News, Links, and Other Views
From our instagram feed.
City of San Diego
- Finally, Justice. Driver charged with felony in 'zombie walk' incident at (last year's) Comic Con.
- Hit-and-run drivers killed 23 people in San Diego County last year, the most since 2004.
- An 89 year-old man was killed in San Diego. The SDPD has chosen to blame the victim without having completed the investigation relating to the crash.
- Caltrans continues its program of increasing the infrastructure maintenance deficit in widening Genesee Avenue, while providing the bare minimum of space for bicycle riders and pedestrians.
- Navajo Planners votes to put bicycle riders on secondary streets, instead of addressing the dangers that exist on the major thoroughfares.
- Voice of San Diego writes about San Diego's DecoBike Share's problems.
- In former mayor Filner news: How One Mayor’s Downfall Killed the Design Project That Could’ve Changed Everything
County of San Diego
- U-T San Diego's Teri Figueroa, has come out strongly on the side of drivers demanding free public space to store their private vehicles ignoring public health and safety issues.
California
- Assembly Speaker Atkins has a plan to make drivers pay for the damage they cause to California's infrastructure and air quality.
- Bikes are not cars, and cars are not bikes. Someone needs to alert the authors of the California Vehicle Code.
National
- The Dutch government is trolling DC over marijuana, bike lanes, and streetcars
- What would bike-friendly auto parking reform look like? Seven ideas
- If you've been hearing the phrase "Vision Zero" lately and don't know what it means, Sightline has a handy explainer.
- Having solved all other problems, the Utah Senate has decided to ban bicycle riders from accessing drive-thrus.
- Protected Lanes Preview: Boston, Detroit, Indy, Minneapolis, Denver & More. Not on the list: San Diego.
- Boys are struggling in school because of a lack of physical activity (via)
International
- The World's First Automated Underground Bike Parking Garage.
- Slower Speed Limits Give Cities a New Attitude About Biking, Walking, Breathing.
From our instagram feed.
Meet Kyle Carscaden, our Business Coordinator
Meet Kyle, our new staff member who has recently joined us to manage our Business Program - a core part of our our third year focus. Kyle recently moved to San Diego and is eager to help in making San Diego a world-class city for bicycling. I wanted to introduce him to you. Hope you can join me in welcoming him to San Diego and BikeSD later this month at 3rd Space. See details at the bottom of this post.
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1. Kyle, what made you want to work for BikeSD, a non-profit advocacy group?
As a recent transplant to San Diego from New York City (NYC), I was surprised by the lack of cohesive cycling infrastructure and I was even more surprised that there wasn't an established pro-bike lane group. I was pleasantly surprised to find BikeSD and quickly joined to help with its expansion in improving every cyclist's infrastructure in the city.
2. What is your background and why did you think this position would be a good fit for you?
I had spent the last four and a half years in NYC in the real estate business. I became exhausted of living in such a dense city, in cramped quarters and felt the need to come out west. I thought this position would be a good fit because of my sales background and my passion for improving the cycling infrastructure in San Diego (or the lack there of).
3. What programs or projects will you be working on as the Business Coordinator?
My main focus will be on the Dero Bike Rack Program and facilitating the installation of their products in the private right-of-way along with promoting the bike friendly business program, by getting businesses recognized locally and nationally. I'll also be working to set up bicycle valet program throughout the downtown neighborhoods at the farmers market, events and festivals in downtown San Diego
4. Please expand more about this bike rack program you are working on
We recently completed signing an agreement with Dero on becoming an exclusive dealer for Dero in San Diego. This program will benefit both our work and Dero as well. The commissions from the sales go directly to BikeSD. And will continue to fund our advocacy while providing property owners and large business as well as groups like the Downtown Partnership, Little Italy Association and other similar entities to have more available parking. Helping sell bike racks can help facilitate the bike friendly business program and provide a tremendous service to the local businesses in San Diego. The retail cost to the business is the same - whether they buy from us or directly from Dero . I am the point person for all things Dero bike rack related in San Diego. If you or your current business could use a bike parking solution, don't hesitate to contact me.
5. What sort riding do you do, what kind of bike do you ride?
I have a Trek Madone road bike. I ride for exercise and stress relief and I enjoy riding out to East County, although now I do commute to BikeSD's offices. I would like to eventually mountain bike as well. Now that I've moved out to San Diego I'd like to experience all forms of cycling.
Thanks Kyle, for joining the team. Want to meet and chat with Kyle in person? Join us at the open-house meet and greet on Friday the 27th. Want to contact him to learn more about the bike rack program? Email him at kyle@bikeSD.org or via phone at 480-213-7964
Meet Kyle Carscaden and the BikeSD board and members
February 27th, 2015
7PM at 3rd Space
4610 Park Blvd
San Diego, CA 92116
Thank you to 3rdSpace for being a generous sponsor.
Thank you to Modern Times Brewery for sponsoring beverages for the evening.
News, Links, and Other Views
If only the SDPD and the city of San Diego would embrace this message.
San Diego
- Bikes & Beer is back, and the organizers have generously offered to support our work again this year. Bicycle fun in the country's craft beer capital? It's an experience you can't have anywhere else! Get your tickets today before the event gets sold out.
- Are you a property manager or a developer who loves what we do and wants to support us? Do you also happen to deal with parking headaches that grow like the Lernaean Hydra? Well then you should definitely consider expanding your bike parking options.
- San Diego Magazine has 27 reasons to love San Diego. #2 is DecoBike Share: "Finally, the bikes are coming". Meanwhile in Hillcrest, opposition grows against closing University Avenue at Washington St. University Avenue is the deadliest corridor in the city of San Diego, according to CirculateSD
- Later today, the BikeSD Mid-City meeting and the Uptown meeting will begin at 7PM. Come on out and meet your fellow BikeSD supporters and plot out a strategy to make bicycling safe on University Avenue and El Cajon Boulevard.
- Want to save $12,000 or more in San Diego? Drive less.
- Howard Blackson, local placeshaker and a true (if rare) San Diego gem, reflects on his role in making great places.
- The San Diego Yimby (Yes, in my backyard) wants to make North Park an innovation zone. Road diets figure prominently into this vision.
- In Ocean Beach, a parking lot has been converted to a park.
- If you live in Ocean Beach, there are eight (8) seats up for election on the Ocean Beach Planning Board. If you've attended a meeting between last March and January, you may be eligible to run for a seat.
- SDSU issued parking tips to its students, including a suggestion to ride a bike to class.
- We have a new switchboard for you to make offers or ask things from the BikeSD community. To have longer discussions on all things related to riding in San Diego, visit the local commuter forums.
- A new mountain biking trail is open in Black Mountain thanks to the San Diego Mountain Biking Association.
San Diego County
- One day, Palm Avenue may get bike lanes.
- A new program will make it easier for ex-offenders to use refurbished bikes to get to work and other reentry programs.
Elsewhere
- DOT head challenges mayors on bicycle, walking safety
- In New York City, the Public Transit Union wants a license to kill
- Des Moines is planning a bike-friendly development
- London proposes an "underline", a proposal to use the city's "dead and dark subway tunnels" to convert them "into a network of pedestrian and cycle paths with cultural and retail spaces" Former NYC Transportation Commissioner responds perfectly, "Too many cyclists are already six feet under. A London plan to trap them all underground won't create safer streets."
- Georgia seems poised to double-down on its dysfunctional transportation policies
- What makes a city family friendly?
- Boris Johnson commits to a protected “Cycle Superhighway” Crossing London
- Washington State Republicans want to put "Seattle’s Highway-Borer Out of Its Misery"
- Wyoming wants to make it mandatory for bicycle riders to wear orange vests.
- How Smart Language Helped End Seattle’s Paralyzing Bikelash
Bike Share Finally Comes to San Diego
After a year of delays, DecoBike Share finally launched a little over a week ago on January 30th. KPBS' Claire Trageser had an excellent write-up about the bike share program,
Bike share users can buy monthly memberships for $20 a month, which gives you unlimited access to the bikes for 30 minutes or less. If you keep one bike for longer than 30 minutes, you will be charged $5 for every 30 minutes.
You can also buy a monthly membership for $30, which lets you keep the same bike for up to an hour without extra charges.
These memberships require a three-month commitment. You can also buy a one-month membership for $50, or pay $5 for 30 minutes; $7 for an hour; or $15 for a day without a membership.
Members are given a key pod that they can hold up to the bike dock to release the bike. Non-members pay for bikes at a kiosk using a credit card.
As of February 11th, the bike share program has deployed 399 bicycles, opened up 65 stations, and riders have taken a total of 5,000 rides.
Unfortunately, one of the stations at 28th and B has been removed from service after a driver somehow managed to land their vehicle on top of one of the stations early last Saturday morning. Kevin, who writes at Pedestrian Access, wrote a bit more about this incident,
The fact that there were no cyclists around the Golden Hill station last night after bars closed is part of the reason why nobody was hurt. DecoBike is spared the PR nightmare because nobody was using this station at the time. Nor, as I’ve been saying, will anyone ever be.
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By the time the sun came up in front of Starbucks this morning, there was no evidence of Decostation 143 or the destruction from a few hours early. Cars parked in its place, and patrons sat on the patio slurping their frapachinos wondering if that whole bike-share thing was just a figment of their imaginations.
To my knowledge, the San Diego Police Department has not yet found the driver. Pretty remarkable if you think about that fact, since I assumed a driver's license and a license plate would make it much easier way to find the driver. While no bystander was hurt in the car vs. bike share station crash last weekend, I wonder what the response would have been had someone been hurt. My hope is that it wouldn't be an opportunity for victim blaming that the SDPD seems to have taken on lately. That approach is very unfortunate. The burden of responsibility ought to lie on the entity causing the most harm. A person walking doesn't bear such a burden, and neither does an inert bike share station. I hope the SDPD will re-evaluate their approach to making our streets safe and focus on educating drivers on their responsibilities for being on our public spaces, our roadways.
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Still we do have something new to celebrate in the city, and more people on bicycles is a good thing for everyone. So hope you will join me on a ride to the Hillcrest Farmers Market on a DecoBike later this month.
Check out our calendar for more details.
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Update: UT-San Diego also had a good piece on DecoBike.
Doug Porter at the San Diego Free Press has also written a great post on DecoBike and other legislation around bicycling.
Update on 2/15/2015: The station at 28th and B has been replaced as reported on the SDBikeCommuter Forums.
The Data on Hit and Runs in San Diego: Not An Epidemic, but Still Worrisome
Last summer, Mario Koran at the Voice of San Diego wrote an incredibly sobering series on the impact of hit and run crashes in the region. At around the same time, those of us that meet as part of the Livable Streets Coalition began discussing this issue by committing to implement Vision Zero in San Diego: the goal of having zero road fatalities within the next ten years.
Thanks to the hard work of Kathleen Ferrier at Circulate San Diego, the coalition to support implementing Vision Zero in the city of San Diego has grown and now it is up to our elected officials to ensure that San Diego becomes the third city in the U.S. to commit to Vision Zero.
While Koran detailed the depressing reality behind hit and run crashes in San Diego, we wanted to understand what the San Diego Police Department was doing to address the issue. Were these crashes truly an epidemic, as Koran claimed? Was anything being done to address this horrific reality?
I initiated a meeting with the SDPD to talk about this and other public safety issues as it related to bicycling and asked Lieutenant Andrew Hoffman who works in the traffic division to share some hard data.
Hoffman shared his department's data analysis and the one thing that jumped out was that last year's hit and runs were far less than the average over the past 13 years. According to the SDPD:
The average number of hit and run crashes per year over the past thirteen years was 5,029.
While last year, the number was slated to hit 3,684, a reduction of almost 27%.
Still a lot of hit and runs, but not quite an epidemic in that the numbers were going down.
Hoffman, in an email (sent last summer) continued,
On average over the past eight years we have had 20 fatal hit and run collisions. We have had eight this year, putting us on track for just under 13. That represents a 35% reduction from the eight year average. Again, a few high profile cases have given the impression there has been an increase when there has not.
He went on to write:
Pedestrian Collisions with Injury or Death:
In 2013 we had 291 collisions involving injuries to pedestrians. 67 of those involved serious injury and of those, 21 resulted in death.
So far in 2014 we have had 153 such collisions, 32 resulting in serious injury and of those 15 resulted in a death.
We are on track this year for 244 such collisions (a 16% reduction), 51 collisions involving injury (a 17% reduction), and 15 deaths (a 28% reduction).Bicycle Collisions with Injury or Death:
In 2013 we had 33 collisions involving injuries to bicyclists. 21 of those involved serious injury and of those, 4 resulted in death.
So far in 2014 we have had 18 such collisions, 10 resulting in serious injury and of those none resulted in a death.
We are on track this year for 28 such collisions (a 15% reduction), 15 collisions involving injury (a 28% reduction), and 0 deaths (a 400% reduction).
Finally, we are one of the most prolific DUI enforcement departments in the State. We have grant funded DUI checkpoints and or saturation patrols virtually every single weekend. Our performance in this area consistently yields results significantly more substantial than other agencies throughout the State and is responsible for SDPD being awarded the largest State grant in the region.
The downward trend is reflected in the state's Office of Traffic Safety database as well.
Still, one death or serious injury is one too many. What specifically could be done to address the reality that people are getting away, sometimes without consequences for their actions? Mark Vallianatos, from Los Angeles Walks had some suggestions, which I've edited to be within the San Diego context:
- Publicize the crisis of deaths from motorized vehicle crashes and set targets and strategies to address the problem.
- Design roads for safety rather than for speed. The best way to reduce speeding, unsafe driving, and resulting crashes and deaths is to design and transform streets so that drivers are constrained and influenced by the physical layout of the road to move at a safe speed. Narrower lanes and traffic calming measures cause drivers slow down more effectively than posted speed limits on a wide, straight street engineered to remove all obstacles for fast motor traffic.
- Invest in pedestrian (and bicycle) infrastructure and programs proportionate to the need.
- Lower speed limits to protect pedestrians, especially children. Pedestrians hit by a car travelling 20 m.p.h. have just a 5 percent chance of being killed. The fatality rate skyrockets to 85 percent when a car is travelling 40 m.p.h. Many cities around the world are setting speed limits near schools and in residential and other highly walked areas at 20 m.p.h./30 k.p.h.
Highlighting the hit and runs was certainly useful in making the broader public aware of the issue. Ensuring that these crashes are publicized through all public safety channels and that the parties involved in the tragedy face the consequences of their actions could certainly help to deter the truly egregious tragedies.