Share the Road…Every Life Counts procession was a success

 Advocacy, Commentary, Events, Group Rides: Special, News, Uncategorized  No Responses »
May 052012
 
sharetheroadButtigieg

About 70 cyclists, along with over a dozen walkers/runners, and motor vehicles joined in the procession meant to draw attention to the need for all users to share the roadway and crosswalks. The procession concluded at the County-City building in downtown South Bend where there was a press conference, and short speeches by local dignitaries. The gathered crowd seemed especially inspired by the words of Yatish Yoshi, the chairman of the event.  I am re-printing his speech below, and it is well worth reading.

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Another Tragic Loss and A Personal Plea for Safer Michiana Cycling

 Advocacy, Commentary, News  2 Responses »
Feb 232012
 

Michiana has lost another avid local cyclist due to a collision with a motor vehicle: Steven Carey was struck and killed by a motorist on Sunday, February 19. Few details are available as of this writing, other than the identity of the driver, that the collision occurred during daylight hours, and that Steven was an experienced cyclist riding, with traffic, northbound on SR 23 near the I80/90 overpass.

Although Michiana continues to make progress toward safer cycling, our community has suffered numerous such car vs bicycle tragedies, and it is clear that much work is still needed.

We offer our deepest condolences to Steven’s friends and family, and we also reflect upon previous Michiana fatalities.

In 2008 we lost cyclist Patrick Sawyer to a drunk driver. His widow, Nancy, recently created a video tribute to her late husband. With the video, she highlights the severe personal toll of drunk driving, and she makes a personal plea for safer cycling in Michiana.

Can I ride my bike on the sidewalk?

 Commentary, Infrastructure  No Responses »
Nov 222011
 

Yes and no. State laws make no distinction, but many cities and towns add restrictions, usually to protect pedestrians. I compared the laws of four area communities: Chicago, Elkhart, Mishawaka, and South Bend.

South Bend has the most straight forward ordinance: “No person shall ride a bicycle upon a sidewalk within any business district.” Interestingly, it fails to define a ‘business district’. At least I couldn’t find a definition.

Chicago has the same ‘business district’ restriction as South Bend, but adds some complexity. Adults (and children 12 years and older) can’t ride on any sidewalk anywhere.  There are a few exceptions, and they will be so indicated with bicycle route signage.

Elkhart is pretty straight forward. Bikes are permitted on sidewalks except in a clearly defined area of downtown. See the above map. Interestingly, Elkhart just redefined the area: until last month, the restricted area was about three times the size of the current district. Continue reading »

The Fenders Will Stay!

 Commentary, Gear  No Responses »
Nov 132011
 

Despite being a fan of fenders, I’ve recently contemplated removing them from my Dahon Boardwalk S1 folding bicycle. Normally I don’t worry about weight for utility bikes, but to take the “monkey bike” on the South Shore not only must I fold it up, but usually I have to place it in the overhead luggage racks as well. At 31.5 pounds, however, this can be an unpleasant task on a moving train. Accordingly, I’ve been motivated to lighten the monkey bike, and I’ve been thinking about ditching the fenders.

Yesterday, however, convinced me to seek other solutions.

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Tribune publishes opinion of Bicycle Indiana in VIEWPOINT

 Advocacy, Commentary, News  No Responses »
Nov 122010
 

Nancy Tibbett, Executive Diretor of the statwide bicycling advocacy group submitted the article, which was published earlier this month. She submitted the piece to several newspapers around the state, and the South Bend Tribune was one of the media where it was published. The article follows…

“In recent weeks, Indiana has experienced an unsettling spike in the reports of bicyclists and pedestrians struck by automobiles. Last week’s crash involving a team of cyclists in Bloomington was only the latest in a string of incidents resulting in everything from minor injuries to fatalities.   Continue reading »

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