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Ponoko Blog

Ponoko Blog:

Ponoko to Distribute Making to Laser Cutters Worldwide!

July 2nd, 2009 at 7:36 am
This sounds to be an excellent project especially as this would expand your successful business model to support access to affordable 3D fabricating for many of us creatives.
Shain Says:
July 2nd, 2009 at 5:39 pm
I think this is a brilliant Idea! Makers of the world uniting. Let everyone tap into the resources once only accessible to the elite. Manufacturing for the masses.
I can’t wait!
Ponoko and the Fabrication Network Says:
July 15th, 2009 at 3:13 pm
[…] me this is pretty huge news (Fabbaloo found it for me): Ponoko is creating a fabber network. This to me is an absolute thrill.� This will monetize fabricator ownership.� This will […]”
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Rochester Bicycle Ecology

I’ve created a conceptual map of the Rochester Bicycle Ecology in order to explore the idea that we need a Rochester Bicycle Alliance.
(You can view the map as a full-sized PDF file for full screen viewing by clicking here)

The map is loaded with hyperlinks and background on local organizations and initiatives, thus if you mouse around, you’ll read things like…

“Rochester could be home to a number of potentially transformative bike-related initiatives. Even a few of them, implemented and marketed strategically, could turn the region into a world capital of cycling. Individually they are long-shots.

The Rochester Cyclng Alliance could help unify a healthy but non-organizd community and create a constituency for innovative land use, energy independence, transportation policy, healthy living, and urban renewal.

The RCA’s first venture could be to bring the Bicycle Film Festival to town (and use it to build a constituency for other initiatives on this map).

I think I’m convinced. How about you?

Add comments or more information, and I’ll update the map!

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Biking Rochester

Let the Huffington Post know about biking in Rochester. If the RochesterGreenway were a reality, I think we’d be number one in this poll. Check it out.

–The Top 10 U.S. Cities For Biking Americans overwhelmingly continue to drive alone to work. With more than nine out of 10 workers favoring driving. But these 10 cities are definitely taking the initiative to change that. Here are the top 10 U.S. cities for bicycling commuters. And remember to send us a photograph of your favorite biking city. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/08/05/the-top-10-us-cities-for_n_252092.html

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Another Affiliation

People are talking. Excitement builds. The Rochester Greenway is entering a new phase: a steering group (maybe, the “The Rochester Greenway Steering Group”) who will be focusing on moving the project from conceptual stage to something more concrete—or macadam, or plastic, or a new composite altogether. At this point, interested groups are offering their time to see this unique concept get funding through grants, get endorsements from various groups, and provide presentations of this all-weather, carbon-free transportation system.

“I just want to point out to you that this isn’t just about biking. This is truly about a grander purpose happening here. I would just urge you to think about what you want to do. I think it’s important to consider options for the future.”

“There is an opportunity for capitalizing on new materials and ideas and how this will relate to communities. We want to have a plan for some type of sustainable plan in the longer term sense. I think that we should also get students from other regions interested from other campuses. There are many things, which could be woven into the goals. There
is great potential here.”

“This could be a steering group for a future Charrette meeting. There is a reality about a certain threshold for numbers of people working together. I think you bring up
a good point that we should all be in contact with each-other. We should also think about people in the working group. I think it’s very important that there would be a shared vision going in multiple directions. I think we should think of ourselves as being a Greenway Steering group.”

People are talking.

More to come:

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The Roc City Park – Location & Design

RocCity Park UPDATE


The mission of the RocCity Skate Park City-Community Partnership is to build a skate park in the City of Rochester.
This is a volunteer effort, so 100% of donated money goes directly to the skate park.The planned location (pending New York State Department of Transportation approval)is beneath the east side of the iconic and award winning Susan B. Anthony/Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge. This location provides excellent shelter from often adverse elements of the region. There is plenty of room for the varied disciplines of skateboarding and BMX. There is also room on either side of the bridge for a more outdoor feel.

Burnside, Portland, Oregon

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Town of Brighton Proposed Multi-Use Trail Public Meeting July 27

Town of Brighton Proposed Multi-Use Trail Public Meeting

Tom Low, Town of Brighton Commissioner of Public Works
585.784.5225, thomas.low@townofbrighton.org.

Brighton, NY, July 3, 2009 – The Town of Brighton will hold a Public Meeting to review the concept of a multi-use trail connecting Town Hall and the Erie Canal. The meeting will be held on July 27th from 7pm-9pm at the Brighton Town Hall, 2300 Elmwood Ave. The I-590 Bicycle / Pedestrian Bypass Trail Feasibility Study is nearing completion, and the Town wishes to gather additional feedback on the preferred trail alignment identified in the Draft Report.

In its 2000 Comprehensive Plan, the Town identified a concept for a trail connecting the Town Hall Complex on Elmwood Avenue to the Erie Canal at Meridian Centre Park. This Feasibility Study explores the viability of the whole corridor of the I-590 Bicycle / Pedestrian Bypass trail, with consideration given to location alternatives, design recommendations, funding sources, and phasing strategies.

The Preferred Trail Alignment map, along with the full Draft Report, is available on the Town’s website; http://www.townofbrighton.org/CivicAlerts.aspx.

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CenterLines #229

CenterLines #229

-> “Every additional 30 minutes spent in a car each day translates into a 3 percent greater chance of being obese. People who live in neighborhoods with a mix of shops and businesses within easy walking distance are 7 percent less likely to be obese.”
— Lawrence Frank, University of British Columbia
http://tinyurl.com/ngwhxa

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About StreetsWiki – Streetswiki – Livable Streets

About StreetsWiki – Streetswiki

treetsWiki . . .

What Should You Write on StreetsWiki?

is a community-created, online encyclopedia for transportation, urban environmental, and public space issues.

It’s a place for ordinary people, planners, and academics to read and write about our cities and
how we can make them more livable.


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Cyclists slow down to avoid crater-sized 'hole' – Telegraph

Cyclists slow down to avoid crater-sized ‘hole’ – Telegraph

Cyclists were encouraged to slow down thanks to this crater-sized “hole” in the middle of a towpath.

Published: 7:00AM BST 18 Jun 2009

A woman looks into the three dimensional drawing

A woman looks into the three dimensional drawing Photo: GETTY

But the hole is an optical illusion, a three-dimensional drawing of a canyon, in an attempt to make careless cyclists hit the brakes rather than ride dangerously and ignore pedestrians.

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Pro Walk/Pro Bike 2008 – Seattle, Washington

Pro Walk/Pro Bike 2008 – Seattle, Washington

Presentations
#2. Federal Funding for Nonmotorized Transportation and Recreation and the National Trails Training Partnership (Cascade II)
1) RTP Trails Nov 2008:
Presentation: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/rectrails/fundrec_pres.htm
2) RTP and TE Summary: includes both briefs listed below.
Recreational Trails Program Brief: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/rectrails/brief.htm
Transportation Enhancement Activities Brief:http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/te/brief.htm
3) New Approach for Transportation
USDOT Reform Proposal: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/rectrails/reauth_reform.htm
Christopher Douwes

The (National) Recreational Trails Program–NRTP
Greg Lovelady (155Kb PowerPoint Presentation)

#6. Adapting the Bike Sharing Concept to North America (St. Helens)
A Public Bicycle System in Metro Vancouver?
Eileen Kadesh and Andrew Curran (605Kb PDF Format)
Bike Sharing in North America
Eileen Kadesh and Andrew Curran (968Kb PDF Format)
SmartBike DC and How it Happened (for Free)
George Branyan (444Kb PowerPoint Presentation)

#16. Maps and Community Engaged Mapping (Cascade IA)
The Neighborhoods on Foot Map Series
Seth Schromen-Wawrin (13.6MB PowerPoint Presentation)

#66. Designing Facilities for Bicyclists (Cascade II)
Thinking (and Building) Outside the MUTCD/AASHTO Box
Joshua Benson (3Mb PDF Format)

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      Safe Routes to School (SRTS) is a federal, state and local effort

      Overview

      Safe Routes to School image, © Andersen Ross/Blend Images/CorbisSafe Routes to School (SRTS) is a federal, state and local effort to enable and encourage children, including those with disabilities, to walk and bicycle to school and to make walking and bicycling to school safe and appealing.

      In New York, as in other parts of this country, travel to school by walking and bicycling has declined dramatically over the past several decades. The adverse impacts of this trend on air quality, traffic congestion and childhood health are alarming.

      The goal of New York’s Safe Routes to School Program is to assist New York communities in developing and implementing projects and programs that encourage walking and bicycling to school while enhancing the safety of these trips.Safe Routes to school Logo

      These programs can bring a wide range of benefits to students and the community. These include an easy way for children to get the regular physical activity they need for good health and even to ease traffic jams and reduce pollution around schools.

      A major goal of the program is to increase bicycle, pedestrian and traffic safety. Successful Safe Routes to School programs in the United States usually includes one or more of these approaches engineering, enforcement, education, encouragement.

      Local and regional government, schools and community non-profit organizations ready, willing and able to implement SRTS initiatives are eligible to apply for funding.

      Applications are available for projects and programs to improve the health and safety of New York children who bike or walk to school. The program is open to all New York municipalities and school districts.

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      Stimulus Watch: Keeping an Eye on Economic Recovery Spending

      Stimulus Watch: Keeping an Eye on Economic Recovery Spending

      Projects in Rochester, New York

      Below are the “shovel-ready” projects for which this city submitted in the 2008 U.S. Conference of Mayors report. You can click on a project to read (and add to) its description. You can also discuss the project and vote on whether you believe it is critical or not.

      The total cost of all the projects submitted by Rochester is $50,946,000

      …

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