Today, I could have not dreamed up a better example of how frustrating it is to ride in a city that is perceived as bike-friendly yet places its cyclists in danger’s path every day.  For more than a two block stretch, between Lincoln and 10th St on Broadway, large trucks that were part of a location shoot were engulfing the bike lane on the south side of the street.  As you’ll see below, a cyclist navigating this street decides to take the sidewalk in order to avoid the madness.

I walked past this convoy of trucks, and twenty seconds after I snapped the first photo, I noticed this cyclist riding East on Broadway, which is when I snapped the second one.

I just want to point out the irony of this situation. Santa Monica Police has been known to ticket cyclists for riding on the sidewalk, sometimes as a way to harass riders.  Well, now that this example of the sheer disrespect for the most useful cycling thoroughfare in Santa Monica, the bike lane on Broadway, is right here in front of your eyes.  Maybe the city will refund some of those they’ve unfairly ticketed for riding the sidewalk?  Is it not obvious that cyclists’ safety is way at the bottom of the list?  “Eh, nobody is really using that bike lane, we can just put STUFF there”

Some of the most serious cyclist-car injuries occur when folks ride on the sidewalk.  I know this from personal experience.  But when you place a cyclist in the situation depicted above, most will opt for the sidewalk rather than merging into the traffic lane.  In the case of this film shoot, an SMPD police offer was present.  It is often required that local law enforcement is present during the entirety of a film shoot.  Therefore, the city was aware of this invasion of the bike lane, and was okay with it.

I can’t think of a better example of a double standard.  Nobody protects our rights as cyclists, but as soon as we slip up, we get put in our place.

Seriously though.  Don’t we pay the same goddamn taxes to keep this city up and running?  Will it takes a class-action lawsuit to put the city in its place?

Without institutionalized support for Santa Monica’s cyclists, all the services, facilities, bike valets and bronze awards don’t amount to much.  I strongly encourage all those that ride to always be aware of such situations and document them whenever possible - take a second to snap photos or shoot a video.  The more visual proof, the better.

• Disrespecting the Bike Lane in Santa Monica
• This Coming Tuesday: Bikes at Santa Monica City Council
• Cyclist hit (?) and injured on Main St in Santa Monica
• Photos: Venice Critical Mass & Something Else

(photo by Richie Thomassen)

• Westside BikeSIDE has MOVED!!
• Bikerowave has moved to 12255 Venice Blvd!
• Bikerowave seeks a new location
• Old Photos: Bikerowave originals, SWARM, et al

1. Genesis: Every street is a street that cyclists will ride.
2. Action: LA must commit to the implementation of key measures within 2 years.
3. All City: A Backbone Bikeway network will be the engineering focus in the immediate future.
4. Transformation: Neighborhood pilots projects to create pockets of ultra bike friendliness, including bike boulevards.
5. Strength: Any new plan should go through a full programmatic EIR.
6. Intelligence: Evaluate success by measuring progress against goals, timelines, bike counts, and collision data.
7. A Generation: Get em’ young - building a car-free army from LA’s youngest generation - beginning at the school level.
8. Justice: LAPD will under go mandatory 8 hour training in cyclists’ rights, laws concerning cyclists, and practical bike training.
9. Execution: Move Bikeways out of LADOT.
10. Democracy: The plan must be approved by cyclists, or the NCs.
11. Total: The six Es - Equality, Engineering, Education, Encouragement, Enforcement, Evaluation - give the structure of the plan.
12. Equality: The Cyclists’ Bill of Rights is the foundation for the plan.

There was so much good material that it was very difficult to narrow the list down to these 12.  Here’s 11 great principles that didn’t make the cut:

1. The whole plan must be usable, not bits
2. Education must be comprehensive, motorist focused, and specific
3. Sharrows on every street (educate about what it means), beginning with those streets with proposed bike lanes
4. City will advocate for legal reform (3 foot law, Idaho stops) and assume liability for hazards
5. Regional Divisions for Bicycle Coordinators
6. Public reports by agencies on bike Issues
7. Give NCs control over the local elements of the plan
8. Strengthen language by removing equivocation, changing proposed to designated, and potential to proposed.
9. Establish new street performance measure, doing away with LOS
10. Kill the plan, live with the old plan, or replace with our plan
11. Not that bad is not good enough

BOOM!

• LABP: The 2nd Bike Working Group, and Wednesday’s Bike Plan meeting (7/100)
• LABP: LADOT “woefully inadequate” (8/100)
• TAKE ACTION: Write the MTA Board to Request Funding for Cyclists and Pedestrians
• LA Bike Master Plan: Green LA Girl misses the point (2/100)

The MTA rapid on Wilshire is one of the most heavily used bus routes in the city of Los Angeles. After staring at the 720 Timetable + Route(PDF) dozens of times, it became pretty clear that there’s no reason why the bikeways in the city can’t be modeled after where I, a cyclist, want to go on a daily basis. Not the slow, residential route, but the quickest, major thoroughfare route. I find it funny that so much money continues to be earmarked for drawing up the bestest LA Bike Plan possible, when we could easily look at the MTA maps which are most likely modeled after where people want to go.

I’m sure MTA does population density studies, why replicate all that work?  Let’s put our LADOT thinking caps on.  One of the reasons, I assume, is to keep cyclists away from the sacred major thoroughfare pavement that God has given to Cars.  Well, I have bidness to attend to, I deserve the same or better pathway than a car, since, after all, hands down, I am the most efficient vehicle out there on the street.
I have taken this bus many times over the past 5 years.  I used to jot down timepoints in a small notebook during my cross town commute from downtown to Santa Monica. I can state with certainty that the 720 or the 920 is *rarely* faster than a healthy cyclist on a decent bike. Which is why I find the term “rapid” bus hilarious. Anyone with a shred of common sense will immediately realize the deplorable state of public transportation in this city.  The solution is very simple.  Enable cyclists to get all over town as efficiently and as safely as possible, even if it means giving them priority over other forms of motorized transport (*gasp!*).

Here’s the full 720 map on Google Maps. Imagine riding from where Sunset Drive begins, all the way until hits the PCH. Or taking Vermont from Griffith Park, all the way to San Pedro.  There’s nothing stopping you from doing that now, of course -  I am imagining these treks without the usual near-death experiences.   Wouldn’t it be nice if all those streets had bike lanes or sharrows and decent pavement quality, no threat of grates or parked cars in the rightmost lane?? Etc etc.

How do we accomplish this?  Well, the bus-only lane can be reinstated, where cars would only be allowed to drive in the rightmost lane when turning right.  And guess who else would have the privilege of riding in this lane?  Bikes!  It might not be the best solution since buses are known to damage pavement more quickly than the average car, but it’s an idea worth mentioning.  What would be better?  Bike lane plus buffer zone?  Physical boundary separating bikes from cars?  Use that comment box below if you have a better idea!

Transforming major streets in LA into bike-friendly pathways may sound crazy, borderline radical, especially if you call yourself a “driver”.  But it has to happen, otherwise LA will become an even shittier place to live in.  For the sci-fi heads, imagine a darker, grimier, more hectic version of Mega-City One.

• Disrespecting the Bike Lane in Santa Monica
• Disrespecting the bike lane in Santa Monica Pt 2
• LA Bike Master Plan: Green LA Girl misses the point (2/100)
• Recap: LA Bike Master Plan Meeting

The 1st Motion:

The first, was authored by the committee collectively, with Jay Handel (West LA NC) at the lead:

Because the LADOT has shown a bias in favor of the movement of automobiles over the movement of pedestrians and cyclists, the CD11 Transportation Advisory Committee therefore concludes that the LADOT is woefully inadequate to effectuate a new Bicycle Plan for the City of Los Angeles, and recommend the City designate a different entity to implement this important task, and to provide sufficient human and financial resources to do so.

Emphasis mine.  This motion was a revelation - people who are not cyclists get it.  They get our problems with DOT, and they get it because they have similar problems with DOT.  I realized that once I got into the committee, and so I suggested that the plan should probably not be controlled by DOT.  I must have hit a nerve, because pretty soon everyone was breathing fire.

“What is this committee and why do I care?” I hear you asking.  Council District 11 (CD 11) encompasses most of West LA.  Currently, Bill Rosendahl, Chair of the Transportation Committee, is the councilman in that district.  This committee advises him on transportation issues - so I figured, here’s a good way to get on his agenda. We’re trying everything folks.

The 2nd Motion:

My reason for being there was to discuss the details of the bike plan.  To stimulate discussion, and possibly as the basis for a motion, I brought eight preliminary talking points from the Bike Working Group.  When I brought up the talking points, we started discussing them, and pretty quick Jay Handel motioned for endorsement.  Ultimately, CD11’s Transportation Advisory Committee was the first body to make a SICK multipoint motion on the LA Bike Plan:

1. The new LA Bike Plan should extend and enhance the 2007/2002/1996 plan.  Currently it is a step backward from previous plans in both language, and bike lane mileage.
2. The deadline for public input must be extended from November 6th (42 days of input) to January 8th (in excess of 90 days.)
3. Every street is a street that cyclists will ride.  This is the language of the Long Beach Bike Master Plan, currently a great success.
4. The LA Bike Plan should go through a full programmatic EIR.  This will make its ambitions eligible for off the shelf and last minute funding, as well as open the possibility of reducing parking and travel lanes in some locations.
5. Retail should be a positive element in scoring streets for desirability of bikeways.  Cyclists want to go to similar destinations as motorists.
6. Bike routes should be eliminated as a designation for the City of Los Angeles.
7. The LA Bike Plan should have predetermined annual performance measures included within it.  These performance measures should not allow for the spontaneous designation of streets as Bike Friendly Streets without significant enhancement.
8. Neighborhood pilot projects must be included as an approach for experimenting with street treatments.

So my question is: Bill Rosendahl, where are you?  The whole community is asking for a deadline extension, and all it takes is for you to make a statement publicly on it and it will happen - for sure.  Will you do it?  We’ve heard nothing official from your office.

(I’m gonna start putting photos at the bottom of posts, often unrelated, because I want to.  Don’t like it?  Tough!)

(Photo by G.E.T.)

• The draft LA Bike Master Plan is out, and it prevents NC participation (1/100)
• LABP: MVCC requests a deadline extension, SLNC on it’s heels (6/100)
• LABMP: Bicycle Advisory Committee unanimously demands deadline extension (4/100)
• TUESDAY: Cyclists’ Bill of Rights at Mar Vista Community Council

(via AudunV on Flickr)

 Tuesday afternoon, last week.

I’m cruising home from the ear/nose/throat specialist, fighting the wind on Venice Blvd.  If you know me in real life, well you might wonder if I was getting checked for eligibility for ear reduction surgery.  No dice - Kaiser told me my radar dishes are a preexisting medical condition - I’m stuck as Dumbo.

The light at National turns green and I get up on the pedals.  Just as I plop back in the saddle and settle into a cadence, the old skool Saab in the lane over from me pulls past slowly.  He’s reading - it looks like he’s reading a xerox handout for a class.  You know, 50 pages from some book that the prof xeroxed so that people wouldn’t have to pay an arm and a leg for a rare book.  So I yell at him “no reading, just driving!”

He looks around, see’s me in the mirror, waving my index finger like a nun.  He sets his reading down, rolls down his window, and sticks his arm out the window, extending one digit, pointing to the sky.

It’s his thumb.

Best feeling all week.

• Things I see while riding/things I see while running: a dollar thrown
• Things I see while riding, things I see while running: Flying Discs
• ibikeu Wiki Update: What is a pile bike?
• ibikeu Wiki Update: The wiki is now open to editing by the public

If you can do two things for cycling this week, go to the Bike Working Group, but before that, go to the LA Bike Plan community input in West LA on Wednesday.  It’s from 5pm till 7pm on Wednesday, at the Felicia Mahood Multipurpose Center at 11338 Santa Monica Blvd (Facebook event.)

If you do three things for cycling this week, do those two, and email me at alexcthompson@gmail.com, and I’ll give you a third thing.  And tweet this post!

The Bike Working Group will take a deeper look at the plan, vote on some recommendations from the previous meeting, and begin reworking the plan into a new plan, written by cyclists, for cyclists.  We’re calling it LA’s Best Bike Plan.

At the Bike Plan meeting on Wednesday consultants for Alta Planning, which drafted the proposed plan, and officials from DOT will be accepting public input.  At the meeting in South LA on Saturday, there was an active back and forth between consultants, officials, and activists.  It was interesting to observe the positions on the plan crystallizing.

• Wednesday: Bike Masterplan meeting in West LA
• Recap: LA Bike Master Plan Meeting
• Get INVOLVED: Discuss the LABMP with your peers, Saturday, 1pm
• Los Angeles Seeks Bike Input, Sort Of.

• The valet parking lane
• The park your entire equipment truck convoy here while you shoot a movie lane
• The porta potty and construction equipement storage lane
• The parking enforcement vehicle parking lane

I have seen construction on Broadway too often, I had to stop and document the bullshit this time around.


Bike lanes on quaint residential streets with low traffic are cute.  But some folks like to get places as efficiently as possible, and this is where major streets like Wilshire come into play. Lately, I have been noticing more bike commuters taking Wilshire from Santa Monica to Westwood.  If we were to delete car parking in Wilshire’s rightmost lane, there would be plenty of space for a nice wide bike lane plus buffer zone. Low and behold, Wilshire becomes more bikeable for everyone, not just “experts” or those confident enough to ride alongside cranky drivers trying to get to the 405 connector. All of a sudden, you can get from the Ocean Ave/Wilshire >> Westwood/Wilshire in 15-20 minutes, faster than any gas-powered vehicle ever could.

Just a thought.

• Disrespecting the bike lane in Santa Monica Pt 2
• The 720 Bike Map
• February’s SMCM A Big Hit
• Cyclist hit (?) and injured on Main St in Santa Monica

UPDATE: I found my stolen bike posted on Craigslist. I reported it to the LAPD. They set up a sting. A week later, I’m picking up my bike at the LAPD Property Dept. Amazing. The seller was arrested. He was armed with a 357. If you ever see your bike on Craigslist, don’t even think of getting it yourself.  (emphasis mine.)

Whoa.  I think this is what I was trying to say.  Don’t mix it up with bike thieves - they might be carrying.  Anyway, props to MS for retrieving his bike, and double props for sharing his story.

Image by Jonnyboy:

• Stupid bike thefts lead to stupid fantasies
• My point exactly
• Stolen bikes recovered in Venice house raid
• BikeCar Stolen!

Last Tuesday, Albert Olson, MVCC Chairman, put a motion on new business, since the unreasonable deadline wouldn’t give MVCC time to push a motion through committees, THE example of how the deadline prevents NC participation in the process.  The council hit the item last after a long meeting including a visit from Wendy Greuel, City Controller, and passed it unanimously:

Whereas, neighborhood councils and grassroots organization usually require 2-3 months to deliberate and create motions and letters of input on City policies,

and, whereas, the only provides 42 days for consideration and input to the draft LA Bike Master Plan, thereby severely limiting neighborhood council participation,

The Mar Vista Community Council therefore requests that the deadline for input be extended to January 4th to provide at least 90 days to critique and provide input to the Draft LA Bike Master Plan.

The motion was authored by myself and Ken Alpern (MVCC board.)  One thing I found heartening - cyclists are not alone in our frustration with LADOT and city gov’t.  The situation we’re in - an overdue plan springing from the darkness on us, without sufficient time to digest and comment - is one that the Neighborhood Councils are all too familiar with.  It’s almost a routine within Planning and DOT to under notify, and exclude the public.

Silver Lake Neighborhood Council’s Transportation Committee just passed the same motion, so expect to see a similar request coming out of their board soon.  If you’d like to get your neighborhood council on board, email me - alexcthompson@gmail.com.

• LABMP: Bicycle Advisory Committee unanimously demands deadline extension (4/100)
• The draft LA Bike Master Plan is out, and it prevents NC participation (1/100)
• LABP: LADOT “woefully inadequate” (8/100)
• TUESDAY: Cyclists’ Bill of Rights at Mar Vista Community Council