News, Links, and Other Views

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December Nights photo by Emily Valdez.

San Diego

  • This past weekend was December Nights, the annual holiday event in Balboa Park where almost all of the main park is closed to vehicle traffic. Not surprisingly, San Diegans respond by showing up in crowds. The crowds have spawned a twitter account complaining about said crowds. (via) Maybe San Diegans aren’t too enthused having all the available public land dominated by the automobile? Maybe I’m just dreaming.
  • Theresa Owens got 19 years for hitting and striking a group of riders, one of whom has been injured for life. Much thanks to the District Attorney’s Office for keeping on this case.
  • In cool news, maybe San Diego will one day be home to a binational bike lane.
  • Man Tracks Stolen Bike, Poses as Buyer to Catch Thief. Don’t do this as it could lead to bad outcomes in addition to a missing bicycle. Our own SDPD has a great bait bike program where the punishments aren’t punitive as much as they just serve as a deterrent. More details about the bike bait program can be reviewed in the Bicycle Advisory Committee meeting minutes from this past May.  If you need another reminder to not deal with the thieves on your own, here is a reminder. These thieves have no conscience or shame. You can prevent your bike from being stolen.
  • BikeSD board member and North Park resident, John Anderson, isn’t impressed with North Park being considered a bike friendly neighborhood, North Park – San Diego’s Weak Excuse for a Bike Friendly Place.
  • Peninsula Community Planning Board seeks to add more parks and a bicycle connection between “the Portuguese Hall to Cabrillo National Monument along Avenida de Portugal, Canon Street and Catalina Boulevard featuring additional landscaping and safe pedestrian and bicycle paths.”
  • In a story about the mid-city bike corridor through Talmadge, one commenter doesn’t want more bike lanes. But remains curiously silent about SANDAG’s plans to keep funding freeways.
  • Amgen California will return to San Diego next year.
  • Bicyclist in critical condition after crash on Mission Bay Drive

San Diego County

  • Caltrans plans to buy part of Manchester Ave. strawberry fields for a Park and Ride. It’s a miniscule part of the $6.5 billion I-5 widening plan Caltrans has cooked up despite also admitting that more roads mean more traffic.
  • Many bike projects are scheduled to begin construction in the new year.
  • The National City segment of implementing the Bayshore Bikeway is experiencing some headwinds
  • Imperial Beach is doing a lot of bike friendly things and becoming a safer city too.
  • In Coronado City Problems: the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition wrote an open letter asking for reasonableness. Coronado resident writes a letter about the bike advocate infiltration.
  • In Encinitas: a reasonable letter asking for more than the status quo half measures.
  • Only in Southern California, do we have a story that starts as follows, “[o]ne of Carlsbad’s busiest coastal parking lots…”. Fear not since the story is a few weeks old and so the parking lot is back in business.
  • In another part of Carlsbad, plans for a bike park and more were brought up at a recent community meeting.
  • El Camino Bike Shop is collecting used bicycles for a Holiday Basket program
  • At least one County Supervisor, Greg Cox, gets it. Here is a great profile about him.
  • City of Oceanside has installed speed monitors, relying on driver’s behavior instead of proven design to ensure road safety.
  • Painted lines don’t protect bicycle riders from drivers from driving into them. Hope the three riders who were struck are back on the bike soon.
  • Annika Walden of Encinitas wants safer bike lanes. Darius Degher pens an ernest essay on how bicycling will save us.
  • Carlsbad’s Thomas Arnold gripes about unused bike racks. Maybe instead of complaining, he could consider riding his bicycle and locking his bike to said racks and inspire his neighbors and friends or give him a parking space to someone who cannot ride a bicycle?
  • Carlsbad may get roundabouts.
  • Twelve-year old Oceanside boy killed in collision with pickup while riding his bike to school. His family needs help. Residents say the stretch where he was killed is unsafe.
  • For the first time, the state is asking local agencies to use traffic safety grant money to help reduce the rising number of pedestrians and cyclists who are being injured or killed on California’s roadways
  • Cyclist badly injured by Escondido hit-run driver

California

More news next week. Putting this together took a while.