Trail supporters to meet Thursday in Kirkland

The Cascade Bicycle Club is rallying support to preserve a future abandoned rail bed as a main link for off-road bicycle travel through Renton, Newcastle, Bellevue, Redmond and Kirkland.

In a scheme that gets more complicated as time goes on, the Port of Seattle plans to buy the 42-mile Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad right-of-way for future use as a commuter corridor with rail and a hike-bike trail. The devil is in the details, though, as the Port wants the rail line to have priority over the trail, while King County wants the uses "coequal."

Cascade warns that the Port's position leaves the possibility of a trail in doubt.

"However, the Port of Seattle and the King County Council’s latest plan would give the Port of Seattle veto authority over a future trail, and subordinates trail construction to any “transportation use” – which does not include bicycle commuters on a trail." ...   more »

Portland has become the first large US city to achieve the Platinum-level as a Bicycle Friendly Community, following only Davis, California, with the designation. The announcement was made Tuesday by the League of American Bicyclists.

Congratulations go to a wide group of activists, politicians, bureaucrats and even the local bike blogger who kept their eyes on the prize in recent years and helped push bicycling into the mainstream of the city's transportation and culture.

Let's hope it gives bicycling enthusiasts elsewhere the incentive to do the work to get their cities added to the list of Bicycle Friendly Cities that currently stands at 72 ...   more »

That bike-sharing rental program called SmartBike DC is set to start next month in the nation's capital with 120 bicycles available at 10 spots around the city.

Operated by the Clear Channel outdoor advertising company, it's the first such project in the US and will be similar to other advertising-based bike rental programs in Paris, Lyon, Rennes and Barcelona, Spain. London is expected to get on board by 2010.

San Francisco will host a SmartBike program in the future, and Clear Channel is negotiating in Chicago and Portland ...   more »

This is a hit-and-run driver story with a happy ending; at least the bicyclist victim is alive to talk about it.

I wrote about this case back in February, shortly after a motorist hit the Fircrest, Washington, bicyclist, dragged her and her bicycle to the side of the road, then drove off and disappeared into the morning twilight.

Tacoma News Tribune reporters have tracked down and interviewed the victim, Sandy Johnston, 67, who sounds like she's keeping amazingly upbeat about her situation. They've also reported on statements in the court documents, which defy belief ...   more »

Automatically parks & retrieves bikes

Here's a video report from Japan about an automated bicycle parking garage in Tokyo that can hold 9,400 bicycles.

The facility is located at the Kasai metro station and aims to solve the problem of finding a location to park a lot of bicycles in a small area.

The video isn't translated, but it appears that after you swipe a card, your bicycle is automatically whisked away and stored. When you return, swipe your card again, and the robot retrieves your bike and delivers it in 22 seconds ...   more »

Ten novice bicycle commuters will earn up to $200 a month in reimbursements and incentives this summer simply by riding their bikes to work.

In addition, the 10 bike riders get $100 for a helmet, a lock and a tune-up at their local bike shop, and a free two-day League of American Bicyclist Road 1 training session.

In return, all the cyclists have to do is agree to ride their bikes from, through or to eastern or central Contra Costa County at least twice a week to get to their jobs from June through September.

This brilliant project to demonstrate the benefits of bicycle commuting is the work of 511 Contra Costa...   more »

A University of North Carolina - Greensboro professor and bicycle advocate faces at least six weeks off the bike after he was struck by a text-messaging motorist.

Mark Schulz is lucky. He could be dead. The motorist struck him at about 35 mph, knocking him to the ground. He suffered a concussion, shattered kneecap, crushed vertebrae, broken ribs and a broken sternum.

Police said Schulz was doing everything right when he was hit at 10 p.m. on March 26; he wore a reflective vest, helmet, and front and rear lights. That doesn't help if the driver isn't looking ...   more »