Back row, from left: Tania, Girls Bike Club leaders Kayla Story and Coralee Montes, Ladijah, Jo-Jo and leader Zorida Ortiz. Front row, from left: Shacora and Naomi. photo: velojoy
As I registered this week for the National Bike Summit in Washington, DC in March, I was thinking about some of the moments that stayed with me from the recent Youth Bike Summit here in New York City sponsored by the community-based shop Recycle-A-Bicycle.
As Pasqualina Azzarello, RAB executive director, has said of youth engagement in promoting bike-friendly communities, “The desire to connect around this issue is potent,” a fact reflected in the voices of the youth summit participants.
(Above) Leaders and members of the Girls Bike Club of Chicago’s West Town Bikes, a program that encourages empowerment and self-sufficiency through cycling, gave a spirited presentation (claps and cheers!) to a packed room. Men still outnumber women three to one in bicycle commuting in the U.S. Efforts to engage young women in cycling, and to develop leadership around sustainable transportation — early — is one path toward changing that calculus. Read more…
A new study from the Alliance for Biking and Walking focusing on the 50 states and the 51 largest U.S. cities finds increases in the percentages of Americans walking and bicycling to work and improvements in overall safety, and underscores economic and health benefits. However, it finds disproportions in risks to pedestrians and cyclists, and in funding for projects related to active transportation.
The study, Bicycling and Walking in the United States: 2012 Benchmarking Report, highlights progress and benefits as well as challenges in encouraging people in the U.S. to walk and ride bicycles. Last conducted in 2010, it presents a trove of data, plus models of success from around the world, for use by policymakers, advocacy organizations and others interested in promoting sustainable transportation in local communities. The survey arrives as Congress is considering the next federal transportation bill, which designates how billions of federal tax dollars will be allocated.
Growth, Plus Benefits to Economy and Health
The survey finds that between 2006 and 2009, the percentage of people who commute by bicycle or on foot increased from 2.9 to 3.4 percent. However, while the survey reveals that 12 percent of U.S. trips are by bike or foot, 14 percent of traffic fatalities are among bicyclists and pedestrians. At the same time, pedestrian and bicycle projects get less than 2 percent of federal transportation dollars. Read more…
In the week before the Second Annual Youth Bike Summit in NYC, the gathering of young people, educators and advocates from around the nation that convenes at The New School in Manhattan this weekend to encourage and empower a new generation of cyclists, Pasqualina Azzarello, executive director of Recycle-A-Bicycle, the event’s organizer, radiated calm.
Near her work space, a neatly organized island amidst the sea of used bicycles at the RAB retail shop in Brooklyn, hung hundreds of canvas tote bags (photo above), colorfully hand-painted by RAB teen volunteers for the conference participants.
On that day, Azzarello, who leads the NYC-based organization that focuses on bicycling as a vehicle for youth development, environmental education, community engagement and healthy living, had good news. Summit registration was trending up over the inaugural year, and two new sponsors, Specialized and Planet Bike, had come on board. Read more…
Hello 2012. We’re glad you’re here. Not that we’re dissing the bygone year. 2011 gave people who love riding bicycles in New York City lots to celebrate — more miles of bike lanes, greater numbers of riders and safer streets overall. Still, we’re happy to put some of the less salutary moments — ticketing blitzes, Prospect Park West bike lane battles, the “bikelash” and skirt scandals — behind us.
Here are some reasons to be optimistic, bullish even, about bicycling in NYC in the coming year:
- Bike Share Rolls In — The much-anticipated debut this summer of a bike share system will give New Yorkers a new entry point to an accessible, economical and easy-to-use (did we mention fun?) public transportation alternative. What is slated to be the largest bike share program in the U.S. will be stocked with a game-changing 10,000 bikes at 600 stations in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Will they become the next icons of NYC, like yellow taxis, as suggested at a September press conference to announce that Alta Bike Share will be the vendor? We hope so. P.S. There will be be lots of pre-launch opportunities to get to know how bike share works and to take a trial ride. Here’s how to keep tabs on the schedule of events.
- Bike Lane Network Growth — NYC’s system of bike lanes will continue to grow, helping provide safer and more efficient routes among the five boroughs and through neighborhoods. At year end, the NYC Department of Transportation reported that 200 bike-lane miles had been added between 2007 and 2009, as commuter cycling grew by 45 percent. The city says it remains on track to meet its goal of 1,800 bike-lane miles by 2030, as outlined in the Bike Master Plan and the Bloomberg Administration’s PlaNYC for a greener New York. And public support remains strong. Recent polls indicate that a majority of New Yorkers favor the bike lanes.
- Visionary Leadership — The number of bicycle commuters has doubled since 2007 according to the NYC Commuter Cycling Indicator released last month. Is it a coincidence that this steep growth trend coincides with the four years during which Janette Sadik-Khan has been in the DOT commissioner’s seat? Hardly. It’s an indicator of strong, visionary leadership focused on creating safer, more livable streets for the benefit of all New Yorkers. In citing the city’s coming bike share program as one that will transform urban centers in 2012, salon.com noted, “Transportation commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan is already a heroine to New York’s cycling community — this should qualify her for sainthood.” Amen. Read more…
photo: andrew hinderaker
Year-end is the time to make charitable contributions to the organizations that work hard all year long on behalf of meaningful causes. For people who love to ride bikes (that’s us!) donating to local organizations that help make streets safer, inform and educate the public, and engage the next generation in cycling is a great way to say thank you for everything they do and to help sustain and build their programs for the year ahead. And what a year 2012 will be with the arrival in New York City of the nation’s largest bike share program! Read more…
The green line in the New York City Department of Transportation’s NYC Commuter Cycling Indicator (above) almost needs no caption. That’s because, more than specific numbers, it’s the trend in bicycle commuting in New York City that’s significant. And that trend is up. In fact, commuter cycling more than doubled from 2007 to 2011, according to the 2011 report by the NYC DOT last week.
The red arrow that’s been added, however, does require some explanation. Felix Salmon, who writes for Reuters, included this graphic in his Dec. 10 blog post to drive home the point that the increase in cycling coincides with the appointment of NYC DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan, whose vision is helping to transform the city streets into safer and more user-friendly places for cyclists and pedestrians. Read more…
photo: velojoy
I had two jarring experiences this week that reminded me of the complex calculus of sharing the road, and of the importance – for cyclists, pedestrians and motorists — of observing both the rules of the road and of common courtesy. In one circumstance, I was the victim. In another, I caused another person to feel like a victim.
The first instance was a run-in with what the bicycling community refers to in the most discrete terms as a “hater,” a man or woman who cannot abide cyclists, for whatever reasons. Here’s what happened: As a friend and I were on a weekend ride on a two-lane, shoulderless road on Long Island, in single file as required by local law, a man in an SUV paralleled us. As he leaned across the empty passenger seat, he swerved toward us and screamed out the open window: Get off the damn road! Read more…
As the popularity of cycling in New York City continues to grow, street signage helps advance the trend toward safer streets. The latest example of creative thinking by the NYC Department of Transportation is the safety education and public art campaign above. Curbside Haiku, a joint project of the DOT and the Safe Streets Fund, includes 12 designs by artist John Morse. Read more…
NYPD officers look on as T.A. Executive Director Paul Steely White (center) calls for traffic justice.
About 100 people gathered on Wednesday morning for a rally for traffic justice at One Police Plaza in Lower Manhattan, where Transportation Alternatives delivered a twine-bound stack of more than 2,600 letters from citizens asking NYC Police Commissioner Ray Kelly to hold dangerous drivers accountable.
On the forward line of the assembly were survivors of accidents caused by careless, distracted or reckless drivers of motor vehicles, as well as family and friends of victims. Among these was Erika Lefevre, whose son Mathieu was killed while on his bicycle by a flatbed truck at a Brooklyn intersection on October 18. The driver parked the rig several blocks away and was only identified days later. Shortly thereafter, the NYPD announced that no charges would be filed for leaving the scene of an accident or failing to exercise due care. The Lefevre family learned of this news from the media, and has basically received a cold shoulder in their quest for information from police investigators.
Erika Lefevre (center) returned to NYC for the rally to call for timely release of information.
“We want NYPD to take the time it needs to conduct an unbiased, thorough, professional investigation,” Mrs. Lefevre said. “But NYPD has caused us great pain with their mishandling and withholding of information, and their rush to clear the driver of any wrongdoing.” Read more…
Over the past week several news reports have highlighted widening availability of indoor bike storage to encourage commuting on two wheels by offering secure and convenient parking.
In Santa Monica, California over the weekend the nation’s biggest indoor bicycle parking facility opened its doors. It contains 360 parking slots situated in 5,300 square feet that also house retail space, bike repair, bike rentals and other services.
Closer to home, The New York Times quoted real estate insiders and advocates who say that bike rooms in commercial buildings are becoming more common, driven in part by a new access law and also by a trend toward energy-saving, green construction and retrofitting. Even that most iconic of New York City landmarks, the Empire State Building, has a bike room.
All this reminded me of my summer trip to Amsterdam where I visited what must be the penultimate indoor storage room — for 2,000 bicycles — situated beneath the Centrale Bibliotheek, or central library (top photo). In that city, sheltered and safe indoor parking is mandated by the building code, says Marc van Woudenberg, author of the popular Amsterdamize blog.
Read more…
