Have you checked out Streets for Cycling Plan 2020?

If you haven’t check out the proposed routes you can do so online (http://www.chicagobikes.org/public/SFC.php)

The city plans to increase the number of bike lanes and protected bike ways. Come to the meeting if you can; this is a great way to advocate for bikes. Tell CDOT about your commute, why you love it or why you don’t. What are the dangers and inconveniences of existing bike routes? Which are the routes you love and can’t live without? 

If you can’t come to this last meeting please check out Streets for Cycling Plan 2020 on Facebook or e-mail streetsforcycling2020@gmail.com. Next time you are out on your ride home consider riding on some of the proposed streets. Let the city know what challenges and benefits might come out of these recommendations.   

Get on your bikes and ride!

-Naomi

Bikers and cyclist on the internet are connected to large resources of information for every aspect of the cycling lifestyle. So why another blog? What can Bike and Park possibly add to this plethora of information?

The City of Chicago is at a unique turning point in transportation and what that means for cyclists. The numbers say it all; the amount of people commuting to work in the past ten years has doubled. Bikes are edging their way in as a legitimate, marketable, and measurable form of transportation. The City of Chicago is answering this by increasing the number of bike lanes, protected lanes and bike paths.

The cyclists in our fair city are as different and diverse as Chicagoans come. We are gathered up here from all different parts of the country, from different back grounds and walks of life. Yet, once you pick up a bike and start riding all of a sudden we have something in common. All of a sudden we have a way of recognizing one another as a fellow human beings; students, hipsters, fashionistas, corporate workers and homemakers, hardcore road cyclists, or sunny day riders. We all have something that makes us a community. We like to bike.

In short, Bike and Park Chicago is dedicated to the needs of cyclist in Chicago and to creating a community out of a very diverse group of people. As Chicago’s infrastructure changes, we will be changing right alongside it. As an advocate for cycling in Chicago, we have a responsibility to be a resource to our members, to be as educated and aware as they are to Chicago’s changing infrastructure and cycling needs.

So why another blog?

• To provide up to date news content for readers in the Chicago area


• To bring observations, voices and opinions from our community of cyclists


• To promote other blogs, articles, books, magazines and resources that contribute to the cyclists lifestyle  

Stay calm and cycle on!

Naomi

Los Angeles Streetsblog (la.streetsblog.org) is hiring a writer who will contribute a  weekly column that covers transportation and livability issues in Santa Monica.

Your expected qualities:

• Knowledge of progressive urban planning and transportation policy


• Familiarity with Santa Monica city government

Stories will cover, specific to the city of Santa Monica:

• New transportation projects


• Political and community leaders in the area


• Transit-oriented development


• Open space and parks


• Other issues that impact the public health and access to public space

This is for a freelance contractor, publishing at least once a week. Funding is secure for at least one year. Depending on Streetsblog raising additional funding, there is some possibility for extending and/or expanding the position.

Anyone interested should contact Damien Newton at damien@streetsblog.org. All applications should include a letter of interest and two writing samples. Applications due by Close of Business on February 7.

The brand-new Santa Monica Bike Center hosted the official grand opening with a ribbon cutting ceremony on Friday, November 18th.  Speeches were given by: Santa Monica Mayor Richard Bloom, Metro Deputy CEO Paul Taylor and Metro Board Members Zev Yaroslavsky & Pam O’Connor, Cynthia Rose from Santa Monica Spoke, and the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition's Jennifer Klausner.

Mayor Bloom stated during his opening remarks “This new bike center, built from scratch into a major development site will provide commuters and recreational riders with all the amenities they need to better access downtown Santa Monica car-free.”

The Santa Monica Bike Center features the following ammenities and services:

-over 350 secure bicycle parking spaces

-showers

-lockers

-towel service

-bicycle sharing program

-segway sharing program

-bike rentals

-bicycle tours

-segway tours

Sustainable Streets will be offering a number of courses and clinics at the Bike Center including:

-Confident City Cycling

-Transportation Demand Management (TDM) seminars

-Employer and community bicycling outreach

-Bicycle Educaiton and Encouragement Programs (BEEP)

Sign up for a membership to the Santa Monica Bike Center here: http://activenet20.active.com/smbikecenter/

More info on the Santa Monica Bike Center can be found here: http://www.smbikecenter.com

Photos from the opening can be viewed on the Santa Monica Bike Center facebook page: http://on.fb.me/rtrytC