Last year I reported here, based on a conversation at a STAR Team meeting, that the city was uninterested in painting more bicycle lanes. With the creation of new lanes on Division and Benton and the discussion at night’s STAR Team meeting, it has became clear to me that painting more bicycle lanes is in [...]
You’ll recall that I took my recent CyclingSavvy class through the diverging diamond intersection at I-44 and Kansas Expressway. It’s scary looking. But, given the traffic speeds, it is rather easily negotiable by bicycle. Walking through it, however, is another matter, according to the following critique: I disagree with the narrator’s comments about driving this [...]
Keri Caffrey, of Commute Orlando and CyclingSavvy, has updated her excellent video Bicycling in Traffic is a Dance You Must Lead. Something to note: You are NOT watching “hardened” cyclists or “road warriors” or “adrenaline junkies” who brave the dangers of traffic. Bicycling in traffic is safe (compared to a lot of other dangerous things [...]
What ought to be the order of courtesy in traffic between car drivers and bicycle drivers? I think the best way to approach this question is to check what the law and common understandings of the traffic system call for. First among these is the order of right-of-way (304.351. 1. Right of Way). In general, the [...]
The first CyclingSavvy class in Springfield was a success. I define success this way: We had students! We had five! Two were members of my family. One other was known to me. And two signed up after having seen the announcement on Facebook. It’s tough to fill bicycling classes for a number of reasons. So I’m good [...]
Tom Vanderbilt — author of a book everyone should read — wrote about the diverging diamond intersection in his column for Slate. The first one in the U.S. was built right here in Springfield. I’ll be taking my CyclingSavvy class through that intersection tomorrow Technorati Tags: bicycle education, cycling, cyclingsavvy, traffic design
I gave a presentation to students in the MSU planning department last week about Transportation and Civil Rights as an outside “expert.” I’m working on an undergraduate certificate in planning, so I was presenting to some of my fellow students and professors. My situated ethos is bicycle-pedestrian advocate/blogger and future amateur transportation planner, i.e. a pain in [...]
CyclingSavvy Course for Ladies — Springfield, MO 30 September – 1 October Empowerment for Confidence in Traffic Instructors: Karen Karabell, CSI, St. Louis Andy Cline, CSI, Springfield CyclingSavvy weekend course includes all three sessions: Truth & Techniques of Traffic Cycling – Friday 9/30 6-9PM Train Your Bike and Tour of Springfield – Saturday 10/1 8AM-4PM [...]
OK, yeah, I can be a bit insufferable about the whole students-ride-like-children thing. It’s especially insulting because they are not children. I’ve always been the kind of professor who refuses to refer to them as “kids” because, well, they are adults. So I guess that’s the crux of the problem for me. They are adults. I want [...]
The Missouri Bicycle & Pedestrian Federation is looking for feedback on its proposed 2012 legislative agenda. Below is a graphic showing my suggestions (click for larger image). For more on my opposition to the 3-foot passing law (why it is a really bad idea), check out these posts: I Want More Than three Feet What [...]
In no particular order of importance: Beware Springfield! There are outlaw nuns on the loose! Had a car full of them run the 4-way stop at Cherry and Hammons right in front of me this morning. What traffic laws would Mother Teresa ignore? STAR Team member Rick Scarlet and I are working on holding a [...]
The rationale for segregation is deficiency. The rationale for control is deficiency. We call for the segregation of bicyclists and motorists because both are presumed deficient and unwilling or unable to avoid colliding with one another. We call for our governments to control motorists and cyclists with increasingly prescriptive laws and enforcement for the same [...]
Danny Westneat, a columnist for the Seattle Times, wrote last week about a railroad crossing that has been causing bicyclists problems. Numerous injuries, deaths, and lawsuits later, a group of bicyclists wants to make changes to the area and has hired a traffic engineer to show them what to do. Read the column then check [...]
During our STAR Team visit to Columbia we got to see how PedNet operates and get an overview of its programming. We came away with many great ideas. You can check the PedNet website for details. The STAR Team members who participated in the field trip met for lunch yesterday to discuss what we saw [...]
“Roadways are made for vehicles, not cyclists.” Cpl. Matt Brown, Springfield Police Department. Wrong. Wrong legally. Wrong historically. Wrong morally. Our roadways are made for people, not particular machines. The officer made this unfortunate and damaging statement in an article this morning in the Springfield News-Leader. I wonder if this is the same officer who [...]
