In Washington, DC today, the bike share docks were in a state of constant motion as people rented and returned bikes in some frenzied game of happy musical chairs/bikes. All were either going to look at the puffy pink blossoms lining the Tidal Basin, or returning in a state of bliss. It was a glorious day to ride a bike in the nation's capital, and almost everyone seemed to get along, as if no presidential campaign were underway.
A dazzlingly simple and yet brilliant idea has emerged like a Phoenix from the ashes of Seattle Bike Share's brush with death. Use transit cards with bike share. After all, cycling is transit. It would require you to link a credit card to your transit pass, of course. In Washington, DC, you could link a credit card to your SmartTrip card. Instead of using a key fob for bike share, you would be able to use the transit pass. If #cyclingistransit - and it is - this idea is one that should be considered. Yup the infrastructure would have to be updated, but it would probably increase ridership by a crazy amount approaching Googol z.
http://www.thestranger.com/slog/2016/03/25/23867404/pronto-orca-card-and-the-new-mobility
media.nj.com
There are stories that make me smile just because of what they mean for cycling. In Jersey City, it seems bike share users and those who ride their personal bikes are not locked in controversy. The private owners want bike share users who hog the public bike parking to be fined. Hah! And kinda the reverse, if the hoggers happen to be private bike owners. Solution: There need to be more bike parking so everyone can ride. Simple. Normalize Cycling. This seems like a battle between two super heroes, or an argument between two doctors who have discovered different and efficacious cures for cancer. They all need more space to keep doing what they are doing.http://www.hudsonreporter.com/view/full_story/27138601/article-Bike-Wars-Jersey-City-ordinance-may-ban-Hudson-Bike-Share-parking-and-impose-fines-?instance=jersey_city_top_story
www.cbc.ca
Once again a city's merchants - now it is Vancouver - are expressing fear that bike lanes will cut into their businesses. Perhaps if they only sold stacked washers and dryers or cement pylons, and only had front-of-the-store access, but otherwise they should expect their profits to go up. And they would help this guy, cruising along and trying to decide if he'd rather be doored or crushed by a box truck full of baked goods.http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2016/03/commercial-drive-bike-lanes/
www.wyomingnews.com
Isn't Cheyenne, Wyoming where Dick Cheney comes from? (Yes, I ended a question with a preposition. Please get over it.) So Cheyenne now has free bike share? Hmmmmm. And it is not a gag article. http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/wyoming/cheyenne-launches-free-bike-sharing-pilot-program/article_837cb3e9-6252-5a6b-9879-26e3372b059c.html
And for those who cycling news from seemingly unlikely places, Memphis' bike/pedestrian coordinator (yes, they have one), Kyle Wagenschutz, is moving on to a job with the advocacy group People for Bikes.
http://www.memphisflyer.com/NewsBlog/archives/2016/03/25/kyle-wagenschutz-takes-new-job-at-peopleforbikes
So, if I see you in the bike lane, and you are headed anywhere, and you are of any political persuasion, let's be smug.
Elisa P.
#normalizecycling
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