Pittsburgh Art Commission Approves Bike Corral Design
From Bike-PGH:
The City [of Pittsburgh] is one step closer to seeing more on-street bike parking areas, or “bike corrals.” Pittsburgh installed its first bike corral in May in front of the OTB Bike Cafe on East Carson St in the South Side, a PennDOT owned street.
Now that the Art Commission gave the thumbs up to the Bike/Ped Coordinator’s design, the final approvals are in place to install more bike corrals on city-owned streets.
Separate Bike Lanes Increase Ridership In Sydney 82%
Treehugger just posted about recent cycling initiative in Sydney that have increased ridership 82% in two years time. Common sense measures from many cyclists perspectives, from a ridership and advocacy perspective it is amazing progress that I’d love to see happen on my watch.
The Guardian explains:
…Sydney is working to provide 200km of cycle lanes by 2030, with 55km separated from traffic. Although Campbell admits that segregated cycle lanes are not ideal, with the risk of producing a “them and us” mentality, they have been successful in persuading previous non-cyclists to get out on their bikes. Research done by the council has shown that the likelihood of a resident commuting by bike increases exponentially with the proportion of their commuting trip made possible on a separated bike lane.
The new lanes have been combined with decreased speed limits and extensive junction redesigns which give cyclists priority and improve visibility. One advantage of the new junctions is that there has been a decreased number of accidents involving all modes of transport, not just bikes.
…
They have run safe cycling courses, given out cycling maps and encouraged “gracious” cycling, providing free bike bells for stretches of shared use pathways. Efforts have been made to keep the local community on board by making the new facilities attractive.
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All these measures have combined to produce rapid growth in cycling over two years, with numbers up by an average of 82% across all areas of the city.
Read more at Treehugger and The Guardian.
Pedal Minnesota
Despite the northern latitude and the weather that comes with it, Minnesota is one of the most bike friendly states out there. Pedal Minnesota is a new resource for all cyclists and potential cyclists living in or visiting the state, with links to just about anything you may want to know about trails, rentals, public policy and even tips to get new or returning cyclists rolling. With resources for individuals looking to put in the miles or businesses striving to make their workplace bicycle friendly Pedal Minnesota is hoping to have the answers to make cycling that much easier in their state.
Colorado Governor Signs Bill to End Hit and Run Loophole
BikeDenver.org is reporting that earlier this week Governor Hickenlooper of Colorado signed bill HB 1084 into law, effectively closing the “hit and run loophole” by increasing penalties to those of a DUI. In many states there is effectively an incentive to run if you are involved in an accident while under the influence being that the hit and run charge the next morning are usually less severe than DUI charges the night of the incident.
Read more about HB 1084 at Bicycle Colorado.
League of American Bicycles 2012 State Ranking
The League of American Bicyclists has released their 2012 Bicycle Friendly State rankings, with Washington taking the top spot for the fifth year in a row. States are judged on a number of categories including legislation and enforcement, policies and programs, infrastructure and funding, education and encouragement, and evaluation and planning.
The top five: Washington, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Colorado, Oregon
See the complete list at www.bikeleague.org
