C y c l e * D a l l a s

A clear and present preference.

2012-01-28T15:18:00.000-06:00

Knowledge is best protection for bicyclist

2012-01-18T14:47:00.001-06:00

A Jan. 5 article (in the St. Louis Beacon) by Ryan Schuessler, “Great Rivers Greenway works to make the area bicycle friendly” described efforts by both Great Rivers Greenway and Trailnet to expand existing bike lane striping or similar road markings in the St. Louis area. The only criticism mentioned was that the pace of such efforts was too slow.

As a transportational cyclist for more than 40 years, the last 14 as a certified bicycling instructor, I have a very different view. Years ago, I concluded that what cyclists lack most are not bike lanes but knowing how to safely use the existing road system.

"Bike Friendly": Cowering or Empowering?

2012-01-16T13:24:00.000-06:00

The Desegregated Cyclist: Invictus!: As we look at the map of the US as it stands at the beginning of 2012, we can see that, over the last century, cyclists...

Portland State Study Shows Cyclists’ Bad Behavior - BikeRadar

2012-01-06T13:11:00.000-06:00

"The findings showed that those on bikes ignored stop signsfar more than those in cars, with 56 percent of cyclists ignoring stop signalsor traffic lights compared with just seven percent of motorists."

Portland State Study Shows Cyclists’ Bad Behavior - BikeRadar

The basic problem illustrated... without tragedy (this time).

2012-01-02T19:39:00.000-06:00

Every intersection, every driveway, every curb-cut poses this too high of a probability event as a designed-in risk. Ask your elected official how this design flaw can be prevented.

When someone dies, expect your favorite elected official to say something like, "Nobody on City staff told me this could happen!"

There are times when riding on the shoulder can indeed be a life-saver.

2011-12-29T13:44:00.000-06:00

Not always to the swift from John Allen on Vimeo.

Build it and they will come.

2011-12-13T13:04:00.001-06:00

Accepted truism: Building bicycle infrastructure creates bicycle riders. It's a complicated issue that isn't easily dis-proven... but neither has it been easily proven.

In most cases, the bicyclists came first, with the infrastructure following as a traffic control device to keep cyclists out of the way of 'real' traffic. Whether one chases the other, or they chase each other circularly, hasn't been clearly shown. Infrastructure investment hasn't been shown to increase the bike mode-share in Austin, or in Corvallis, Oregon. It's debatable if infrastructure development has done it in Portland, too. All three cities (all three heavily university-influenced towns with centralized bicycle activity around the campus sites) experienced a surge in bicycle activity prior to major infrastructure construction, with a mode-share gain considerably lower than predicted after the investment.

What has been clearly shown is a channelization effect, where cyclists who otherwise used streets of their own choosing (or sidewalks) use the facilities because they feel they A) feel safer using them, B) think they should use them, C) get harassed by motorists for not using them. Before and after bike-counts of streets that get bike lanes show a significant increase, but screening bike-counts that take in parallel streets don't show an overall increase.

But, for fun, let's apply the accepted logic that "build it and they will come" to other facility types. Say for example, prisons. The more we build, the more they fill up with criminals. So if we didn't build prisons, we would obviously have fewer criminals, and therefore less crime.

Does that make sense to you?

This is a mobility lesson.

2011-12-13T08:05:00.002-06:00

Traffic in Frenetic HCMC, Vietnam from Rob Whitworth on Vimeo.

Gee. What if we'd won?

Occupy the Lane... or ride in the gutter.

2011-12-05T09:13:00.000-06:00

More wisdom from Commute Orlando.

We have power to change the street

See a problem?

2011-12-02T17:38:00.001-06:00

Dan Gutierrez

See a problem here? Do you realize every driveway, curb cut, and minor intersection is exactly the same (but without stop signs). What if it said "HOV Lane" instead? Or "Carpool Lane"? Or "Motor Scooter Lane"?

The designed-in dis-functionality of bike lanes

2011-11-30T19:28:00.001-06:00

Ana gets hit from Rick Langlois on Vimeo.

Better folks than I explain it here.

This what you get when you ask for segregation from the road system... a false sense of security and a really heightened risk of serious injury. This collision is 100% the fault of the design, and was 99.9% preventable had the bicyclist been integrated with the slow-moving traffic.

Test your Safety Perceptions

2011-11-30T10:11:00.000-06:00

Image source.

Test your Safety Perceptions

Occupy the Lane

2011-11-29T21:00:00.000-06:00

The League of American Bicyclists has just put out a call to send them money to "save cycling". This is the same organization that rates cities as being 'bicycle friendly' or not based upon what level of bicycle segregation they endorse (the higher the better).

There are alternatives.

Bicycling is Better » Occupy the Lane

Far to the right conditioning.

2011-11-28T08:26:00.001-06:00

Future Bicycle Facilities Advocates undergoing subservience training.

Data

2011-11-23T18:10:00.001-06:00

Bike lanes continue to confuse drivers, riders in Naptown

2011-11-17T08:38:00.000-06:00

A report from Indianapolis. The issues are always the same, and the solutions never work. Illogical, fear-based, segregationist designs don't work. But they do cost money and add injury risk.

Bike lanes continue to confuse drivers, riders

A reminder.

2011-11-15T12:28:00.001-06:00

The SELZ Case – Revisited | Steve Magas Ohio's Bike Lawyer

League of American Bicyclists president Andy Clarke recently told the Oklahoma Bike Summit, in response to a question about LAB's active oppostion* to Reed Bates' 'Impeding Traffic' citations/conviction in Texas: “His case was a disaster waiting to happen. It would not have set a precedent. He was not a sympathetic character.”

It's nice to know which side of "right" Clarke and the LAB Board stand on.

As Mr. Bates said in opposition to the so-called Safe Passing Law (which probably would have decreased the passing space allocated to cyclists while simultaneously removing bicyclists from the full legal category of vehicle operators): "We need better advocates."

The sport at its best.

2011-11-08T07:18:00.002-06:00

Why wait for Dallas' $350,000,000 Bike-Paint Plan? Ride now, learn how.

2011-11-01T12:15:00.001-05:00

Ride now, learn how. Click here.

Coming to Dallas very soon. For the annual $30K cost of one mile of bike lane*, 3,000 real-cyclists can be created.

* Paint and sweeping, but not including the officially hidden actual infrastructure cost of $1,000,000 a mile.

Dance, don't quake.

2011-10-26T10:50:00.000-05:00

Bicycling in traffic is a dance you lead from Keri Caffrey on Vimeo.

'Tis a gift.

For those unclear of the concept.

2011-10-23T09:45:00.002-05:00

Cycling Savvy USA

2011-10-23T07:21:00.003-05:00

If you're a cyclist, how do you answer these questions?

You're approaching a set of steel trolley car tracks that cross the street at an acute angle. How do you cross them on a bike? Is there more than one way?
You're riding on a road that squeezes from two lanes down to one. You're in the right lane and traffic is passing on the left. How do you react when the lane merges? How do you react when the road goes BACK to two lanes?
You are making a right hand turn, but within 1/4 of a mile, you need to make a left-hand turn. This may sound like a simple question, but it's got some complexities, like 3 thru lanes and two dedicated left-turn lanes. What will you do? How do you handle this?

These questions, conditions, and more are just a few of the issues that we've been learning how to handle at the Cycling Savvy Instructor's course this weekend in Orlando, FL. The focus is on practical approaches with common bicycle driving themes. And you have to remember - you ARE a driver. Cyclists MUST be responsible, and they MUST ride in a predictable way. I've been cycling seriously since 1993, but I really have only been bicycling like the driver of a vehicle since about 2007. The entire world of cycling and road riding changed for me in a few brief hours of lecture and experience. Traffic flowed around me or waited for me to complete my actions. I became a part of the entire flow. I began to choose routes that were actually MORE busy, yet less congested. Multi-lane roads went from becoming an obstacle to an option. Life changed. Life got EASIER.

Think about how you ride, where you ride, what you ride, and what determines the routes you choose. Think about lights, think about intersections, think about routes and lanes and timed lights and flow. And if you have ANY questions, seriously - don't jump to a berate of the system and demand change. Be the change you want to see - become the driver of a bicycle. Train your bike to follow your commands. Pedal where you want, and see the world in which you live open up. Come sign up for classes, or give us a call. We DO know better, and we DO want to help you, help yourself.

More later. And don't hesitate to post your questions in the comment sections, or send us a link of your favorite challenging piece of road via Google Maps or ridewithgps.com. We'll post our answers on CycleDallas, and maybe we can even video the perceived problem, and the solution, via helmetcam.

CycleDallas in Orlando? Sometimes you have to head East in order to better ride West!

2011-10-22T09:07:00.006-05:00

Hey gang, we're here at CommuteOrlando.com's "CyclingSavvy" Instructors course, learning all the skills, drills, animations, applications, and descriptions to help any and every cyclist in the Dallas figure out how to navigate the roads of our great city. Because Dallas IS a great place to ride your bike!

The CSI course is an intensive, 3-day program, designed to go over all of the 'what-if's' you may have, and how a 'Savvy Cyclist' will drive their bike in that situation. We hosted a course in September, with Waco Moore (already a Cycling Savvy Instructor), and we'll be tripling our numbers after this weekend, when Coach Wharton and Eliott Landrum will be certified. So think of your toughest traffic cycling situations, think about all those perceived obstacles that may be preventing you from riding to more places, more frequently, for more reasons, and keep checking in here for our 2012 Savvy Cycling Schedule for Dallas. We're doing this to give Dallasites the opportunity to learn greater Confidence, Competence, and Communication in traffic. Stay tuned for a summary of this weekend's lessons, and we'll start a great conversation in the comments.

Thanks again, and we are really looking forward to helping you, help yourself, in the upcoming year!

-Richard Wharton & Elliott Landrum (in Orlando, FL).

This is the reality, not the expensive fantasy.

2011-10-09T18:24:00.000-05:00

Reality of Delay - Preston Road at Rush Hour

You Are Here.

2011-10-08T08:12:00.000-05:00

A paradigm map from Dan Gutierrez.

Reason breaks out in California.

2011-10-07T19:33:00.002-05:00

The California version of the so-called "safe passing" 3-foot law, SB 910, did not pass. Here is right-wing Gov. Brown's rejection text:

To members of the California State Senate:

The intent of this bill is to improve bicycle safety, a goal I wholeheartedly support.

This bill changes the longstanding law for how motor vehicles should pass a bicycle travelling in the same direction. Current law requires drivers to pass at a safe distance; this Bill would specify that the distance must be at least 3 feet or at a speed not exceeding 15mph.

This bill offers some needed and clear improvements to the law such as specifying a minimum buffer of 3 feet. However, Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol have raised legitimate concerns about other provisions such as the 15mph requirement. On streets with speed limits of 35 or 40mph, slowing to 15pmph to pass a bicycle could cause rear end collisions. On other roads, a bicycle may travel at or near 15mph creating a long line of cars behind the cyclist.

I encourage the author, proponents, and opponents to send me a bill next year that solves these problems.

I am returning Senate Bill 910 without my signature.

Sincerely,

Edmund G. Brown Jr.

Oh wait. Gov. Brown is a liberal Democrat.

Now for some humor from the paradigm.

2011-10-03T18:48:00.001-05:00

Professional Advocay in practice.

2011-10-03T18:39:00.002-05:00

“The smart way to keep people passive and obedient is to strictly limit the spectrum of acceptable opinion, but allow very lively debate within that spectrum.”

-- Noam Chomsky

Advocacy: This is how you do it.

2011-10-01T16:14:00.000-05:00

BWCF Works with UCF PD to keep Bike Bus rolling

Cyclist empowerment, not victimhood enabling.

"I could just squeeze you to death!"

2011-09-25T08:32:00.000-05:00

"PM, why do you hate bike lanes?"

Here's one reason. The reality of bicycle lane installations (because it's always a political decision and never an engineering solution) is that they almost always involve placing them within door zones in urban environments.

It is of no small irony that the so-called "safe passing" laws that are being pushed past state legislatures without much thought, make it legal (by specifically omitting cyclists from the "safe passing" requirement) for a cyclist to pass a vehicle within 3'... well inside the door zones of motor vehicles.

By the way, the AASHTO recommendation for Shared Lane Markings ("sharrows", or SLMs) places them within the door zone of parked motor vehicles, and states that the SLM indicates the recommended lateral placement of the bicyclist... directly in the door zone of anything other than a FIAT 500 or Mini Cooper.

Coming soon to city near you!

2011-09-22T15:55:00.003-05:00

Note: YouTube pulled the video, but it's available HERE.

The solution is shown here.

A modest proposal...

2011-09-21T10:21:00.002-05:00

...to make bike lanes safer.

By painting a stop bar and a stop sign stencil at each intersection (controlled or not), many of the egregious design faults of bike lanes could be minimized. Right hooks and left crosses would now have a designed-in counter measure to protect the not-so-Swift cyclists from the unexpected.

After all, bike-lane cyclists never run stop signs.

Hat tip to LAB Bicycle Friendly Community Flagstaff, Arizona (which has a law requiring bicycles to yield to oncoming "real" vehicles) for this great idea.

Riding with Gonzales.

2011-09-14T16:33:00.000-05:00

For those unclear on the concept, see here and here.

"Ride", he said.

2011-09-14T14:51:00.001-05:00

Vox populi

2011-09-14T12:36:00.003-05:00

September 14, 2011

Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison
284 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
WASHINGTON DC 20510

(202) 224-5922

Dear Senator Hutchison,

As a retired Pedestrian and Bicycle Transportation Planner, and as a bicycling safety instructor, I am greatly concerned about the safety of those who use bicycles. Unfortunately, much of the money spent on bicycling infrastructure is worse than wasted. Many of the projects actually introduce hazards.

I urge you to SUPPORT any move to eliminate dedicated funding for the Transportation Enhancements (TE) program, and to OPPOSE an extension of the federal transportation act SAFETEA-LU.

My experiences since the institution of the original ISTEA legislation has shown the vast majority of Transportation Enhancement projects have little or no impact on transportation, and are exceedingly wasteful, costing up to five times as much as they would otherwise cost to construct. I have actually seen the City of Dallas build projects twice as fast without using Enhancements money, and for little more than the 20% local match they would have spent using Federal dollars. Claims that bicycle projects create more jobs than all-purpose roadway projects only underscores the inherent waste in these inefficient programs.

Until "bicycle advocates" stop pushing for all segregated infrastructure, no matter what hazards they produce, these projects should be stopped.

Their is a need for bicycling education - teaching people "defensive driving," to recognize and avoid potential dangers. But the current programs instead reinforce dangerous fallacies while they build hazards into the highway system.

Thank you for supporting real safety for bicycling. Please oppose these unwise projects.

Sincerely yours,

P.M. Summer

Seattle cyclist dies on top of "sharrow"

2011-09-12T18:29:00.000-05:00

Bicyclist dies after crashing into car on University Way

Submitted by Ray Marcham, KOMO Communities Reporter
Sunday, September 11th, 2011, 9:32am

A man riding his bicycle crashed into a car on University Way on Saturday night, and later died from his injuries.

The incident happened around 6:18 p.m. According to Seattle Police spokesman Mark Jamieson, the bicyclist, who was delivering food from the nearby Jimmy John's, was riding south on University Way when a car started to turn from Campus Parkway north onto University. The man wasn’t able to stop his bike in time, and crashed into the car.

The impact threw the man from the bicycle and onto the pavement. An ambulance crew, which had been taking a patient to the University of Washington Medical Center, was at the scene when the crash happened and started performing CPR on the bicyclist immediately.

The man was then rushed to Harborview Medical Center. Jamieson said the man died shortly after arriving at the hospital.

Jamieson said that the driver of the car was not impaired at the time of the crash.

Editor's note: The motorist failed to yield right of way to an oncoming vehicle. The "sharrow" failed to provide any more protection than any other paint application can.

Rights, not arrogance.

2011-09-09T15:24:00.000-05:00

From the Monterey County Herald, a letter to the editor:

Rights, not arrogance

In his Aug. 14 letter, Mark S. Morgan wrote, "There is a fine line between riding a bicycle 'confidently in traffic' and 'arrogantly in traffic.'" I think that view is based on an incomplete understanding of the history of the rights of bicyclists.

In the early 1900s, what later became the Vehicle Code specified that bicycles were vehicles and bicyclists were "operators" of vehicles. When lanes were invented in the 1920s, bicyclists had the right to use them just like other drivers.

But then, in 1963, a new restriction on bicyclists appeared: they had to ride as far right as practicable. The result was that bicyclists lost the right to use a full lane.

In 1975, however, I helped craft exceptions to the "as far right as practicable" law, partially restoring the right of bicyclists to use full lanes when necessary (in particular, for their own safety). Some people, however, still think that bicyclists who use a full lane are being arrogant.

It's not arrogance for any driver, including a bicyclist, to use a full lane when legally allowed. What is arrogance is for another road user to question a bicyclist's right to do so.

Bob Shanteau
Seaside

Reality bites.

2011-09-07T20:25:00.000-05:00

So what happens when the magic in MagickPaint© fades? In San Francisco, shit happens.

Coming your way?

2011-09-07T18:57:00.000-05:00

photo by Marcus Beasdale

One of the difficulties I used to encounter in doing bicycle facilities planning is best exemplified by a comment I had to address at a city council-member's Town Hall meeting once. A citizen asked the council member to have me in attendance because they had concerns about the Dallas Bike Plan.

The citizen (seemingly a native of the Northeast based upon his accent) followed one of the routes on his bicycle, and discovered that it took him to (!) south Dallas. The concerns that he wanted me to address were: A) How could the City be so irresponsible as to have bikes routes that led to "bad" parts of town, and B) people in those "bad" parts of town might use those same bike routes to come marauding into "better" neighborhoods.

People will be people. Always.

Don't give away your right-of-way control.

2011-09-04T07:43:00.001-05:00

Photo by Russ Henderson of the Alabama Press-Register, used for illustration purposes only.

There was an incident on the Santa Fe Trail last week where a cyclist was crossing Munger (IIRC), which is a 4-lane divided thoroughfare with low to medium traffic volumes. The cyclist in question stopped at the crossing, and a car in the outside lane (closest to the cyclist) stopped unnecessarily and waved the cyclist across the road, thinking they were being helpful. They weren't. A second car pulled in behind the first car, creating a visual blockage of both the trail head from oncoming traffic and the inside traffic lane from trail users.

As the cyclist continued across the road, a truck came through the open INSIDE lane and hit the cyclist. Thankfully, her quality bicycle was the only casualty, but it could have been much, much worse. The truck driver continued without stopping (a serious violation), but the cyclist is guilty of failure to yield right of way. Just think of it as pulling out of a driveway onto a multi-lane street when your vision of oncoming traffic (and your visibility by said) is blocked by a parked vehicle.

This is the same type of collision.

Two cyclists were killed in the identical situation (queued up motorists waving them into a blind opening), on two different occasions where the White Rock Trail used to cross Greenville Avenue before Royal Lane was built. Never, ever allow a car to wave you out into a traffic lane you can't see... either on a mid-block trail crossing, or on a sidestreet intersection crossing.

Never. Ever.

View Larger Map

Trails lure otherwise competent and knowledgeable cyclists into taking risks they wouldn't normally. They too often become an "Alice In Wonderland" alternate reality, sort of a Bizzarro World where the rules we know so well begin to morph into a dangerous sense of both immortality and privilege. I've felt it work on me when I ride trails.

View Larger Map

Suppose the unfortunate cyclist had been riding instead on the closely paralleling, very low volume, Santa Fe Avenue instead. Rolling up to a stop sign, would they have accepted a motorist's offer (an automobile driver who was holding up traffic by inexplicably stopping where there was no stop sign) to pull out blindly in front of them? Almost certainly the answer is "no", because the competent cyclist on a public roadway will maintain their identity as a vehicle.

But on a trail, that identity begins to morph from vehicle operator into one as playground user.

"Come and play," said the spider to the fly. Resist the temptation.

P.S. Who's the idiot responsible for the Santa Fe Trail? If by responsible, you mean the person who conceived it, pushed it for fifteen years, and secured funding for it from multiple sources... that would be me.

Bike Friendly Con-Textualism: Irrefutable Proofiness

2011-08-30T18:35:00.003-05:00

photo by richard masoner

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Amsterdam cap.

NYC cyclist fined $1,500 for running red lights

2011-08-22T11:43:00.003-05:00

Too bad he didn't have a Dallas City Council member riding along with him to provide a police escort for approved scofflaw-cycling.

From Dave Moulton's Bike Blog - NYC cyclist fined $1,500 for running red lights

Imagine (driver remix)

2011-08-16T08:20:00.000-05:00

Imagine (driver remix)

Imagine you're not craven
It's easy if you train
No cars to kill us
Before us only lane
Imagine all the people
Driving bikes today

Imagine there's no bikeways
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to whine or cry for
And no Streetsblog too
Imagine all the people
Driving roads in peace

You may say that I'm a driver
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the roads will be such fun

Imagine lane possession
I wonder if you can
No need for fear to monger
A driverhood of man
Imagine all the people
Controlling all the lanes

You may say that I'm a driver
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the roads will be such fun

-Dan Gutierrez, from "Cyclists Are Drivers!"
photo by Wayne Pein

CyclingSavvy DFW Classes,September 9-10, 2011

2011-08-14T06:49:00.000-05:00

CyclingSavvy DFW Classes

“Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself”: FDR’s First Inaugural Address

CyclingSavvy has come to DFW!
Our first public class will be in September.

Truth & Techniques of Traffic Cycling

September 9th, 6-9PM
SouthSide on Lamar
1409 S. Lamar, Dallas TX 75215 (map)

Learn the truth and techniques of traffic cycling. Through guided discussion with video and animation, this classroom-based session familiarizes students with bicycle-specific laws, traffic dynamics and problem-solving strategies. Students discover that bicycle drivers are equal road users, with the right and ability to control their space.

This session is available á la carte for $30. You may take it as a stand-alone class.

Train Your Bike

September 10th, 8-11AM
Cycling Center of Dallas @JCC
7900 Northhaven Road, Dallas TX, 75230 (map)

This session is conducted in a parking lot. It consists of a set of progressive drills designed to increase students’ control and comfort handling their bikes in various situations. Drills include:

Start/Stop, Power Pedal & Balance Stop
Snail Race, Slow-speed Balance
Drag-race, Gears & Acceleration
Ride Straight, One-handed
Shoulder Check
Object-avoidance Handling, Weave, Snap
Turning: Slow-speed Tight Turns, High-speed cornering, Emergency Snap-turn
Emergency Braking

This session is available á la carte for $30. You may take it as a stand-alone class. In three short hours, you will learn to command your bike with precision and confidence.
After the Train Your Bike session the class will ride to lunch before beginning the Tour of Dallas.

Tour of Dallas

September 10, 12:30-4PM
Start/End @ Cycling Center of Dallas
7900 Northhaven Road, Dallas TX, 75230 (map)
This class requires completion of the other two sessions. It will begin after a group lunch.

This session is an experiential tour of Dallas roads. The course includes some of the most intimidating road features (intersections, interchanges, merges, etc.) a cyclist might find in his/her travels. The students travel as a group, stopping to survey and discuss each exercise location. After observing the feature, discussing the traffic dynamics and the best strategy for safe and easy passage, the students ride through individually and regroup at a nearby location. This session is designed to give you the confidence and skills to handle any situation you might encounter.

Register Now!

Individual sessions are $30 each
A package for all three sessions is $75

How To Die On A Bicycle

2011-08-13T12:41:00.008-05:00

Photo by Robert Winters, Cambridge Civic Journal

Will this will be operative in Dallas soon, thanks to the "Die Friendly Neighborhood" movement?

How To Die On A Bicycle

One of the many errors of the bike lane/cycle track/sidepath agenda is that it reinforces the mistaken, and too often deadly, "bicycles must stay out of the way" notion. All for the sake of being fashionable.

"But PM, there aren't hundreds of deaths every year because of bike lanes." True, perhaps, but there are hundreds of avoidable deaths each year because bicyclists ride in the most dangerous part of the roadway rather than learn the safe way to operate in the public right-of-way, a notion bike lanes promote and codify.

Everything today's "bike advocates" promote reinforces the notion that bicycles should operate in a roadway's danger zone. "To keep from getting side-swiped by cars, ride in a way that guarantees cars will pass you too closely... both in and outside of bike lanes."

Fear-based advocacy is sad... and it's dangerous. It's also very fashionable.

Oops.

2011-08-11T17:35:00.001-05:00

Toronto puts it's fixie in reverse.

Bicycle helmets should not be compulsory, say doctors - Telegraph

2011-07-30T18:38:00.002-05:00

Bicycle helmets should not be compulsory, say doctors - Telegraph

What I said in 1995. Oddly, the cyclists who don't mind mandatory helmet laws also don't mind mandatory gutter laws... although they are opposed to mandatory traffic law obeying.

The truth? You can't handle the truth!

2011-07-21T21:57:00.000-05:00

Why they do it...

Instead of trying to entice people out of their cars, why not adopt the flip side of the coin and force them out? In effect, this is what happens when fuel prices spike or other economic factors make driving more onerous than it already is.

Those cities with high bicycling mode shares also have tremendous congestion, high parking fees, and a cost of living that precludes automobile ownership for a large part of the population. But from a practical and political standpoint, no one advocates that driving be made more of a burden because all those motorists are taxpayers and voters. They far outnumber cyclists, so when numbers count (and politicians are very good at counting potential voters) motoring interests will win out.

Politically, it's a good idea to get those pesky cyclists out of the way of 'real' traffic, and build more mega-highways for motorists.

Ed Wagner

The Demands of Advocacy.

2011-07-15T09:37:00.003-05:00

Do I have to point it out?

2011-07-14T18:23:00.001-05:00

Why the Tour de France should be held only on roads with bike lanes.

2011-07-10T13:47:00.002-05:00

I Am Not a Bicyclist

2011-07-07T17:34:00.002-05:00

I Am Not a Bicyclist

You shouldn't want to be one either.

Making a Rueben Sandwich with a garbage truck and a bicyclist.

2011-06-30T09:35:00.002-05:00

Recipe for a Disastrous Reuben Sandwich

Ingredients:
1 intersection with bike lane
1 right turning truck (or any vehicle)
1 straight-through bicyclist

Bicyclist Dies After Garbage Truck Collision

Kellene Stockwell
Channel 2 News

Reno (Nevada) police are investigating a deadly accident involving a garbage truck hitting a woman on a bicycle.

It happened at the intersection of Mill Street and Kietzke Lane just after 9:30am.

Police say an unidentified woman riding on her bicycle in the bike lane and a Waste Management truck were stopped at the light on Kietzke Lane.

When the light turned green, police say the truck driver turned without seeing the woman and ran over her.

She died at the scene.

Police say it's important for drivers to watch out for more bicyclists as we head into summer.

"The more than people get out on foot and the more that bicyclists hop on their bikes and get out we need everybody to work together, bicyclists have to obey the same laws as the motorists but the motorists have to keep an eye out for the bicyclists," says Reno Police Sgt. Jim Stegmaier.

Alcohol and speed do not appear to be factors.

Waste Management released the following statement: "Waste Management extends our extreme sympathy and sorrow to both family and friends of the bicyclist. We are working closely with local law enforcement on the investigation."

A different location, same Rueben Sandwich problem.

Amsterdamnation D.C.

2011-06-29T21:48:00.000-05:00

American Cycletrack - 15th & K from Keri Caffrey on Vimeo.

Some fun... and mandatory.

New Orleans Bike Lanes

2011-06-27T14:55:00.007-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, a YouTube video made the rounds, discussing all the hazards present in New York City bike lanes, and the actual penalties dished out to cyclists who did NOT ride in the bike lane when one was available. Dallas now seems to be filled with people who believe that a city is not Progressive without "Complete Streets", "Build a Better Block", and "Cycling Infrastructure". Nevermind the cost, the penalties to local businesses, the lack of long-term planning, etc. One would hope that, after seeing that video, we might think more critically about just what bike lanes do, what they don't do, who's going to use them, who's going to enforce the new rules around them, and just how much space is available for everyone to make a city work.

Here's the link: http://youtu.be/bzE-IMaegzQ

About the same time that the video was spreading out to the world, a friend who is a cyclist, a motorcyclist, and a critical thinker, as well as being a Certified Instructor, shot these photos of Bike Lanes in New Orleans.

So, if you watched the video, and the law is the law, and then you look at these photos, well, what's a cyclists to do? Our local politicians want cyclists to feel 'comfortable' on bikes through the

use of bike lanes. Would you feel comfortable dealing with this?

How much do you want to bet that this happens more often than you think, and is a general discouragement to successful cycling?

Bottom line is - let's skip the infrastructure, teach people how to ride better, smarter, and then enforce the law on an equal basis. Cyclists are not handicapped. They don't need "ADA" style sidewalk ramps. They need education, practice, and respect. My bet is, that if we try it, it'll work a lot better than ANY of this paint, or these silhouettes or markers.

Thoughts?

One thousand words.

2011-06-21T08:51:00.001-05:00

A Dallasite and Bicycle Advisory Committee Member Shows us ALL how to do it right!

2011-06-17T19:37:00.002-05:00

Check out this video from Dallasite Waco Moore. What he shows you in 2-3 minutes could change your life. He does it right, he explains it well, and the image is crystal clear.

Click Here to watch the video and then comment.

Thank you Waco, and Thank You, Keri for continuing to promote Savvy Cycling and Savvy Cyclists!!!

New uses for cardboard.

2011-06-15T07:30:00.001-05:00

Information : AnirudhaRao

You don't need a bike lane to ride your bike...

2011-06-14T21:48:00.003-05:00

You just need a bike... and some knowledge.

I was recently interviewed about my opinion on the new Dallas Bike Plan. Here's the video.

NBCDFW "Dallas Bike Plan is Unnecessary"

The bike plan devotes one sentence to bike education, and yet dedicates pages and paragraphs to all the potential lane striping and segregated pathways that they encourage. The plan was written despite the objections of several well-educated members of the Bicycle Advisory Committee. Dallas is now committing itself to an increased infrastructure load, increased risk to cyclists, increased antagonism towards cyclists, decreased freedom to travel on public roads, and a general growth in ignorance and responsibility. I find it shameful that the City Council voted on this without first consulting true local citizens who have spent their lives learning how to ride safely and properly in an urban setting.

That said, I'll let you decide for yourselves. Do you want cyclists and laws that govern local roads to be held to a level of responsibility, or do you want to instead view road rules as suggestions, and signs governing safety to be nothing more than decoration. With bike lanes, cyclists will be given a limited option, increased stress, and decreased mobility. DO NOT let this happen here.

For the real cost of one mile of bike lane, 13,000 cyclists could be educated to make it redundant.

2011-06-09T18:35:00.001-05:00

Here be truth.

Create your own bike lanes... anywhere you want.

2011-06-09T18:13:00.003-05:00

Of course, they're going to be about 11 feet wide. Is that a problem?

http://cyclingsavvy.org/2011/06/cyclingsavvy-dfw-june-classes/

Need less paint.

2011-06-09T10:36:00.002-05:00

Hat tip to billyptx!

Need more paint.

2011-06-07T19:11:00.000-05:00

3-Way Street from ronconcocacola on Vimeo.

Why California Bicyclists Should Oppose the Proposed 3 Foot Passing Law – BikingBrian

2011-05-06T16:23:00.000-05:00

Why California Bicyclists Should Oppose the Proposed 3 Foot Passing Law – BikingBrian

OMG! Bicycling Is Sooo Dangerous!

2011-05-04T16:27:00.001-05:00

OMG! Bicycling Is Sooo Dangerous!

Except that it’s not.

Bicycling is really quite safe. But our culture has accepted a mythology of danger and fear. It is this mythology that I believe convinces Americans they need special facilities to ride their bicycles safely.

-- via Carbon Trace

This Wasn’t Supposed to Happen

2011-04-29T18:32:00.002-05:00

Another cyclist escapes the ghetto...

This Wasn’t Supposed to Happen

C y c l e * D a l l a s: Trailoton

2011-04-12T15:41:00.001-05:00

C y c l e * D a l l a s: Trailoton

Regurgitated by popular demand.

Talking With ... Keri Caffrey: Bicycle is her 1st option

2011-04-11T08:31:00.000-05:00

Talking With ... Keri Caffrey: Bicycle is her 1st option

P.J. O'Rourke on the Scourge of Bike Lanes

2011-04-03T08:34:00.004-05:00

Getty Images, via The Wall Street Journal

OK, O'Rourke (my favorite conservative commentator, and co-author of the great Tolkien parody, "Bored of the Rings") is wrong on much of this, but if you don't understand where he is broadly right (not just right wing), then you don't understand history, and you don't see what's coming down the bike lane at you.

The money quote...

Bike lanes violate a fundamental principle of democracy. We, the majority who do not ride bicycles, are being forced to sacrifice our left turns, parking places and chances to squeeze by delivery trucks so that an affluent elite can feel good about itself for getting wet, cold, tired and run-over. Our tax dollars are being used to subsidize our annoyance.

Bicycle riders must be made to bear the burden of this special-interest boondoggle. Bicycle registration fees should be raised until they produce enough revenue to build and maintain new expressways so that drivers can avoid city streets clogged by bike lanes.

P.J. O'Rourke on the Scourge of Bike Lanes - WSJ.com

The Economic Case for bike lanes.

2011-04-01T11:18:00.000-05:00

Hard times call for hard logic.

The installation and upkeep of bike lanes, often seen as an unnecessary expenditure of municipal funds, actually pay for themselves in reduced maintenance costs for damage caused by automobiles, according to a recent study funded by the Washington D.C.-based bike lane lobby group Bike Lanes for America.

Every year, thousands of street signs, poles, and fire hydrants have to be replaced because they have been run over by careless and hostile automobile drivers. Simply by striping in 3' bike lanes (the preferred size in BLA bike-friendly communities like Austin, Texas), at a cost of only $20,000 per lane mile (plus annual maintenance costs of up to $10,000 per lane mile), motorists would no longer be able to hit street fixtures. The costs for the bike lanes would be easily offset by never again having to replace street signs, meter posts, and fire hydrants. Not only do cities become bike friendly by installing bike lanes, they become sign and hydrant friendly, too, and coincidentally, more fiscally responsible in these lean economic times.

"The logic is inescapable" says BLA executive director Clark Wallabees.

Command performance.

2011-04-01T00:39:00.004-05:00

(April 1, 1960: Birmingham)

The League of American Black Separatists has awarded Birmingham, Alabama the coveted Gold Black Friendly Community award. Said Andrew X of the League of American Black Separatists (LABS), "In looking to separate Black America from White America, we found few communities that had made as much effort towards this goal as Birmingham has." Andrew X pointed to the usual "separate but equal" segregated schools, and the safety of all Black or all White neighborhoods as good examples of being Black Friendly. But what vaulted Birmingham to Gold status was the city's "cost is no object" implementation of completely segregated water fountains and restrooms.

Andrew X also said that one of the keys to this prestigious award was when he sat down with Birmingham's white mayor, Mr. James Crow, and discovered how much they had in common, and how their seemingly disparate goals really overlapped. "We had always wanted to maintain a purely white society" said Mr. Crow, "but extremist 'Freedom Riders' kept trying to force Birmingham to integrate, claiming that blacks and white can live together peaceably. We just were never comfortable sharing white space with black folks. But we didn't like being called racist and backwards, either."

That's when Andrew X and LABS came in with a proposal to Mr. Crow to help Birmingham achieve the LABS "Black Friendly" recognition. "Here at LABS, we have long believed that Blacks and White can't coexist in the same places, but need separation between each other. Look at the history between Blacks and Whites. There are more of the Whites, they have more power than Blacks do, and we have seen numerous examples of White on Black violence that could only have been prevented by complete separation."

The breakthrough came when Mr. Crow and Andrew X discovered that their seemingly opposed ideas were really the same, only using different words. "When I discovered that 'separation' meant the same thing as 'segregation', but was just a more 'user-friendly' term, I realized that Andrew X and I had common ground on which to work."

Birmingham has expressed a desire to achieve the LABS' pinnacle rating of Platinum status, and already has a plan in the works. "By creating separate (or segregated) entrances to buildings for blacks and whites, and creating special 'colored eating areas' (or "black boxes') in the alleys behind restaurants, Birmingham can be an even more black friendly town that is is now" said Mr. Crow. "Colored is the new sign of safety, and we intend to place signs in separated areas all over town that proudly proclaim these facilities as being for 'Coloreds Only.'" said a beaming Andrew X.

All irony, sarcasm and satire aside, we must never forget.

And on a lighter (shade of jade) note...

White Line Fever.

2011-03-30T11:03:00.002-05:00

Lane Control v Right Tire Track from Keri Caffrey on Vimeo.

The Safety Myth… « The Lazy Randonneur

2011-03-28T10:30:00.002-05:00

The Safety Myth… « The Lazy Randonneur

"We have nothing to fear except fear itself."

- Franklin D. Roosevelt

...and some fear-based reporting.

A learning experience

2011-03-20T08:09:00.002-05:00

dangerous de maisonneuve

The beauty of the bicycle

2011-03-11T07:42:00.007-06:00

BBC News - In pictures: The beauty of the bicycle

The Bicycling Apocalypse: A Manifesto of Liberation Over Segregation | Commute Orlando

2011-03-08T18:46:00.002-06:00

The Bicycling Apocalypse: A Manifesto of Liberation Over Segregation

Judge Calvert Sentences Mr. Bates

2011-03-04T09:25:00.003-06:00

From the transcript, this is the sentencing comment made by Judge Calvert at Reed Bates' (Chipseal) "Reckless Driving" trial last August.

I’m sympathetic to the defendant’s blight. In fact, what he was doing was in many ways very admirable, trying to get a job, exercising every means at his disposal to try to regain gainful employment, and utilizing the resources that he had available to him at the time to provide that he had available to him at the time to provide for his own needs without relying upon other people. And so in many respects his conduct’s admirable. And in many respects, it’s lawful. As the parties were arguing and even some of the evidence earlier, trying to think of an example that might apply and I don’t know that this is a good example, but this is the one that came to mind, is that it’s not unlawful for a boy to swing a bat. In fact, it’s good for them, it’s good exercise, it’s good for them to participate in athletics and be in team sports and things of that nature.

But there are times when swinging a bat can become more dangerous, get into a crowded room or you get into circumstances, the swinging of the bat circumstances can change in such a way that if you put other people at peril even if you’re not at risk of being hurt, they might be injured by the way that you’re doing something that otherwise is completely lawful.

And there are times when it can even go beyond that where it’s reckless to where it could even be construed as knowing that there’s a high likelihood that somebody would get hurt if you continue that type of behavior and at some point, some people can infer by your conduct that you’re intentionally putting other people at risk, so that you could be accused of assault and even at times aggravated assault with a deadly weapon with a piece of wood that otherwise completely lawful to be utilizing. So there’s a spectrum there that has to be taken into consideration. And there needs to be good judgment utilized by people not only with regard to their own safety but to the safety of others. And you may be right. It may have been safer for you under some circumstances to ride in the middle of the roadway, but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t create a hazard for other people at times. And it may even jeopardize your own safety under certain circumstances. You have to take into consideration the safety of other persons and their property under those circumstances.

In this case, according to a note that was left by the clerk, the court costs, due to the subpoenas that were issued, are in the neighborhood of $512.10. It will be the judgment of the Court 13 days in jail, a $100 fine plus the court costs and give him credit for time served. Five extra days will be applied to the balance of the fines and court costs reducing the total by $500. Any remaining balance will be due to be paid.

It’s hard to imagine…

2011-02-23T11:05:00.000-06:00

It’s hard to imagine…

True this.

2011-02-03T19:18:00.003-06:00

Bicycling safely on the road, 1979 from danc on Vimeo.

P.S. Rust never sleeps.

New Year, New Contributor

2011-02-02T14:37:00.010-06:00

Hello everyone, and welcome to the Cycle*Dallas blog! I've been asked to provide some commentary on the site every once in a while, and I hope that the posts I leave will provoke thoughtful discussion about cycling in and around Dallas.

I thought I'd start on this wintery early February day pondering the accomplishment of an intern at a local Dallas weekly. She was justly proud with herself yesterday, when she arrived at work, in the middle of a city-debilitating ice storm, via bicycle. She posted her accomplishment on the company's blog, which can be found here:

While I'm really impressed about her accomplishment and fortitude, I leave you with a couple of questions to ponder regarding her effort.

An image obtained from WFAA.COM showing road conditions on Tuesday. Wednesday conditions were similar, with schools, private businesses, and public facilities closed both days.

Photo courtesy WFAA.com, Feb 1, 2011.

First...

Given the extreme conditions, the lack of traffic, and the hour she traveled, what was more hazardous? Was it her ride on the ice or slushy mix?
Was it more safe or less safe given the level of traffic?
How would she go about teaching others to follow her lead?
What would have happened had an 'event' of some sort occurred that led to an injury?
Was her commute SMART, or foolish?
How many other people decided to ride their bikes to work, to recreate, to travel anywhere, on this day?

Second...

She made this trek, in extreme conditions (for Dallas), without the support of what many politicians, bureaucrats, and community organizers claim is necessary for cycling in the City of Dallas... "Infrastructure". Would her commute have been any easier, this day or any, with extra attention and funding given to said "Infrastructure"? I beg your opinions.

Remember, you don't need a bike lane to ride your bike.... You just need a bike.

Do you see what I see?

2011-01-27T11:53:00.002-06:00

Below, I list getting rid of this as one of my proudest accomplishments. It only took 12 years and $1,500,000. It was replaced with a 12" wide, 800 ft. long bike/ped bridge, and 3/4 mile of new concrete trail.

FYI: The flex stakes would only last about two weeks. Oh, and it's two-way.

Politburo of Bicycles: Part 3

2011-01-27T11:03:00.004-06:00

LAB member signatures required to get a reform (non-paint sniffer) candidate on the LAB ballot: 800

Valid signatures gathered by reformers: 411 (request denied by LAB)

Number of LAB members who voted: 560

Number of LAB members who voted in the previous election: 400 +/-

Let the spin begin.

Tally Ho.

2011-01-26T14:40:00.019-06:00

Victory has many parents. Defeat has few. Nevertheless, for the record, just a few items...

The Katy Trail: The original application called for a 4' wide trail (based upon the $67K per mile constriction cost specified and requested). I was able to triple the trail's specified width (and cost), while stepping on a few toes. The Friends of the Katy Trail's first actions were to push for a narrower trail (8-10') in the hope of discouraging bicycle usage.

The Pedestrian Bridge across White Rock Lake, and the 3/4 mile trail extension along the old landfill: Yeah. Guess who. I was also able to remove the singularly most dangerous trail segment in the state, much to the dismay of those with their heads in the sand. More toes bruised.

The Multi-Purpose Trail under The High Five, connecting the White Rock Trail System with the Cottonwood Creek and Preston Ridge Trail: During the early phases of the High Five planning, I was able to show TxDOT that there was existing pedestrian traffic from Hamilton Park to the 7-11 store on the northwest quadrant. Utililizing provisions of the Sunset Review law existing at the time, I was able to force TxDOT to build the trail. The High Five really became the High Six, with the lowest being a bike-ped connection from the northwest to the southeast quadrants.

Bike Racks in Oak Cliff along Jefferson Boulevard. I was able to use Housing Department funds to install 100 quality bicycle parking spaces. I chose Jefferson Avenue because of the high number of immigrant cyclists in the area (who parked their bicycles behind their work places).

Bike Racks Downtown and in Deep Ellum: I was able to secure funding to install over 144 bicycle parking spots at minimal expense to the City of Dallas (less than $10,000). Two to a block (mostly inverted U racks), they are painted yellow so cyclists can spot them at a distance, and pedestrians won't walk into them.

The Katy Trail Extension from McCommas to White Rock Lake: Using multiple funding sources, I was able to secure funding to use DART and TXU right of way to build a trail extension that goes under Greenville, over Skillman and Abrams, and under Northwest Highway to link the White Rock Trail and DART Station to both the Mockingbird Station and the northern terminus of the Katy Trail.
This project would have been completed in 2006, but just as the City was about to let the construction contract, Angela Hunt demanded it be stopped, redesigned, and re-routed, so that a (unfunded at the time) $10,000,000 bridge connecting the Palomar Hotel to the Mockingbird Station commercial development could be constructed, with public money. Ms. Hunt objected to cyclists and runners being expected to stop at the signalized crossing of Mockingbird Lane at McMillan. She also was responding to requests from campaign donors unwilling to spend private sector funds for such a potentially beneficial project for their developments. Engineering and funding issues remain unresolved today, five years after the trail would have been opened.

Bike Racks on DART buses: This was a long battle waged on many fronts, with much shaming having to be done to get this accomplished. The results have been surprisingly positive.

The East Dallas Veloway: Consisting of the Santa Fe Trail and its future expansion to Royal Lane along the old Union Pacific line, I was able to secure funding from multiple sources (Dallas County, NCTCOG, and TxDOT) to build this trail from White Rock Lake to Expo Park. Working with TBC and Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson's office, I was able to secure funding to route the trail underneath the DART Green Line. A wording miscue in the authorization, and City Manager Mary Suhm's refusal to ask Rep. Johnson for a rewording, resulted in the project's cancellation. I was able to secure the City's matching funds (and expand the funds with bond money) to route the trail east-west from Fair Park to the Baylor/Deep Ellum DART stations. One of the key factors in making the five mile northern extension possible (which will end up being the coolest bike trail in Texas as it soars over traffic lanes and cuts through limestone gorges) was my ability to get DART and the City to not tear down a concrete rail bridge that goes over Skillman Avenue, crossing six lanes of traffic 30 feet in the air. I was able to retain 3/4s of the bridge during a flood control project that planned to demolish the entire bridge. Replacing the 100' span that had to be removed for hydraulics is doable as part of a bike/ped project. Replacing the entire 400' bridge would have been cost prohibitive. Sometimes victory is not defined by what you win, but by what you don't lose. Construction begins this year, IIRC (the trail extension is a Dallas County project).

Bicycle Mode Share: In spite of being the only major city in the USA to require mandatory bicycle helmet usage for adults, I was able to see the trip mode share in Dallas double from 2000 to 2010. Still a low number, but one that compares favorably with not just benchmark cities, but also with Austin. Demography, geography, and population density remain the constant defining factors.

Bicycle Bans on Lawther Drive: I successfully argued against two serious attempts to ban bicyclists from the roads around White Rock Lake. Expect that effort to succeed in the future.

...and bunches of other stuff, much of which I repent of now, almost $40,000,000 worth of bike/ped projects. But every new trail that was built reduced on-street riding, as people got the message to "stay off the streets". Jim Crow rides a cruiser.

Failures: Too many to enumerate. My greatest failures were not being able to convince Council that a mandatory helmet law was a counter-productive idea, and to twice secure funding for an on-street bicycle education training plan for all school children and adults in Dallas, but to see the programs killed. Twice I secured funding, twice it was killed. The first time (for a trial project) it was killed by the local TxDOT Safety Officer, solely because he knew I was opposed to mandatory helmet laws. The second time (for a more ambitious project), the City Manager decided to give the money back (almost $1,000,000) because no City department wanted to actually implement the education program. You might be surprised to see which current City Council member voted to kill the bicycle safety education program.

Not being able to get bicycle parking written into the City's building code (mirroring handicapped parking requirements) was an opportunity lost as well. Be able to get bicycle parking requirements written into City Code for transit stations (against DART's wishes) was a plus.

P.S. Did I mention that the budget for my program was completely removed in 1996? Zero dollars allocated for bicycle issues. I had to steal it from other departments, sticking bicycles onto other people's projects like lamprey eels on sturgeon.

Adios, and Tally Ho!

Docucomedia

2011-01-25T11:15:00.000-06:00

A Maine Yankee in Queen Keri's Court

2011-01-11T12:37:00.001-06:00

A Maine Yankee Bike-Commutes Orlando

Total appeasement

2010-12-20T11:36:00.005-06:00

Shakedown Street by Bruce McCall -- Opinion - Op-Art - NYTimes.com

Notice where the cars and trucks are located.

Lifetime member Bill Hoffman resigns from LAB board of directors

2010-12-15T09:15:00.005-06:00

Bill Hoffman sadly turns his back on LAB (a real picture of Bill).

Bill Hoffman resigns from LAB board of directors - Tulsa alternative transportation | Examiner.com

New Dallas Bike Plan to be unveiled, more or less.

2010-11-24T21:15:00.001-06:00

January 2011.

The three inch solution?

2010-11-09T08:34:00.001-06:00

Wayne Pein discusses the dangerously flawed process here.

Bicycle Facilities Design: "When science and engineering fail, just make up stuff you like." It's only bicycles.

The Politburo of Bicycles: Part 2

2010-11-04T14:08:00.004-05:00

For most of its history, The League of American Bicyclists (a.k.a. LAB, and formerly known as the League of American Wheelmen) has been an organization controlled by, and representing, its members. That is no longer the case.

LAB has become a bicycle industry lobby, masquerading as a member-representative organization. This is what's know as an "astroturf" organization... fake grassroots politics.

If you don't understand the difference between an organization being member-controlled, as opposed to being Politburo-controlled, then so be it.

Another attempted candidate speaks.

As I said before, we secured endorsements from more members than have probably voted in any League election in many years. Moreover, these endorsements, on the whole, came from the League's most active and valuable members. Many of those who signed our petition were League Cycling Instructors. Some are from lifetime members, former directors, and even former League presidents and current director nominees.

Read his full report here.

On the adaptive reuse of bike lanes

2010-11-02T09:05:00.013-05:00

Houston, Texas installed a bicycle lane network in the mid-1990s (although some say that rather than being planned, it was drawn and quartered by TxDOT, Wilbur Smith Engineering, BikeFed Consulting, and the City of Houston). As Dallas embarks on an equally politicized plan (replacing our 900 lane-mile on-street network), we have much to learn from our Big Brother to the south.

Vastly underutilized, like all ill-conceived bike lane systems, some of Houston's lanes have since been removed, some have been converted to wide outside lanes (by removing the bike lane stripe, but leaving the "real vehicle" travel lanes unchanged). But in the traditionally low-income Third Ward neighborhood, Houston has tried ways to reuse bike lanes by adapting them to local needs and concerns.

The most common adaptive reuse for bike lanes is as on-street parking (seen below). This type of adaptation clearly meets a real community need, and is universally applied.

But the more innovative use Houston appears to employ (bicycle facilities must always be about innovation) is to provide under-privileged urban cyclists (the ones who can't afford Volvo wagons and Jeep Wranglers to take their mountain bikes to exurban off-road trails) with urban single-track cycling facilities (as seen below).

This Third Ward "Mountain Bike Lane" truly brings the joys of single track riding into the inner city, complete with water crossings and the need for demanding technical bike-handling skills.

All in all, the Houston Bike Lane System is a model for all large cities looking to provide the best of bicycle facilities in impoverished communities, and has much Dallas can learn from. I'm sure the bike lanes in the Boulevard Oaks neighborhood are equally as creative, showing the same high degree of maintenance and thought, for the city's upper-middle class residents.

Or perhaps it shows something else...

...that the bike lanes in hell may indeed be paved with good intentions.

The Politburo of American Bicycling

2010-10-24T18:07:00.004-05:00

For most of its history, The League of American Bicyclists (a.k.a. LAB, and formerly known as the League of American Wheelmen) has been an organization controlled by, and representing, its members. That is no longer the case.

LAB has become a bicycle industry lobby, masquerading as a member-representative organization. This is what's know as an "astroturf" organization... fake grassroots politics.

If you don't understand the difference between an organization being member-controlled, as opposed to being Politburo-controlled, then so be it.

Pedal on to the glorious future, comrade. You'll like where they tell you to ride, I'm sure. Or else.

Eight's great, but three's a squeeze.

2010-10-17T10:10:00.004-05:00

Dan Guitierrez has the right idea. Don't let them squeeze you into three feet... take the eight!

Street Smarts Speaks

2010-10-12T20:32:00.000-05:00

Listen to the author.

Read and consider the words of the Cycle Dog.

2010-10-12T20:09:00.004-05:00

Photo copyright Petcruiser.

Please read and consider.

What's this and why is it important?

2010-10-10T09:23:00.002-05:00

Do you see the triangle of gravel in the picture above? The 90 angle is caused by the sweeping action of south-bound and west-bound vehicles pushing the gravel to the inside. The arc-like base of the triangle is caused by right-turning vehicles pushing the gravel to the outside. There the gravel will stay until a street sweeper comes by on its annual (if ever) mission.

Imagine bike lanes again, that are seldom or never swept. What falls there stays there.

BTW: The cost of sweeping bike lanes? $1,000 a year per linear mile, plus or minus a few hundred dollars. See why they don't get swept? A 200 mile bike lane system could cost $500,000 a year just to sweep... in a City that can't even afford to replace stop signs when they get knocked down.

Avoid heavy traffic. Ride on the streets.

2010-10-09T16:19:00.000-05:00

Don't like riding your bike in heavy car traffic or on dangerously crowded trails? Ride on the road in peace and quiet.

BikeTexas (the Texas Bicycle Coalition) is OK with Texas' mandatory bike lane law.

2010-10-07T21:44:00.009-05:00

Welcome to the ghetto. I have been told this has been cleared by TBC for distribution, so I am complying. The gist of it is that the Texas Bicycle Coalition (BikeTexas) believes you are required by law to ride in bike lanes (and that you should if you know what's good for you), and on paved shoulders (which aren't part of the roadway). Essentially, TBC is saying that you only have a right to ride on the roadway if there is no bike lane, sidepath, or paved shoulder available. For the life of me, I can't understand why they didn't just add sidewalks to their recommended list of places cyclists should ride.

Please note that in the Tampa, Florida story from the post below this one, three of the six cyclists killed by collisions with automobiles were in "paint protected" areas (two in bike lanes, one in a crosswalk), and one was on the sidewalk (functionally identical to a side path). So much for the safety myth of magick paint and segregated facilities (side paths) these "bike advocates" continue to push. As for the "studies" TBC offers, two are by consultants selling bike lanes, and three are from the University of Texas showing cars pass cyclists closer and at a higher speed when there is a bike lane than if there isn't one. Some fun. Some advocacy.

We have tried to answer your inquiry from a “legal” point of view below. Leslie Puckett, our legal fellow, prepared the answer with some input from Mark Stine and I. This should not be construed as legal advice. Consult an attorney for that.

The short answer of BikeTexas’ interpretation of the current law is that:

“If the bicycle lane is considered part of the roadway, then, TTC 551.103, which requires a cyclist to ride as far to the right on the roadway as possible, would seem to require a cyclist to ride in the bike lane (or paved shoulder) except when it is obstructed or when turning left, since the bike lane is usually on the right side of the roadway. The law is appropriately ambiguous and leaves discretion to individual cyclists to determine for themselves if the bike lane is obstructed and is usable.”

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

There will very likely be opposition, from a very small segment of the cycling population, to bike lanes in the Dallas Bike Plan. However, solid research is available that supports the use of bike lanes:

FHWA. 2006. BIKESAFE: Bicycle Countermeasure Selection System
FHWA. 2010. Public Policies for Pedestrian and Bicyclist Safety and Mobility
UTCTR. 2006. Operational and Safety Impacts When Retrofitting Bicycle Lanes
UTCTR. 2006. Evaluation of On-Street Bicycle Facilities Added to Existing Roadways
UTCTR. 2007. Operational and Safety Impacts for Bicyclists Using Roadways with On-Street Parking
Toole, Jennifer. 2010. Revising the AASHTO Guide for the Development of Bicycle Facilities
Environmental Health Journal, 2009.  The Impact of Transportation Infrastructure on Bicycling Injuries and Crashes

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

There are no examples of cities that we are aware of, in Texas or the nation, where the mainstream bicycle advocates regret the installation of, or are calling for removal of bike lane networks. However, protected bike lanes, also known as “cycle tracks”, are replacing bike lanes in many cities. Sharrows are in use in many cities where there is not enough right way to accommodate bike lanes.

Let me know if you have any more questions.

Regards,

Robin Stallings
Executive Director
BikeTexas
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

BikeTexas research regarding the use of bike lanes.

BikeTexas advocates for all cyclists, types A, B and C. BikeTexas encourages cyclists to use bicycle lanes when they are clear of debris and other hazards.

Texas Transportation Code (TTC) Sec. 551.101 states “a person operating a bicycle has the rights and duties applicable to a driver operating a vehicle.” Also, the TTC classifies bicycles as a type of “vehicle” in Sec. 541.202(2).

TTC Sec. 551.103 states “a person operating a bicycle on a roadway who is moving slower than the other traffic on the roadway shall ride as near as practicable to the right curb or edge of the roadway, unless: (1)  the person is passing another vehicle moving in the same direction; (2)  the person is preparing to turn left at an intersection or onto a private road or driveway; (3)  a condition on or of the roadway, including a fixed or moving object, parked or moving vehicle, pedestrian, animal, or surface hazard prevents the person from safely riding next to the right curb or edge of the roadway; or (4)  the person is operating a bicycle in an outside lane that is: (A)  less than 14 feet in width and does not have a designated bicycle lane adjacent to that lane; or (B)  too narrow for a bicycle and a motor vehicle to safely travel side by side. (b) A person operating a bicycle on a one-way roadway with two or more marked traffic lanes may ride as near as practicable to the left curb or edge of the roadway.”

- query: is the “bicycle lane” considered part of the roadway? If so, TTC 551.103, which requires a cyclist to ride as far to the right on the roadway as possible (when there are no safety hazards), would require a cyclist to ride in the bike lane at all times, since the bike lane is on the far right side of the other traffic lanes. This isn’t clear though.

A “hazard” could include but is not limited to bike lanes or road shoulders that have gravel, glass or other debris on the road, as well as cars that are parked in the bike lanes.

TTC 551.103 states “persons operating bicycles on a roadway may ride two abreast. Persons riding two abreast on a laned roadway shall ride in a single lane. Persons riding two abreast may not impede the normal and reasonable flow of traffic on the roadway.”

When a choice must be made between level of safety and traffic flow, safety factors should and do prevail. This precedence of safety factors over traffic flow is seen in requirements to stop for school buses with flashing red lights, the right of a motorist to reduce speed to fit personal comfort of control of vehicle during inclement weather, the right of slow commercial vehicles including farm vehicles to operate on the roadway, and speed restrictions defined in TTC Section 545.351. The TTC prohibits operators from driving at a speed “greater than is reasonable and prudent under the circumstances then existing” and “shall control the speed of the vehicle as necessary to avoid colliding with another person or vehicle.” An operator must drive at an appropriate reduced speed if “a special hazard exists with regard to traffic, including pedestrians, or weather or highway conditions.”

Just as TTC Sec. 545.351 requires a motor vehicle operator to reduce his speed limit if road conditions are hazardous, a bicyclist also should analyze his position on the road based on safety factors. The bicyclist should determine if a safety hazard exists and is not required to ride in a bicycle lane in that situation.
Bicyclists are encouraged to ride in bicycle lanes that are well-designed with sufficient width and sound connection to other traffic infrastructure, and do not collect or contain hazards.  The TTC requires a person operating a bicycle on a roadway who is moving slower than the other traffic on the roadway to ride as near as practicable to the right curb or edge of the roadway.

A given law, regulation or contract cannot cover every possible contingency, and vehicle operators must negotiate reasonable solutions in a given “gray area.” This negotiation exists in many situations, including when cyclists ride on roads with bicycle lanes that may contain safety hazards.

All vehicle drivers are urged to operate in a safe, lawful, predictable and courteous manner on the roadway.

Education is the most important tool to foster vehicle operation in a safe, lawful, predictable and courteous manner on the roadway. Enforcement is an important tool where education efforts are not effective.

A traffic safety culture is key in establishing responsible attitudes as a foundation for implementation of education, encouragement, enforcement and engineering of infrastructure to reduce fatalities and injuries and foster safe and efficient operation on Texas roadways by all vehicle operators.

Wave of fear and tragedy. What can be done about it?

2010-10-07T14:41:00.003-05:00

A few years ago, BikeDFW stirred up a wave of fear about the number of cyclists who were hit by cars in the greater DFW area in six week period, in an area about the size of an eastern seaboard state. Two cyclists died when a DUI driver mowed them down on the shoulder of a Farm-to-Market road in Grand Prairie, and four more were hit in other areas (just one in Dallas, IIRC). For convenience, BikeDFW shortened it to "Six Cyclists Hit by Cars in Dallas in Six Weeks" as they began a petition and fund-raising appeal, and then groups like Bike Friendly Oak Cliff started saying "Six Cyclist Fatalities in Six Weeks in Dallas!" That was then picked up by the League of American Bicyclists, and their mouthpiece, Bicycling Magazine. Nothing spreads like fear-mongering.

Now we actually have a sad story in Tampa Bay, Florida where six cyclists have died as a result of motor vehicle collisions. Horrible tragedies, every one. Now there are the usual (and not unjustified) cries of outrage and demands for more special facilities. But let's look more closely at what's happening.

Here are some highlights of the story, with footnoted comments.

Vega did nothing wrong, police said. She was waiting on the sidewalk at Spruce Street and Himes Avenue for the crosswalk light when an SUV driven by Josefina Rodriguez ran a red light. (1) A car hit the SUV, sent it spinning toward the sidewalk. Vega was thrown into a concrete block house. Police found her bike wedged beneath the SUV.

Rodriguez, 41, previously had a clean Florida driving record but was cited on Friday for running the red light. She won't face criminal charges because she wasn't showing signs of reckless disregard, police spokeswoman Laura McElroy said. Rodriguez didn't appear impaired, and witnesses said she wasn't driving extremely fast or weaving in traffic. "By law, running a red light does not rise to the level of reckless disregard," McElroy said. That upsets Vega's sister, JoAnn Vega, who works for the St. Petersburg Times. "The saddest thing was my sister was on the sidewalk," she said.
Diane Vega leaves three adult children and a 3-month-old granddaughter. Her family remembers her as a joyous woman who loved foreign movies and the beach.
"Diane was always on the move, trying to do new things and experience life as much as she could," her daughters wrote. "Her wonderful smile could light up a room."
Local law enforcement say it hasn't been a particularly deadly year, but the past two months are unusual. The causes and scenarios vary.

On Sept. 25, Kayoko Ishizuka, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of South Florida, was killed in a hit-and-run on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard. Deputies questioned a man and impounded his red Ford Explorer, but no arrests have been made. Like Vega, Ishizuka was doing everything right when she was struck. She wore a helmet, had lights on her bike and was in the bike lane, deputies said. (2)

St. Petersburg police are still going through tips and evidence in the Sept. 12 hit-and-run crash that killed Neil Alan Smith, a Crab Shack Restaurant dishwasher. (3)

The day before, New Port Richey resident Stephen Allen Ivey, 52, had ridden onto a two-lane road without stopping, Capt. Jeffrey Harrington said. Ivey struck a car that had the right-of-way. He wasn't wearing a helmet, police said, and was ejected from his bike. (4)

On Sept. 9, Chiles Elementary School art teacher Joe Dyals, 46, died after crossing the path of a minivan. (5)

And on July 29, LeRoy "Roy" Collins Jr., 75, a retired two-star admiral and executive director of the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs, was struck by a sport utility vehicle. The driver, Margaux Manuel, tried to help him at the scene, but Collins died at the hospital. Manuel, an obstetrics and gynecology resident at the University of South Florida, wasn't cited or charged. (6)

Before the riding vigil Friday night, bicycle advocate Alan Snel told the crowd to take their messages to elected officials. State Rep. Janet Cruz, D-Tampa, said she will do what she can. "Bicyclists should not be afraid for their lives to ride bikes in this city," she told the crowd. Then riders boarded their bikes — one with a safety vest that read "I want a safe commute" — and rode off. Their bike lights flashed like candles in the dusk.

Times news researcher John Martin and staff writers Danny Valentine and Lee Logan contributed to this report. Jessica Vander Velde can be reached at jvandervelde@sptimes.com.

1: The cyclist was stationary on the sidewalk. This tragedy has nothing to do with bicycle safety, as her bicycle had no impact on the collision that took her life. It is of more than passing interest to me that it's apparently not reckless driving in Florida to run a red light in an SUV, but in Ellis County, Texas, it is reckless driving to ride a bicycle on a state highway. There is no effective preventative action.

2: The cyclist was in a bike lane and wearing a helmet. The fear-mongers always present those two items as cure-alls for bicyclist safety, when the evidence clearly shows that neither of them affords protection from cars, and one of them might actually increase the danger (the University of Texas pro-bike lane study of a few years ago clearly showed that cars pass cyclists faster and more closely if the cyclist is in a bike lane than if they are either in a wide lane or taking the lane. Studies in the UK and North Carolina confirm these findings.

3: Not enough info to draw conclusions. I would wager that the collision took place in the early morning hours (after the cyclists work shift), and there is a high probability that the motorist was intoxicated, and that the cyclist may have had no illumination or reflective apparel. That's what the statistics say. Cyclist education and training might have prevented this collision, by teaching the cylist how to operate their vehicle at night in such a way as to prevent close passes and visibility problems. (Note: See Comments. Mr. Smith was in a bike lane, had reflectors, and was wearing light-colored clothing.)

4: The cyclist essentially "ran a stop sign", and was hit by a car that had the right of way. Even if there was no stop sign present, the cyclist had the responsibility to yield right of way to the approaching automobile. Education and training would have prevented the fatality. by showing the cyclist how to operate their vehicle in a safe and confident manner.

5: See #4 above. Education and training as preventative.

6: No info. Possibly a brush-by, where the motor vehicle operator attempts to pass a cyclist who is riding "as far close to the curb as they can". The motorist misjudges clearances, and the cyclist goes down. If that's what happened here, education and training would have prevented the fatality. by showing the cyclist how to operate their vehicle in a safe and confident manner. (Note: See Comments. Adm. Collins was crossing with the light in a crosswalk when he was struck by a right-turning vehicle. Adm. Collins had the right-of-way.)

I am prone to believe that 5 of these 6 fatalities could have been prevented with better education and training, and that the safety measures governments often mandate (mandatory helmets and bike lanes) offer no protection at all.

As cyclists, we don't have to be victims.

To be taken seriously.

2010-10-06T22:33:00.003-05:00

Bicycle facility advocates debuting new magick paint designs: dog-rows and the wiener box.

A conversation (in part) between two transportation/traffic engineers:

Bob Shanteau wrote:

"Now LAB is making the ludicrous claim that bike infrastructure helps fight traffic congestion.

Where does their advocacy of bike infrastructure stop?"

On 10/6/2010 9:28 AM, John Forester wrote:

"It won't stop, because this is the fundamental argument of all the anti-motoring bicycle-advocates, both those inside LAB and those outside. Their fundamental argument is that bikeways are the only way to persuade motorists to switch a transportationally-significant proportion of motoring trips to bicycle trips. Therefore, since their motivation is opposition to motoring, they cannot abandon this argument, no matter that no city has demonstrated this effect anywhere in the industrialized world.

They know that the public recognizes the problem of motoring congestion, so that the anti-motoring bikeway-advocacy argument attracts because it promises a reduction in motoring, providing less congestion for those (almost everybody, of course) who think that they, alone, will continue to drive as much as before."

On 10/6/10 12:12 PM, Bob Shanteau wrote:

"People who return from trips to Copenhagen and Amsterdam are overwhelmed by the number of cyclists they see in those cities and associate the numbers with bicycle facilities, totally ignoring the fact that bicyclists dominated the streets there until the 1960's (as shown in the Copenhagen 1937 travel film and the Netherlands 1950's video).

Perhaps we could make an argument that the right lane of multilane streets is a de facto bike lane that could attract the same hordes of bicyclists as existed in northern Europe. We would get opposition from both the motoring advocates and the bikeway advocates, but it is worth a shot, even if it is an irrational marketing approach :-)"

C y c l e * D a l l a s

A clear and present preference.

Knowledge is best protection for bicyclist

"Bike Friendly": Cowering or Empowering?

Portland State Study Shows Cyclists’ Bad Behavior - BikeRadar

The basic problem illustrated... without tragedy (this time).

There are times when riding on the shoulder can indeed be a life-saver.

Build it and they will come.

This is a mobility lesson.

Occupy the Lane... or ride in the gutter.

See a problem?

The designed-in dis-functionality of bike lanes

Test your Safety Perceptions

Occupy the Lane

Far to the right conditioning.

Data

Bike lanes continue to confuse drivers, riders in Naptown

A reminder.

The sport at its best.

Why wait for Dallas' $350,000,000 Bike-Paint Plan? Ride now, learn how.

Dance, don't quake.

For those unclear of the concept.

Cycling Savvy USA

CycleDallas in Orlando? Sometimes you have to head East in order to better ride West!

This is the reality, not the expensive fantasy.

You Are Here.

Reason breaks out in California.

Now for some humor from the paradigm.

Professional Advocay in practice.

Advocacy: This is how you do it.

"I could just squeeze you to death!"

Coming soon to city near you!

A modest proposal...

Riding with Gonzales.

"Ride", he said.

Vox populi

Seattle cyclist dies on top of "sharrow"

Rights, not arrogance.

Reality bites.

Coming your way?

Don't give away your right-of-way control.

Bike Friendly Con-Textualism: Irrefutable Proofiness

NYC cyclist fined $1,500 for running red lights

Imagine (driver remix)

CyclingSavvy DFW Classes,September 9-10, 2011

“Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself”: FDR’s First Inaugural Address

Truth & Techniques of Traffic Cycling

Train Your Bike

Tour of Dallas

Register Now!

Individual sessions are $30 eachA package for all three sessions is $75

How To Die On A Bicycle

Oops.

Bicycle helmets should not be compulsory, say doctors - Telegraph

The truth? You can't handle the truth!

The Demands of Advocacy.

Do I have to point it out?

Why the Tour de France should be held only on roads with bike lanes.

I Am Not a Bicyclist

Making a Rueben Sandwich with a garbage truck and a bicyclist.

Bicyclist Dies After Garbage Truck Collision

Amsterdamnation D.C.

New Orleans Bike Lanes

One thousand words.

A Dallasite and Bicycle Advisory Committee Member Shows us ALL how to do it right!

New uses for cardboard.

You don't need a bike lane to ride your bike...

For the real cost of one mile of bike lane, 13,000 cyclists could be educated to make it redundant.

Create your own bike lanes... anywhere you want.

Need less paint.

Need more paint.

Why California Bicyclists Should Oppose the Proposed 3 Foot Passing Law – BikingBrian

OMG! Bicycling Is Sooo Dangerous!

This Wasn’t Supposed to Happen

C y c l e * D a l l a s: Trailoton

Talking With ... Keri Caffrey: Bicycle is her 1st option

P.J. O'Rourke on the Scourge of Bike Lanes

The Economic Case for bike lanes.

Command performance.

White Line Fever.

Individual sessions are $30 each
A package for all three sessions is $75