VICTORY: San Diego City Council Approves $312 Million Bicycle Master Plan Update

San Diego County Bicycle Coalition applauds City for long-term bicycling vision  

SAN DIEGO, December 9, 2013 – Today San Diego City Council approved its Bicycle Master Plan Update, citywide policy to guide the development and maintenance of San Diego’s bicycle network including roadways, support facilities and non-infrastructure programs through the next twenty years.  The San Diego County Bicycle Coalition, an organization protecting the rights of all people who ride bicycles, says this is a historic step toward a regional bicycle network of interconnected corridors, support facilities and programs to make bicycling a viable form of transportation in the county.

“Bicycling transforms our city and our communities, and we need safer routes to encourage more people to ride to their jobs, local business districts and for everyday travel,” says Andy Hanshaw, executive director of the Bicycle Coalition. “Interim Mayor Todd Gloria and City Council continue to be strong advocates for bicycling in San Diego and I want to thank them for seeking the input of our members.” 

San Diego’s current bicycle infrastructure includes approximately 500 miles of bike-friendly roads, routes and paths. The new plan includes an assessment of the existing infrastructure and recommends increased bicycle parking, improved bicycle signage, bicycle safety courses and approximately 878 miles of proposed bike lanes and bike routes throughout San Diego County.

Highlights for the Bicycle Coalition include:

• Bike share – San Diego County unanimously approved the implementation of a bike share system with DECO Bikes to implement as early as January 2014
• CicloSDias – In the recent success of San Diego’s first-ever open streets celebration, the plan incorporates an outline for future CicloSDias events
• Safety enhancements – The plan increases safety precautions for bicyclists such as green and expanded bike lanes

The projected improvements to the current bicycle infrastructure provide anyone on a bicycle with better access to local businesses, transit centers, shopping districts, parks and other amenities for locals and tourists alike. With approval of this plan, Hanshaw says San Diego ensures twenty years of bicycle advancements and that bicycle commuting is a trend that is growing, not going away.

To learn more about the Bicycle Master Plan Update, click here. For more information on the Bicycle Coalition’s strategic initiatives, visit www.sdcbc.org.

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SAN DIEGO COUNTY BICYCLE COALITION: (SDCBC) is a nonprofit organization that advocates for and protects the rights of all people who ride bicycles. They promote bicycling as a mainstream, safe and enjoyable form of transportation and recreation.  For more information, go to www.sdcbc.org.  

Bicycle Coalition Celebrates San Diego’s Big 13 of 2013

Two-wheeled momentum builds from Coronado to Oceanside

On December 12th, people who love bicycles rolled into SILO in Makers Quarter to spin joy for the county’s top 13 bicycle achievements in 2013. The third annual Holiday Joy Ride showcased achievements such as major route and parking improvements, government and agency bicycling plans, open street celebrations and events attended by everyday people on two (and sometimes three) wheels.

In no particular order, the Bicycle Coalition notes the big 13 of 2013 as: 

• CicloSDias – San Diego’s first open streets celebration celebrates car-free streets
• New Belgium Brewing’s Tour de Fat raises more than $40,000 for local bicycling nonprofits
• Thousands of bicycles cross the San Diego-Coronado Bay Bridge for sixth annual Bike the Bay and raise more than $62,000 for the Bicycle Coalition
• Mayoral Candidates address plan for livable streets and communities
• The Bicycle Coalition hosts dozens of classes and public workshops to prepare anyone bicycling with safety tips
• SANDAG approves $200-million for regional bike plan Early Action program
• San Diego’s first-ever bike share program with DECO Bikes unanimously approved (scheduled to launch in 2014)
• Bike to Work Day gets a record number of participants in 2013 (over 9,000)
• Cities across San Diego County install bike corrals, green bike lanes, sharrows and other infrastructure enhancements
• The Bicycle Coalition hosts free bicycle valet at over twenty community events in San Diego County
• Regional Bike Walk Alliance created by the Bicycle Coalition represented by Bicycle and Pedestrian groups in Oceanside, Coronado, Chula Vista, Encinitas, Vista, Escondido, Solana Beach and San Diego City Council District 2
• Partnership with San Diego Business Improvement District Council holds Monthly Bike Local Sundays to encourage folks to ride and shop at local businesses
• San Diego City Council Approves $312 Million Bicycle Master Plan Update 

In addition to bicycling improvements throughout the county, the Bicycle Coalition honored the winners of its Golden Gear Awards for those who went above and beyond to make San Diego more bicycle friendly in 2013. The winners include:

• Advocate of the Year: Randy Van Vleck of City Heights Community Development Corporation
• Volunteers of the Year: Julie Hocking and Robert Leone
• Community Partner of the Year: KPRI Radio
• Public Partner of the Year: San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG)
• Bike Friendly Business of the Year: New Belgium Brewing

For more information on the Bicycle Coalition and how to get involved in its successes in 2014, please visit www.sdcbc.org. 

Robert's Mini Bike Book Review

Four Childrens' Bike Books!

By various authors
reviewed by Robert Leone

Yikes! Bikes! (Ready, Freddy! Series) by Abby Klein, illustrated by John McKinley. This series chapter book, suitable for individual reading by those from about 2^nd to 4^th grade level, has a perfectly appropriate title. Shark-infatuated Freddy Thresher has to put his body where his mouth was and learn to ride without training wheels in time for the big charity ride. His older sister enjoys telling him how much he'll fall learning to ride. Dad's teaching technique: Hold Freddy upright and then when moving at some speed, letting go. Don't expect much in the way of positive bike image – they're depicted as objects of pain to be mastered, not aids to enjoyment.

Andy Shane: Hero at Last by Jennifer Richard Jacobson, illustrated by Abby Carter. This picture-dominated book, suitable for read-along with kindergarteners and individual reading by 1^st and 2^nd graders, depicts our hero decorating his bike for riding in the big parade. In a moment of gentle heroics, saving the big parade with a timely retrieval of a bass drummer's drumstick. Sign up Andy for the youth Madison races, and please let me know whether they really make bike helmets for cats!

Every Cowgirl Loves a Rodeo by Rebecca Janni, illustrated by Lynne Avril. Forget the bike content for a moment – this is a kindly introduction to that troublesome problem of first person perspective, the unreliable narrator! Your young child reader will thrill as Nellie Sue's descriptions and the accompanying illustrations switch between a pink 10 gallon hat and matching pony to a vented helmet and matching coaster brake bike. Don't expect the agonistic, zero sum contest of pride depicted in Yikes! Bikes! – it's about fair play in an actual competition, with some incidental livestock herding thrown in.

Hero on a Bicycle by Shirley Hughes. The World War II in Italy setting for this mostly domestic drama features no illustrations at all, which is a departure for author Hughes. A Florentine family (with a missing father) has to cope with the alternate, conflicting demands of friendship, the German occupiers, the Resistance, finding food and hoping young teen Paolo doesn't get into trouble with his nightly bike forays into town. Suitable for middle school readers.

Monday: San Diego City Council to Hear $312 Million Bicycle Master Plan Update

San Diego County Bicycle Coalition supports City’s long-term bicycling vision  

WHAT:

San Diego is looking into its bicycling crystal ball – what will the future hold for our growing two-wheeled community? On Monday, City Council will vote to approve or deny the Bicycle Master Plan Update, a citywide policy document to guide the development and maintenance of San Diego’s bicycle network over the next 20 years.

With support from the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition, the new plan includes an assessment of the existing infrastructure in San Diego and recommends increased bicycle parking, improved bicycle signage, bicycle safety courses and approximately 878 miles of proposed bike lanes and bike routes throughout San Diego County.

WHY:

Approval of this plan ensures San Diego will see twenty years of bicycle advancements and that bicycle commuting is a trend that is not going away but growing. The projected improvements to the current bicycle infrastructure will ensure that cyclists have better access to local businesses, transit centers, shopping districts, parks, and other local amenities to make San Diego a bicycle-friendly destination for locals and tourists alike.

WHERE: San Diego City Council chambers: 202 C Street, San Diego, 92101

WHO:

·    San Diego City Councilmembers

·    San Diego County Bicycle Coalition

·    All people who ride bicycles in San Diego

WHEN: Monday, December 9