Bicycling
Streetsblog LA
Bike Lanes, Car Parking, Horses and Backbones, Planning for Bikes in the Foothills
Last week, the LADOT Bike Blog announced that plans for 1.5 miles of Bike Lanes along Foothill Boulevard , from Osborne Street in the west to Wentworth Street in the east, in the Northeast San Fernando Valley were running in to a road bump. In an effort to preserve a little bit of car parking, a portion of the southbound bike lanes will be removed with cyclists encouraged to take an alternate "Bike Route" for just over a quarter of a mile onto the parallel Foothill Plaza. The "Foothill Plaza" detour will allow the LADOT to constrcut bike facilities for this portion of the valley without having to go through an environmental review or local political battle. The detour was suggested at a meeting of the Foothill Trails Neighborhood Council and has the support of the local City Councilman, Paul Krekorian.
May 12, 2011
Weekend Review: Santa Moninca Festival Embraces Biking, Complete Streets
On Saturday afternoon, the City of Santa Monica hosted its 20th annual Santa Monica Festival. The wholehearted embrace of biking at this year's event was, it seemed, both an embodiment of the city's early successes in encouraging biking and a hopeful harbinger for an even more bike friendly future.
May 10, 2011
Cyclists, City at Odds Over Bike Plan Implementation
Last Friday, the LADOT responded to criticism of the city's plan to commit to environmental review many of the projects outlined in the Bike Plan. However, their response, and release of the first batch of projects that will be stalled while a review is completed, have created more anger and confusion than anything else. Despite the assertions from City Planner Jane Choi on the Bike Blog and Claire Bowen on Streetsblog, most cyclists see this review as a waste of time.
May 2, 2011
Research Bolsters Case for Cycle Tracks While AASHTO Updates Guide
For decades, dueling camps of cycling advocates have feuded about how to best accommodate riders. Some have pushed for the construction of Dutch-style cycle tracks, arguing that separated lanes make bicycling safer and less intimidating, while others have insisted such infrastructure isolates riders and makes cycling more dangerous than simply remaining within the flow of traffic.
April 27, 2011
Bike Plan Projects Heading Off to Environmental Review
Yesterday the LADOT announced through the LADOT Bike Blog that a series of projects outlined in the Bike Plan would undergo a full environmental review before construction of these projects can begin construction. Between conversations with City Planning and LADOT, we have a good idea of how the environmental review will go forward. City staff is concerned about lawsuits brought against projects under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA.) CEQA lawsuits had delayed the implementation of the San Francisco Bike Plan for four years and continues to stall the Expo Line Bike Path.
April 27, 2011
Metro Board Preview: Crenshaw Subway, Bikes on Trains, Active Transportation, Service Changes (Updated, April 27 at 5:07 P.M.)
(Update: I've just received word that the Leimert Station/Crenshaw Subway motion has been delayed until the next Metro Board meeting in May. - DN)
April 26, 2011
Another Wonderful Long Beach First: Protected Bike Lanes
The city of Long Beach is Southern California's undisputed leader in innovative infrastructure for safe and convenient bicycling. They're at it again this Saturday, April 23rd 2011, when they unveil the first genuine protected bike lanes west of New York City.
April 21, 2011
Gabe Klein, Architect of DC’s Bike Progress, Is Chicago Bound
Chicago Mayor-Elect Rahm Emanuel has snapped up Gabe Klein, former head of the District Department of Transportation in Washington, to head up his transportation team in the Windy City.
April 19, 2011
Small Victories Update: City Closer to Legally Allowing Front Mounted Bike Seats
"That was the easiest hearing I've ever been to," joked Alexis Lantz of the Bike Coalition as the two of us packed to leave hearing room 1010 in City Hall. Five minutes earlier, Transportation Committee Chair Bill Rosendahl opened the City Council Transportation Committee meeting with a ten second vote approving some parking districts followed by a hearing on doing away with Los Angeles Municipal Code 80.27, a law banning front mounted bicycle seats. Two of those five minutes were taken up by me, as I explained the process of mounting a baby seat (commonly known as a car seat) in to a European style bucket bike.
April 14, 2011
Bikelash in the SFV: Neighborhood Council Considers Asking for Bike Licensing
Even in the wake of another tremendously successful CicLAvia, there are still signs of a Bikelash growing in some quarters against progressive transportation design that attempts to make streets safer and efficient for all road users, not just automobiles.
April 12, 2011