Urban Velo » Advocacy

Turn Pain Into Power: A Rally for Bicycle Safety

Urban Jeff — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 12:18:29 +0000

12PM Februrary 10th, UC Santa Cruz (At the beginning of the Great Meadow pathway, near recital hall). Adrian Burgueño’s bicycle advocacy and legacy will continue to live through us and we will be his voice to raise awareness on bicycle safety. Heading home from school after his evening class about one year from today, taking all the safety measures a cyclist can take, riding on an extremely dangerous bike path on campus, his beautiful young life was cut short. He would be 22.

There will be a peaceful rally to commemorate Adrian’s passing this week. Let’s all gather to raise awareness and speak upon the dangers of this bicycle path. As an activist he was, he would be among the first to organize and participate for such event.

This will take place on the UCSC campus At the beginning of the Great Meadow pathway, near the recital hall, this Friday, February 10th at noon. If you or someone you know in the Santa Cruz area has experienced the dangers of this path, message this page directly. Pass the word, share this event’s info and please join us for this rally.

Visit the Facebook page.

American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act

Urban Jeff — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:38:27 +0000

From America Bikes:

On Thursday, February 2, the House Transportation Committee will vote on the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act, a bill that eliminates crucial funds for biking and walking.

This long-awaited multi year transportation bill eliminates the two largest programs that fund biking and walking infrastructure—Transportation Enhancements and Safe Routes to School. Without these programs, communities all over the country will lose resources to build the sidewalks, crosswalks, and bikeways that make biking and walking safe and accessible in communities across the country.

Green Means Go

Urban Jeff — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 05:25:10 +0000

From the Los Angeles Times:

The latest bicycle lane in Los Angeles has an interesting twist: It’s bright green.

The color is aimed at reducing collisions and to help cyclists feel safer on their north-south commute on Spring Street through bustling downtown, where two-wheeled travel is on the rise.

At 1.5 miles long — from Cesar Chavez Avenue to 9th Street — the lane is the first in downtown and the first full-color lane in the city.

London’s Tour du Danger

Urban Jeff — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 15:41:54 +0000

From the Guardian UK:

A cycling sight-seeing tour with a difference took place on Saturday, taking in London’s 10 most dangerous junctions for cyclists. The ride – originally conceived by Cyclists in the City blog as a fact-finding mission with a few friends – struck a resonant chord with readers and campaigners. Word spread quickly, and ultimately several hundred London cyclists participated in the “Tour du danger”.

Alliance for Biking and Walking Photo Contest 2011

brad — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 13:14:04 +0000

The Alliance for Biking and Walking is holding a photo contest open until October 31 looking for images useful to biking and waking advocacy efforts, with prizes from various places including an all expense paid biking tour of Tuscany.

SC Driver Convicted of Felony for Killing Cyclist

brad — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 13:40:34 +0000

Bicycle law blog BikeLaw.com is reporting that the driver responsible for killing cyclist Matthew Burke pled guilty to felony manslaughter just yesterday.

On October 1, 2010, on a straight road in broad daylight in Beech Island, South Carolina, driver Daniel Johnson slammed into Matt and four other cyclists. After 128 days in a coma under life support, Matt was pronounced dead on February 6, 2011.

After months of investigation and legal wrangling, Johnson admitted to his crime this afternoon and pled guilty to felony manslaughter. Johnson was taken immediately into custody and will be sentenced tomorrow, Tuesday, October 18th.

The Burke family is represented by Bike Law’s Peter Wilborn: “Matt Burke’s legacy is that drivers can and should be treated as criminals for killing cyclists. Throughout the country, cycling deaths are regularly dismissed by law enforcement as mere traffic ‘accidents.’ But often they are not accidental, the needless fatalities are tragic consequences of reckless driving and lawless drivers. The driver’s felony conviction here proves to police, policymakers, and drivers to take cycling safety seriously. This case from South Carolina is an example of how to do it right.”

While such a conviction shouldn’t really be newsworthy, it unfortunately is within the cycling community where many of us are familiar with cases of cyclists being run-down gone completely unpunished under circumstances that beg the question of if it had been anyone but a cyclist if the District Attorney’s views would have been different. Read more at www.bikelaw.com

Three-Foot Passing Bill Vetoed in California

Urban Jeff — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 03:09:27 +0000

From Bicycle Retailer:

Despite hundreds of letters from cyclists, advocates and industry suppliers and retailers in support of a bill that would require motorists to give riders three feet of room when passing, California Gov. Edmund Brown vetoed the pending legislation Friday.

His opposition stemmed from a provision in the bill (SB 910) that said that if a motorist couldn’t give a cyclist 3 feet when passing, then the driver would need to slow down to 15 mph. The current law requires that drivers pass cyclists at a safe distance but doesn’t specify what that distance should be.

BikePGH Bike Light Raid

Urban Jeff — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 13:59:07 +0000

You’ve no doubt heard about police stopping cyclists for riding at night without a light. And obviously nothing good immediately comes of it. BikePGH came up with the brilliant idea to conduct a bike light raid of their own, targeting cyclists on the University of Pittsburgh campus, and instead of tasering the offending cyclists, they gave out 100 Planet Bike lights to more than 50 cyclists in two hours.

Cleveland council OKs ‘Complete and Green Streets’ Legislation

Urban Jeff — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 13:17:24 +0000

From Cleveland.com: Cleveland’s streets are about to get friendlier for bicyclists, pedestrians and the environment.

City Council voted Monday to approve a law requiring that 20 percent of money spent on road projects go to features such as bike-only lanes, crosswalks, energy-efficient lighting and porous pavement. The law caps the extra cost at $1 million.

Pittsburgh Bikefest 2011

Urban Jeff — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 05:01:15 +0000

BikePGH presents Bikefest 2011, over 50 events to celebrate cycling in Pittsburgh.

Festivities kick off on August 12th with a fundraising party at the Pittsburgh Opera. Anyone who’s been there in the past will confirm, this is a party not to be missed.

Visit bikepgh.org/bikefest for more info.