Friday Morning Commute - Endeavour

Good morning

• The death of a skateboarder in Montreal and a recent study from McGill University has led for calls for safer road designs. "A recent study by researchers at McGill University and Montreal's Department of Public Health suggests vehicles making right turns at busy intersections pose a more significant danger to cyclists than other traffic manoeuvres. The study also shows that bus stops in proximity to intersections increase cyclist injury occurrence." They suggest sharper turns to force vehicles to slow down, bike boxes, bicycle traffic lights, and advanced green lights for cyclists. "Parking should be prohibited near intersections on streets with bike paths, he said. And Montreal must use better road-painting techniques so bike lanes and stop lines are not wiped out by springtime." (Tip)
• A pedestrian was tangled in the leash of two dogs being "walked" by a cyclist. The pedestrian hit her head and died. Do people need to be told not to walk a dog while biking? Isn't that common sense?
• Madison's getting bike sharing and it will only cost them $1. What will the local GOP blog about now? "The program, which will include 350 bikes at 35 kiosk locations primarily in the downtown, was set to debut by May and be up and running in time for the Congress for the New Urbanism's conference in Madison in June."

Comments

[Ron Alford]

There are proper ways to bike with your dog. It does require much more care and attention.

Given my dog, I just stick to the neighborhood roads. She likes her 20+mph sprints pulling the bike, and that wouldn't be safe on a trail.

[Bill]

Hey, there is nothing inherently wrong with running a dog by bike. I do it all the time. My dog loves it. However, I would never do it on any trail around here as they are not wide enough. Quiet residential streets work fine.

Common sense does need to apply (just like any other activity): don't do it on a trail that is not wide enough; don't do it with more than one dog unless they are very well trained; don't use a long leash, etc.

I hate to see any activity automatically being banned because of a few thoughtless people; that's the same reasoning some people use to try and ban bikes from roads in general.

I've seen others with their dogs attached to their bikes and it's just like biking in general--most people are safe but some aren't.

[Contrarian]

Add me to the list of those who run their dogs. I've only ever done it on roads though, and only one dog at tie. It didn't take me long to learn that you have to be prepared to let go of the leash in an emergency, and have a dog that is well trained enough that it won't run off if you let go of the leash.

[Contrarian]

The study also shows that bus stops in proximity to intersections increase cyclist injury occurrence.

There's a growing body of evidence that putting bus stops after the intersection rather than before is a safer design.

[The Brightwoodian]

I have a Walky Dog bike leash. Works pretty well. I don't think my dog enjoys biking as much as I do though :(

[washcycle]

Maybe I'm wrong about the dog thing - I do think the walky dog leash is brilliant, but it still makes me uncomfortable. I wouldn't do it, but then I have a beagle, so it would be torture for both of us.

[Ron Alford]

I think San Jose had the right response - 6ft max leash on trails for all users. That cuts the worst of the excess (though, IMHO, it's still too long for dog-biking).

[Mark Williams]

I think the local GOP in Madison (which exists as much as in Arlington) would say that as long as Trek isn't gaining some ridiculous concessions, that this is basically an example of a private business seeing if it can make a profit providing a service.

I think it might behoove many folks commenting on this blog that some right-wingers like me are not anti-bicycle, but rather anti-pissing-away-taxpayer-money.

[Greenbelt]

Sad about the skateboarder in Montreal. I rode the Rachel Street and other cycletracks last Sunday morning, and shot a lot of handlebar video. The tracks get very heavy use starting in April on weekdays (I was out on Easter Sunday morning, so it wasn't crowded). Amazing infrastructure compared with what we have in DC, and it is heavily used. I noticed some right turning drivers were very careful to check the cycletrack before turning, others just went ahead and put the burden of watchfulness on the rider.

[Riley]

I was going to post early this morning when I first saw the dog + bike kills pedestrian story and my post was going to be righteous "what kind of idiot would ... " indignation. Now I don't have a dog and I live in the city ( upper NW anyway ) so apparently I'm missing the other POV that apparently exists but I still need some illumination. How is riding your bike with a dog ( with a mind and motive power of it's own ) tethered to you not inherently dangerous and stupid?

[Greenbelt]

Riley, I had a similar thought -- I see quite of few bike-dog combos on multi-use trails, and I think it only works if the trail is particularly wide or uncrowded. Just seems like too easy to lose control of bike or dog at speed, even with short leash, in tighter spots or when trails have lots of passing bikes. However, the responses that it works OK on wider suburban residential streets makes sense to me. Just my opinion.

Here's a video of the Montreal accident area: http://vimeo.com/23051893

The Rachel/Frontenac intersection is around minutes 11-12:30ish on the outbound and a 21:30-23:00 or so on the return.

[washcycle]

Mark Williams, you need to reread what I wrote. I asked what will they blog about now as in "now that they can't criticize bike sharing."

[Mark Williams]

Sorry, I imputed more sarcasm in the original post than intended. I thought you implied that GOPers were on the earth to criticize bicycling.

[Richard Layman]

1. Trek subsidized the bcycle in Madison as a promotional activity as they are based there.

2. WRT the dog issue, given that dogs aren't rational sentient buildings, running dogs via bikes in places where there are likely to be lots of other people, off and on bikes, seems inherently dangerous.

Just as people like me speculate about big lawsuits against car driver killers of bicyclists, I imagine this bicyclist will lose a massive judgement if the husband of the dead pedestrian decides to sue.

[Christopher Fotos]

Mark is probably being too kind to washcycle, who, like many other bike advocates, reflexively mocks the right. I love this blog but it just comes with the territory, and it's the reason I've been slow to renew my WABA membership--there's just a general hostility to people with my political outlook that doesn't have a lot to do with biking per se.

One example: WABA fell all over itself trying to act as bike valet for the Jon Stewart/Steve Colbert event on the mall. Did they even try to do the same thing for Glenn Beck? Not that I heard.

But just like I keep coming back here to benefit from the rich and comprehensive biking content, all at an excellent price, I eventually will renew my WABA membership because despite that discouraging blind spot--which definitely makes me feel less welcome--despite that, they do such great bike advocacy I feel I owe it to them.

[washcycle]

No one is ever too kind to me. There is no limit to how kind others should be to me. My need for kindness is infinite.

I don't think it's fair to say that I reflexively mock the right. I do frequently mock the right for their position on bicycling which is often not just wrong, but ridiculously so. As example I would reference Dan Maes or the Fairfax County official who said he didn't believe that bicycles are transportation devices. Sometimes they're downright untruthful as when Eric Cantor claimed that Capital Bikeshare was just "bike racks in Georgetown." And many times, they're both. It isn't just Republicans but conservative commentators and "true" conservatives like George Will.

The right is wrong about biking. So if I ridicule them it is for that reason. Not for any other policy. And I don't go picking fights over it, I'm always responding to something someone has said or written.

Maybe you're a pro-bike Conservative. But you're in the minority like pro-choice Republicans or pro-gay marriage Republicans. I don't know what you expect when conservatives are so very very very wrong while simultaneously being either ignorant or dishonest. What other legal response is there but ridicule?

[Christopher Fotos]

I don't know what you expect when conservatives are so very very very wrong while simultaneously being either ignorant or dishonest.

Have a nice week, washcycle guy.

[Washcycle]

I'm talking, in that comment, specifically about their position on bicycling. I want to make that clear since you've removed it from the context.