Cash For Clunkers: Staggering Insanity

A note from the editor of the Bike Commute Blog:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090731/ap_on_go_co/us_cash_for_clunkers

The absolute insanity of this is just staggering. Transit is starving, Amtrak is wheezing, bicyclists and pedestrians lack adequate facilities, yet the government gladly tosses billions and billions to motorists. It's like a giant Oprah show: "Everyone gets a new car!"

Worst of all, it appears the environmental advocacy community completely laid down for this. I even got a message from the Sierra Club: "Put Cash for Clunkers to Good Use": http://action.sierraclub.org/site/PageNavigator/LTE_CashForClunkers

Where's the environmental benefit? The 1,000 gallons or so of energy "embedded" in the manufacture of the existing clunker will be crushed, so the new more fuel efficient consumer can save ~50 gallons a year? Huh?Where was the concession? Say a $1 a gallon tax on gas in exchange for this freebie to motorists?

And don't get me started on the social justice inequity of all this (low-income transit riders facing cuts and fare hikes, while middle-class suburbanites buy new Ford Escape Hybrid SUVs.)

NJ Leads Nation in Pedestrian Fatality Share

Clearly, more traffic calming, transit, bike access and livable street designs are needed: http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/07/28/new-jersey-needs-to-face-its-pedestrian-fatality-problem/

Cannondale Reflects on the Pleasure of Bike Riding

Cannondale is based in Bethel, Connecticut. An interesting sales pitch from their site:

Helping The Planet Help Itself. Ride a bike. Ride a good one. Pick your route to work, to school,or to the grocery store. Skim quietly past the bored multitudes stuck inside tin coffins on the expressway during rush hour. Ride along the street, waving to pedestrians and grinning wildly with the pleasure of riding a bicycle. Remember that Einstein thought of the theory of relativity while riding his bicycle. Get on a bike instead of sitting on a sofa at home, stuffing your face with fried foods and watching soul-killing shows about amateurs singing badly. Ride your bicycle for the good of the planet, using it for transportation and recreation. Ride your way to freedom from high oil prices. Ride for self-reliance. Please... ride your bike and help us support others who do the same. http://www.cannondale.com/company/advocacy.html

Does the NYPD Commissioner Know the Speed Limit?

An article from Streetsblog New York: http://www.streetsblog.org/2009/07/20/does-ray-kelly-know-the-speed-limit-now/

If Ray Kelly understands the risks of urban speeding better today than he did 16 years ago, he sure didn't let it show last week. Kelly denied all the evidence that something is broken with traffic enforcement in New York City. As TA's report documented, only one out of every 12,698 speeding violations gets caught. As injury statistics bear out, New York pedestrians are 63 percent more likely to be injured by traffic than their counterparts in London (where some residential zones have 20 mph speed limits). As anyone familiar with New York City sidewalks can attest, reckless driving strangles quality of life by making people feel unsafe walking, biking, or venturing outside.

Interesting stats on speeds from the article:

• 5 percent of people die when struck by a motorist going 20 mph
  
• 45 percent of people die when struck by a motorist going 30 mph
  
• 85 percent of people die when struck by a motorist going 40 mph
  
• When cars exceed 20 mph, the comfort level of cyclists and pedestrians drops significantly
  
• Eye contact between drivers, and between drivers and pedestrians, drops rapidly at speeds greater than 20 mph
  
• Driving 20 mph requires a stopping distance of 150 feet, driving 30 mph requires a stopping distance of 200 feet, driving 35 mph requires a stopping distance of 250 feet.

Smog Playing Havoc With Mothers

A comparison of medical records from 81,186 single child births to air pollution levels in the area revealed that high pollution exposure raised the risk of a severely premature birth by 128 percent.

Moms-to-be were also between 33 and 42 percent more likely to develop preeclampsia, an affliction characterized by high blood pressure that often forces doctors to induce premature birth in order to save mothers' lives.

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/06/30/traffic-premature-birth.html

Newark Bicycle "Road-eo," July 11th, Gives Safety Tips

On July 11, the city of Newark in conjunction with the New Jersey trauma center offered a bike rodeo to teach kids bike safety. The first 100 children that pre-registered received a free bike and helmet!

The rodeo was geared towards youth ages 7-12 and focussed on bicycle safety, including how to properly use a helmet and demonstrations on the importance of wearing bike helmets and other safety gear when riding. Other activities included a car seat safety check, free glucose and blood pressure screenings, visits from emergency medical service providers, educational booths, fun music, free refreshments and more!

The goals of the rodeo were to promote bike safety to youth as well as promote healthy lifestyle practices for all ages. The rodeo was considered a success on all levels and is in the works again for 2010. By offering events like these, the city of Newark is working towards a healthy and safe future for children and adults using bicycles.

According to a story at http://www.nj.com/newark/index.ssf/2009/06/newark_offers_bike_rodeo_to_te.html, other sponsors included the Brain Injury Association of New Jersey, which provided the free helmets; and Safe Kids of New Jersey and Recycle a Bike, which provided the bicycles.

Empowering the Newark Community with Traffic Calming

From TSTC, a story about community empowerment through traffic calming: http://blog.tstc.org/2008/08/06/in-newark-community-empowerment-via-traffic-calming/

Many students pointed out that the abundance of parking lots and desolation along the route would make them feel unsafe walking the street at night. Others noted that the streets they lived on were too wide to walk across safety, or that they feared riding their bikes due to lack of bike lanes. Others wondered about a lack of police presence that made enforcement of traffic rules unlikely.

Considering that the majority of city residents do not drive to work, hopefully the city will continue to listen to its residents and provide infrastructure for walkers, cyclists and transit users.

An update on phase 2 of the project: http://blog.tstc.org/2009/07/28/traffic-calming-and-community-empowerment-year-2-newark%e2%80%99s-east-coast-greenway/