Category: Bicycle Advocacy
What's one of the best ways to get business and government leaders to support bicycling? Convince them that bicycling brings dollars into their communities.
The Bikes Belong Foundation realizes this and is launching a $40,000 fund this year that pays for research into the economic benefits of bicycle infrastructure and events.
Research over the years has shown that community investment in bicycling has huge dividends. Some of these findings were summarized in a slideshow — “The Economic Benefits of Bicycling” — that the Adventure Cycling Association presented to the South Dakota Bike Summit last week ….
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/01/31/convincing-communities-that-bicycling-makes-dollars-and-sense/
A woman thrown from her bicycle when her front tire lodged in a large crack in a poorly maintained road has been offered a $48,500 settlement in Texas.
Commissioners in Travis County, the former home of Lance Armstrong, voted to make the offer to bicyclist Alejandra Cornelius, 31, who suffered serious dental injuries when she did a header over the handlebars.
When considered with some other cases here in the Pacific Northwest, it proves that the old saying, “You can't sue city hall,” is not always true ….
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/01/28/injured-bicyclist-offered-settlement-from-texas-county/
A reward will be offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the motorist who appeared to intentionally hit one of the bicyclists in the 2010 Levi Leipheimer's King Ridge Gran Fondo last fall.
The Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition and VeloStreet, the non-profit owner of the bike ride, are launching a fund-drive to raise $10,000 for the reward. The bike coalition says:
“The community must not tolerate those who harass and injure cyclists. Let's raise $10,000 to make sure this driver is held accountable.”
Anyone can donate to the reward at the Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition website ….
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/01/27/reward-offered-for-hit-and-run-in-levis-gran-fondo/
The Virginia Bicycling Federation reports that two 3-foot passing bills were killed in the House of Delegates Subcommittee on Transportation on Wednesday morning.
The bills would have extended the distance by which motorists must pass bicyclists from the current two feet to three feet.
Meanwhile, Rhode Island Rep. Joseph M. McNamara introduced a bill (H 5096) that requires motorists to pass bicycles or other human-powered vehicles by 3 feet or more, according to the Rhode Island Bicycle Coalition ….
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/01/26/3-foot-passing-roundup-2-va-and-1-wy-bill-fails-new-bill-in-ri/
Two more cities — Boulder, Colorado, and Madison, Wisconsin — are jumping on the bike-sharing bandwagon.
Following a year in which Denver, Minneapolis and Washington DC all launched major bike-share programs, the new announcements show that more cities are supporting programs that enable members to borrow bicycles for short errands.
Boulder is aiming for a May 20 launch date, starting with 200 bicycles available at 25 stations scattered around the town.
Madison's program — proposing 350 bicycles at 35 kiosk stations — is not so far along ….
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/01/25/bike-sharing-coming-to-boulder-and-madison-next-year/
A 3-foot passing bill has been tabled in the Washington state legislature while a vote on one in Virginia is expected this week. Meanwhile, a bill in Oklahoma would impose fines for the existing 3-foot passing law there.
The Washington bill to require motorists to give bicyclists a 3-foot gap when passing (expanded to 5 feet at 35 mph or above) has been tabled at the request of the Bicycle Alliance of Washington because of other controversial aspects of the legislation.
The passing provision was included in HB 1018, entitled the Mutual Responsibilities bill, which was an attempt to define what is required for motor vehicles and bicycles to safely share the road …
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/01/24/3-foot-passing-bill-updates-for-wa-va-and-ok/
A Kitsap County, Washington, judge has revoked the community service of a motorist who struck and killed a bicyclist in 2009 and re-sentenced her to jail time, which she'll most likely serve in home confinement.
In a case that angered bicycle rights advocates, the motorist was charged and sentenced only for driving with a suspended license. Prosecutors say their hands are tied in cases where intoxication, recklessness, or gross negligence is not a factor.
A vulnerable user bill that stalled in the Washington state legislature last year would have created penalties in cases where negligent driving causes injury or death of a pedestrian or bicyclist. That bill is the Cascade Bicycle Club's top priority in 2011. A hearing is scheduled at 1:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 21, in Olympia …
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/01/17/judge-re-sentences-motorist-in-bicyclists-death-case/
Skimming across some headlines this morning, I was struck by some well-intentioned but ill-informed bicycle-related bills showing up in state capitals this year.
While legislators in some states are proposing bills to protect cyclists and other vulnerable road users, lawmakers elsewhere are proposing bills that would stifle the use of bicycles for transportation and recreation. (One was so poorly crafted that it already has been withdrawn.)
Here are two examples where a phone call to a local bicycle advocacy group may have helped the lawmaker rethink some preconceived notions before filing:
Oregon — Rep. Mitch Greenlick (D-Portland) has submitted HB-2228, which prohibits putting children age 6 or younger in bicycle trailers or on the backs of bicycles…
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/01/13/2011-bicycling-bills-the-good-bad-and-ugly/
The fight to reopen the streets of Black Hawk, Colorado, to bicycles is going to make it to the State House this year.
A state legislator told the Bicycle Colorado advocacy group that he will introduce a bill entitled the “Open Roads Act” when the General Assembly opens for business next week.
The bill would allow local authorities to prohibit bicycling on some streets only in limited cases and only if a nearby alternative route is designated …
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/01/12/proposed-bill-would-restrict-bicycle-bans-in-colorado-cities/
Update: Jan. 14, 2011 — Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood cites this study in urging bicycle advocates to “participate in the process” to get adequate funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects
How can Congress and other public officials put more Americans back to work? For starters, they could choose to increase funding for bike lanes and bike boulevards.
A study of some public works projects in Baltimore came up with the surprising results that bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure projects create more employment per $1 million of spending than road repair and resurfacing projects.
No one is suggesting that repairing our deteriorating road and highway network is a waste of effort. But I don't think many people realized that spending on bike lanes and boulevards gets a bigger bang for the buck when it comes to employment …
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2011/01/07/creating-more-jobs-through-bicycle-projects/
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