Four quarterly reports on the “sharrows” that were painted along the length of Cayuga Street are now available for review. A fascinating read (pretty large PDFs; sorry). See Sharrow Reports.

Steve,

I’m from the UK but I’m in a hotel in Long Beach California.  I want to go find an apple store and buy an iPad.

So I search on the web for the nearby apple stores and that works well and for each one it says “click here for driving directions.”  I travel with a great folding bike called a Bike Friday tikit. There’s a GREAT metro here.  Obvious way would be jump on the metro to the nearest station to a shop then cycle from there to the shop.  Does the apple web tell me where the nearest Metro station is ? Nope.  It gives me only driving directions. That’s c..p.  It means to cycle it I would have to do a lot of work on the web to find the nearest station and the line to get there. Read the rest of this entry »

Walk and Roll is a really great website and a great idea; here’s their main principles –

Walk+Roll works to encourage and remind people to walk and bicycle in their daily lives by:

• - Organizing human-powered neighborhood events that combine fun with active living, learning and participating.
• - Advocating with politicians and community leaders so that they consider cyclists and pedestrians in public policy.
• - Promoting biking and walking through press releases and outreach to the media.

Walking and cycling rather than driving – particularly for short distances – saves money, improves physical and emotional health, decreases smog, improves neighborhood safety and encourages social interaction which builds community.

Most of their ideas are things we’ve kicked around here in Ithaca as well; some of their events are worth emulating. All in all, much food for thought.

The Alliance for Biking and Walking has issued a new “benchmarking” report, the results of a nationwide survey of bicycling and walking practices, policies, and implications.

As this report shows, where bicycling and walking levels are higher, obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes levels are lower. Higher levels of bicycling and walking also coincide with increased bicycle and pedestrian safety and higher levels of physical activity. Increasing bicycling and walking can help solve many of the largest problems facing our nation. As this report indicates, many states and cities are making progress toward promoting safe access for bicyclists and pedestrians, but much more remains to be done.

Check out the report on their website: Benchmarking

Recently there was a “leaked” report that the New York State DOT is about to revise its policy regarding the installation of rumble strips along state roads — whereas previously rumblestrips were an option to be considered, henceforth rumble strips will be default, to be added to every road project unless otherwise specified.

I found it a really disturbing prospect and expected cyclists around me to rise in protest. But no such protest seems to be materializing; most people I’ve talked to have said it’s not a big deal; if there is sufficient space left Read the rest of this entry »

The League of American Bicyclists cycling courses are being offered in Ithaca again. For experienced cyclists, the three-session Traffic Skills 101 will be held Tuesdays,  September 8, 15, and 22, 5:00-8:00 pm.  The two-session beginners  class will be Thursdays, September 10 and 17, 5:00-8:00 pm.

Whether you’ve been riding several thousand miles a year or have just started to think about getting on a bike again, the LAB cycling course will help you be a better cyclist — but, most of all, the course will change the way you feel about cycling and about your place in traffic. Really.

The fee for these courses is only $25. Complete information about them is on the Cornell Bicycle and Pedestrian Homepage.

Well, we came, we were seen, and no doubt we conquered a few of the hundreds of people on their way from one chili vendor to the next. It turned out to be a gorgeous, sunny day rather than the forbidding chance of snow of the forecast — just a bit cold to be standing around for a long time. Juan Salazar remarked that it was a lot colder standing there than accumulating icicles going over snowy mountains. Helping out at the table were Juan, Brenda Smith, Mary Bouchard, Robbert van Renesse, Jennifer Dotson, and Jeff Bateman; thanks also to Glenn Swan for lending us his folding canopy — fortunately we didn’t need it to protect us from precipitation this time.
Read the rest of this entry »