Author:

Dear Group,

Here is a nice link to a PBS treatise on dangerous pedestrian road crossings which has plenty of relevance to our travials trying to get safe bike lane design in challenging places like Monroe Ave around Pittsford Plaza. During the presentation they mention that the current trend is unsustainable and very bad for the evolving demographics, ie more older people who won’t be able to drive and are stuck in their suburban houses locked in by 6&7 lane roads.

I had a discussion a few weeks ago with Rich Perrin, head of Genesee Transportation Council who made the same point. Our current road design strategy of continually adding lanes and moving further away from the city is unsustainable. The federal govenment is only able to fund 40% of the roads and bridges that need repair. That is why we are so appealing to tranportation planners. We represent a solution that is not expensive and essentially puts everyone on a “road diet”.

Scott

http://commuteorlando.com/wordpress/2010/07/26/pbs-dangerous-crossing/

Below please find info about a free documentary screening at the George Eastman House’s Dryden Theater on Monday, June 28. This film and the panel discussion that follows will address issues pivotal to the future of our region. This is a film about the past and future of transportation. Info requests to RRCDC phone 271 0520.

We hope you can attend the screening and panel discussion on June 28. Please forward and post to your Facebooks, Twitters, etc. etc. etc.!

Evan Lowenstein
Empire State Future (www.empirestatefuture.org)

Below please find info about a free documentary screening at the George Eastman House’s Dryden Theater on Monday, June 28. This film and the panel discussion that follows will address issues pivotal to the future of our region. This is a film about the past and future of transportation. Info requests to RRCDC phone 271 0520.

We hope you can attend the screening and panel discussion on June 28. Please forward and post to your Facebooks, Twitters, etc. etc. etc.!

Evan Lowenstein
Empire State Future (www.empirestatefuture.org)

SPECIAL REPORT June 3, 2010, 3:09PM EST
Fighting Carbon Emissions: Cities Take the Lead
From Los Angeles to Amsterdam, city hall is becoming the best hope for climate action
By Mark Scott and Jeremy van Loon
Los Angeles: city of freeways, smog, and…bike lanes? That’s where Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa wants to take his town. In one of the less likely
transformations in the global effort to cut carbon dioxide emissions, Los Angeles plans to spend $230 million on 1,700 miles of bicycle paths. Most of the
program will be completed by 2015 and includes changing rooms, showers, and bike storage areas operated by the city and private partners. It comes on
top of subsidies for installing solar panels and incentives for planting trees and switching to electric vehicles. “We have to make a change,” says Michelle
Mowery, senior coordinator for the bike program. “We can’t fit any more cars in.”
From the freeways of Los Angeles to the canals of Amsterdam, cities are taking the lead in the fight to reduce carbon output.

As world leaders squabble
over how to cut greenhouse gases, city hall is becoming the best hope for climate action. Given their smaller jurisdictions, local officials can green-light
eco-projects faster than nationwide schemes can be implemented. “We’re not going to wait for national politicians, we’re acting right now,” says Toronto
Mayor David Miller, who plans to invest more than $1 billion in public transport and eco-friendly air-conditioning systems for buildings by 2017.
The efforts could have a profound impact: Cities are home to more than half the world’s population and pump out more than two-thirds of global carbon
dioxide. That share will surely grow as people flock to megacities in the developing world. “It’s obvious where the fight for a sustainable civilization will be
decided, and that’s in large cities,” says Peter Loescher, chief executive officer of Siemens (SI), which aims to profit from selling its streetcars, wind
turbines, and other technologies to municipalities worldwide.
Just as no two cities are alike, there are vast differences in local strategies. In Toyko 68 percent of trips are already made by bike, subway, or on foot.
Houston residents, by contrast, make 95 percent of their journeys by car. So while the Texas city is giving officials electric vehicles to reduce emissions,
the Japanese capital in April announced a citywide CO2 cap-and-trade program—the kind the U.S. Senate has been unable to pass so far. Copenhagen
will spend $1.6 billion by 2012 on bike paths, green energy projects, and retrofitting city buildings. Melbourne plans to bar cars from downtown and offer
incentives to developers who invest in efficiency. “It’s a green gold rush,” says Robert Doyle, Melbourne’s Lord Mayor.
In Amsterdam, city elders are in the midst of a five-year, $1 billion program to improve creaking infrastructure. Amsterdam’s 2,400 houseboats have been
fitted to use electricity instead of diesel, and cargo barges are now being converted as well. Some 300 homes are testing display panels that show energy usage in real time, a program that may be expanded citywide. If residents can be persuaded to use the technology to cut power use at peak times, their
electricity bills could fall by up to 40 percent, says Ger Baron, who oversees the project. “Our biggest challenge is changing people’s habits,” he says.
New York, meanwhile, has laid out a program called “PlaNYC.” The scheme includes tax breaks for solar panels, legal changes that spur property owners
to make buildings more energy-efficient, and power plants that use food waste and wood chips. Though a proposal to charge a congestion fee for drivers
entering much of Manhattan couldn’t pass the state legislature, the Big Apple hopes to quadruple its 450 miles of bicycle paths by 2030. New York’s plan
has even sparked envy on the West Coast. “Los Angeles isn’t New York,” says L.A. cycling chief Mowery. “But we’re getting there.”
The bottom line: As national governments fail to cut carbon, cities are starting to take the initiative with programs aimed at reining in emissions.
With Stuart Biggs. Scott is a correspondent in Bloomberg Businessweek’s London bureau. Van Loon is a reporter for Bloomberg News.

The times,they are a changing: Posted by Scott MacRae

SPECIAL REPORT June 3, 2010, 3:09PM EST
Fighting Carbon Emissions: Cities Take the Lead
From Los Angeles to Amsterdam, city hall is becoming the best hope for climate action
By Mark Scott and Jeremy van Loon
Los Angeles: city of freeways, smog, and…bike lanes? That’s where Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa wants to take his town. In one of the less likely
transformations in the global effort to cut carbon dioxide emissions, Los Angeles plans to spend $230 million on 1,700 miles of bicycle paths. Most of the
program will be completed by 2015 and includes changing rooms, showers, and bike storage areas operated by the city and private partners. It comes on
top of subsidies for installing solar panels and incentives for planting trees and switching to electric vehicles. “We have to make a change,” says Michelle
Mowery, senior coordinator for the bike program. “We can’t fit any more cars in.”
From the freeways of Los Angeles to the canals of Amsterdam, cities are taking the lead in the fight to reduce carbon output.

As world leaders squabble
over how to cut greenhouse gases, city hall is becoming the best hope for climate action. Given their smaller jurisdictions, local officials can green-light
eco-projects faster than nationwide schemes can be implemented. “We’re not going to wait for national politicians, we’re acting right now,” says Toronto
Mayor David Miller, who plans to invest more than $1 billion in public transport and eco-friendly air-conditioning systems for buildings by 2017.
The efforts could have a profound impact: Cities are home to more than half the world’s population and pump out more than two-thirds of global carbon
dioxide. That share will surely grow as people flock to megacities in the developing world. “It’s obvious where the fight for a sustainable civilization will be
decided, and that’s in large cities,” says Peter Loescher, chief executive officer of Siemens (SI), which aims to profit from selling its streetcars, wind
turbines, and other technologies to municipalities worldwide.
Just as no two cities are alike, there are vast differences in local strategies. In Toyko 68 percent of trips are already made by bike, subway, or on foot.
Houston residents, by contrast, make 95 percent of their journeys by car. So while the Texas city is giving officials electric vehicles to reduce emissions,
the Japanese capital in April announced a citywide CO2 cap-and-trade program—the kind the U.S. Senate has been unable to pass so far. Copenhagen
will spend $1.6 billion by 2012 on bike paths, green energy projects, and retrofitting city buildings. Melbourne plans to bar cars from downtown and offer
incentives to developers who invest in efficiency. “It’s a green gold rush,” says Robert Doyle, Melbourne’s Lord Mayor.
In Amsterdam, city elders are in the midst of a five-year, $1 billion program to improve creaking infrastructure. Amsterdam’s 2,400 houseboats have been
fitted to use electricity instead of diesel, and cargo barges are now being converted as well. Some 300 homes are testing display panels that show energy usage in real time, a program that may be expanded citywide. If residents can be persuaded to use the technology to cut power use at peak times, their
electricity bills could fall by up to 40 percent, says Ger Baron, who oversees the project. “Our biggest challenge is changing people’s habits,” he says.
New York, meanwhile, has laid out a program called “PlaNYC.” The scheme includes tax breaks for solar panels, legal changes that spur property owners
to make buildings more energy-efficient, and power plants that use food waste and wood chips. Though a proposal to charge a congestion fee for drivers
entering much of Manhattan couldn’t pass the state legislature, the Big Apple hopes to quadruple its 450 miles of bicycle paths by 2030. New York’s plan
has even sparked envy on the West Coast. “Los Angeles isn’t New York,” says L.A. cycling chief Mowery. “But we’re getting there.”
The bottom line: As national governments fail to cut carbon, cities are starting to take the initiative with programs aimed at reining in emissions.
With Stuart Biggs. Scott is a correspondent in Bloomberg Businessweek’s London bureau. Van Loon is a reporter for Bloomberg News.

The times,they are a changing: Posted by Scott MacRae

The first “pre kick off” meeting of the Advisory Committee met on Friday. RCA members Andrew Dollard, Bill Collins, Richard DeSarra also representing Rochester Bicycle Club and myself (representing U. of R.) as well as others, were there as well as city representatives Chuck Thomas, Steve Beauvaias, Pete Siegrest and Erik Frisch. Scott Leathersich represented Monroe County and a proxy GTC rep was there.

This meeting was to prepare for the outside national bicycle planning/consultanting group Sprinkle from Tampa, Fl. who will be coming the week of May 24-28th to do their preliminary assessment. This visit will overlap with bike week and we are planning to see if we can get Mayor Duffy and Sprinkle to participate in some of our Bike Week activities. The details of this need to be worked out but it looks encouraging that this will fall into place. Local firms ERD a landscape design and engineering company as well SRF, which offers expertise in transportation planning, pedestrian and bicycle safety, traffic calming ect. will be assisting Sprinkle. They want to do this plan expeditiously in 8 months since all parties are eager to move forward because of potential funding opportunities.

We discussed a variety of issues which need to be addressed by the master plan including how to meter progress, weather, representation of low income groups and the format of the upcoming meetings. Overall everyone involved seems committed to making a difference in making Rochester a more bike friendly town. More later.

Scott

The first “pre kick off” meeting of the Advisory Committee met on Friday. RCA members Andrew Dollard, Bill Collins, Richard DeSarra also representing Rochester Bicycle Club and myself (representing U. of R.) as well as others, were there as well as city representatives Chuck Thomas, Steve Beauvaias, Pete Siegrest and Erik Frisch. Scott Leathersich represented Monroe County and a proxy GTC rep was there.

This meeting was to prepare for the outside national bicycle planning/consultanting group Sprinkle from Tampa, Fl. who will be coming the week of May 24-28th to do their preliminary assessment. This visit will overlap with bike week and we are planning to see if we can get Mayor Duffy and Sprinkle to participate in some of our Bike Week activities. The details of this need to be worked out but it looks encouraging that this will fall into place. Local firms ERD a landscape design and engineering company as well SRF, which offers expertise in transportation planning, pedestrian and bicycle safety, traffic calming ect. will be assisting Sprinkle. They want to do this plan expeditiously in 8 months since all parties are eager to move forward because of potential funding opportunities.

We discussed a variety of issues which need to be addressed by the master plan including how to meter progress, weather, representation of low income groups and the format of the upcoming meetings. Overall everyone involved seems committed to making a difference in making Rochester a more bike friendly town. More later.

Scott

Google maps bikes is now up, working and responding to suggestins. It is in beta testing so they are continuously refining things and encourage us to critique thier suggested routes. I’d encourage you to use it and post your favorite cycling routes to work, schools shopping etc. This can be a powerful tool to direct cyclists to the safest routes. It automatically takes into consideration things like hills ect to make it easier for cyclists. Here is my experience as an example:

I checked out a route my wife wanted to take for a bike trip from Park Ave. to Pittsford and it suggested she go down Monroe Ave directly which was the most direct by car but not the safest.

I typed in an alternative route down Clover using the bike lane and then to the Erie Canal and East as a safer alternative. A week later Google responded with this message. Very cool!

Hi scott, Your Google Maps problem report has been reviewed, and you were right!
We’ll update the map soon and email you when you can see the change.

Report historyProblem ID: EDE2-41E3-816A-096AYour report: I would suggest that one continue South on Clover even though this is not the greatest road, it has a 4-5 foot bike lane and certainly better than Monroe Ave which is a 4 lane road with no bike lanes. I would continue south and then pick up the Erie Canal trail and take a left which would lead me into into the town of Pittsford without the danger of Monroe Ave which is a mess and dangerous especially south of Clover where it turns into 5 lanes, has lots of stores and cars turning without remotely considering cyclists or pedestrians. Scott MacRae Rochester Cycling Alliance

–Thanks for your help,The Google Maps team

Check it out by going to Google Maps and then click on the “More” icon in the upper right hand corner of the screen, then click “bicycling” and it will give you a preferred route. If enought of us refine the routes, it should be very handy for folks with time. The system learns by our direct feedback.

Google maps bikes is now up, working and responding to suggestins. It is in beta testing so they are continuously refining things and encourage us to critique thier suggested routes. I’d encourage you to use it and post your favorite cycling routes to work, schools shopping etc. This can be a powerful tool to direct cyclists to the safest routes. It automatically takes into consideration things like hills ect to make it easier for cyclists. Here is my experience as an example:

I checked out a route my wife wanted to take for a bike trip from Park Ave. to Pittsford and it suggested she go down Monroe Ave directly which was the most direct by car but not the safest.

I typed in an alternative route down Clover using the bike lane and then to the Erie Canal and East as a safer alternative. A week later Google responded with this message. Very cool!

Hi scott, Your Google Maps problem report has been reviewed, and you were right!
We’ll update the map soon and email you when you can see the change.

Report historyProblem ID: EDE2-41E3-816A-096AYour report: I would suggest that one continue South on Clover even though this is not the greatest road, it has a 4-5 foot bike lane and certainly better than Monroe Ave which is a 4 lane road with no bike lanes. I would continue south and then pick up the Erie Canal trail and take a left which would lead me into into the town of Pittsford without the danger of Monroe Ave which is a mess and dangerous especially south of Clover where it turns into 5 lanes, has lots of stores and cars turning without remotely considering cyclists or pedestrians. Scott MacRae Rochester Cycling Alliance

–Thanks for your help,The Google Maps team

Check it out by going to Google Maps and then click on the “More” icon in the upper right hand corner of the screen, then click “bicycling” and it will give you a preferred route. If enought of us refine the routes, it should be very handy for folks with time. The system learns by our direct feedback.