I would especially encourage Valley residents, businesses, students, pedestrians, cyclists, etc. to continue to contact Councilmember Greig Smith to urge him to make it a priority to close that gap so that the Reseda Bike Lanes span the entire Valley.

There’s a sample letter/email online here: http://lacbc.wordpress.com/2009/08/17/reseda-blvd-bike-lane-letter/

The mind reels!

Hi Joe,

I read your Streesblog with interest this afternoon. I like to clarify that as we discussed last night after the meeting, the segment of the Reseda Bl bike lanes that we can install in “about a year” is from Devonshire Street to Nordhoff Street and not the entire segment. Thanks

Paul

Waiting to see what the LADOT “will come up with” is to ask for more of the same and will end up being the battle cry for mediocrity. Now is the time to move as a community to establish standards and to raise the bar for pedestrians, cyclists and mass transit passengers.

This incident should be the DQ for those in the LADOT who play loose with language and hide behind “trash talk” defenses when the community is, once again, called out to defend the quality of life in their neighborhoods.

C’mon LA! Let’s Go!!

So the individual who is TRAVELING somewhere on the public Right-of-Way is not as important as another individual who may wish to PLACE IN STORAGE their $10,000-plus-valued possession on that public Right-of-Way…

…for free or at a below-market rate?

Mr. Willis, are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party? Cuz only Karl and Frederich would come up with that kind of logic!

Taking into account that what the LADOT does affects all of us as residents of Los Angeles and is a publicly-funded agency, it is absurd for Mr. Willis, or anyone else at the LADOT to believe that they can operate as an isolated, secretive cabal, insulated from public debate or scrutiny.

Obviously, this is not a staffing problem, but a leadership problem – as the department is quite large and has some dead weight but also some very bright people as well.

The mayor’s office has their “Tiger Team” mentality which directly conflicts with the mayor’s “Green” baloney. He’s appointed an able manager to run the LADOT, but not a progressive leader (aka Gail Goldberg) with a vision for the City’s future and an ability to morph a department’s culture towards a better future for L.A.

If LADOT ever decides to work with us, rather than against us, they’ll find cyclists could be the best friends they ever had.

Can our leaders be this spineless when it comes removing a few parking spots in exchange for a bike amenity? It feels like a mountain has to be moved every single time a tiny change is made to slow down cars to favor local neighborhood safety.