Why I Joined the BAW Board of Directors

By baw_admin | Published September 13, 2011
Mary disguised as her alter ego, Sprocket Hero.

About two years ago I got a call from acting executive director Dave Janis. He asked if I might consider applying for the BAW Board of Directors. After giving it some thought I decided to apply. I liked the idea of being on a Board with lots of other bicycle enthusiasts. It sounded fun and the thought that I could help make Washington a better place for bicyclists was alluring. Plus, it’s nice to be part of something bigger than oneself, part of something that is making a positive change in the world.


Weather you bike for transportation, recreation, fitness or fun, I’m sure you love it. Some of us love it a little more than others, these are the people we need on the Board. People who are enthusiastic about bicycling and making Washington a better place to bike for everyone. People who want to see more kids biking to school, more adults biking to work and more people trying a century ride.

Each board member has a different story and brings different abilities to the table. Some of us are comfortable talking with our legislators and lobbying for the rights of cyclists in Olympia, some of us aren’t. Some of us teach bicycle education to kids, others wouldn’t know what to do with a group of kids on bikes. Our interests and abilities are as vast as the citizens of Washington, but we have one thing that unites us: BIKES.
We need a few more outstanding citizens to join our Board of Directors. Could you be one of them?

Current geographical ares we need representation from include: Yakima, Wenatchee and Kitsap/Olympic Peninsula. If you don’t live in those areas but are still interested in applying, please do so!

A passion for our work, the ability to lead with a team, and time to devote to board responsibilities are a must. Prior board and business experience is a plus. Ready to apply? Please submit a letter of interest with credentials to Board@wabikes.org by September 30.
Posted in News, Volunteer | Comments Off on Why I Joined the BAW Board of Directors

Bicycle Alliance Endorses Streets for All Campaign to fund Active Transportation and Transit in Seattle

By baw_admin | Published September 12, 2011


This post was submitted by Blake Trask, Statewide Policy Director.
 
Join us at the Campaign Kick-Off TOMORROW, Tuesday, September 13!
Today Washington Bikes Board announced its endorsement of Seattle’s Proposition 1 – a 10-year $204 million package of investments in bicycling, walking, road repair, maintenance, and transit.
These investments are significant because they prioritize family-friendly bike infrastructure, increases in safety for everyone with new sidewalks, better crosswalks, repave and repair local streets to make them work better for everyone. For each year of its 10-year life, Proposition 1 will directly dedicate $1.4 million to bicycle improvements, $3 million for pedestrian and neighborhood improvements, up to $7 million in roadway maintenance improvements that can include Complete Streets elements, and close to $10 million in transit improvements.
In short, Proposition 1 represents a new way of funding transportation – one that prioritizes safer streets, more Complete Streets, and better transit, too.
To ensure investments in biking are effectively implemented, the Bicycle Alliance endorsement includes our commitment to carefully follow and monitor implementation activities.
Help us support the campaign! Please join us at 6pm, tomorrow, Tuesday, September 13th at Moe Bar (1425 10th Ave E) as we officially kick off the Streets For All Seattle campaign to keep Seattle moving.
For additional information and volunteer opportunities, visit www.streetsforallseattle.org.
Thanks and see you tomorrow!
Posted in Advocacy, Alert, Funding/Policy, Infrastructure, Issues & Advocacy, Seattle, Transportation | Comments Off on Bicycle Alliance Endorses Streets for All Campaign to fund Active Transportation and Transit in Seattle

2012 Legislative Agenda Set

By baw_admin | Published September 12, 2011
The Bicycle Alliance board approved a set of 2012 legislative priorities as recommended by the Legislative & Statewide Issues Committee.  Our agenda will include:
  •  Continued support of HB1700, which carries over from 2011 and would encourage higher-quality bike and pedestrian facilities by allowing greater flexibility in design standards.
  •  Continued support of HB1217, which would give cities and counties the authority to establish 20 mph zones on some non-arterial streets to lower accident rates and protect vulnerable users.
  • Work with other non-profits to support a transportation funding package called Transportation for Washington.
  • Work with WSDOT and others to support funding for the Complete Streets bill passed in 2011.
  • Use 2012-2013 to see if there is support for a 3-5’ safe passing bill and, if so, build a coalition of support.
Please check the Legislative Page at wabikes.org or read our blog for more information and updates.  And mark your calendars now for 2012 Transportation Advocacy Day in Olympia on January 31!
Posted in Advocacy, Complete Streets, Funding/Policy, Issues & Advocacy, Transportation | Comments Off on 2012 Legislative Agenda Set

SPD Says Call 911 When a Motor Vehicle Driver Acts Aggressively Towards You as a Bicycle Driver

By Administrator | Published September 8, 2011

One morning this week while riding to work at about 7:00 AM I was aggressively cut off by a car driver. I was travelling south on 5th Avenue at about 17 MPH in the right curb lane approaching the Pine Street intersection (at the south end of the monorail in Seattle) and the driver of a late model white Subaru Impreza (WA ABW 3335) aggressively merged into my travel lane forcing me to brake and move towards the curb. I slowed and honked my air horn. After she passed through the intersection she turned her head back to look and flew me the bird. The driver was a brown-haired middle-aged woman.

I moved out of the roadway onto the sidewalk and looked for paper and pen to write down the plate number and vehicle description. Somehow I didn’t have anything to write with so I memorized the plate number. I didn’t think that I should call 911, and that was my mistake.  

Later after getting to work and navigating the Seattle Police Department directory and automated phone system I talked to a human on a non-emergency line. She was very helpful and told me that I should have called 911 even though there was no physical harm or explicit verbal threat. She said if I had called immediately they would have put out a call to officers in the area and looked for the driver and vehicle, come and talked to me etc.
I am not a vindictive person, nor overly oriented towards crime and punishment but I did want to seek some recourse after being run off the road. So, if you find yourself in a similar situation, go right ahead and call 911 immediately and make a report.
Keep the situational awareness up and the rubber side down. Happy urban biking!
Posted in Attitudes, Commuting, Legal, Safety, Share the Road | 4 Comments

Summer Rides

By baw_admin | Published September 7, 2011

I shot and edited this video at the final everybodyBIKE Summer Ride – #17, the Woods to Woods Spruce Social, on Sunday, August 21, 2011. It’s my first attempt at a helmet camera and editing, so please be forgiving.

Posted in Rides, Whatcom County | Comments Off on Summer Rides

New Bike Box in Seattle’s Fremont Neighborhood

By Administrator | Published September 6, 2011
Photo by David McLean.
The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) has installed a bike box at the intersection of Fremont Ave N and N. 34th St. in Fremont. This photograph is courtesy of David McLean and illustrates the view east down 34th street from the crosswalk on Fremont Ave. The Fremont bridge is 90 degrees to the viewer’s right from this vantage point.
SDOT has a page on bike boxes that can be found here: http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/bikeboxes.htm. This new bike box is the latest addition to SDOT’s bike box program. The initial round last summer created three bike boxes and now we have four in Seattle. Some European cities have used bike boxes for years and Portland, OR has also applied bike box treatments to some of their intersections.
Bike boxes require some re-learning on the part of bicycle riders and motorists alike. The SDOT bike box page linked above explains how different road users should treat bike boxes. The intention of bike boxes is to help with the visibility of cyclists by other road users by putting them at the front of the queue for a traffic light. Not only do bike boxes help separate left and right-turning traffic from through traffic–they also make bicycle riders more visible to oncoming traffic, which helps reduce the likelihood of oncoming traffic making a left turn into a bicyclist at an intersection (the often injurious or fatal ‘left hook’). 
Keep an eye out for our changing bicycle and roadway infrastructures and don’t be surprised if you see more bike boxes or other new facilities types in Seattle. According to one source, Seattle is the only city in the State of Washington to apply bike box treatments to intersections, although that may be changing when we see great successes here with the bike box program.
Posted in Commuting, Complete Streets, Infrastructure, Seattle, Share the Road, Transportation | 2 Comments

Ride for a purpose in September

By baw_admin | Published August 31, 2011

Yes, the days are noticeably shorter.  And yes, kids are heading back to school.  But there’s still plenty of good bike riding in September, and the following rides support the advocacy and education efforts of the Bicycle Alliance.
Looking for a bike ride on Labor Day?  Ride PROS!
PROS, which stands for Perimeter Ride of Seattle, is an annual Labor Day ride organized by the Cyclists of Greater Seattle (COGS).  The 80-mile ride–which literally follows the perimeter of the city–features lofty hills with 4200 feet of elevation gain, water views and cityscapes.  There is also a 60-mile option with 2700 feet of gain.
Cycle the WAVE on September 18 is a women’s only non-competitive ride with options available for all levels.  You can choose from the 25-mile Girly Girl route to the 62-mile metric century with climbs.  This rides benefits domestic violence programs.
Spend a week (September 11-16) riding the scenic Oregon Coast with the People’s Coast Classic.  The ride features 50- to 70-mile days, with rest stops and activities along the way.  Dinner and camping is included.  Two and four day options are also available.  The ride is fundraiser for the Arthritis Foundation.
WaCanId is a another multi-day tour (September 20-24).  This scenic 5-day tour travels the acclaimed International Selkirk Loop through Washington, Idaho and British Columbia.  This fully supported ride benefits seven local rotary clubs.
Keep pedaling into fall and beyond!
Posted in Events, Rides | Comments Off on Ride for a purpose in September

Can a commuter morph into a roadie?

By baw_admin | Published August 30, 2011

I ride my bike nearly everyday, although I don’t log very many miles. I live about 2 miles from my work, so my daily mileage is around 7-10 miles, depending on how many errands I run, or if I decide to take the ‘long way home’. Every once in a while I have to go to a meeting in a neighboring town, if that’s the case I may ride up to 25 miles round trip. I do this on my commuter bike. I don’t own a road bike, however, I may soon.

During the hubbub of the Tour de France and the STP my brother threw out an idea: “Why don’t we try and do the STP next year or the year after”. You see, he recently inherited our child bike seat and has been biking all over Renton with his almost two year old. He’s been bitten by the bike bug and I couldn’t be happier.

I thought about his challenge, the STP, huh? Well, the furthest I’ve ridden in one day is 30 miles, and that was to go to work meetings, so it was split up. Also, like I said above, I don’t own a road bike. As much as the idea of doing a LONG ride (60+ miles) on Fred, my Big Dummy Complete intrigues me, I’m pretty sure my body would be happier with an actual road bike. Not to mention the skinny tires, it’d be so much easier, well as easy as 60+ miles can be.

So now I’m in the conundrum of buying another bike. But I’m a commuter, not a roadie. I don’t know the first thing about road bikes. If you’ve read the book Bike Snob, you can laugh with me about the different types of bicyclists and how they may or may not get along. If you haven’t read it, you should, it’s hilarious!

A trip to my local bike shop was educational, I learned a lot about road bikes and the different components. I’m still not sold yet, I’ll admit. While I can justify spending a lot of money on my commuter bike, we only own one car, I’m getting exercise, it’s awesome, I use it every day, etc. It’s harder for me to justify spending a lot on a road bike that I will ride a couple times a week. So to answer the question, can a commuter morph into a roadie? I honestly don’t know. I like the idea of doing a century, I’m just not so sure about the the spandex and $800+ price tag of a new bike.

What do you think? Can you convince me to do it? Do you have a similar story to share? Do you have tips on buying a road bike?

Posted in Bike Blogs, Bike Culture, Commuting, Gear/Maintenance, Humor, Rides, Transportation | 8 Comments

Bike Cage Opens in Tacoma

By baw_admin | Published August 29, 2011
Photo: Downtown on the Go

Bike commuting to downtown Tacoma just got a little easier with the opening of the Park Plaza North bike cage. You’ll find it on the fifth floor of the garage, directly across from the skybridge to Broadway.

The bike cage offers secure, 24/7 bike parking for folks who bike to work in downtown Tacoma. The cage, which comfortably accommodates a dozen bikes, is accessed with a security code. You provide your own bike lock. There’s a nominal fee to use the bike cage–$8 per quarter or $25 per year.

Ready to sign up? Just download the agreement from Downtown on the Go website, sign it, and return it with your payment. You’ll receive a personal security code to access the bike cage. Start parking!

There’s a grand opening ceremony for the Bike Cage this Wednesday, August 31 from 8-8:30am.  A second bike cage is in the works at Pacific Plaza.

Posted in Bike Parking, Commuting, Tacoma | Comments Off on Bike Cage Opens in Tacoma

Board Transitions

By Louise McGrody | Published August 24, 2011

Washington Bikes bid farewell to two valued board members this summer.

After seven years of service, Kristin Kinnamon of Marysville stepped down from the board.  Her tenure included stints as chair of the Legislative Committee, 2nd Vice President and President.  We will miss her leadership and energy.

Citing the pressures of a new job, John Whitlow of Bainbridge Island also resigned from the board.  He joined the Bicycle Alliance board in 2009.
 

Joe Platzner of Newcastle will fill the spot of 2nd Vice President, which became vacant with Kristin’s departure.  Brian Foley of Auburn rounds out the Executive Committee as Secretary.  This role opened when Eileen Hyatt, Spokane, moved off the committee.  She continues to serve as a board member.
Kirste Johnson
Kirste Johnson has been appointed to fill an unexpired board position.  A former bicycle and pedestrian planner for the Puget Sound Regional Council, she now works for Public Health-Seattle & King County’s Communities Putting Prevention to Work grant.

As a board member, Kirste is interested in advocating for the creation of communities where it is easier and safer for all kinds of people to bike. 
“I’d feel a sense of accomplishment if all members of the Washington legislature no longer refer to bicycling as ‘alternative’ transportation,” Kirste responded when asked what she’d like to accomplish as a board member.
Kirste lives in Seattle with her partner Chris, owner of Rosebud Bicycle Builds.  When she’s not biking, she enjoys cooking, books, movies, hiking, surfing and playing her accordion.
You can read about all the folks who serve on the Bicycle Alliance board and staff here.

Do you want to be a mover and shaker in making Washington the best state for bicycling?  Join the Bicycle Alliance’s board of directors!  A passion for our work, the ability to lead with a team, and time to devote to board responsibilities are a must.  Please submit a letter of interest with credentials to Board@wabikes.org by September 30.
Posted in News, People, Volunteer | Comments Off on Board Transitions