Was bound to happen?
- Thread starter The fingers
- Start date
The fingers
10 TW
https://pvcycling.wordpress.com/2017/10/05/guns-n-bikes/
Guns ‘n bikes
October 5, 2017 § 24 Comments
There’s a reason that Stephen Paddock massacred 58 people in Las Vegas. There’s also a reason that people driving cars have killed 49 people so far this year in Southern California. The reasons are the same.
In the first instance, Americans have decided that mass shootings are a reasonable and acceptable cost of being able to easily and legally obtain weapons of virtually any kind. In the second, Californians have decided that individual killings of cyclists are a reasonable and acceptable cost for being able to drive as fast as possible to get where they want to go.
The shootings appear gruesome but they are not. Bullets do not make nearly the mess of a car smashing into a cyclist. But shootings are better for news media because they correspond to TV, movie, and video images that we have internalized as “dramatic.” Shootings are also better entertainment because the good guys always get the bad guy with even more shooting, even when the bad guy shoots himself.
Shootings are also more entertaining because victims get prayed over, flags get lowered, and the human story behind each victim gets told in horrifying detail. Memorials spring up and the event is commemorated each year by survivors.
Not so with people who kill bicycle riders. As the rider’s family finds, there is rarely any criminal proceeding of any kind. The killer almost always walks free and goes back to his or her job. “Sorry I’m late for work. I killed a bicycle rider and had to talk to the cops.”
Dead bicycle riders don’t get their stories told much beyond their club or their family or the local paper. President Trump certainly doesn’t visit their next of kin to offer condolences and paper towels.
Despite the difference in treatment, the cause is the same. Both are acceptable and reasonable costs of the activity that society has chosen to permit. When I read about people who have been killed using guns, I have no expectation that guns will somehow be limited in any meaningful way. Americans like guns. Americans like killing people. Americans like the entertainment of mass shootings. In order to have those things, you have to allow mass murder. Freedom isn’t free, and in this case, neither is slavery. In the same way that Americans believe health care is a privilege and guns are a right, Americans believe that cars are a right and bicycling on roads is a privilege.
You cannot discuss or negotiate this latter point with drivers any more than you can negotiate the unlimited right to weaponry with those who choose to misunderstand the 2nd Amendment. Deaths and horrific injuries are not mishaps, tragedies, accidents, or collateral damage, they are a necessary product of a system that everyone embraces in more-or-less democratically enacted laws.
If it is your right to drive as fast as possible to get to a destination, then your exposure to civil and criminal penalties for killing people should be minimal. If it is your right to own any weapon you choose, then mass killings will happen. If you think that there should be fewer mass murders and it disturbs you greatly, or you think that bicycle riders shouldn’t be killed with impunity, then perhaps this is the wrong society for you.
As Senator Thune wisely said, and I believe it applies to bikes as well as Las Vegas concert goers, the only real protection in America today is simple, if hard to achieve: “Get small.”
END
Guns ‘n bikes
October 5, 2017 § 24 Comments
There’s a reason that Stephen Paddock massacred 58 people in Las Vegas. There’s also a reason that people driving cars have killed 49 people so far this year in Southern California. The reasons are the same.
In the first instance, Americans have decided that mass shootings are a reasonable and acceptable cost of being able to easily and legally obtain weapons of virtually any kind. In the second, Californians have decided that individual killings of cyclists are a reasonable and acceptable cost for being able to drive as fast as possible to get where they want to go.
The shootings appear gruesome but they are not. Bullets do not make nearly the mess of a car smashing into a cyclist. But shootings are better for news media because they correspond to TV, movie, and video images that we have internalized as “dramatic.” Shootings are also better entertainment because the good guys always get the bad guy with even more shooting, even when the bad guy shoots himself.
Shootings are also more entertaining because victims get prayed over, flags get lowered, and the human story behind each victim gets told in horrifying detail. Memorials spring up and the event is commemorated each year by survivors.
Not so with people who kill bicycle riders. As the rider’s family finds, there is rarely any criminal proceeding of any kind. The killer almost always walks free and goes back to his or her job. “Sorry I’m late for work. I killed a bicycle rider and had to talk to the cops.”
Dead bicycle riders don’t get their stories told much beyond their club or their family or the local paper. President Trump certainly doesn’t visit their next of kin to offer condolences and paper towels.
Despite the difference in treatment, the cause is the same. Both are acceptable and reasonable costs of the activity that society has chosen to permit. When I read about people who have been killed using guns, I have no expectation that guns will somehow be limited in any meaningful way. Americans like guns. Americans like killing people. Americans like the entertainment of mass shootings. In order to have those things, you have to allow mass murder. Freedom isn’t free, and in this case, neither is slavery. In the same way that Americans believe health care is a privilege and guns are a right, Americans believe that cars are a right and bicycling on roads is a privilege.
You cannot discuss or negotiate this latter point with drivers any more than you can negotiate the unlimited right to weaponry with those who choose to misunderstand the 2nd Amendment. Deaths and horrific injuries are not mishaps, tragedies, accidents, or collateral damage, they are a necessary product of a system that everyone embraces in more-or-less democratically enacted laws.
If it is your right to drive as fast as possible to get to a destination, then your exposure to civil and criminal penalties for killing people should be minimal. If it is your right to own any weapon you choose, then mass killings will happen. If you think that there should be fewer mass murders and it disturbs you greatly, or you think that bicycle riders shouldn’t be killed with impunity, then perhaps this is the wrong society for you.
As Senator Thune wisely said, and I believe it applies to bikes as well as Las Vegas concert goers, the only real protection in America today is simple, if hard to achieve: “Get small.”
END
The fingers
10 TW
https://asia.nikkei.com/Features/Tea-Leaves/What-the-bicycle-index-says-about-a-country
What the 'bicycle index' says about a country
When cycling goes from necessity to choice, it represents a major sociological shift
DOMINIC FAULDER
Until recent decades, bicycles were the only transportation option for many in Vietnam. (Photo by Dominic Faulder)
You are what you drive -- the car advertisement claims. That is not true in Thailand, where you are what you ride. Bicycles have become the nation's most unexpected status symbols.
Thais have taken to recreational pedaling like nobody else. Each weekend, hundreds of thousands from all walks of life don skintight Lycra, wraparound shades and aerodynamic helmets to cycle great distances around airports and reservoirs, up and down hills, and along jungle trails. When the military government wants a guaranteed PR win, it organizes a mass bike ride. Everybody from the royal family down joins in -- even the cabinet.
Thailand's cycling craze represents an interesting sociological shift. In the 1980s, those who rode bicycles did so because they had no choice. Poor vendors have always pedaled their wares around, and provincial cities like Chiang Mai often had three-wheeled pedicabs. But even a generation ago, renting a motorized samlor, or tuk-tuk, was much preferred to riding a bike. Anyone who could afford a motorbike bought one. The number of people killed using the polluting machines had doctors talking of "the Japanese disease." The world over, a motorbike is always the first rung on the economic ladder. A 50cc Honda Cub delivered up to 200 miles per gallon, and across Asia entire families climbed aboard.
In Burma, as Myanmar was then known, it was a very different story. Designated a least-developed nation by the United Nations, it was at least rich in bicycles -- mostly Chinese with a few colonial relics. There were also numerous pedicabs for hire with two-passenger sidecars, one facing forward, one backward. In Mandalay, the sleepy northern capital, there were virtually no cars. A few stately old British 500cc motorcycles thumped up and down the dusty roads. Taxis were mostly pony traps that made one either dozy or seasick.
Bicycles also ruled in Vietnam. Even in the early 1990s, Hanoi's rush hours were dominated by commuters wearing green sola topees on bicycles. Rivers of humanity paused at junctions with traffic cop conductors, then moved off, emitting the treacly sound of well-oiled chains and rubber tires that is inaudible in most cities.
Like the Burmese and poorer Thais, threadbare Vietnamese used bicycles because they had to. The status-conscious aspired to own a Peugeot model in the French era, and bicycles acquired heroic stature. General Vo Nguyen Giap's forces used 60,000 bicycles in the defeat of the French at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. The Viet Cong turned bicycles into "steel mules" to transport prodigious quantities of supplies and ammunition along the Ho Chi Minh Trail during the Vietnam War. Similarly, in early 1942, Japanese bicycle infantry requisitioned machines from Malays to advance down the peninsula at formidable speed and take Singapore.
There remains an obvious correlation between climate and using a bike to commute. Most of Europe can cycle to work comfortably. Most of Southeast Asia cannot. However environmentally friendly, cycling in the tropics is a steamy business. Bangkok has the world's highest annual mean temperature for a city, at 28 C.
But Thais have made an art out of never getting hot and bothered. They cycle for fun, to get fit, and to look hot -- not to get hot. Virtually nobody takes their beloved bike to work -- unless they get up with the monks and set out at 4 a.m. Only tourists actually pay for organized cycle tours of the city. It takes a certain kind of madness to ride a bicycle in the polluted heat on roads with gutters, drains and dividers that can be lethal. A popular local restaurateur who hoped to get fit was run over by a public bus on his first day out.
Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, intervened last year when unregulated pedicab drivers in the West End were caught fleecing tourists of hundreds of pounds for short rides. An acceptable charge was deemed to be one pound sterling per minute -- more than the basic taxi fare in Bangkok.
What the 'bicycle index' says about a country
When cycling goes from necessity to choice, it represents a major sociological shift
DOMINIC FAULDER
Until recent decades, bicycles were the only transportation option for many in Vietnam. (Photo by Dominic Faulder)
You are what you drive -- the car advertisement claims. That is not true in Thailand, where you are what you ride. Bicycles have become the nation's most unexpected status symbols.
Thais have taken to recreational pedaling like nobody else. Each weekend, hundreds of thousands from all walks of life don skintight Lycra, wraparound shades and aerodynamic helmets to cycle great distances around airports and reservoirs, up and down hills, and along jungle trails. When the military government wants a guaranteed PR win, it organizes a mass bike ride. Everybody from the royal family down joins in -- even the cabinet.
Thailand's cycling craze represents an interesting sociological shift. In the 1980s, those who rode bicycles did so because they had no choice. Poor vendors have always pedaled their wares around, and provincial cities like Chiang Mai often had three-wheeled pedicabs. But even a generation ago, renting a motorized samlor, or tuk-tuk, was much preferred to riding a bike. Anyone who could afford a motorbike bought one. The number of people killed using the polluting machines had doctors talking of "the Japanese disease." The world over, a motorbike is always the first rung on the economic ladder. A 50cc Honda Cub delivered up to 200 miles per gallon, and across Asia entire families climbed aboard.
In Burma, as Myanmar was then known, it was a very different story. Designated a least-developed nation by the United Nations, it was at least rich in bicycles -- mostly Chinese with a few colonial relics. There were also numerous pedicabs for hire with two-passenger sidecars, one facing forward, one backward. In Mandalay, the sleepy northern capital, there were virtually no cars. A few stately old British 500cc motorcycles thumped up and down the dusty roads. Taxis were mostly pony traps that made one either dozy or seasick.
Bicycles also ruled in Vietnam. Even in the early 1990s, Hanoi's rush hours were dominated by commuters wearing green sola topees on bicycles. Rivers of humanity paused at junctions with traffic cop conductors, then moved off, emitting the treacly sound of well-oiled chains and rubber tires that is inaudible in most cities.
Like the Burmese and poorer Thais, threadbare Vietnamese used bicycles because they had to. The status-conscious aspired to own a Peugeot model in the French era, and bicycles acquired heroic stature. General Vo Nguyen Giap's forces used 60,000 bicycles in the defeat of the French at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. The Viet Cong turned bicycles into "steel mules" to transport prodigious quantities of supplies and ammunition along the Ho Chi Minh Trail during the Vietnam War. Similarly, in early 1942, Japanese bicycle infantry requisitioned machines from Malays to advance down the peninsula at formidable speed and take Singapore.
There remains an obvious correlation between climate and using a bike to commute. Most of Europe can cycle to work comfortably. Most of Southeast Asia cannot. However environmentally friendly, cycling in the tropics is a steamy business. Bangkok has the world's highest annual mean temperature for a city, at 28 C.
But Thais have made an art out of never getting hot and bothered. They cycle for fun, to get fit, and to look hot -- not to get hot. Virtually nobody takes their beloved bike to work -- unless they get up with the monks and set out at 4 a.m. Only tourists actually pay for organized cycle tours of the city. It takes a certain kind of madness to ride a bicycle in the polluted heat on roads with gutters, drains and dividers that can be lethal. A popular local restaurateur who hoped to get fit was run over by a public bus on his first day out.
Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, intervened last year when unregulated pedicab drivers in the West End were caught fleecing tourists of hundreds of pounds for short rides. An acceptable charge was deemed to be one pound sterling per minute -- more than the basic taxi fare in Bangkok.
The fingers
10 TW
http://fox40.com/2017/10/12/woman-flees-fire-on-bike-with-70-pound-dog-in-her-duffel-bag/
SANTA ROSA -- At 3688 Mocha Lane in Santa Rosa lies the bare bones of a home burned by wildfire.
"You don't even see a resemblance of what it used to be," said wildfire survivor Natasha Wallace.
This is just one of many addresses in the Coffey Park neighborhood where a deadly, wind-driven, firestorm chased people out of bed in the middle of the night Monday.
"Everything was gray, everything was destroyed and it went for miles," Wallace recounts.
Wallace, a Santa Rosa Junior College soccer player, was studying across town until nearly 2 a.m. Monday.
On her way home, she saw the fire from the freeway meaning she had the perspective to know everyone needed to evacuate immediately.
"I would never part ways with my dog. ever," Wallace said. "That's my ride or die. Oh my God, literally."
So she shoved Bentley, her 4-year-old pit bull, into her Honda and drove down the road -- within minutes, she was stuck between other cars.
"It was coming faster than I could leave in traffic, so I went back and got my bike," Wallace remembers.
She also grabbed a duffel bag which she used as a makeshift sidecar for her 70-pound best friend.
"So I grabbed my dog and I told him, 'Hey man, this is serious, you need to just sit in the bag.' And he, he hopped right in," Wallace said.
She says after she made it down the road a few miles ahead of the fire, a man in a truck pulled over and took her and Bentley the rest of the way out.
"I just want to say thank you to him. Paul Johnson," Wallace said.
Thursday night, Wallace was reflecting on how lucky she was, not only to have survived the fire, but to have people around to help.
SANTA ROSA -- At 3688 Mocha Lane in Santa Rosa lies the bare bones of a home burned by wildfire.
"You don't even see a resemblance of what it used to be," said wildfire survivor Natasha Wallace.
This is just one of many addresses in the Coffey Park neighborhood where a deadly, wind-driven, firestorm chased people out of bed in the middle of the night Monday.
"Everything was gray, everything was destroyed and it went for miles," Wallace recounts.
Wallace, a Santa Rosa Junior College soccer player, was studying across town until nearly 2 a.m. Monday.
On her way home, she saw the fire from the freeway meaning she had the perspective to know everyone needed to evacuate immediately.
"I would never part ways with my dog. ever," Wallace said. "That's my ride or die. Oh my God, literally."
So she shoved Bentley, her 4-year-old pit bull, into her Honda and drove down the road -- within minutes, she was stuck between other cars.
"It was coming faster than I could leave in traffic, so I went back and got my bike," Wallace remembers.
She also grabbed a duffel bag which she used as a makeshift sidecar for her 70-pound best friend.
"So I grabbed my dog and I told him, 'Hey man, this is serious, you need to just sit in the bag.' And he, he hopped right in," Wallace said.
She says after she made it down the road a few miles ahead of the fire, a man in a truck pulled over and took her and Bentley the rest of the way out.
"I just want to say thank you to him. Paul Johnson," Wallace said.
Thursday night, Wallace was reflecting on how lucky she was, not only to have survived the fire, but to have people around to help.
Dauntless
100 TW
The fingers
10 TW
http://www.9news.com.au/national/2017/10/18/06/38/police-hunting-dangerous-act-driver-caught-on-dashcam-missing-cyclist-by-a-hair 
NewsNational
Police hunting dangerous ACT driver caught on dashcam missing cyclist by a hair
7:23am Oct 18, 2017
9RAW: Car mounts footpath and narrowly misses cyclist
A cyclist in the ACT must be thanking his lucky stars after he narrowly avoided serious injury when a stolen car mounted a footpath and avoided swiping him by inches.
The heart stopping moment was caught on another motorist’s dashcam, and ACT Police are using the video to try and track down the dangerous driver.
The incident happened around 1.20pm on Northbourne Avenue in Canberra, on September 24.
The black Land Rover Freelander 2 involved in the incident was seen driving at high speed down the road before failing to stop for police and then mounting the curb.
The driver then clipped two other vehicles before speeding off.
It’s understood the Land Rover Freelander 2 was stolen from a home in Gungahlin on September 17.
Police are asking anyone who witness the incident or who may have dashcam footage of the vehicle to please contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
NewsNational
Police hunting dangerous ACT driver caught on dashcam missing cyclist by a hair
7:23am Oct 18, 2017
9RAW: Car mounts footpath and narrowly misses cyclist
A cyclist in the ACT must be thanking his lucky stars after he narrowly avoided serious injury when a stolen car mounted a footpath and avoided swiping him by inches.
The heart stopping moment was caught on another motorist’s dashcam, and ACT Police are using the video to try and track down the dangerous driver.
The incident happened around 1.20pm on Northbourne Avenue in Canberra, on September 24.
The black Land Rover Freelander 2 involved in the incident was seen driving at high speed down the road before failing to stop for police and then mounting the curb.
The driver then clipped two other vehicles before speeding off.
It’s understood the Land Rover Freelander 2 was stolen from a home in Gungahlin on September 17.
Police are asking anyone who witness the incident or who may have dashcam footage of the vehicle to please contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Dauntless
100 TW
'Slut' and 'Shame' seem to be synonymous with the Kardasians
http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/19/entertain ... index.html
I mean, how could they possibly allow any lawsuit regarding such a subject to go for or against them in court?
http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/19/entertain ... index.html
I mean, how could they possibly allow any lawsuit regarding such a subject to go for or against them in court?
The fingers
10 TW
http://www.dailynews.com/2017/10/19/arson-suspected-in-3-north-hollywood-tree-fires/
https://mynewsla.com/crime/2017/10/19/multiple-tree-fires-in-noho-could-be-the-evil-work-of-a-bicycle-arsonist/
https://mynewsla.com/crime/2017/10/19/multiple-tree-fires-in-noho-could-be-the-evil-work-of-a-bicycle-arsonist/
The fingers
10 TW
https://missionlocal.org/2017/10/one-of-last-large-encampments-in-sfs-mission-being-removed/
One of last large encampments in SF’s Mission being removed
By Julian MarkPosted October 19, 2017 6:00 am
An homeless encampment resolution is underway at the snarl of freeway ramps and bike paths located at Cesar Chavez Street and Potrero Avenue. The so-called Hairball encampment is one of the last large encampments in the Mission District.
In the next few weeks, homeless people won’t be allowed to camp under the freeway overpasses that have been used by homeless residents for years — perhaps decades.
Once cleared, cyclists and pedestrians will be able to ride through the tangle that goes under the freeway without obstructed pathways.
“The intention of our encampment resolution work is to resolve an encampment and work with the neighbors and the community to make sure … folks don’t move back in,” said Emily Cohen, a policy manager at the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing.
Cohen said her department had started finding Navigation Center placements for encampment residents two weeks ago.
So far 19 encampments have been resolved citywide and 17 have remained clear. Only a few large encampments remain in the Mission including one on 14th and Shotwell streets and on Division near Best Buy.
“That means having conversations with people who come back to the space and saying, ‘you’re not able to camp here any more — this is no longer a camping zone,’” Cohen said.
After an encampment is “resolved,” it’s up to the police to keep it clear. “If you go back to an area that’s resolved – it is a law enforcement issue,” said Kelley Cutler of the Homeless Coalition. But Cutler added a resolution’s success hinges on where homeless individual go after leaving the Navigation Center. “It’s really important to look at who is discharged back to street,” she said.
In a recent interview, District 9 Supervisor Hillary Ronen said the Hairball “could not be more urgent for me.”
“I’m urgently concerned about the safety of people camping in the Hairball and worried that someone’s going to get killed,” she said.
On average, Cohen said, a encampment resolution takes three weeks to complete, and becomes officially “resolved” when the police and the Department of Public Works move residents into the Navigation Center on so-called “resolution day” and restrict them from coming back.
The outreach team had placed 17 people in a Navigation Center and four people were in the process of getting beds, Cohen said at an Oct. 11 meeting hosted by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. A assessment taken by the department of the area in August showed some 40 people living in the encampment. Cohen said an initial assessment taken not long before counted around 60 residents.
Public Works and the Caltrans are blocking off Hairball’s most dangerous areas to make sure they’re not re-encamped, Ronen said.
Throughout the Mission District, the resolution strategy seems to be taking effect. At a recent Board of Supervisors meeting, Ronen declared that the number of homeless tents in the Mission is down from 200 to 50, a count her office did itself. Later, she said they noticed a reduction after the Navigation Center on 1515 South Van Ness opened.
“We’re working to get more navigation center space so there is enough space for everyone who’s living in the Hairball,” she said.
But over at the Hairball on the Monday, it became clear how difficult it is to get complete buy-in from residents who have been living on the streets for years.
Some people living in the encampment said they didn’t qualify for a spot at the Navigation Center or didn’t want to go.
“I feel it’s a good thing to do,” said Corinthians Redmond, who received an offer from Homeless Outreach Team to move into the Navigation Center. “But I would rather take care of myself on the streets. I’d rather be in a place where I’m comfortable.”
Redmond said he’s reluctant to move into the center because many of his possessions are on the street, and he said he couldn’t move all of them into the center. He also said the center’s atmosphere isn’t right for him.
“I can’t be in a closed area with too many people,” he said.
Romeo Estrello said he missed the outreach team, but he probably wouldn’t take an offer anyway.
“A huge percentage of us don’t want to be in a shelter,” Estrello said. “It’s almost like prison. It’s rowdy, it’s loud, and the Navigation Center is the same.”
Although Estrello has been in and out of numerous city shelters, he said he’s never been to the Navigation Center. Yet he imagines the “dorm setting” would yield many similar anxieties about noise, overcrowding, and theft.
“Don’t really feel at home because of the dorm setting with people you don’t really know,” he said.
Others, like a woman who goes by Norma M., took a placement at the 1515 South Van Ness Navigation Center a couple weeks ago. But on a recent Monday, she was out at the Hairball encampment to be with her 25-year-old daughter, Vetta, who was waiting for a placement in the center. Her other daughter, who is 18 years old, had already received a placement, she said.
“I’m waiting for the HOT team to come and get her,” Norma said. “I can’t be indoors and have her out here.”
Norma was feeling positive about finding housing during her stay at the center. Her brother, she said, found housing at an SRO after 120 days at the center.
“I’m optimistic to find something — a hole in the wall or an actual place,” she said, noting that last winter was especially harsh.
“I’m tired of that,” she said.
But, like Estrello and Redmond, she was not keen on shelter life. “The Navigation Center isn’t what the media is saying it is,” she said. “You need to light a match under their ass — the food is microwaved and the water is cold.”
Some, like a 33-year-old man who went by Ruben, said they didn’t qualify because they hadn’t been homeless long enough. Ruben said the outreach team told him he didn’t qualify after he told them he had been homeless for eight months.
“That made me lose hope in programs in general,” he said, spray painting a bicycle. “People who are homeless for 10 to 12 years want to be on the streets.”
“I’m gonna get on my feet by myself,” he added. “The more I stick around here, the more frocked up it’s gonna be.”
Priority is given to people who have been homeless for 13 years, said Cutler of the Homeless Coalition. But “if it’s a resolution, they should be offering everyone in that encampment something,” Cutler said.
A resolution might be in its early stages if only some are being offered services, “because they only start with folks who are high need,” she added.
Yet some felt neglected by the outreach team because they weren’t staked out in the encampment.
“They walk right past me and don’t ask,” said a man who called himself Dallas, who was sitting on a bench at James Rolph Jr. Playground, which sits adjacent to the Hairball. He said he’s been on the streets “too long.”
“At least they can ask me,” he said. “They just look at me.”
One of last large encampments in SF’s Mission being removed
By Julian MarkPosted October 19, 2017 6:00 am
An homeless encampment resolution is underway at the snarl of freeway ramps and bike paths located at Cesar Chavez Street and Potrero Avenue. The so-called Hairball encampment is one of the last large encampments in the Mission District.
In the next few weeks, homeless people won’t be allowed to camp under the freeway overpasses that have been used by homeless residents for years — perhaps decades.
Once cleared, cyclists and pedestrians will be able to ride through the tangle that goes under the freeway without obstructed pathways.
“The intention of our encampment resolution work is to resolve an encampment and work with the neighbors and the community to make sure … folks don’t move back in,” said Emily Cohen, a policy manager at the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing.
Cohen said her department had started finding Navigation Center placements for encampment residents two weeks ago.
So far 19 encampments have been resolved citywide and 17 have remained clear. Only a few large encampments remain in the Mission including one on 14th and Shotwell streets and on Division near Best Buy.
“That means having conversations with people who come back to the space and saying, ‘you’re not able to camp here any more — this is no longer a camping zone,’” Cohen said.
After an encampment is “resolved,” it’s up to the police to keep it clear. “If you go back to an area that’s resolved – it is a law enforcement issue,” said Kelley Cutler of the Homeless Coalition. But Cutler added a resolution’s success hinges on where homeless individual go after leaving the Navigation Center. “It’s really important to look at who is discharged back to street,” she said.
In a recent interview, District 9 Supervisor Hillary Ronen said the Hairball “could not be more urgent for me.”
“I’m urgently concerned about the safety of people camping in the Hairball and worried that someone’s going to get killed,” she said.
On average, Cohen said, a encampment resolution takes three weeks to complete, and becomes officially “resolved” when the police and the Department of Public Works move residents into the Navigation Center on so-called “resolution day” and restrict them from coming back.
The outreach team had placed 17 people in a Navigation Center and four people were in the process of getting beds, Cohen said at an Oct. 11 meeting hosted by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. A assessment taken by the department of the area in August showed some 40 people living in the encampment. Cohen said an initial assessment taken not long before counted around 60 residents.
Public Works and the Caltrans are blocking off Hairball’s most dangerous areas to make sure they’re not re-encamped, Ronen said.
Throughout the Mission District, the resolution strategy seems to be taking effect. At a recent Board of Supervisors meeting, Ronen declared that the number of homeless tents in the Mission is down from 200 to 50, a count her office did itself. Later, she said they noticed a reduction after the Navigation Center on 1515 South Van Ness opened.
“We’re working to get more navigation center space so there is enough space for everyone who’s living in the Hairball,” she said.
But over at the Hairball on the Monday, it became clear how difficult it is to get complete buy-in from residents who have been living on the streets for years.
Some people living in the encampment said they didn’t qualify for a spot at the Navigation Center or didn’t want to go.
“I feel it’s a good thing to do,” said Corinthians Redmond, who received an offer from Homeless Outreach Team to move into the Navigation Center. “But I would rather take care of myself on the streets. I’d rather be in a place where I’m comfortable.”
Redmond said he’s reluctant to move into the center because many of his possessions are on the street, and he said he couldn’t move all of them into the center. He also said the center’s atmosphere isn’t right for him.
“I can’t be in a closed area with too many people,” he said.
Romeo Estrello said he missed the outreach team, but he probably wouldn’t take an offer anyway.
“A huge percentage of us don’t want to be in a shelter,” Estrello said. “It’s almost like prison. It’s rowdy, it’s loud, and the Navigation Center is the same.”
Although Estrello has been in and out of numerous city shelters, he said he’s never been to the Navigation Center. Yet he imagines the “dorm setting” would yield many similar anxieties about noise, overcrowding, and theft.
“Don’t really feel at home because of the dorm setting with people you don’t really know,” he said.
Others, like a woman who goes by Norma M., took a placement at the 1515 South Van Ness Navigation Center a couple weeks ago. But on a recent Monday, she was out at the Hairball encampment to be with her 25-year-old daughter, Vetta, who was waiting for a placement in the center. Her other daughter, who is 18 years old, had already received a placement, she said.
“I’m waiting for the HOT team to come and get her,” Norma said. “I can’t be indoors and have her out here.”
Norma was feeling positive about finding housing during her stay at the center. Her brother, she said, found housing at an SRO after 120 days at the center.
“I’m optimistic to find something — a hole in the wall or an actual place,” she said, noting that last winter was especially harsh.
“I’m tired of that,” she said.
But, like Estrello and Redmond, she was not keen on shelter life. “The Navigation Center isn’t what the media is saying it is,” she said. “You need to light a match under their ass — the food is microwaved and the water is cold.”
Some, like a 33-year-old man who went by Ruben, said they didn’t qualify because they hadn’t been homeless long enough. Ruben said the outreach team told him he didn’t qualify after he told them he had been homeless for eight months.
“That made me lose hope in programs in general,” he said, spray painting a bicycle. “People who are homeless for 10 to 12 years want to be on the streets.”
“I’m gonna get on my feet by myself,” he added. “The more I stick around here, the more frocked up it’s gonna be.”
Priority is given to people who have been homeless for 13 years, said Cutler of the Homeless Coalition. But “if it’s a resolution, they should be offering everyone in that encampment something,” Cutler said.
A resolution might be in its early stages if only some are being offered services, “because they only start with folks who are high need,” she added.
Yet some felt neglected by the outreach team because they weren’t staked out in the encampment.
“They walk right past me and don’t ask,” said a man who called himself Dallas, who was sitting on a bench at James Rolph Jr. Playground, which sits adjacent to the Hairball. He said he’s been on the streets “too long.”
“At least they can ask me,” he said. “They just look at me.”
The fingers
10 TW
http://nypost.com/2017/10/19/girl-survives-getting-crushed-by-truck-thanks-to-bike-helmet/
A 10-year-old girl cheated death after she survived being crushed by a 7,700-pound truck as she rode her new bike because she was wearing a $40 cycling helmet.
Amy Darlaston was left screaming in agony when a JCB forklift truck plowed into her as she was cycling with pals in a field near her home.
The youngster was airlifted to hospital after the horror collision and was treated for a broken collarbone as well as cuts and bruises.
Modal TriggerAmy’s bike helmet was shattered into three piece by the accident.SWNS.com
Mom Donna, 36, had recently bought her a $40 helmet to go with the $224 bike. The helmet was left in three shattered pieces by the impact of the crash.
She said the helmet had undoubtedly saved her daughter’s life following the accident in Wigston, Leicestershire, at 3 p.m. on October 17th. Wigston is a small town about 100 miles north of London.
Modal TriggerAmy’s bike was mangled by the truck.SWNS
Mom-of-three Donna said: “There is no doubt that the helmet saved my daughter’s life.”
“The doctors at the hospital all said that if she had not been wearing that helmet, which was really badly damaged, her skull would have been crushed and she would have died.”
“It is the best $40 I have ever spent.”
“It was so traumatic to see Amy like that.”
“She had blood on the right-hand side of her head and you could see the smashed helmet.”
“The helicopter landed in the field and she was taken in it to Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham.”
“It was horrendous. I was beside myself.”
“I needed to get to see my baby. I did not know if she was going to be alive or dead.”
They did x-rays and scans but she suffered no serious head injury.”
“I want to thank everyone who was so wonderful in helping Amy at every stage.”
“She has a broken collarbone and a few bruises and grazes but otherwise sort of okay.”
“We are happy to have her home and it’s the best place for her to be.”
“I want every parent to read this and make sure they buy a helmet for their children.”
“They are lifesavers — Amy is proof of that.”
Modal TriggerAmy with her mom DonnaSWNS
Dad Andy, 48, said he received a phone call from a passerby who had found Amy’s phone before he rushed to his daughter’s aid.
He drove to the scene to see Amy being tended to by paramedics before she was airlifted to Nottingham’s Queen’s Medical Centre.
Andy, a warehouse worker, said: “We got a call at home and there was a woman on the other end.”
“Before she had time to say anything I heard a bloodcurdling scream and knew it was Amy.”
“I jumped in my car and got to the park. I just knew she would be up there.”
A Leicestershire Police spokeswoman said: “We received a report at 3:06 p.m. of a collision involving a tractor and child.”
“We have spoken to witnesses and the tractor driver and there is no further action to be taken.”
A 10-year-old girl cheated death after she survived being crushed by a 7,700-pound truck as she rode her new bike because she was wearing a $40 cycling helmet.
Amy Darlaston was left screaming in agony when a JCB forklift truck plowed into her as she was cycling with pals in a field near her home.
The youngster was airlifted to hospital after the horror collision and was treated for a broken collarbone as well as cuts and bruises.
Modal TriggerAmy’s bike helmet was shattered into three piece by the accident.SWNS.com
Mom Donna, 36, had recently bought her a $40 helmet to go with the $224 bike. The helmet was left in three shattered pieces by the impact of the crash.
She said the helmet had undoubtedly saved her daughter’s life following the accident in Wigston, Leicestershire, at 3 p.m. on October 17th. Wigston is a small town about 100 miles north of London.
Modal TriggerAmy’s bike was mangled by the truck.SWNS
Mom-of-three Donna said: “There is no doubt that the helmet saved my daughter’s life.”
“The doctors at the hospital all said that if she had not been wearing that helmet, which was really badly damaged, her skull would have been crushed and she would have died.”
“It is the best $40 I have ever spent.”
“It was so traumatic to see Amy like that.”
“She had blood on the right-hand side of her head and you could see the smashed helmet.”
“The helicopter landed in the field and she was taken in it to Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham.”
“It was horrendous. I was beside myself.”
“I needed to get to see my baby. I did not know if she was going to be alive or dead.”
They did x-rays and scans but she suffered no serious head injury.”
“I want to thank everyone who was so wonderful in helping Amy at every stage.”
“She has a broken collarbone and a few bruises and grazes but otherwise sort of okay.”
“We are happy to have her home and it’s the best place for her to be.”
“I want every parent to read this and make sure they buy a helmet for their children.”
“They are lifesavers — Amy is proof of that.”
Modal TriggerAmy with her mom DonnaSWNS
Dad Andy, 48, said he received a phone call from a passerby who had found Amy’s phone before he rushed to his daughter’s aid.
He drove to the scene to see Amy being tended to by paramedics before she was airlifted to Nottingham’s Queen’s Medical Centre.
Andy, a warehouse worker, said: “We got a call at home and there was a woman on the other end.”
“Before she had time to say anything I heard a bloodcurdling scream and knew it was Amy.”
“I jumped in my car and got to the park. I just knew she would be up there.”
A Leicestershire Police spokeswoman said: “We received a report at 3:06 p.m. of a collision involving a tractor and child.”
“We have spoken to witnesses and the tractor driver and there is no further action to be taken.”
The fingers
10 TW
https://www.wbez.org/shows/curious-city/why-some-chicago-cemeteries-are-changing-their-rules-about-bicycles/8060fcce-9afa-49c2-b364-b793a1b94fbc
Dauntless
100 TW
http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/25/sport/queen-elizabeth-horse-racing-prize-money/index.html
So before the race is she sayin' "Queenie needs a new pair of shoes?" When her horse loses there's always "We are not amused."
So before the race is she sayin' "Queenie needs a new pair of shoes?" When her horse loses there's always "We are not amused."
The fingers
10 TW
http://abc7.com/8-dead-in-rampage-apparent-act-of-terror-on-nyc-bike-path/2588484/ 
Dauntless
100 TW
Yeah, I think you have a whole different idea about this thread than the rest of us.
The fingers
10 TW
https://ggwash.org/view/65399/five-street-signs-that-really-mean-the-street-design-is-wrong :x
The fingers
10 TW
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/north-miami/article182395311.html
Police say they were out for their weekly bike ride when a driver tried to kill them
BY DAVID J. NEAL
NOVEMBER 02, 2017 6:01 PM
The surveillance video shows a car recklessly shooting across two lanes of Northeast Sixth Avenue traffic and away from North Miami police officers on bicycles.
North Miami cops say he didn’t just drive away from police. He tried to drive over officers in an act of attempted murder.
The car has a blue color scheme interrupted by a silver door. Police say officers finishing their weekly community bike ride on Thursday saw a “suspicious vehicle” at the rear of an apartment building at 12990 NE Sixth Ave.
“As officers approached the stopped vehicle, the driver put the vehicle in reverse and then acclerated forward as he attempted to drive over the officers,” the police recounted on a release headlined “Attempted Murder of Police Officers.” “He continued at a high rate of speed through the driveway, running over one of the officer’s bicycles, toward an additional group of officers. The officers had to jump out of the vehicle’s path to avoid death or injury.”
Anyone with information on the incident can call North Miami Police at 305-891-8111 or, for a possible $2,000 reward, Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477 (TIPS).
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/north-miami/article182395311.html#storylink=cpy
Police say they were out for their weekly bike ride when a driver tried to kill them
BY DAVID J. NEAL
NOVEMBER 02, 2017 6:01 PM
The surveillance video shows a car recklessly shooting across two lanes of Northeast Sixth Avenue traffic and away from North Miami police officers on bicycles.
North Miami cops say he didn’t just drive away from police. He tried to drive over officers in an act of attempted murder.
The car has a blue color scheme interrupted by a silver door. Police say officers finishing their weekly community bike ride on Thursday saw a “suspicious vehicle” at the rear of an apartment building at 12990 NE Sixth Ave.
“As officers approached the stopped vehicle, the driver put the vehicle in reverse and then acclerated forward as he attempted to drive over the officers,” the police recounted on a release headlined “Attempted Murder of Police Officers.” “He continued at a high rate of speed through the driveway, running over one of the officer’s bicycles, toward an additional group of officers. The officers had to jump out of the vehicle’s path to avoid death or injury.”
Anyone with information on the incident can call North Miami Police at 305-891-8111 or, for a possible $2,000 reward, Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477 (TIPS).
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/north-miami/article182395311.html#storylink=cpy
I'm not sure how they would know he put it in reverse if he was accelerating forwards.The fingers said:
If they actually could see his shifter position, and knew for sure it was in R, then it sounds like he had some sort of transmission failure, and might not have intended to do what he did, but when it happened he panicked? (not unheard of)
Otherwise, I think the story either from the officers or the press (or both) is confused and/or missing significant information.
The fingers
10 TW
http://peopleforbikes.org/blog/four-reasons-businesses-embrace-e-bikes/
FOUR REASONS FOR BUSINESSES TO EMBRACE E-BIKES
November 2, 2017
Kimberly Kinchen, business network writer
When it comes to personal transportation, e-bikes are a big part of the buzz around mobility. The rise in e-bike sales suggests they are here to stay. But just as individuals can reap the rewards, there’s also a business case to be made for supplementing motor pools with e-bikes.
There is no contest here: even at the highest end, e-bikes cost considerably less to buy, operate, maintain and replace than almost any motor vehicle. “You can get some of your people to accomplish the same type of transportation trips for only twenty percent of the cost for a full-size vehicle,” says Sherri O’Hara, Sales Director at Small Planet Bikes in Longmont, Colorado. E-bikes don’t have to replace an entire motor pool to yield big savings. When the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada bought 25 e-bikes in 2011 it estimated $100,000 in annual savings from employees using fewer cars for work travel in a three-mile radius around downtown Las Vegas.
If time is money, then e-bikes’ maneuverability in tight spaces that larger vehicles cannot easily negotiate put the bikes at a distinct advantage. Have a lot of short delivery trips or cross-town meetings? E-bikes can slip through gridlock and eliminate the search for parking. They can also make sprawling corporate campuses more navigable, which may be why Google, Facebook and other Silicon Valley firms include e-bikes in their fleets.
Shifting a robust percentage of commute trips to biking could lower a firm’s health insurance costs and could boost productivity by reducing the number of sick days that staff take. E-bikes could make that shift easier and introducing staff to e-bikes could encourage more bike commute trips. A recent study found that when Kaiser Permanente made e-bikes available to staff, people who already biked did so more often, and it prompted those who didn’t previously bike regularly to ride much more as well.
We may be entering an era when a commitment to sustainability is a requirement for running a business, whether to reduce carbon footprint, control operational costs, or to woo customers. Relying on e-bikes for local transportation needs can mark a business as forward-thinking and a good corporate citizen. O’Hara points out that reducing car-based trips can earn businesses points toward LEED certification for operations and maintenance. Substituting e-bikes for some part of a motor pool is an inexpensive way to earn those points.
FOUR REASONS FOR BUSINESSES TO EMBRACE E-BIKES
November 2, 2017
Kimberly Kinchen, business network writer
When it comes to personal transportation, e-bikes are a big part of the buzz around mobility. The rise in e-bike sales suggests they are here to stay. But just as individuals can reap the rewards, there’s also a business case to be made for supplementing motor pools with e-bikes.
There is no contest here: even at the highest end, e-bikes cost considerably less to buy, operate, maintain and replace than almost any motor vehicle. “You can get some of your people to accomplish the same type of transportation trips for only twenty percent of the cost for a full-size vehicle,” says Sherri O’Hara, Sales Director at Small Planet Bikes in Longmont, Colorado. E-bikes don’t have to replace an entire motor pool to yield big savings. When the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada bought 25 e-bikes in 2011 it estimated $100,000 in annual savings from employees using fewer cars for work travel in a three-mile radius around downtown Las Vegas.
If time is money, then e-bikes’ maneuverability in tight spaces that larger vehicles cannot easily negotiate put the bikes at a distinct advantage. Have a lot of short delivery trips or cross-town meetings? E-bikes can slip through gridlock and eliminate the search for parking. They can also make sprawling corporate campuses more navigable, which may be why Google, Facebook and other Silicon Valley firms include e-bikes in their fleets.
Shifting a robust percentage of commute trips to biking could lower a firm’s health insurance costs and could boost productivity by reducing the number of sick days that staff take. E-bikes could make that shift easier and introducing staff to e-bikes could encourage more bike commute trips. A recent study found that when Kaiser Permanente made e-bikes available to staff, people who already biked did so more often, and it prompted those who didn’t previously bike regularly to ride much more as well.
We may be entering an era when a commitment to sustainability is a requirement for running a business, whether to reduce carbon footprint, control operational costs, or to woo customers. Relying on e-bikes for local transportation needs can mark a business as forward-thinking and a good corporate citizen. O’Hara points out that reducing car-based trips can earn businesses points toward LEED certification for operations and maintenance. Substituting e-bikes for some part of a motor pool is an inexpensive way to earn those points.
The fingers
10 TW
http://www.sgvtribune.com/2017/11/05/bicyclists-with-traffic-tickets-can-now-get-their-fines-waived-at-socals-first-bicycle-traffic-safety-school-in-el-monte/
Bicyclists with traffic tickets can now get their fines waived at Southern California’s first bicycle traffic safety school in El Monte
By STEVE SCAUZILLO | San Gabriel Valley Tribune
PUBLISHED: November 5, 2017 at 5:00 pm | UPDATED: November 6, 2017 at 9:11 am
Maria Valenzuela rode her beat-up stingray bike down the empty sidewalk along Valley Boulevard in downtown El Monte on Tuesday. She crossed the street at the light and continued on the other sidewalk into the shopping center, eventually parking her bike in front of the 99 Cents Only Store.
When asked if she knew that riding a bicycle on the sidewalk is illegal in the city of El Monte, she said no.
“Where do I ride?” she asked with a shrug.
Although Valenzuela did not get a ticket that day, many others have received tickets for sidewalk riding, as well as running stop signs, not stopping at red lights, having poor brakes and other infractions — even speeding.
Bicycle citations are treated the same as driving tickets by the courts. The fines are the same. For example, a stop sign violation can cost $200 and running a red light costs as much as $400. If you don’t pay them, the consequences could lead to garnishing wages or jail time.
But while Southern California drivers can get their citations expunged and the fines dropped if they complete traffic school, until this past March, there was no such option for people ticketed on bicycles or other non-motorized vehicles. Without exception, they paid the full cost, both fines and court fees, which can amount to several hundred dollars.
After getting calls from bicyclists saying they couldn’t afford to pay their tickets, representatives from Bike San Gabriel Valley — an El Monte-based nonprofit promoting bike-friendly streets — met with Superior Court Judge Daniel Lopez. Through a grant from Metro and a green light from the state Legislature, they formed the first bicycle traffic school in Southern California.
Opened in March, violators can have fines and court fees waived if they complete a three-hour bicycle safety class run by certified instructors from Bike SGV. The classes are held on certain Saturdays at the Jeff Seymour Family Center, 10900 Mulhall St. Referrals are made by Lopez, who heads up the traffic court division in the El Monte courthouse.
“It is amazing to have a judge who actually understands these fines are not a small deal for a lot of people,” said Jose Jimenez, education director for Bike SGV, who also teaches the bicycle traffic school classes.
From May through Aug. 16, bicyclists with citations completed the program in lieu of paying their fines. Court fees are also waived, Jimenez said. On Monday, three defendants from Lopez’s courtroom opted for bicycle traffic school, according to the court. The next class will be held Nov. 18.
During the same four-month period, the average cost of a fine was $323, according to data obtained by Bike SGV. The fines ranged from $98 for a minor riding without a helmet all the way up to $916 for a minor not wearing a helmet and also caught riding on the sidewalk, the nonprofit found.
Many of the riders cited cannot afford a car and use their bicycles as their only means of transportation. Some regularly ride their bikes to and from work at minimum wage jobs. Suddenly having to pay $300 to $900 for themselves or their child in fines is a heavy financial burden, Jimenez said.
The three defendants who attended class Monday had fines totaling $1,200, Jimenez said. The three completed the class and did not have to pay.
“In working in the El Monte community,” Jimenez said, “this is something we see affecting lower income residents and many use their bicycles getting to and from work.”
The idea of a bicycle traffic school crystalized into law in early 2016 when Assembly Bill 902 by Assemblyman Richard Bloom, D-Santa Monica, allowed cities to start these programs for the first time. The programs must be created by individual cities or counties with local law enforcement buy-in.
Bloom’s legislation spurred Bike SGV — organizer of the recent 626 Golden Streets ride — and the city of El Monte to start one of the first programs of its kind in the state. In Northern California, UC Berkeley and UC Davis have set up bicycle diversion programs, with city of Sacramento offering discounts on sidewalk riding citations, said Robert Prinz, education director with Bike EastBay.
But even after offering support, Bike EastBay has not yet convinced the cities of Oakland, Berkeley and Alameda to establish programs, he said.
“I am disappointed that more cities have not implemented AB 902 diversion programs,” Bloom said in an email. “But, unlike the DMV-administered traffic school program for automobiles, AB 902 is to be administered by the cities. Unfortunately, that process can sometimes take longer than the state.”
Bike SGV is hoping to expand into other cities. They are in talks with West Covina to set up a similar program, Jimenez said.
The nonprofit offers the classes for free. Often, they’ll provide a minor a helmet, which is required by law. Adults are not required to wear helmets. They also provide front and rear lights and reflectors, a requirement for night riding, Jimenez said.
Each program breaks down into three hourly segments: rules of the road; parking lot drills where participants practice hand signals, scanning, looking over your shoulder and changing lanes, and actual riding alongside an instructor on city streets
Bike SGV is advocating for more universal bicycle riding laws and is working on educating riders on the rules of the road. Often, riders are cited because the laws are confusing or change when they cross a city line. “Every city makes it different,” he said.
For instance, sidewalk riding is allowed in some cities but banned in others. It is not allowed in unincorporated Los Angeles County, Alhambra, Duarte, Diamond Bar, El Monte, Irwindale, Monterey Park, Montebello, Rosemead, San Gabriel, Temple City and Walnut, Jimenez said.
“This is really difficult to get people to accept and feel comfortable riding on the road,” Jimenez said. “They’ll say: ‘What do you mean? We can’t ride on the road because that is crazy. Are my kids supposed to ride on the street?’ ”
The group’s website questions the efficacy of ticketing adults riding on the sidewalk: “The active enforcement of and relatively high cost of fines for sidewalk cycling and riding without a helmet gives us pause, especially when compared with the costs associated with more dangerous behaviors such as running traffic lights.”
Jimenez says he emphasizes bicycle safety to his students. If there is a bike lane, a rider must ride in the bike lane. Otherwise, riding on the street on the right-hand side with traffic is the correct way. If a person does not feel safe in the street in El Monte or anywhere sidewalk riding is banned, he or she should get off their bike and walk it on the sidewalk.
Pasadena allows sidewalk riding as along as riders yield to pedestrians. Bicycle riders routinely ride on sidewalks along Lake Avenue and Colorado Boulevard. A city survey found 68 percent always, frequently or sometimes ride on the sidewalk.
Maria Valenzuela wasn’t happy hearing about the no-sidewalk rule in El Monte. She does not own a car. She’s not sure what she’s going to do the next time she takes her daughter to school on the bike’s back seat. Most likely, she’ll continue to ride on the sidewalk rather than risk riding in the roadway on busy Valley or Ramona boulevards.
“I have to drop my daughter off at school,” she said, adding: “But she always wears a helmet.”
Bicyclists with traffic tickets can now get their fines waived at Southern California’s first bicycle traffic safety school in El Monte
By STEVE SCAUZILLO | San Gabriel Valley Tribune
PUBLISHED: November 5, 2017 at 5:00 pm | UPDATED: November 6, 2017 at 9:11 am
Maria Valenzuela rode her beat-up stingray bike down the empty sidewalk along Valley Boulevard in downtown El Monte on Tuesday. She crossed the street at the light and continued on the other sidewalk into the shopping center, eventually parking her bike in front of the 99 Cents Only Store.
When asked if she knew that riding a bicycle on the sidewalk is illegal in the city of El Monte, she said no.
“Where do I ride?” she asked with a shrug.
Although Valenzuela did not get a ticket that day, many others have received tickets for sidewalk riding, as well as running stop signs, not stopping at red lights, having poor brakes and other infractions — even speeding.
Bicycle citations are treated the same as driving tickets by the courts. The fines are the same. For example, a stop sign violation can cost $200 and running a red light costs as much as $400. If you don’t pay them, the consequences could lead to garnishing wages or jail time.
But while Southern California drivers can get their citations expunged and the fines dropped if they complete traffic school, until this past March, there was no such option for people ticketed on bicycles or other non-motorized vehicles. Without exception, they paid the full cost, both fines and court fees, which can amount to several hundred dollars.
After getting calls from bicyclists saying they couldn’t afford to pay their tickets, representatives from Bike San Gabriel Valley — an El Monte-based nonprofit promoting bike-friendly streets — met with Superior Court Judge Daniel Lopez. Through a grant from Metro and a green light from the state Legislature, they formed the first bicycle traffic school in Southern California.
Opened in March, violators can have fines and court fees waived if they complete a three-hour bicycle safety class run by certified instructors from Bike SGV. The classes are held on certain Saturdays at the Jeff Seymour Family Center, 10900 Mulhall St. Referrals are made by Lopez, who heads up the traffic court division in the El Monte courthouse.
“It is amazing to have a judge who actually understands these fines are not a small deal for a lot of people,” said Jose Jimenez, education director for Bike SGV, who also teaches the bicycle traffic school classes.
From May through Aug. 16, bicyclists with citations completed the program in lieu of paying their fines. Court fees are also waived, Jimenez said. On Monday, three defendants from Lopez’s courtroom opted for bicycle traffic school, according to the court. The next class will be held Nov. 18.
During the same four-month period, the average cost of a fine was $323, according to data obtained by Bike SGV. The fines ranged from $98 for a minor riding without a helmet all the way up to $916 for a minor not wearing a helmet and also caught riding on the sidewalk, the nonprofit found.
Many of the riders cited cannot afford a car and use their bicycles as their only means of transportation. Some regularly ride their bikes to and from work at minimum wage jobs. Suddenly having to pay $300 to $900 for themselves or their child in fines is a heavy financial burden, Jimenez said.
The three defendants who attended class Monday had fines totaling $1,200, Jimenez said. The three completed the class and did not have to pay.
“In working in the El Monte community,” Jimenez said, “this is something we see affecting lower income residents and many use their bicycles getting to and from work.”
The idea of a bicycle traffic school crystalized into law in early 2016 when Assembly Bill 902 by Assemblyman Richard Bloom, D-Santa Monica, allowed cities to start these programs for the first time. The programs must be created by individual cities or counties with local law enforcement buy-in.
Bloom’s legislation spurred Bike SGV — organizer of the recent 626 Golden Streets ride — and the city of El Monte to start one of the first programs of its kind in the state. In Northern California, UC Berkeley and UC Davis have set up bicycle diversion programs, with city of Sacramento offering discounts on sidewalk riding citations, said Robert Prinz, education director with Bike EastBay.
But even after offering support, Bike EastBay has not yet convinced the cities of Oakland, Berkeley and Alameda to establish programs, he said.
“I am disappointed that more cities have not implemented AB 902 diversion programs,” Bloom said in an email. “But, unlike the DMV-administered traffic school program for automobiles, AB 902 is to be administered by the cities. Unfortunately, that process can sometimes take longer than the state.”
Bike SGV is hoping to expand into other cities. They are in talks with West Covina to set up a similar program, Jimenez said.
The nonprofit offers the classes for free. Often, they’ll provide a minor a helmet, which is required by law. Adults are not required to wear helmets. They also provide front and rear lights and reflectors, a requirement for night riding, Jimenez said.
Each program breaks down into three hourly segments: rules of the road; parking lot drills where participants practice hand signals, scanning, looking over your shoulder and changing lanes, and actual riding alongside an instructor on city streets
Bike SGV is advocating for more universal bicycle riding laws and is working on educating riders on the rules of the road. Often, riders are cited because the laws are confusing or change when they cross a city line. “Every city makes it different,” he said.
For instance, sidewalk riding is allowed in some cities but banned in others. It is not allowed in unincorporated Los Angeles County, Alhambra, Duarte, Diamond Bar, El Monte, Irwindale, Monterey Park, Montebello, Rosemead, San Gabriel, Temple City and Walnut, Jimenez said.
“This is really difficult to get people to accept and feel comfortable riding on the road,” Jimenez said. “They’ll say: ‘What do you mean? We can’t ride on the road because that is crazy. Are my kids supposed to ride on the street?’ ”
The group’s website questions the efficacy of ticketing adults riding on the sidewalk: “The active enforcement of and relatively high cost of fines for sidewalk cycling and riding without a helmet gives us pause, especially when compared with the costs associated with more dangerous behaviors such as running traffic lights.”
Jimenez says he emphasizes bicycle safety to his students. If there is a bike lane, a rider must ride in the bike lane. Otherwise, riding on the street on the right-hand side with traffic is the correct way. If a person does not feel safe in the street in El Monte or anywhere sidewalk riding is banned, he or she should get off their bike and walk it on the sidewalk.
Pasadena allows sidewalk riding as along as riders yield to pedestrians. Bicycle riders routinely ride on sidewalks along Lake Avenue and Colorado Boulevard. A city survey found 68 percent always, frequently or sometimes ride on the sidewalk.
Maria Valenzuela wasn’t happy hearing about the no-sidewalk rule in El Monte. She does not own a car. She’s not sure what she’s going to do the next time she takes her daughter to school on the bike’s back seat. Most likely, she’ll continue to ride on the sidewalk rather than risk riding in the roadway on busy Valley or Ramona boulevards.
“I have to drop my daughter off at school,” she said, adding: “But she always wears a helmet.”
The fingers
10 TW
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/the-anatomy-of-a-hitrun-how-police-tracked-a-killer-bikie-20171102-gzd9vd.html
The fingers
10 TW
http://www.twincities.com/2017/11/21/st-paul-literary-arts-trailer-stolen-reward-posted-for-the-storymobile-solar-powered-bike/ :x
Dauntless
100 TW
What was bound to happen is David Brock's game finally bit him in the. . . .
The Father Son and Holy Ghost of fake news benefited greatly from his unholy alliance with his previous target and nemesis Hillary Clinton. If you're not up on what goes on in the world he IS the 'Vast Right Wing Conspiracy' that she complained about back when Bill was still president. He's the one that cooked up 'Troopergate' and found Paula Jones, the disgruntled former Clinton Arkansas sergeant who never got over not being taken to Washington and was more than happy to file whatever lawsuit Brock might help her win. First making his name firing opening rounds in the attack on Anita Hill, he apparently sensed some shift in the wind and decided no longer did he want to be the attack dog of the right.
So he got Hillary Clinton, who was more than happy to get him off her back and have him attack the OTHER SIDE so erratically and effectively, to raise money for his new charity. He became the attack dog of the left. The rest is infamy.
But his latest stirrings, the accuse everyone of sexual something or 'nother, has backfired. In the midst of offering nothing but dicey innuendo against the right, it seems one of the favorite lapdogs of the left was caught on tape. Al Franken, for the camera, not only performing the act but later talking about it. Now with Charlie Rose fired for nothing more than being 'Creepy' in the way he talked, Franken's hands on approach is just too hard for Brock and his minions, most notably fellow side changer Arianna Huffington, to excuse and overlook.
I liked it better when Brock and Huffington were bad guys for the OTHER SIDE. Didn't want them coming over to the Democrats. That is really the point where you see the downfall of the party. Can there be a point where the billionaires decie to stop foisting this on us as their "Charitable Contributions" to society?
http://www.cnn.com/2017/11/21/opinions/charlie-rose-played-the-role-of-dirty-older-man-filipovic/index.html
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/21/media/snl-women-al-franken/index.html
The Father Son and Holy Ghost of fake news benefited greatly from his unholy alliance with his previous target and nemesis Hillary Clinton. If you're not up on what goes on in the world he IS the 'Vast Right Wing Conspiracy' that she complained about back when Bill was still president. He's the one that cooked up 'Troopergate' and found Paula Jones, the disgruntled former Clinton Arkansas sergeant who never got over not being taken to Washington and was more than happy to file whatever lawsuit Brock might help her win. First making his name firing opening rounds in the attack on Anita Hill, he apparently sensed some shift in the wind and decided no longer did he want to be the attack dog of the right.
So he got Hillary Clinton, who was more than happy to get him off her back and have him attack the OTHER SIDE so erratically and effectively, to raise money for his new charity. He became the attack dog of the left. The rest is infamy.
But his latest stirrings, the accuse everyone of sexual something or 'nother, has backfired. In the midst of offering nothing but dicey innuendo against the right, it seems one of the favorite lapdogs of the left was caught on tape. Al Franken, for the camera, not only performing the act but later talking about it. Now with Charlie Rose fired for nothing more than being 'Creepy' in the way he talked, Franken's hands on approach is just too hard for Brock and his minions, most notably fellow side changer Arianna Huffington, to excuse and overlook.
I liked it better when Brock and Huffington were bad guys for the OTHER SIDE. Didn't want them coming over to the Democrats. That is really the point where you see the downfall of the party. Can there be a point where the billionaires decie to stop foisting this on us as their "Charitable Contributions" to society?
http://www.cnn.com/2017/11/21/opinions/charlie-rose-played-the-role-of-dirty-older-man-filipovic/index.html
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/21/media/snl-women-al-franken/index.html
Dauntless
100 TW
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/27/news/richard-branson-sexual-assault/index.html
So why would they want to pick on Richard Branson? The point of fake news is they don't have to, someone will do it for them. But they can't control who the target is, so now Brock is gonna bring down Richard Branson. It's all inevitable. So is the death of the billionaires who are financing all this for their own reasons. In the meantime, seriously, the MEAN time. . . .
So why would they want to pick on Richard Branson? The point of fake news is they don't have to, someone will do it for them. But they can't control who the target is, so now Brock is gonna bring down Richard Branson. It's all inevitable. So is the death of the billionaires who are financing all this for their own reasons. In the meantime, seriously, the MEAN time. . . .
The fingers
10 TW
http://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/crime/article186804883.html :x
Do you know him? Sheriff’s office says he stole from donation box
BY CHUEYEE YANG
NOVEMBER 27, 2017 07:11 PM
UPDATED NOVEMBER 27, 2017 07:14 PM
The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office is asking the public to help search and identify a man who stole money from a donation box.
About 4:30 p.m. Oct. 25, a male bicyclist was caught on surveillance cameras prying open a donation box and stealing donation money from the box along the River Center Trail near the San Joaquin River, said Fresno County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Tony Botti.
The suspect has dark brown hair and a pony tail.
The River Center Trail is part of the San Joaquin River Parkway and Conservation Trust, which provides outdoor education programs for youth and recreational opportunities for the community, Botti said.
Anyone with information can contact Detective Tim Juarez at 559-600-8061 or timothy.juarez@fresnosheriff.com.
Do you know him? Sheriff’s office says he stole from donation box
BY CHUEYEE YANG
NOVEMBER 27, 2017 07:11 PM
UPDATED NOVEMBER 27, 2017 07:14 PM
The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office is asking the public to help search and identify a man who stole money from a donation box.
About 4:30 p.m. Oct. 25, a male bicyclist was caught on surveillance cameras prying open a donation box and stealing donation money from the box along the River Center Trail near the San Joaquin River, said Fresno County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Tony Botti.
The suspect has dark brown hair and a pony tail.
The River Center Trail is part of the San Joaquin River Parkway and Conservation Trust, which provides outdoor education programs for youth and recreational opportunities for the community, Botti said.
Anyone with information can contact Detective Tim Juarez at 559-600-8061 or timothy.juarez@fresnosheriff.com.
Dauntless
100 TW
Dang, they got Garrison Keillor. I guess we could call it the David Brock virus. Once again, it's all talk.
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/29/media/garrison-keillor-inappropriate-behavior/index.html
So the headline and lead from CNN is not the Matt Lauer story itself, but about a female reporter "Having to report." Well, no, she didn't HAVE to. Nor is it the real lead or story. The broader implications of fake news. But keep the slant aslidin'. As the radio announcers are beginning to say this is mostly bogus. Which has to happen. They're putting an old Katie Couric 'JOKE' about Matt Lauer on the air as though it was an accusation. You know THAT had to happen.
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/29/media/women-journalists-lauer-fired/index.html
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/29/media/garrison-keillor-inappropriate-behavior/index.html
So the headline and lead from CNN is not the Matt Lauer story itself, but about a female reporter "Having to report." Well, no, she didn't HAVE to. Nor is it the real lead or story. The broader implications of fake news. But keep the slant aslidin'. As the radio announcers are beginning to say this is mostly bogus. Which has to happen. They're putting an old Katie Couric 'JOKE' about Matt Lauer on the air as though it was an accusation. You know THAT had to happen.
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/29/media/women-journalists-lauer-fired/index.html
