Bicycling

Any cyclist who has ridden the streets of Los Angeles with any regularity has a horror story.  Sometimes the story is because of negligence, such as a driver who passes too close or a taxi that pulls out of a parking space without looking.  Sometimes the story is caused by maliciousness, such as a hummer that drives through a group of cyclists or some kids in a truck that throw things.  These stories almost always end with the no consequences for the aggressor, because the police don't like to file reports without witnessing the act.  No report, no legal recourse.

Here's a quick rundown of the major votes by today's Metro Board. Each of these five motions were discussed at Streetsblog over the last couple of weeks, and links to those stories can be found at the end of each summary.  Streetsblog will have links to all news reports on today's meeting tomorrow.

Readers with long memories might remember that when Councilman Rosendahl was pushing for an anti-harassment ordinance for cyclists last January, his motion ran into trouble in the Public Safety committee.  Because the report from the City Attorney's (C.A.)office that would give cyclists more legal rights after a crash needs to be heard by the Transportation and Public Safety Committees, I reached out to the Councilman Greig Smith, Chair of the Public Safety Committee for his opinion.  The good news?  He's not going to stand in the way of the new motion.  The bad news?  He doesn't think too much of the C.A.'s recommendations:

Earlier this year, the City Council ordered city staff to create a list of changes to city and state laws that could help cyclists see justice after crashes.  At the time, City Council Transportation Committee Chair Bill Rosendahl referred to the motion as an anti-harassment ordinance, and hopes ran high that the city could create a three foot passing law, or could somehow further criminalize unsafe and aggressive behavior by drivers.

As unlikely as it may seem, the City of Long Beach has taken significant steps this week to making the above rendering a reality - or at least having it redone by a much more expensive design team. Last week, the Long Beach City Council succeeded in convincing the port to commit to building a bike/pedestrian pathway on its proposed replacement for the Gerald Desmond Bridge.

We reported recently that the federal government was demanding $2.2 billion back from state DOTs in rescissions -- money that was already allocated to states that they were then asked to give back. Bike and pedestrian advocates were worried that states would disproportionately target active transportation projects for cuts, instead of carving into car-centric programs. They were right.

Earlier this month, the Board of the Southern California Association of Governments (S.C.A.G.) rejected the long-term clean air targets for Southern California requested by the Air Resources Board and recommended by their own staff.  While today's Metro Board Meeting featured good news for cyclists and bad news for bus riders, there was another hot debate over what goals for reducing Greenhouse Gas should be set for Southern California.  You can read the motion here.