stop for a cop posing as a pedestrian in the crosswalk.
"That will have a great application for bicyclists as well, because now we get people saying, 'Wow, they're actually looking at the rules of the road,'" Sadowsky said.
Swifter than eagles. And stolen
We treat bike theft as though it were a kind of natural event, like catching a cold or succumbing to some other morally neutral phenomenon.When someone's bicycle is stolen the discussion is entirely about what he or she could have done to prevent it. The police talk about the need for tougher locks, and special serial numbers, and the cycling experts give out various bits of anti-theft advice. Don't have a bike that's too flash, they say. Try painting it some depressing colour, like orange or purple. Try having a basket at the front, they say, or mudguards, or anything to make your bike look a bit grungy and unappealing.
All of which advice may be well meant, but somehow makes me pop with rage, because we seem continually to be ascribing responsibility for the event to the victim, and ignoring the critical point. It wasn't some supernatural agency that nicked your bike, or nicked my bike. It wasn't oompa-loompas or fairies or bike elves. It was thieves.
Looking to Avoid Aggressive Drivers? Check Those Bumpers.
- Shankar Vedantam Washington Post Staff Writer ...
Watch out for cars with bumper stickers.
That's the surprising conclusion of a recent study by Colorado State University social psychologist William Szlemko. Drivers of cars with bumper stickers, window decals, personalized license plates and other "territorial markers" not only get mad when someone cuts in their lane or is slow to respond to a changed traffic light, but they are far more likely than those who do not personalize their cars to use their vehicles to express rage -- by honking, tailgating and other aggressive behavior.
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Hey, you clown! This ain't funny! Aggressive driving might be responsible for up to two-thirds of all U.S. traffic accidents that involve injuries.
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The key to the phenomenon apparently lies in the idea of territoriality. Drivers with road rage tend to think of public streets and highways as "my street" and "my lane" -- in other words, they think they "own the road."
Why would bumper stickers predict which people are likely to view public roadways as private property?
Social scientists such as Szlemko say that people carry around three kinds of territorial spaces in their heads. One is personal territory -- like a home, or a bedroom. The second kind involves space that is temporarily yours -- an office cubicle or a gym locker. The third kind is public territory: park benches, walking trails -- and roads.
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Bike thieves beware: Jason Cecchettini knows where you live
Bait-bike inventor Jason Cecchettini to bike thieves:
As long as you have a bus who needs to walk to school?
The discussion in this article about the safety measures in the road accessing a new school site somehow seems to be missing the point. Of note:
1. The superintendent says "A bus will pick up every child within the attendance boundaries of this school."
2. The school board's stance:
R-7 officials said a reduced-speed school zone is not necessary because children would not be allowed to walk to the school.
3. The traffic engineer's take on this:
Michael Park, city traffic engineer, said motorists don't obey the current speed limit near the property, which is 45 mph. He said a reduced speed zone could cause more accidents.
FOOD FOR FUEL
The Washington, DC-based Rails-to-Trails Conservancy has launched an innovative campaign called "Burn Calories, Not Carbon!" In explaining why you should take the pledge, they write: "Did you know nearly half of all trips in the United States are three miles or less, and the vast majority of these trips are still taken by car? Trails and transit create opportunities to drive less. And choosing to walk and bike instead is a positive response to the twin challenges of climate change and expanding waistlines." The organization's goal is to have 20,000 pledges made by Earth Day, April 22.