Bicycling
Streetsblog LA
Public Safety Chair Greig Smith Sort of On-Board with Anti-Harassment Law
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:
October 22, 2010
New Council Motion Could Increase Cyclists Rights in Crashes (Updated, 1:04 P.M.)
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.
October 21, 2010
A Bike Path Over Troubled Water
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.
October 4, 2010
State DOTs Make Deeper Bike-Ped Budget Cuts Than Expected
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.
October 4, 2010
Metro Pokes SCAG. Endorses Higher Standards for SB375 Clean Air Emissions.
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.
September 23, 2010
Villaraigosa Pushes Metro for Bike-Friendly Policies
Nobody is going to get Los Angeles mixed up with Portland or Copenhagen anytime soon, but a new motion that will be heard and voted on at this Thursday's Metro Board Meeting by Los Angeles' newly-minted bike-friendly Mayor would move Los Angeles' transit agency several steps closer. While some activists have worried that the Mayor's office isn't reaching out on bicycle policy, that he's taking a "look before you leap" approach, the Mayor's Office has worked closely with the staff at Metro and has taken input from Metro's bicycle roundtable meetings before moving this motion.
September 21, 2010
Second Lawsuit Filed Against Expo Line, But This Time It’s Against the Bikeway
Homeowner's whose houses abut the future Expo Bike Path have filed suit to force a full environmental review of the bikeway. The lawsuit charges that LADOT and Caltrans didn't provide a complete view of the bikeway while applying for and granting a Categorical Exclusion (CE), a designation which exempted the project from a full federal environmental review.
September 16, 2010
Greig Smith: Neighborhood Councils Should Have Final Say on Bike Projects
A new motion by Valley Councilman Greig Smith would require the Los Angeles Department of Transportation to create a public outreach plan whenever new bicycle projects are proposed and would require the approval of the local Neighborhood Council before any new bicycle infrastructure would find its way onto the streets.
September 9, 2010