I've ridden a bike for many reasons during my life. These days it's mostly a mix of utility and escape. On weekdays I use my bike to get to and from work. On weekends I like to ride for many hours so my brain can be completely turned off and I can depart dystopia for a little while.
It was little chilly 🥶 yesterday but lovely to be back out in the Dales.
I did exactly the same when I visited the US, the person on the desk gave me the “what’s up with this weird Brit?” look.
Lots of Americans have convinced themselves that having a 6000 lb SUV that gets shitty gas mileage and has huge blind spots and is hard to park and costs a ton is somehow the perfect vehicle to run errands in or to drive alone to work in—and they don't realize they've been brainwashed.
Intro to a story about a rider killed in Bakersfield, CA
Crux of the CHP report and the news story—the woman riding a bike was apparently killed because she was in that spot and the lighting was bad. I guess the driver wasn't involved.
I still get news alerts for tons of fatal bike crashes and on a daily basis I am assaulted by the bias and stupidity of police investigators and a profound like of cognition by media that parrot their findings. Look at the way everyone/everything but the driver is responsible.
First instance in my lifetime that a certain demographic in America is passionate about the implications of unpredictable or aggressive driving.
If you think cyclists or “zombie” phone staring pedestrians are distracted you do not want to see what drivers have been up to in their cars the last century.
Whilst the UK government is reported to be planning to cap the Cycle to Work Scheme, the Dutch government commits €1 billion to cycling infrastructure to connect new homes.
A car parked across across the entrance to a two-way cycle lane where it meets the road, between the double yellow lines at the side of the road and a single bollard arranged to stop people driving cars into the cyce lane.
No, this is not a parking space.
(Police issued a Fixed Penalty Notice, but I'm not sure whether it was for the double yellows, or blocking the cyce lane, or both)
@yplac.bsky.social @therealyplac.bsky.social
ICYMI, this STARTER PACK is my team-up with celebrated climate scientist @katharinehayhoe.com, and it’s full of people & organizations that specifically embrace the overlap between better cities and climate action! Please follow them, and help spread the pack around! #ClimateAction #UrbanistShoutOut
Wow!
Not sure what’s going on here as they take further action against around 80% of my submissions.
This part of Carltons thread needs some explaining if you're not in the know. The 'magic circle' here refers to 5 big law companies doing corporate law. They're big cheeses. Frankly, though, the idea we've have to go looking for law breaking motorists is laughable. Ride a bike. You'll see 30 an hour
Another driver who believes they are above the law. And looking for anyway of escaping sanctions.
Big news for dashcam/helmetcam users:
Judge Affirms Legality Of Public-Submitted Road Crime Footage In Landmark Ruling
www.forbes.com/sites/carlto...
Person biking in a protected bike lane. Sometimes the best way to remove barriers is to add some.
Barriers.
2. We need to do four things all at the same time.
A. Ensure that 8, 9 or 10 billion people receive a healthy and sufficient diet.
B. Do so without destroying Earth systems.
C. Rewild as much land and sea as we can, to stop and reverse 6th Great Extinction drivers.
D. Prevent food system collapse.
Today Satbir Saggu is fundraising for Leukaemia UK by cycling 200 miles and running two marathons in one continuous event.
Thank you! www.justgiving.com/page/satbir-...
Congratulations on hitting your target, and good luck for 200 mile bike ride and double marathon ! www.justgiving.com/page/satbir-...
Next weekend Satbir Saggu is fundraising for Leukaemia UK by doing a 200 bike ride and double marathon Check out their Just Giving page and please donate if you can. Thank you! www.justgiving.com/page/satbir-...
Lovely evening ride.
And yet there is always discourse that frames sporty bikes as uncomfortable or less practical than city bikes. Discourse that frames sporty riders as adversaries to transit riders. Discourse that frames spandex as alien. But everyone who rides is getting around on a bike and wants to get home alive.
Riding on an upright city bike in street clothes is totally awesome. There is zero reason to take shots at sportier bikes or people who ride them to celebrate transit riding. Often it's the same people doing both. Often it's different people with common needs. Everyone who rides are allies.
While I'm not involved in any political party, I think @zackpolanski.bsky.social's analysis is correct. Thanks to Labour's multiple, infuriating failures, the Greens could become huge here, but only if they are bolder, more assertive and, yes, "eco-populist". www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
"Proliferation of larger vehicles threatens to undermine all the road safety gains being made on other fronts"
Analysis of real-world collision data from almost 700,000 crashes shows SUV drivers are more likely to kill cyclists, especially children, than smaller car drivers
Very nice!
