The following is a legislative alert from Brent Hugh, executive director of the Missouri Bicycle & Pedestrian Federation: We aren’t exaggerating when we say this ask has never been more urgent. Click this link to contact your member of Congress in support of bicycling and walking: http://support.railstotrails.org/site/R?i=MU6Bn3Xx8UZZlnZ9Tmaq9w Thursday, February 2nd, the Transportation Infrastructure committee in the U.S. [...]
City Councilman Tom Beiker held a public forum at The Hub yesterday — first in a series of planned public discussions. The main topic was bicycling and helping make Springfield a bicycle-friendly community. I was unable to attend the meeting. The News-Leader published an article today. It’s difficult to tell how much talk there was [...]
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 [...]
Please be careful what you ask for, that is. There’s a movement afoot at the Bicycle Friendly Springfield group on Facebook to have Springfield bicyclists send postcards to the mayor requesting more bicycle friendliness in Springfield. The post cards are available at local bicycle shops. Fill it out. Send it in. Be heard. Good idea! [...]
My thanks to the News-Leader for highlighting alternative transportation in its editorial today. I question the assumption that riding on the streets of Springfield is not safe or that bicycle lanes are safe. But, all in all, the need for transportation options is a conversation Springfield needs to have, and I’m happy to see the News-Leader taking [...]
A new bicycle lane has appeared on Benton Ave. from roughly Central St. to Commercial St. I say “appeared” because I had no idea this was coming. I’ve been operating under the impression that the city was uninterested in painting new lanes. Now, I have been busy this summer and traveling. I missed the last [...]
But first … Vilnius Mayor Crushes Car in Bicycle Lane with a Tank. I’m in Delaware this week and noticing that some roads I used to ride a bicycle on as a kid now have bicycle lanes — or at least partial lanes. I’ll also visit New York City on this trip. It’s my goal [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
The Holy Grail of bicycle advocacy is numbers of kiesters in saddles on two wheels on the road. Some advocates are willing to do almost anything to increase participation — including putting novices in danger. There’s a “but”: It appears rather clear that the more people who ride bicycles in a given area the safer [...]
You want to increase bicycle participation and safety for all road users? Apparently the way to do it is create a bicycle-friendly city — one with a dense grid pattern, narrow streets, and calmed traffic. That almost sounds like the urban core of Springfield. Beyond Safety in Numbers discusses the work of Norman Garrick and [...]
Five members of the STAR Team of Ozarks Greenways toured the bicycle/pedestrian facilities in Columbia, Mo. on June 23-24. Columbia has earned a silver level Bicycle Friendly Community award from the League of American Bicyclists. GetAbout Columbia is the city program primarily responsible for the infrastructure. From its website: In 2006, Columbia, Missouri was selected [...]
The Sustainable Transportation Advocacy Resource Team of Ozark Greenways met last night. Things are jumping in Springfield! We’re revamping the Drive Less, Live More booklet this summer with all new content, graphics, and title (to match a forth-coming PR campaign … stay tuned). Please take a look at the old one, and let me know [...]
Here is the story KSMU did today with me about bicycle safety in Springfield. Technorati Tags: bicycle advocacy, bicycle politics, bicycle safety, cycling
“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 [...]
