two for tuesday: mexico city and nyc bike share programs

SF has a bike share program, but it is nowhere to the extent that mexico city and the newly introduced new york city programs. the sf program has been discussed since before ade and meli started this blog, but we haven't seen much progress due to delays, politics, delays, delays and more delays.

well, in the meantime, mexico city introduced its ecobici in 2010. as regular readers know, i went to mexico city late last year, and my boyfriend and i were very excited to try it out. we didn't realize at the time that we needed to live in mexico city in order to use them. disappointed, yes, but we were pleased to see that the bikes were used often. we also saw trucks at night redistributing the bikes among various stations. not to mention physically separated bike lanes and a diverse bike community. there are group rides every day.





as you may also know, i lived in nyc for quite some time. 8 years to be exact. i rode my bike while i lived there, but i didn't ever consider it a viable transportation option since legendary stories of bikes being stolen are bountiful. bill cunningham has had a bike stolen 28 times (at least of the time of his documentary--hope that's it though)! so i rode, but just casually.

as has been plastered everywhere in the media lately, NYC introduced its own bike share this past monday. i wish nothing but the best for this program. since i've lived there, over 300 miles of bikes lanes have been introduced, and nyc streets are slowly changing in order to accommodate less cars, more bikes.



incidentally on my old evening commute, i would ride by a spin class and i would always glance in...but i digress.

bitchcakes, whose blog is sadly on infinite hiatus, is still on flickr and shared some pictures of her citibike trip.



that picture reminded me of the bike i rode in DC last year.



can't wait to see how this citibike share goes. if interenet pictures are any indication, this will be a well documented event.



i don't know what it is going to take for SF to finally introduce its own widespread bikeshare program. in the meantime, i know of some extra bikes for tourists and newbies to borrow. heh. or maybe it'll take going to mexico city and learning something about efficient public transportation and bike infrastructure...kinda like what city leaders are doing. hmm.

Arthursday: Dr. Sketchy's 5th Annual Cute Girls on Bicycles

last week our friends over at dr. sketchy's SF version of their anti-art school had their 5(!!) annual cute girls on bicycles. dr. sketchy's hosts monthly events where they have a really fun themed live drawing get together. the month before this one featured luchadores. need i say any more?

all images link back to where i found them, via the individual artist. go forth and find out more about them!

video: bike to work week and oak street improvements

as i wrote on fb yesterday, there are some big changes on three mere blocks of san francisco's 7x7 slice of earth.

so excited to see this green paint going up on one of the more precarious streets to bike on in SF. it is basically a one way highway for cars that bring people from the west side of town to downtown and other actually designated freeways. bikes share three blocks of this stretch of road.

one of our "reporters on the scene" took some video during his commute to work. oak street is getting some improvements. the actual ride is a bit precarious due to the construction. but nothing totally out of the complete ordinary on a workday commute.



have you noticed any bikey improvements going on in anticipation of bike to work day? SF's bike to work day is tomorrow, THURSDAY, may 9. when is yours in your town? SF tends to be earlier than normal. other than that in these parts of the interwebs bike to work day is everyday, of course.

KALW: social media helps find stolen bikes

in all the excitement of losing (via theft) and finding joanie, i thought this would be appropriate to share.

KALW is one local SF public radio station. yes, we have more than one. they recently did a story on how social media can help find stolen bikes. listen to the epic (in the true sense of the word, not the recently overused version of the word) story of how one man found his stolen bike SIX YEARS LATER.

take a listen.

bike snob video: we made the final cut!

if you look closely you'll recognize some familiar faces in the video. heh.

as you'll recall a few weeks ago, KT and i had galavanted all over SF doing various cycle-related things while the weather was like a nice spring day back in what is technically called winter.

here is the result of one of our fridays about town.



can you see us? if you squint hard enough, i think you'll see a familiar face, or a pattern of clothes or something.

WE MADE IT!

friday fun times: sf (via nyc) video shoot

apologies for the quietness, but we've been hard at work over here in SF. just tryin' to make a livin'.



and in the spirit of that, a couple of days ago i happened to see there was a tweet laying for me to pick it up as the sun shone in my eyes begging me to wake up and face the day.

Xtras needed for SF video shoot. 12-1pm Thu. in South Park, 3-5pm Fri. at Windmill.Wear your interpretation of "Euro," Dutch bikes a +!

— Bike Snob NYC (@bikesnobnyc) February 4, 2013

well, being that i don't appear very "EURO," whatever that means (i've heard rumors that my ancestors surely have heard of these european fellas), i decided i'd go to people watch whether they would have me or not. i mean i've got to be at least 5-30% european. so my lips show and tell me.

oh, and also the place for the open casting was very close to where i work 9 to 5.

and this is a little bit of what transpired yesterday afternoon. it was lovely to see ladyfleur and bike pretty and their gorgeous bikes as well!



this afternoon there's more open casting calls for people that have flexi time schedules per the tweetie bird above. and yes, bike snob, we do work, but some of us are lucky enough to be able to do our work from wherever the world we may be, only if it is connected to the matrix. having reasonable supervisors helps as well...

so now where did i put my music bike?

two for tuesday: buses and pedestrians

unfortunately this morning on my way to work i witnessed a bus hit a pedestrian and her little dog (i guess s/he's a pedestrian too). made me think of what kind of city we live in, what kind of factors we need to negotiate in our daily lives just to get to work, to school, to wherever.

the person looked like she'd be ok when i left. another bike commuter behind me commented, "that was hard to watch." indeed it was.

then this morning i got my weekly newsletter from the bike coalition talking about their taxi driver education program:

You probably know that the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition teaches free bicycle education classes. But did you know that last year we launched a program to teach all new taxi drivers how to share the streets with people on bike? We know that educating frequent drivers about safely sharing the streets with bikes is crucial to making your ride around our great city much safer. Last week, we celebrated our one year anniversary of the taxi training!

In 2012, our instructors have led two courses per month, and taught over 1,000 taxi drivers how to pass bike riders safely, how to avoid dooring, and how to safely turn when people on bikes are on the road! By working to educate these frequent drivers, along with our dozens of classes for bike commuters, we’re making our streets safer for everyone. Hopefully this great program is already making a difference in your ride. Please remember that the only way we can educate the thousands of people -- both behind the wheel and on two-wheels -- is with the support of people like you.

i believe they have muni driver's education as well, but i will need to confirm it. either way, makes me think of everyone's safety and how we judge importance of running lights, or getting ahead of the light to cross the street.

please stay safe everyone. and what's the hurry? you'll get to where you are going in due time. and muni, take some advice from your own campaign. and is driver education enough? what, dear readers, do you think we can do?

Getting Critical For 20 Years

The ride that started it all was 20 years ago this month!  No matter what you think about Critical Mass, if you ride a bicycle in any city that has a bicycle lane or a sharrow or bicycle racks to park on you owe that first ride, and every one since, for making sure that the rights of bicyclists all over the world are kept in the public eye.  Critical Mass stopped us being invisible.  Critical Mass made those of us on the road a force to be reckoned with.  Critical Mass kept the conversation going at a time when it was being silenced.

The media and those who just can not, or will not, see beyond their dashboards will never see anything more than the controversy. They will only ever see a 10 minute disruption of their drive as the worst thing to happen in their lives (and if it is, how lucky they are!).  They will never see the people in front of them.

According to some, Critical Mass is only a bunch of hooligans out to cause mayhem and ruin it for everyone,

that only the "able bodied" and "young" and "athletic" can particiapte,

only young men out to destroy are there,

it sets a bad example for the kids who see the mayhem.

And yet, it has become a world wide movement, in spite of its "hooligan" tendencies.

So while Critical Mass looks different to different people, it is, whether it means to be or not, the public and in your face fight for the future of little kids with stuffed penguins on their helmets. Isn't that what all protests strive to be about?

Happy 20th, Critical Mass!  No offense, but I hope we don't need you in another 20.

Time To Get Fixing!

I have a long standing relationship with San Francisco Municipal Railways, Muni.  I have been a rider of Muni buses my whole life.  Everyone in San Francisco likes to complain about our bus system, but the fact is Muni makes it possible to get anywhere in SF without a car.  Now that the buses have bicycle racks on them, getting around on public transportation is easier than ever.  However, there are issues.

Two years ago I had to call the Muni complaint line several times a week because bus drivers along my route refused to change lanes to pass anyone on a bicycle .  Several times I was pushed into parked cars because Muni drivers would not give me room when they passed.  Many times they tailed me too closely and honked for me to get out of their way (on a two lane road) or cut me off after passing unsafely at bus stops.  After about the 12th complaint I noticed that this was no longer a problem and that someone had decided to do some training.  Not one driver on that line has since been a problem in the last two years.  When a second bus line was added to our street I had to start the complaints again because no one had taught the new bus line drivers that being aggressive with 70 ton buses against human beings on bicycles was unprofessional.  That has changed and I now find all of the Muni drivers to be very courteous and considerate.  I never have any problems with them anymore (thanks Muni!!)

So here is my new battle.  Can you see the problem(s)?

This is an outbound 43 Masonic and this is the sorry excuse for a bus stop that you can find at Judson and Gennessee.  During school hours, (school meaning CCSF, the largest learning institution in the United States, and Riordan High School) every single 43 driver stops here, blocking all lanes of traffic and forcing dozens of bus passengers at a time to exit into an active bike lane.  As you can see. there are usually cars involved, too.  There are times I have been stuck here, swarmed by people for as long as 3 minutes at a time.  It is a very, very busy drop off.  Absolutely no attempt has been made to make this a safe stop for anyone and there is always tension as a result.  Other than a strip of paint, there is no formal bus stop here.

This happens at the even busier 43 stop on the inbound route on Phelan Blvd. at the college's main entrance.  At that stop I am frequently passed by 43 drivers who cross a double yellow line into moving traffic to allow enough room to make a sharp right turn cutting off the lane of car traffic, and the bike lane without actually stopping near the bus shelter.  This forces me to make emergency stops to prevent being hit by the tail of the bus while I am simultaneously swarmed by passengers walking out into the street and bike lane to meet the bus (many times the back end of the bus is still partially blocking the traffic in the opposite direction!)

I have called to complain about this, but I have seen no change.  So now I am calling Muni out publicly.  Muni drivers are professional drivers with special licenses and they know better. Muni needs to do something about this.  Now!  The area around CCSF is extremely busy and is a primary bicycle corridor.  Drivers need to drive like professionals who care about the people around them and Muni and the City need to ensure that every bus stop in this corridor is planned for the safety of all.  Get on it, people!


Addendum- and here is the same stop back in April, at the tale end of about 40 people getting off the bus.

america's cup visits SF & spectators came by bike.

last wednesday, the much talked about america's cup started their trials in SF. i do not follow this sort of fast boat racing, but let's just say that people were a little excited in our bike valet part of the world. an international event gives us visibility into the service the bike coalition provides.



SFist reported that the viewership was pretty low during the week. my guess is that people were WORKING or in school and, despite their hopes and dreams, were not able to skip either even though this sport has a reputation for being popular with the haves (as opposed to have nots).

despite feeling pretty crappy due to a cold i caught earlier in the week, i was called to go into work. and lo and behold...there was some bike parking going on. time to get to work.





as you can tell by the pictures, we were busy. pedestrian, car and bike traffic were all bustling. good thing we were around and parked about 500 bikes each day.



on sunday, what i believe will be declared the first day of SF summer, the weather was lovely. i even got to wear a short sleeved shirt near the open waters. but the jeans, the jeans were still on.

i walked in the village and saw this life-sized bottom of a racing boat. crazy.



was an interesting event to be a part of. hopefully we'll be back and parking bikes the rest of the time they are in town from now until 2013.

until then, we always have this picture of the first day of summer. and no fog in sight.

happy bike to work day!

for me, everyday is bike to work day. so during bike to work WEEK, i try to dress up a little bit more to be a good ROLL model.

these past couple of days have been pretty warm (for SF standards), so time to bring out the dresses!

there are thousands of new bikers expected to hit the streets. here in SF, local officials have a VIP ride and the mayor, along with other city officials and policy makers, rides to city hall on a (his?) bike. this shows how much work the SFBC has done in order to have some political clout at city hall.

and on that note, i'm off to find an energizer station and some swag!

support a burgeoning local business!

mamak: a common roadside food stall found in Malaysia.

meet ian.

doesn't he look like a great person? that is because he is. in addition to being great fun, he also wants to be is a bike powered business owner. that's right. not only is ian a great person with fantastic positive energy, he wants to change his life by owning and operating mamakSF, a pedal-powered food cart.

Born and raised in Malaysia. Migrated to Southern California as a teen. Now a happy transplant in San Francisco. Growing up in Malaysia and eating at mamak stalls was the highlight of my eating life. Love of food and cycling fuels my desire to feed Malaysian inspired food from my pedal-powered food cart to everyone.

here's a video explaining his idea.



how can you help? ian has a kickstarter campaign to raise funds to help build his pedal powered business. it's great to see a minority business owner get started! ian has done a lot of good things for the biking community here in SF. now it's our turn to contribute to this great cause.

oh, and the toadies are GREAT. and my mouth is watering thinking of the (veggie) rojak! mmmm.

follow ian and mamakSF on the interwebs:
website
twitter
facebook
email him! eat@mamaksf.com

This Is San Francisco : Outside Lands

As you saw yesterday, we have stared a little cross pollination project between us, Vélo Vogue and Wheelright.  It is always interesting to see things from varying perspectives and so here is mine, just a little late.

I grew up in what people have, once again, started calling the Outside Lands.  Its official name is the Sunset District.  On the day we were all out there the Great Highway, the road that has physically separated the neighborhood from the shore line for decades, was closed to traffic for Sunday Streets.

This road was the terror of the neighborhood when I was growing up.  Six lanes of unregulated, high speed traffic with zero areas for people to cross on foot to reach the beach.  In 1983 most of the road and the adjacent sand dunes were destroyed by massive waves that crested over the road (20 feet above above and 30 feet in from the high water line) and the whole thing had to be rebuilt and reinforced. It is a constant battle, to the tune of millions of dollars, to keep this road safe for car traffic.  The whole road is built on sand dunes (most of which are a protected bird sanctuary)!  I am not sure why anyone thought that was a good idea and every year we are reminded it wasn't.

 At that time the road was redesigned with traffic control and crossover points at every street.  Pedestrian paths were created along the sides of the highway and we all thought it was great!  It never occurred to us to want more.  The whole Outer Sunset was in the throws of deep decline and anything we got seemed like manna from heaven.  Now, I think there are many, many people who not only dream but work toward shutting this highway down and turning it into open public space.  I think they will succeed and I look forward to that day.

 Today, when it isn't closed to traffic, bicyclists have to share the side path with joggers and dogs and walkers.  It is a beautiful path but it isn't enough.  The whole coast should be open to people to roam freely, to ride a bicycle or fly along on their skates or teach their children how to kite board.  I don't say this because I hate all cars, I say it because I have lived with this road and its impact on the neighborhood for 40 years.  The Outer Sunset deserves better.

In the meantime, there is always the beach. Miles and miles of beach to love and live on and be a part of.

So while I left the Sunset happily in 1984 to live in the Mission District, there is always a part of me that lives there.  There is always a part of me that misses the salt air and the fog horns and the never ending barrage of sand blowing into my home even with the windows closed.  I miss the kites flying above and the crazy surfers who head out daily to freeze in the violent surf and the pot smokers and the teenagers having bonfires as the sun goes down.

A little video of a regular day on the Great Highway.

a truly SF bike...

in case some of you missed the memo, a few days ago was April 20. in case you don't know what that means, in numerical form it's 4/20, or a nickname of pot/maryjane/marijuana/etc. there were lots of celebrations in SF for that reason. seriously.

a few days before 420, i was in the lower haight, which some may know also houses a lot of medicinal mj clubs. it was only after 4/20 that i made the connection about this bike and the "california national holiday" of 420.

this bike was parked in front of toronado, a very excellent beer place for beer lovers.

happy monday y'all!

bicycle safety in sf

on friday i alluded to an incident that happened recently here in sf. it's horriblehorrible thing, something is wrong when people get hit by cars, bikes, etc. or seeing pedestrians scurrying across the street because they are scared to be hit. that is a failure in urban planning.

here's a local npr radio show which discusses the aftermath of this incident which, for worse, gets a disproportional amount of coverage versus when a car his a pedestrian or a cyclist. i am not excusing what happened, especially based on what we know so far but here's some discussion...



San Francisco prosecutors are deciding whether to file charges against a cyclist who recently struck a pedestrian in a fatal collision. While bike accidents leading to pedestrian fatalities are rare, this is the second such incident in the past year. With more and more cyclists taking to Bay Area streets, we take up the issue of bicycle safety.

Host: Michael Krasny

Guests:

• Leah Shahum, executive director of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition
• Elizabeth Stampe, executive director of Walk San Francisco, a pedestrian advocacy organization
• Al Casciato, captain in San Francisco Police Department
• Bert Hill, chair of the Bicycle Advisory Committee, which considers bicycle transportation projects and policies and makes recommendations to the Board of Supervisors and other SF city and county agencies
• Herbert Weiner, San Francisco resident who has gone before the SFMTA board to discuss his concerns about Muni, transportation issues and cyclists

Family Riding

In San Francisco there are three things you can find in magnitudes of hugeness- taco trucks, bicycles that are poorly locked and have unlubed chains, and dogs. They are usually in some combination.

Here is a bicycle/dog combo completed by my friend Deep and his little sweetie, Baozi. It was their first bicycle outing (Deep was in severe cookie withdrawal so the dog needed to learn how to be a passenger. Now.)

I am accustomed to seeing Deep like this, with rickshaw and fiancee in full swing.

Now, we will all have to get used to this view. Personally, I am waiting for the fiancee/dog/music system combo to be truly impressed.

Deep rides with many other SF dog families.

This guy wins!!