PROACTIVE OR REACTIVE
Thread started by
sexy at 07.14.08 - 9:57 am
It seems to be everybody around here get all hot under the collar after the fact. Something happens and everybody around here is up in arms. Just look at the reaction to what happened on Mandeville Canyon. People are ready to lynch the driver. Pissed at the council member who decided it would be counter productive to have a room full of people bitching at each other, and not listening to one another. Somebody else gets a ticket for corking, and they want to sue the city because the police frisked you. This is all after the fact.
Today we have an organized event complete with Media coverage. The top city policy makers will be there. What is going on.???????
A unfortunately "small" group of cyclist will be at LA city hall to demand that the city adopt the
cyclist bill of rights.
A bill to have the city of LA recognize your rights to ride on the street free from harassment and harm from motorist and police. A bill that will consider bikes in all means of transportation in the city. A bill that will mean you will be able to board on public transportation with your bike whenever a bus or train arrives.
Where will you be??? on where talking about the next movie. Talking about the last ride you went on, or the next ride you go on.
You will be hailing insults at me for posting this, or making fun of a grammar or spelling error, or better yet labeling me a naysayer.
You have a opportunity to be part of this. Come down to city hall at noon today. Or meet at Santa Monica and Vermont a top the red line station and enjoy a ride with the group heading over there.
The choice is yours. You can come out and try to avoid the next problem you may encounter on your bike, because of being looked over by transportation planner, having police rolls there eyes at you when you where side swiped and the driver took off, etc, etc. OR You can come out today and see that policy is implemented to make sure these things don't happen to you or other cyclist.
reply
email : metroletter@live.com
to sign the petition.
Letter is as Follows ---->
Dear Metro Boardmember,
As currently proposed, Metro's plan to spend the $40 billion that would be created by a half cent increase in the county sales tax includes no funds set aside specifically for bicycle and pedestrian projects. This is a critical mistake, both from political and public planning perspectives. Given recent headlines, it is impossible to argue that the county is meeting cyclists' needs and after all, anyone that uses public transportation is a pedestrian at the beginning and end of their trip.
By not funding two popular and sustainable modes of transportation, Metro is unwittingly alienating people who would likely support both the proposed increase and many of the projects the increase would fund. To fix this problem, we propose setting aside 1% of the annual intake to fund bicycle projects and another 1% to fund pedestrian projects from the windfall that will be achieved by increasing the sales tax.
The case for better funding for pedestrian projects is an easy one to make. No matter one's preferred mode of transportation, for part of every trip the traveler spends some time as a pedestrian. People who walk to and from transit stops deserve wide, flat, unbroken sidewalks and attractive and comfortable shelter at the stops. People who only travel by foot are engaging in the most sustainable form of transportation and should be encouraged by their government officials to continue to do so.
Tens of thousands of LA residents travel everyday on their bikes, and many of them aren't doing it by choice, but because of economic reasons. While the law states that cyclists have equal rights to the road, the reality is they are not treated as equals by their fellow travelers. To not set aside funding for bicycles in a $40 billion budget just affirms what so many people erroneously believe, that bicyclists are second class users of our roads and should not be treated with the same respect as an automobile. Of course, the state of the bike networks in LA County varies wildly depending upon what municipality you happen to be in. Setting aside money for everyone to compete for would create an incentive for all municipalities to put forward deserving and well thought out bike project proposals.
At Metro's June Board Meeting, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa compared those interest groups fighting for a favorite project to people fighting over who gets the biggest cookie. Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky used the same analogy for pies. Taking their imagery to its logical conclusion, those fighting for better funding for bicycles and pedestrians aren't even allowed in the kitchen. Instead, we're being told to wait at the kid's table to battle it out for the leftover crumbs, i.e. the 20% of the budget called "Local Return" funds that filter back to individual communities to be spent as they wish. With just 2% of the total budget, you would not only send the message that non-motorized travel is critical to Los Angeles County's future, you also help create a future where cyclists and pedestrians have a safer and more enjoyable way to travel.
Sincerely,
Colin Bogart, Enci Box, Stephen Box, Josef Bray-Ali, Jason Burns, Liz Elliott, Rob Galbraith, Aimee Gilchrist, Siel Ju, Tony Jusay, Jennifer Klausner, Erik Knutzen, Dorothy Le, Jessica Meaney, Ron Milam, Deborah Murphy, Damien Newton, Ingrid Peterson, David Pulsipher, Shay Sanchez, Alex Thompson
ingipet07.14.08 - 10:44 am
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Ridazz Roulette!
