Florida Police Training Video

Not bad really, some of the laws are different there (for instance you don’t need to ride in the bike lanes if there is one here), but the message is good. I wish there was something like this for our police force.

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Mayor Menino Comments On Bike Safety In Boston

The mayor lets us know what he is doing to help increase bicycle safety.

Last week our cycling community, and the city, was rocked by the tragic death of Boston University student Christopher Weigl. By coincidence, a hearing on bicycle safety brought the community together at City Hall later that day. Both events have many left asking what’s being done to make our city safe for cyclists, and rightfully so. Personally, I have been inspired by the outpouring of concern, support, validation, and sense of togetherness in our efforts to make Boston a world-class caliber city for bicycling.

Over the past five years, our Boston Bikes program has grown tremendously. Bicycle infrastructure is popping up in every neighborhood. A few years ago, when I announced “the car is no longer king” in Boston, it was before we had 675,000 trips on Hubway and before 9,000 young people went through bicycle education classes in schools around the city. That vision has guided the rapid growth in cycling throughout Boston.

It is the close-knit sense of community that impresses me most about bikers in Boston, and it is that community that came together last week. It is the collective force of that community and the unfortunate accidents of this summer and fall that are cemented in our minds today. Through our Boston Bikes program, we speak often about the six “E’s” of bicycle planning. And, it’s the six “E’s” that become the constant refrain when discussing solutions that can bring an end to these tragedies.

While there is certainly more work to be done, sometimes it is helpful to share some of the pieces already in action:

You can read the rest here

I don’t disagree with anything he is saying. But its not enough. My new motto is “More and Better!” More cyclists on the street, better infrastructure for those cyclists. I think if we stuck to that as our goal we will do alright.

We were so far behind here in Boston that its going to take a decade of hard work to only get us to “alright.” Lucky for us there are places in the world that have already done the hard work, the research, and the trial runs. All we need to be able to do is find these places and copy them.

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Bike Over To The Public Meeting On Bike Safety Today, Lend Your Voice

There is a hearing at City Hall at noon

Thurs., Dec. 6, at Noon
Boston City Hall
5th Floor
Iannella City Council Chambers

The hearing will delve into questions of where and why most crashes are occurring, as well as statistics on the effects of separated bike lanes (cycletracks) and the success of various infrastructure improvements made in other cities.

Lets tell them how we feel about bike safety, especially with the bad news of a cyclist fatality today.

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City Councilor Felix Arroyo Will Ride His Bike To Support Bike Safety, Join Him!

Bostinno reports: “City Councilor Felix Arroyo will take two-wheels to work at Government Center Thursday in order to raise awareness about the need for safe cycling in the Hub—and he wants residents to join him.”

Arroyo’s bike trek from the Forest Hills MBTA Station to City Hall at 8 a.m. will come just hours before a meeting between elected officials about the importance of making Boston a “world class” bike city; one that’s safe for those who choose to skip the T and opt out of hopping behind the wheel in order to get around.

“We have many cyclists in our city and it is our responsibility to ensure that we make our city as safe as possible for cycling,” Arroyo said in a statement. “I am asking for people to join me on my bike ride to work to bring attention to the issue. The hope is that the ride and the hearing will result in improvements that will prevent cycling injuries, sometimes fatal, from happening on our streets.”

Last month, Arroyo and City Councilor Ayanna Pressley filed a motion for a hearing to explore ways to improve bike infrastructure in Boston and make it a more “liveable city.”

I don’t have more details, but I imagine that if you show up at forest hills t-stop at 7:30am you can ride your bike to city hall with Arroyo. Fun!

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Invisible Bicycle Helmet

The Invisible Bicycle Helmet | Fredrik Gertten from Focus Forward Films on Vimeo.

Pretty awesome.

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