Photo: Lisa "no relation" Newton/Flickr

Session 1 - 1pm

• Breakthrough Communities: Sustainability and Justice in the Next American Metropolis - Carl Anthony, Paloma Pavel
• LA's Transportation Future: How Congress Can Help - Denny Zane (MoveLA), Hillary Norton (FAST), Shannon Tracy (T4America), Wendy Alfsen (CAWalks)
• Sidewalk Politics - Bill Roschen, L.A. City Planning Commission
• Bike Research from the Frontlines - Alexis Lantz, Vicki Karlan, Yogi Hendlin, Herbie Huff, Dorothy Le
• Learning LA from the Streets - Diane Meyer, "Without a Car in the World"
• Can we Strengthen the LA Bike Movement? - Ron Milam, Bike Sage
• Moving People to Good Food and Good Food to People - Mark Vallianatos, UEPI
• Street Typologies and Measurements - Jane Choi, LA Department of City Planning
• Crowd Source Bike Mapping - Zane Selvans
• Bike Racks as Art - Geo McCalip, Cyclist Graphics

Session 2 - 2pm

• What the Hell is Going on in Long Beach? - Charlie Gandy
• Diversifying the Bike Movement - Adonia Lugo & Andy Rodriguez, LACBC City of Lights Campaign
• 2010 LA Bike Plan - Jordan Turner, LA Dpt. of City Planning; Michelle Mowery, LA Dpt. Of Transportation
• CicLAvia: Car-Free Streets in LA - Stephen Villavaso & Bobby Gadda, CicLAvia
• Imagining a Narrower LA: The Everyday Impact of Urban Design - David Yoon, Narrow Streets LA
• Thai Town Marketplace: building a Community Health Zone and Market in East Hollywood - Alexander Holsheimer, Thai Community Development Center
• Living Streets Part 1: Reclaiming Streets for People
• Complete the Streets? Street Vending!
• Building Bike Community Through Political Action - Ted Rogers, BikingInLA
• Planning for a Cooler California
  

• Session 3 - 3pm

• How Free Parking Gets in the Way of Building Livable Cities - Donald Shoup, Madeline Brozen, Herbie Huff and Kevin Ocubillo; UCLA School of Planning
• Taco Trucks on the Street
• Safe Routes to School in Southern California - Jessica Meaney
• Creating a Sustainable Taxi System - LA Taxi Workers Alliance
• Scripting a Bicycle Narrative
• Bikes and Public Transportation - Lynne Goldsmith, Metro Bike Program
• Livable Streets Part 2: Taking it to the Streets
• Glendale Safe and Healthy Streets - Colin Bogart, LA County Bicycle Coalition
• Subverting Urban Planning: A Call for Advocacy Planning and New Standards - Stephanie Taylor, Steve Cancian, Enrique Velazquez, Carrie Sutkin, Marta Sanchez; Verde Coaliton
• Changing Communities Through Walkability Assessments

Occidental College’s UEPI Blog announced earlier this morning that this year’s keynote speaker for the Bike Summit will be none other than New York City’s Livable Streets Hero Janette Sadik-Khan.  For those of you that have never read the original Streetsblog or any of my New York-related stories; Sadik-Khan rose to be Commissioner of NYCDOT and immediately changed the department’s goals from car-culture defenders to Portland-esque urban planners.

The recently announced completion of two hundred miles of new bike lanes over the last two years is but one of the high-profile changes that the city’s streets have undergone during her tenure as commissioner, but rather than gush for paragraphs and paragraphs, I’ll let Bike Summit Planner Joe Linton take over:

Sadik-Khan currently serves as the Transportation Commissioner for New
York City. She has overseen an unprecedented effort to make New York
City friendlier for bicycling and walking. From Summer Streets ciclovia-events to Madison Square to Ninth Avenue,
New York’s streets are being transformed from auto-centric to
people-centric. It’s an inspiring story, and Sadik-Khan is the
department head that’s making it happen

There’s no date or time officially announced for her public appearances, but both UEPI and Streetsblog will keep you posted.

(Full disclosure: Sadik-Khan served on the Board of Directors for the Tri-State Transportation Campaign for most of the time I worked as their New Jersey Coordinator.)

(editor’s note: I’m told to expect more of these videos from the Bike Summit and as they are finnished, I’ll post them here at Streetsblog.)

My favorite panel from last week’s Bike Summit, "Bike Safety in the Inner City," featured a group I’d never heard of, City Lites, sponsoring and event so large it rivals the Bike Coalition’s River Ride.  After the panel, I was mystified, how could a group be doing something so large in my coverage area and I was completely clueless about them?

For those of you that aren’t going to make the time to watch the entire 52 minute video, although if nothing else you should watch the introduction, allow me to sum it up for you.  Citi Lites is an organization in South Los Angeles that, amongst other things, is trying to get children and young adults on their bikes by holding a twenty one and five mile community bike ride on the weekend after Memorial Day.  The purpose of the ride is to have people ride in their communities, so the twenty one mile ride begins and ends in South L.A.’s Jesse Owens Park.  Sixteen miles into the ride, they meet up with the smaller children for the five mile ride to the finish at Magic Johnson Park.

This year’s ride is May 30th.  For more information on the ride or to sign up to either participate or volunteer, click over to their website.

LABAC Planning SubCommittee - 2:00 P.M. Today at Caltrans Building Agenda: BMP, Expo Path, Bike Parking, and NBC Universal

If I can find a place online which has the meeting agenda or a direct link to an action alert, it will be provided in the tweet.  You can sign up to receive our twitter feed at twitter.com or sign up for the RSS feed here.

Four very different speakers, with different backgrounds and from three different cities, traveled to Los Angeles to inspire local cyclists to bring change to our streets.  While each of these leaders told different stories and had different experiences, each had a common theme: to see the change we want, we need an educated and inspired city leadership.

Lest this sound as though they just came to town to rail against our local politicians, the speakers, Portand's Elly Blue, New York's Noah Budnick and Mexico City's Bernardo Baranda Sepulveda and Dhyana Quintanar Solares, all encourage the cycling community to reach out to our elected officials and think outside the box on how to get across our point that we need and deserve a safe and comfortable environment to ride in city limits.

In other words, just because Mayor Villaraigosa, who so far hasn't shown much innovation or support when it comes to cyclists, got re-elected doesn't mean we have to put our hopes and dreams on hold for four years.

The first speaker was Noah Budnick from New York's Transportation Alternatives.  Budnick spoke of how the city government was seemingly transformed overnight from one who catered to car traffic to one that wants to create a true bicycle network and reclaim streets for pedestrians and people that just want to spend time outside.

However, while the government may have done an about-face on policy, it only came after decades of activism from Transportation Alternatives and its partner organizations though out the city.  Budnick pointed to community activism from 2005, when a series of crashes left cyclists killed throughout the city.  T.A. and community groups worked together to create an uproar over the unsafe nature of New York's streets gaining the attention of the media and the Mayor's office.

Highlighting crashes is a grim and gruesome, but proven effective way of bringing about political change.  But Budnick's main point was that we need to think outside the box to move politicians to see things our way.  He finished his comments with this thought about what constrains city planners, "It’s the politics that impose the limits, not the curb lines."

Follwing Budnick was Elly Blue, from the mega-blog Bike Portland.  Blue said that there are four signs that a city is a world-class bike city.  A city should be fun, safe, attractive and should make the connection between bikes and the community.  Blue noted that Los Angeles certainly has the first part down, we know how to have fun on our bikes; and I would argue that events such as Art Cycle, Tour De Ballona and Ride Arc show that the cyclists and communities are already starting to work together.

Blue also commented on the challenges that Portland bike-activists now face, one that I think Angelenos would love to have but is a real one nonetheless.  What will is next for Portland now that all of the low-hanging fruit has been picked.  By low-hanging fruit, she means the thousands of gallons of paint used to create colored bike lanes, bike boxes and the traffic calming that has created miles of what we would consider bike boulevards.

Blue also hammered home the idea that until Los Angeles is a world-class bike city.  Despite all of the good things going on in Portland and its "Platinum" ranking form the League of American Cyclists, Blue was not satisfied with the city's progress.  Even as the crowd "ooh'd" and "ahh'd" over the slides showing a network of bike lanes and bike routes; Blue pointed out that as great as Portland is it can't be considered a world-class bike city.

From there we heard of the trials, tribulations and triumph of activists in Mexico City.  Of the two activists in town, Bernardo Baranda Sepulveda the Senior Program Director at the Institute for Transportation Development in Mexico City.

Sepulveda stressed that another way to reach politicians is by taking the our message beyond what is good for cycling.  Don't forget that cycling is good for air quality, and the economy.  A comprehensive series of bike lanes will also benefit transit usage as people will have increased options to get out of their cars.  During the Question and Answer portion of the presentation, Noah Budnick pointed out that New York's new transportation plan came about because such a large part of the air pollution, nearly 25%, in New York City was caused by transportation.  Of course, in Los Angeles, that number is closer to 40%.

Once we have earned the support of politicians, the sky is the limit.  Currently, all of Mexico City's public workers are required to commute without their cars for at least the first Monday of the month, insuring that city-workers at every level understand the obstacles faced by cyclists, pedestrians and transit users.  Sepulveda also pointed to the Car-Free Sundays program where basically the city opens streets throughout and connecting to the downtown to cyclists and pedestrians by closing them to automobiles.

But it's not just about Sunday promotions and occasional car-free days for city employees, it's about using bike infrastructure to make communities more safe and more equitable.  If you have decision makers on your side, they can work with you, step-by-step to fix dangerous intersections and build bike lanes.  The City of Mexico, had over 94 kilometers of bike lanes in 2004 by 2011 they will have over 160.

The last speaker was Dhyana Quintanar Solares.  Solares hit on what by then was a familar theme by encouraging cyclists to demand the support of their Mayor.  With executive support, there is almost no limit to what can be accomplished, but without it we're just fighting at the margins.

From there, the city needs good bicycle data.  Before embarking on a bike plan, or increasing the bike staff ninefold, Mexico City by tracking the number of bike rides and figuring out the origins and destinations for those trips.  Bicycle VMT isn't as important as tracking the growth in trips and where they are going.  Later, during the Question and Answer portion of the presentation, Solares and the other speakers seemed somewhat confused when asked where the funding for these bike studies come from.  In most bike-rich cities studies such as these are built into the budget, not something special that needs a special appropriation.

Solares also emphasised a point brought up by the other speakers.  More important than anything else is making the roads more safe for cyclists and one way to do that is to slow down traffic on side streets and segregate traffic on main streets. 

Lastly, Los Angeles is a unique city and while we should look into and learn from other cities, Los Angeles needs its own unique plan to best serve our streets.  While we can learn a lot from New York, Portland and Mexico City; we shouldn't try to copy them but take what works there and use them to build a new, better Los Angeles.

Now I know there are those among you that can't make the Bike Summit tomorrow for whatever reason.  Don't worry, for those of you that can't make it, Streetsblog will have full coverage of all the keynote speakers on Monday as well as links to other writers takes on different happenings throughout the course of the weekend. 

If you can't make it tomorrow, but also can't wait until Monday, you still have options.  First "Bike Talk" is rumored to be broadcasting live from the Summit at KillRadio.org from 10:00 A.M. until Noon.  You can also read two blog posts by some of our guest speakers at Occidental College's UEPI Blog.  The first is by Noah Budnick and discusses "Safety in Numbers."  The Second from Elly Blue is about looking closer to home to find solutions to our problems.

And of course, as we've been saying over and over, the Summit is a multi-day event.  At Nate Baird's blog Ensie, not to be confused with Enci, he takes a look at Budnick's presentation yesterday at Metro Headquarters.

See you tomorrow!

From left to right: Ron Milam, Elly Blue, Denise Fairchild, Robert Gottlieb, Jennifer Klausner and Noah Budnick

Perhaps the strongest case for increased bike investment was made by Los Angeles Trade Tech professor Denise Fairchild who noted that "For many communities of color, bicycling is the only way to get around.  To not have infrastructure for them is just part of the social injustice that is experienced."

Occidental College Professor Robert Gottlieb noted that Los Angeles wasn't always trailing cities such as Portland and New York when it comes to bike amenities.  In fact L.A. was once thought of as the bike capital of America...as recently as the 1890's.

But our out-of-town guests urged us to think beyond the challenges and hurdles put up on our streets and by our governments and take a more worldly view.  Budnick talked about a world-wide community of urbanites and how we can share and learn from each other.  "We're thinking of cities around the world and that everyone that lives in a city has something in common: common lifestyles, commone experiences...and common problems."

Budnick also noted that some areas in Los Angeles already have part of what they need to transform the city into a less car-dependent place.  Just across the street from Trade Tech is a transit hub and the campus itself was covered in bikes, most of them not owned by people attending the press conference.

Blue noted that her own experience biking in the city was "thrilling, but sometime too thrilling" before noting that the best way to make streets safer for cyclists is to get more people cycling.  As proof, she noted that Portland experienced a huge bike boom, yet the number of crashes has remained static.

Closing the conference was the Los Angeles County Bike Coalition's Jennifer Klausner who noted that L.A. has many more people cycling than most people think and we deserve more from our government,.  "Hundreds of thousands of people do ride bikes everyday, but things could be so much better, so much safer for all of us."

Of course, yesterday's press conference was just the kick off for things to come.  Remember tomorrow is the main event, the Bike Summit itself.  If you haven't registered or checked out their website yet, you should.

For those of you that can't make it tomorrow, check back here later today for other ways you can check-in on tomorrow's proceedings.  For those of you that can, see you tomorrow!

While the Bike Summit is scheduled as a conference from 9 A.M. to 4 P.M. on Saturday, the events surrounding the summit begin tomorrow morning and extend through Sunday afternoon.

Tomorrow morning, cyclists and our guests will be meeting with the press at 8:30 A.M. at LA Trade-Technical College before heading downtown for a separate meeting with city officials.  Included in tomorrow's press event are many of the keynote speakers from Saturday's Summit including New York based advocate Noah Budnick of Transportation Alternatives, and Elly Blue from BikePortland.

Afterwards, Blue, Budnick and other local advocates will pedal to a 9:30 meeting at the Los Angeles County Bike Coalition's offices to discuss national transportation issues as well as what needs to be done locally.  They will be joined by other keynote speakers from the event, Bernardo Baranda Sepúlveda and Dhyana Quintanar Solares from Mexico City. If you are interested in attending this meeting, please contact Ron Milam at rpm@ronmilam.com

While tomorrow's events were just announced earlier this week, we've known the rest of the schedule for awhile.  For a complete listing of the rest of the weekend's events please visit the Bike Summit website or check out this Streetsblog story from February 24.  If you're just interested in reading more about tomorrow's events, read on after the jump.

For Immediate Release

For more information, contact:

Ron Milam, BikeSage, 323-793-0591, rpm@ronmilam.com

Robert Gottlieb, Occidental College, 323-259-2712; 310-617-0657 (c); gottlieb@oxy.edu

David Ysais, Los Angeles Trade-Technical College, (213) 763-7063, YsaisDP@lattc.edu

What Can Los Angeles Learn about Bicycling from New York City, Mexico City and Portland?

 Bike Summit Keynote Speakers Meet with Local Leaders

(March 4, 2009 - Los Angeles, CA) - Southern Californian residents will come together for the first Los Angeles Bike Summit on Saturday, March 7, 2009.  The Los Angeles Bike Summit will feature workshops, panels and films from 9a.m. to 4p.m. The weekend full of events and activities begins on Thursday, March 5, 2009 at an 8:30 a.m. press conference where summit speakers will share their experiences in making their cities more bicycle friendly.

Who: LA Bike Summit organizers will join keynote speakers and bicyclists to kick off a series of meetings with local elected officials, agency staff and advocates working on transportation reform.

- Noah Budnick, Transportation Alternatives, New York City, NY

- Elly Blue, BikePortland, Portland, OR

- Bob Gottlieb, Urban and Environmental Policy Institute, Occidental College

- Jennifer Klausner, Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition

“New York City has made great strides over the last few years and we want to share some of our success stories with leaders in Los Angeles and inspire change here,” says Noah Budnick of Transportation Alternatives.

“Portland is one of the most bike friendly cities, but the great year round weather in Los Angeles makes it an ideal place to encourage bike riding as a form of exercise and an alternative mode of transportation,” says Elly Blue of BikePortland.

“Riding in Los Angeles is easy compared to Mexico City. Even with our challenges, we’re planning major investments in bicycle infrastructure and education,” says Dhyana Quintanar Solares from Secretariat of Environment, a Summit keynote speaker. Bernardo Baranda Sepúlveda from the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy in Mexico City is also a keynote speaker.  Both speakers from Mexico can’t make the press conference but are available for interview over the phone.

“Los Angeles has a lot to learn from each of these cities,” says Jen Klausner, Executive Director of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition.

When: March 5, 2009 at 8:30am

Where: LA Trade-Technical College, 400 W. Washington Blvd, 90015, taking place near the bike racks at Building E. Park on Grand Street between Washington and 23^rd St.

Visuals: Press conference participants will bicycle to their first meeting after the speaking concludes.

More information about the LA Bike Summit on Saturday, March 7, 2009 is at www.labikesummit.org.