Children's bicycle program

Interesting tidbit I found the other day...

When was the last time you got on a bicycle? What do you remember about riding a bicycle? I'm going to take a guess and say that when you were little a bicycle was your means of independence from parents. It was a way to go get an ice cream cone. It was your means of transportation. Children's cycling programs are increasingly being recognized and encouraged by city officials. One of the major themes of the last Bicycle Plan stakeholder meeting was to discuss how the city can help citizens encourage one another to utilize bicycles. Programs for children were constantly emphasized. So, here's an opportunity to help out a little bit:

Friday, February 19, 2010
Civic association collecting unwanted bicycles
Contributed By Rachel Richardson | The Enquirer | ShareThis

The Mariemont Civic Association is collecting used bicycles to donate to needy children in the area.

Village councilman Dennis Wolter, whose company Air Mod repairs and renovates airplanes, will coordinate the restoration of bikes to safe and workable conditions.

To donate a bicycle or for more information, call Wolter at 513-271-1155.

Bicycle Parkin

An ordinance that I helped work on through feedback, public testimony, and lobbying has made it through it's last major hurdle before coming up before City Council. Although this ordinance only provides for parking in garages, it is an important baby step in the direction of including bicycling in future infrastructure considerations and development. What's next? I'm working on a comprehensive package of bicycle safety ordinances modeled after Chicago's.

Cincinnati Planning Commission approves new bicycle parking requirements

Soapbox, 2/23/2010

Cincinnati's Planning Commission has just approved a new bicycle parking ordinance that will require all new or expanded parking garages to provide bicycle parking.

The way that the ordinance is written now would require new or expanded parking garages to provide one bicycle parking space for every 20 motor vehicle spaces. This ratio is comparable to other cities across the nation that have recently implemented similar ordinances including Portland, New York City, Charlotte, Cleveland, San Francisco, Kansas City and Denver.

"Surveys by the Department of Transportation & Engineering (DOTE) have found that the lack of secure, weather-protected bicycle parking facilities is a leading factor preventing people from cycling to work," said Melissa McVay, City Planner with the DOTE.

Should a parking garage fail to supply the necessary bicycle parking, the City can refuse to issue or renew their license. In the instance of very large parking garages, there will be a limit of 24 total bicycle parking spaces that need to be provided.

The ordinance also specifies that the bicycle parking space shall be located inside the parking garage and in an area that is protected from the weather. Additionally, each of the bicycle parking spaces will have to be equipped with a bicycle locker; securely anchored floor, wall or ceiling rack; or some other similarly designed system for securing the bicycle.

"I think it's really exciting that Cincinnati is going to be the first city in the region to require bicycle parking in garages," said McVay. "But, it is important to remember that this legislation is just one of many steps that the City will ultimately take to make cycling more convenient."

McVay went on to say that the City is currently working with the Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC) to install bicycle parking at Fountain Square while they also work on retrofits to several City-owned parking garages to meet the new standard.

In unrelated bicycle parking news, construction is currently underway on the new Bike Center at the Central Riverfront Park that will include lockers, repair facility, showers and connection to the riverfront trail system. And the City's first on-street bicycle parking will be installed this April in Northside where one motor vehicle space will be replaced by an on-street bicycle parking corral with 12 bicycle parking spots.

Writer: Randy A. Simes
Photography by David De Bol
Stay connected by following Randy on Twitter @UrbanCincy

Don't railroad us? Seriously?

It never ceases to amaze me how vocally anti-mass transit people in Cincinnati can be. Just read these letters to the editor dealing with people's not-so-tender feelings:

http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20100219/EDIT01/2210347/

Some of our politicians are standing up for the truth about public transportation, namely, that it improves communities:

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20100127/NEWS01/301270098/Ohio-getting--400M-for-rail-service

Why do people have such vitriolic reactions towards infrastructure improvements? Well, when you have been pouring roughly $8,000 a year into an automobile for who-knows-how-long, then it's pretty hard to swallow that bitter pill of knowing you could have bought a vacation home instead. Having a car is convenient if nothing else--who wants to share a car with *GASP* other people! This needs to be made a political issue in terms of the environment, dependence on foreign oil, and even on improving mental health (road rage, anyone?).

Car Culture

Transportation is inherently political. When I choose to ride my bicycle or walk instead of purchasing a car, I am making a statement; I oppose the consumer debt that is propagated by the automobile industry, I know that automobiles contribute significantly to climate change and I refuse to pay exorbitant sums of money to put gas in an internal combustion engine so that I can sit in traffic. Considering how the simple act of choosing to get in a car, to walk, to bike, or to ride the bus is actually an action of enormous social and political importance, it is not at all surprising that Cincinnatians were up in arms over a proposed streetcar. Americans love their automobiles.

Many of our downtown streets terminate as on-ramps to interstate highways, and our neighborhoods have been bisected by interstates in order to facilitate efficient transit. What good has this done us? Our downtown looks like a plate of concrete spaghetti has been plopped on top of it. We're not alone in this. Our interstate system propagates a car culture that has proven to be environmentally, socially and economically destructive. With an annual mean price tag of about $8,000, automobiles are black holes into which we throw a significant portion of our GDP.

One person against an interstate highway system is a battle that will surely be lost, but hundreds of letters, phone calls and visits to your local officials can and will make a difference. Explain why bicycle facilities like sharrows and bike lanes are important to you and demand that the proposed bicycle plan be formally adopted and initiated by City Council. Vulnerable road users need to be represented by our officials. Drop out of car culture, if only for a day. Take the bus. Dust off your bicycle. Take a walk to work. If these aren't options, then share a ride at the very least. Change begins with our personal choices, but we need to remember to take it to City Hall.