European countries that focus on bicycle lanes and bike paths are so far ahead of the US in the use of bicycles for transportation that any comparisons are actually laughable.
The US News & World Report compares trips by bicycle: 10% in Germany, 18% in Denmark, and 27% in The Netherlands. The US is 1%, a figure that is probably rounded up.
For “short trips” of less than 1-1/2 miles, 37% of those are made on a bike in The Netherlands compared to 2% in the US. …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2008/08/05/comparing-us-vs-euro-bicycle-use-my-july-ride-stats/
It was all about bicycles (all shapes and sizes), beer (New Belgium Brewery), bands (two of them) and babes (The Sprockettes) when the Tour de Fat rolled into Seattle on Saturday.
While the Blue Angels roared overhead, hundreds of bicycle enthusiasts celebrated the gasoline-free culture of the bicycle at Gas Works Park overlooking Lake Union.
The Tour de Fat is on an 11-city swing through the West this summer to raise awareness about bicycling as sustainable form of transportation. Proceeds from the Seattle event go to Bicycle Alliance of Washington and Bike Works. The next stop is Portland on Aug. 16 …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2008/08/03/tour-de-fat-bicycle-party-rolls-into-seattle/
In a carefully worded statement, the Cascade Bicycle Club has weighed in on the Friday night dust up between a motorist and some cyclists at the Critical Mass ride in Seattle.
Seattle's two daily newspapers also followed up on their reporting on the incident, with the P-I's article citing some of the shortcomings of bicycle facilities in the city and the Seattle Times interviewing the motorist.
Cascade is one of the largest bicycle clubs in the US with a membership of some 9,500 cyclists and a calendar full of bike rides and events, as well as bike education and advocacy projects. The statement recognizes that the monthly Critical Mass rides can be a “powerful reminder of the disparity” of public accommodations for bicycles and motor vehicles. However ….
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2008/07/29/critical-mass-undermining-efforts-to-improve-bicycling-cascade/
Some Seattle bicycle riders made the news this weekend, but I can't say that I'm proud of them.
An altercation during a Critical Mass ride on Friday night between a motorist and some cyclists led to injuries on both sides, some messed up bicycles, and a messed up car. Fortunately no one was killed or seriously hurt.
Granted, the motorist was acting like a jack ass and should have been a little patient instead of driving his car into some cyclists. Still, there's no excuse for the reciprocal violence against the driver. It does nothing to help the cause of bicycling or to make the road safer for people on bicycles.
I'm sure violence wasn't the intent of the bike riders when they set out on Critical Mass. Most of those folks are out there for an en-masse bike ride through the streets of their city. The danger comes from largely disobeying traffic laws in trying to keep the group together. If they piss off enough people, someone is eventually going to react. It's inevitable …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2008/07/28/sad-state-of-seattles-critical-mass/
When Robert Novak struck a pedestrian in a Washington DC crosswalk with his black Corvette convertible, it was a bicyclist who chased him down and had him stop until police arrived.
The news that the 77-year-old conservative columnist, formerly of Crossfire on CNN, was in trouble obviously delighted The Daily Show's Jon Stewart. I caught the evening rebroadcast of his Wednesday show. Stewart summed up his report:
“The only difference between this and the rest of his [Novak's] career, is that this time, someone stopped him.
“D'you know what Washington needs? More vigilante bicyclists!” ….
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2008/07/25/jon-stewart-more-vigilante-bicyclists/
Does losing a driver's license for one year sound like an excessively heavy penalty for someone convicted of reckless driving in the death of a bicyclist?
It is in Virginia.
General District Court Judge Glenwood Lookabill wanted to suspend a 20-year-old's driver's license for a year in the death of Fess Green, a Radford University professor who was killed when he struck a car that had made a left turn in front of him in Radford, Virginia. The driver's attorney reminded the judge that six months is the maximum allowed under Virginia code…
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2008/07/19/virginia-law-limits-judges-sentence-in-bicyclists-death/
Screaming, yelling and an alert homeowner who is a photographer combined to give us this glimpse into an act of road rage in Portland between a cyclist and a motorist.
Yes, that's the cyclist on the hood of the car and hanging onto the windshield wipers for dear life.
According to reports, a bicyclist yelled at a passing motorist in a Ford Escort to slow down. The driver took offense at the suggestion and started chasing him …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2008/07/16/cyclist-rides-hood-of-car-in-portland-road-rage/
The Iowa county that banned RAGBRAI last fall will be the scene of a protest ride on Saturday.
Organized by the Taco Ride Gang, the ride will start at the Crawford County Courthouse in Denison at 11 a.m. An announcement they posted at the BikeIowa website predicts up to 500 cyclists will take part on Saturday. [About 100 cyclists joined the ride, according to reports.] The announcement reads:
“Come one, come all to Crawford County, Iowa. It's time to send a significant message to Crawford County about cycling and the Iowa cycling laws and how much we all like to bike Iowa. The more the merrier and the louder the message!” …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2008/06/20/protest-bike-ride-in-iowa/
In the past week I've seen two news stories about bicycle riders who were killed when they fell into traffic after slamming into a car door opened by a motorist in a parked car.
On Monday, Clinton Miceli, 22, was killed as he was riding his bicycle in the bike lane on La Salle in Chicago, hit an open SUV door, fell into traffic, and was struck by a car. Miceli was an art director at Plan B ad agency.
On Thursday, Stanley Wang, 67, was killed as he rode his bicycle on Main Street in Moorestown, New Jersey. The driver of a parked pickup truck opened his door, Wang slammed into it, fell into traffic, and was struck by a passing car. Wang was former general counsel of Comcast.
While its usually a violation to open a car door into traffic, that doesn't prevent people from doing so. …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2008/06/13/two-bicycle-riders-killed-in-door-zone-this-week/
It sounds like the hit-and-run case of a bicyclist killed in Ohio's Tour of the Scioto River Valley last month will go to a county grand jury.
Pike County prosecutor Robert Junk told the Columbus Dispatch that he plans to ask the grand jury to indict a motorist on felony charges related to the death, although he hasn't decided what charges to seek.
Junk says he's awaiting crash-reconstruction details from the scene and the final autopsy report. Junk already has seen the initial report of the State Police investigation into the death of William Crowley, the 57-year-old physician from Michigan who was struck from behind during the second morning of the ride …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2008/06/06/felony-charges-sought-in-death-of-tosrv-bike-tour-rider/
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