Motorists need to safely ‘share the road’

Tina Panza, education and Safe Routes to School director with Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition, recently made a presentation to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office about training and resource options. Her recent visit is the subject of a post by “Sonoma Sheriff” on Facebook.

‘Urban Cycling Survival Guide’ by Yvonne Bambrick

“[W]hether you’re left or right leaning, urban or suburban, rich or poor, bikes are simply one of the most accessible and efficient forms of urban mobility.”

That statement, for me, encapsulates the value of traveling by bicycle. It comes from a chapter titled “Advocacy and the future of cycling" in Yvonne Bambrick’s book, The Urban Cycling Survival Guide.

This book more-than lives up to its promise of “need-to-know skills and strategies.” It covers everything from selecting a bike, basic maintenance, common setbacks to cycling, as well as how to ride and coexist among pedestrians, other cyclists, and motorists.

As a rider, I believe it’s especially important to amplify sentiments like this:

Bicycling amenities are not just a perk for some small minority; by providing a clearly-marked space to safely ride, they enhance safety and predictability for all users of a roadway.

The addition of cycling amenities to roadways is the “single most important factor” for a growth among cycling ridership, and investment in bike lanes is considerably cheaper than adding more roads for cars.

Bambrick cites a statistic by April Economides, president of Green Octopus Consulting: As of 2008 in Portland, Oregon, a 300-mile bike network cost “the same amount as one mile of freeway.”

Bicyclists have an opportunity to shift the status-quo in transportation policy and planning, which for decades has been driven by car advocates and lobbyists.

Ultimately, then, Bambrick’s book is not just about how to ride safely in the city; by necessity, it’s about how to ensure that streets are ready for you, when you are ready to start riding. I checked it out from the library, but I’d consider adding this book to my personal collection.

‘Walk and Roll’ to school today

Here's a friendly reminder of "Walk and Roll" each Wednesday at Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts. If you haven't already, perhaps you'd give it a try?

The intention behind "Walk and Roll" is to promote alternatives to students commuting to school by car, which is why, every Wednesday, we close the gates to the school parking lot.

(Our school is located just a couple blocks away from bus stops on Mendocino Avenue -- a main corridor both for Santa Rosa CityBus and Sonoma County Transit. There are also places to park your vehicle just a couple blocks away, if you have a younger child or want to ease into the idea of not simply driving your child to school.)

With fewer cars pulling in and out of the driveway, safety is enhanced for those students (and adults) who want to travel to-and-from using "person-powered" transportation.

We admit after-school programs' vans, and people with disabilities who have DMV placards. But we ask that other motorists park safely and legally on the street.

Crossing guard at-risk from cars in Santa Rosa intersections

Santa Rosa crossing guard Mario D’Olivo says he “could have retired long ago if he had a dollar for every motorist who has zipped through the crosswalk despite the red traffic signal overhead and the stop sign in his hand, or who’s breezed by in clear violation of the no-cellphone-while-driving law.”

‘Walk and Roll,’ school gates close each Wednesday

School is out this week, in observance of Thanksgiving, but I want to reinforce “Walk and Roll” each Wednesday at Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts.

Calistoga-Santa Rosa bus would relieve road congestion

Petrified Forest Road, approaching Highway 128

Among thousands of motorists who travel each day between Calistoga and Santa Rosa, surely at least some would rather travel by bus than endure stop-and-go, backed-up traffic. I really want to see a bus route developed, either by Sonoma County Transit, by VINE Transit in Napa County or perhaps a joint-powers project.

A bus route between Calistoga and Santa Rosa would make sense for discerning motorists, because how much more enjoyable would it be to relax on a bus, mini-bus or coach? Maybe catch up on reading, enjoy an audio-book or browse news via onboard Wi-Fi. Viewing stalled cars in multiple directions, argues for at least SOME demand.

Aboard SMART Train during preview ride

At Santa Rosa North Station

“Easy to use,” was the pronouncement by one cyclist, securing his bicycle during a preview ride aboard SMART Train. As a cyclist I’d wanted to observe these conditions for myself after reading a review by another SMART Train rider. ​

SMART works out train scheduling

From November 2016: SMART test-run in Santa Rosa, Calif.

My email in-box is filled with regular updates as the date draws nearer when Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit will be open to public ridership.

Rogue Commute Challenge: Will Ashland schools win again?

Image credit: Rogue Commute Challenge

In Ashland School District (ASD), the Health Promotions Committee is getting ready for the Rogue Commute Challenge, a competition among teams to log the most miles by bicycling, walking, carpooling, etc. -- any trip taken by not driving a car alone.

Carbon-emission premium offsets impact of driving

In the majority of instances, we travel on-foot, by bus or bicycle to get where we need to go — but from time to time, there are occasions when, yes, we decide we need a car.

Dakota Access Pipeline: Not-driving as political protest

On Sunday, Jonathan and I took a wagonload of books — donations for Friends of the Library — with us on a two-mile walk from our apartment to Ashland downtown.

Multi-modal emphasis for road-performance rules

Photo credit: League of American Bicyclists Action Center

For an inspiring example of positive change through people’s actions productively directed: In mid-January, the U.S. Department of Transportation released system-performance rules for major U.S. roads. The rules set “multi-modal” performance measures for for air quality and ease of congestion, and require states to establish targets to increase bicycling, walking and public transit.

Political protest? Start thinking ‘eight moves ahead’!

by guest author Jonathan L. Donihue

O.K. folks, let’s get serious now. So far all the “fighting” that’s been done has been on the level of protests. For all intents and purposes, this is about as effective as throwing a tantrum.

There are many other ways to apply pressure. Here are a few.

What’s my ‘wave’? A double-decker bicycle rack

Double-decker bike racks at Southern Oregon University

Each month, my church uses “Soul Matters” study guides that promote small-group reflection. Each study guide poses questions for reflection, centered around one theme. For the theme of “Prophecy,” one of the questions asked, “What’s your wave?”

The study guide cites Rev. Dr. Rebecca Ann Parker stating, “It is a mistake to see [the prophet] as an isolated, heroic individual. It is better to see him/her as the crest of a wave.”

In answer, my “wave” is a double-decker bicycle rack, filled to capacity, in an empty auto-parking lot. The future I work toward, through advocacy and own-life choices, is one in which people only drive when it is absolutely necessary, when no other alternatives are available, or when driving forms an essential component of that person’s occupation.

In every other instance, people would take buses or trains, or engage in “active” or “people-powered” transportation: walking, rolling, pushing, cycling, etc.

To offer response to another question posed by the study guide: Getting people out of their cars is the issue I risk “being driven into the desert” for — by pointing out drivers’ culpability in issues like “Standing Rock” or global-warming rates.

Activists like those at Standing Rock must put their safety on the line because our oil use demands it. With our purchases at the pump, we make projects like the Dakota Access Pipeline viable — if not at Standing Rock, then somewhere else because our addiction to oil demands it. And we create nearly 1 pound of CO2 emissions for every mile we drive.

Cycling has advantages among commuting options

If you’re a person who is motivated by personal benefit when evaluating available options: here’s an important consideration for weighing your commuting choices.

North Bay offers many transportation options

SMART Train travels through Santa Rosa rail crossing

If there was a “theme” to our Thanksgiving-weekend visit back to California’s North Bay, it was the ease with which we were able to get around via “active” and public transportation.

Dakota Access Pipeline: If you drive, you support it

Groups I subscribe to, urge “bearing witness” and solidarity for Standing Rock Sioux activists who oppose construction of a new Dakota Access Pipeline to deliver fossil fuels.

Driving isn’t inevitable

With one day left in the Oregon Drive Less Challenge, it’s great to see the growing count of vehicle miles saved: 614,041 as of Friday, Oct. 14.

Oregon Drive Less Challenge, Oct. 1 to 15

Whenever people talk to me about traveling to downtown Ashland, the hassle of finding a parking space invariably comes up. With the “Oregon Drive Less Challenge,” I’d like to propose a less-stressful scenario.

Bike commute ‘inspires’ Library Journal editorial director

Bicycling for part of her commute has inspired Library Journal editorial director Rebecca T. Miller “to think even more about how we build, promote sustainable practices, and urge people toward healthy, physical engagement with where they are.” It’s great to see libraries involved in encouraging livability. I urge library systems to follow the examples highlighted in Miller’s editorial, to help create car-culture alternatives by hosting bike-share locations.