Helmet Head

Does your area have a local advocacy group?
Do you go the meetings?
Are you a member? Regular or board?
How often are your meetings?
How often do you go?
How far is the meeting location from your home? Work?
What form of transport do you usually use to get there? If not bike, why?
How often do you go by bike, if ever?
About how many people show up to a typical meeting?
About how many of them (number/percent) arrive by bike?
What kind of cyclist are you primarily... order these by priority: commuter, family-recreational, sport-recreational, racing, utilitarian.
About what percent of the time at typical meetings (average over a year) is spent on fhe following topics:

• General road issues (not specific to bike-specific facilities)
• Bike specific facilities
• Bike Ed
• Planning reviews
• b.s.
• Other

chephy

There are many bike advocacy groups around here. I don't go to any meetings. I suspect I'll either lose my cool and blow up or get depressed beyond description.

So I just ride...

genec

Does your area have a local advocacy group?

yes

Do you go the meetings?

Went to two... didn't see room for input from non-board members

Are you a member? Regular or board?

Yes, regular

How often are your meetings?

Monthly

How often do you go?

have gone twice, have also represented cyclists at public city meetings... outside of "advocacy meetings."

How far is the meeting location from your home? Work?

Almost half way... about 5 miles from either.

What form of transport do you usually use to get there? If not bike, why?

Have biked both times.

How often do you go by bike, if ever?

every time (aren't statistics cool)

About how many people show up to a typical meeting?

6-10

About how many of them (number/percent) arrive by bike?

Kerry, me, maybe Serge.

What kind of cyclist are you primarily... order these by priority: commuter, family-recreational, sport-recreational, racing, utilitarian.

Huh? How about sport-recreational, commuter, utilitarian.

About what percent of the time at typical meetings (average over a year) is spent on fhe following topics:

* General road issues (not specific to bike-specific facilities)
* Bike specific facilities
* Bike Ed
* Planning reviews
* b.s.
* Other

Not sure, never gauged it. Road issues and planning reviews seemed to be the key issues, as well as membership... the latter being somewhat a dismal area response, considering all the bike shops and therefore potential cyclists in the area... however, I happen to know that the local water color society has a larger membership, bigger budget, and bigger meetings... My wife is a member of that group.

The Human Car

Does your area have a local advocacy group?
There are various Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Groups or Committees that the government has put in place that I go to. But technically as far as advocacy groups goes they do not have regular meetings.

Do you go the meetings?
I go to City, Regional and State BPAC’s

Are you a member? Regular or board?
City, Board; Regional, regular; State, Regular

How often are your meetings?
City, Monthly; Regional & State Bi-monthly

How often do you go?
Fairly regularly

How far is the meeting location from your home? Work?
City, 7mi; Regional, 12 miles; State, 20mi (the 9AM start is a pain.)

What form of transport do you usually use to get there? If not bike, why?
Usually by bike, during the summer I arrange bike caravans to the meetings and we pick up people as we meander through the city, they are a blast.

How often do you go by bike, if ever?
Over 95% of the time.

About how many people show up to a typical meeting?
City, 7; Regional, 9; State, ~20

About how many of them (number/percent) arrive by bike?
The City is the only one where we have had 100% arrival by bike but usually it is closer to 50%. Regional, 3; State, 1-2.

What kind of cyclist are you primarily... order these by priority: commuter, family-recreational, sport-recreational, racing, utilitarian.
Everything but racing (though I used to do that when I was a teenager.) My priority is I just look for excuses to ride so whatever works to get me out on my bike is cool.

About what percent of the time at typical meetings (average over a year) is spent on fhe following topics:
• General road issues (not specific to bike-specific facilities)
0%

• Bike specific facilities
20%

• Bike Ed
City 10%, Regional we just started something, State when the topic comes up it falls flat.

• Planning reviews
50% mostly about plans where bike & peds are not accommodated.

• b.s.
Regional, 10% the others next to 0.

• Other
The City is working on a bike master plan, Regional it’s mostly jurisdiction progress reports and the state covers a variety of topics.

tomcryar

While I won't help you write your book, I will respond by saying thank you. This is a subject that needs to be broached here. Too many people just bich about this and that, but are not willing to actually do anything. I know it's hard, given that most people are just trying to live day to day, but these are questions that all of us should ask ourselves....what am I doing to help---posting here doesn't really count--it's a start, but there has to be a follow-up. What can each of us do?

Ed Holland

Does your area have a local advocacy group?

...No idea, I never thought to look... but there is something called Bicycle Solutions that offers education & advice (in Palo Alto, not sure about anything in Oxford, UK)

Do you go the meetings?

..No

Are you a member? Regular or board?

..No
How often are your meetings?

...Don't know

How often do you go?

... I don't attend
How far is the meeting location from your home? Work?

...approx 10 miles
What form of transport do you usually use to get there? If not bike, why?

...N/A
How often do you go by bike, if ever?

..N/A
About how many people show up to a typical meeting?

Don't know

About how many of them (number/percent) arrive by bike?

Don't know

What kind of cyclist are you primarily... order these by priority: commuter, family-recreational, sport-recreational, racing, utilitarian.

Commuter & sport-rec

About what percent of the time at typical meetings (average over a year) is spent on fhe following topics:

..Bicycle Solutions has a website here: https://www.bicyclesolutions.com/classes_cyclist.html


As an "off the cuff" comment, I would be very unlikely to attend bike advocacy or education meetings. There is very little to interest me in this line. When the time comes, I may encourage my son to take lessons, but would probably teach him myself, the skills I have learned over the years.

Cheers,

Ed

Bekologist

There was a local bike planning meeting last month in Seattle where over a half thousand bicyclists came in the dark of evening on a rainy night to add input on how and where to improve bicycling facilities in the Seattle area.

It looked like well over %50 came by bike; i didn't see any census ###s on that, but the block was filled with parked bikes overflowing the racks and onto every railing and streetsign nearby.

N_C

Yes, the Siouxland Trails Foundation.
Yes.
Yes, regular & Chairman of Sub-Committee's as they are needed for what ever projects are being worked on, but do not sit on the board.
Advisory team meetings are once a month starting in November going through April or May. Ride Sub-Committee meetings are once a month starting in Jan. going through May. Other sub-committees sometimes only meet once, other times the only contact is via email or telephone.
To every advisorty team meeting unless I am working on the Saturday. I attend every ride sub committee meetings. Other sub-committees as needed.
Advisory Team are about 3 miles from my home, 11 miles from work. Ride sub-committee are about 2 miles from home, 12 miles from work.
Car or bike. If not bike it is because of bad weather or too cold.
Both Advisory Team & ride sub-committee meetings at least ride to the meetings in March April & May.
Advisory Team - anywhere from 10 to 20 people. Ride sub-committee - anywhere from 5 to 10 people.
Both - 1 to 3.
Sport recreational, commuter, utilitarian.
[QUOTE=Helmet Head]About what percent of the time at typical meetings (average over a year) is spent on fhe following topics:

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John E

As you and GeneC know, HH, I belong to a superb advocacy group. However, the meetings are 25 mi / 40km from my office and almost as far from my home. I am more effective as a rank-and-file dues-paying member who regularly writes emails to city traffic engineering departments and letters to the local newspaper editors.



/*What kind of cyclist are you primarily... order these by priority: commuter, family-recreational, sport-recreational, racing, utilitarian.*/

Utilitarian, commuter, sport-recreational

sbhikes

Does your area have a local advocacy group?Do you go the meetings?Are you a member? Regular or board?How often are your meetings?How often do you go?How far is the meeting location from your home? Work?What form of transport do you usually use to get there? If not bike, why?About how many people show up to a typical meeting?About how many of them (number/percent) arrive by bike?What kind of cyclist are you primarily... order these by priority:About what percent of the time at typical meetings (average over a year) is spent on fhe following topics:

* General road issues (not specific to bike-specific facilities)
* Bike specific facilities
* Bike Ed
* Planning reviews
* b.s.
* Other

Helmet Head

Unfortunately, most vehicular cyclists have similar attitudes to you, and so our point of view is generally underrepresented in these groups and meetings.

It takes very few to bring attention and resources to cyclist education, for example, but it does take a few...

It also couldn't hurt to have someone at these meetings throw out questions like, "why would we support or advocate for a bike lane on a 25 mph street, or on a street with commercial driveways every 100 feet?"

Bekologist

...and there should be more cyclists throwing out questions like "why don't we have more bike lanes on 45 MPH arterials that everyone from 8 to 80 can ride in? How come more streets in our city aren't being redesigned to be more bike and pedestrian friendly?"

Helmet Head

Putting a bike lane on a road to give unskilled cyclists a false sense of security on streets they are not ready to be riding on is not cyclist advocacy.

Bekologist

actually. helmet head, a lot of bike advocacy IS about accomodations on the roads, AND bike lanes are designed for riders of all abilities, skilled as well as unskilled.

you still haven't learned how to ride on accomdated roadway, eh? they probably have some class connections at your advocacy meetings....

Helmet Head

Let's back up a second.

On a 45 mph arterial without bike lanes, what characteristics in the design makes it unsuitable for unskilled cyclists?

And how does adding a bike lanes affect those design characteristics such that the road does become suitable for unskilled cyclists?

genec

Tend to agree with HH here... a 45MPH road is no place for "unskilled" anything, even pedestrians in crosswalks.

Bekologist

WHAT in the heck are you complaining about again, helmet head? Is this another of your anti bike lane spiels?

Advocacy groups talk about accomodations, and a lot of streets signed at 45MPH become more 'bicycle friendly' with proper accomodations for the benefit of both skilled and not so skilled bicyclists.

is this just another thinly veiled anti-facilities thread?

All advocacy meetings I've been to involve planning, facilities and advocacy ABOUT bike lanes, NOT against them.

chephy

Agreed. But I prefer to avoid discussing controversial issues because I have a defeatist attitude and a thin skin. These are not personality traits to be particularly proud about, but they are there and while I try to gradually change them, they are still there.

I also sort of feel my presence is not really necessary because there more outspoken people than I who hold similar views and who do attend such meetings. Toronto doesn't have too bad a bike scene. The director of municipal Transportation Planning rides a bike to work sometimes - and to the best of my knowledge he is a vehicular cyclist. We have a cycling division in the transportation planning department, and I've been in close contact with people who work there - they believe all the right things.

However, the main reason I don't go is that I don't see how I can contribute. What I believe is truly meaningful and good for cycling advocacy is education, of both cyclists and motorists. Yet I have not the slightest idea how to reeducate vast hordes of people who don't want to be educated. It's just not something a little advocacy group can hope to accomplish.

Anything else is not crucial to me. I don't really care if there is a bike lane to be installed on a 20 mph street, or if there are going to be bike racks on buses. I neither support nor object to these initiatives; they are more or less irrelevant. However, it's clear to me that most cyclists really love bike lanes - and the advocacy groups will more or less do what the majority of cyclists wants. Trying to fight that is pretty pointless, in my humble... democracy rules.

As far as education is concerned, I teach CAN-BIKE courses (equivalent of LAB in the U.S. I suppose). They help individual cyclists but they are doing nothing to change the general attitude of the average road user. Should I advocate for more such courses? But even if they double, triple or increase the number of courses offered by a factor of 10, it's still going to do ZILCH as far as the general public is concerned.

Helmet Head

The artful dodger is at it again... Ignoring my questions and posing his own. I'll answer yours after you answer mine.

On a 45 mph arterial without bike lanes, what characteristics in the design makes it unsuitable for unskilled cyclists?

And how does adding a bike lane affect those design characteristics such that the road does become suitable for unskilled cyclists?

I know you hate to think, Bek, but give it a shot, will you?

Helmet Head

Ohh!!!! Well that explains much.

Bekologist

I've got a BETTER idea, Head. Let's talk about advocacy meetings.

Helmet Head

If you can't back up your assertions by answering follow-up questions, Bek, then don't make them in the first place.

You said, in this thread, in the context of discussing 45 mph arterials, bike lanes are designed for riders of all abilities, skilled as well as unskilled. .

Oh yeah? Then please answer the follow-up questions:

• On a 45 mph arterial without bike lanes, what characteristics in the design makes it unsuitable for unskilled cyclists?
• And how does adding a bike lane affect those design characteristics such that the road does become suitable for unskilled cyclists?

Bekologist

head. lets try to stay on topic.

why do advocacy meetings where i live get attended by hundreds of people? Why are there so many bicyclists in Seattle? Why do so many bicyclists at the advocacy meeting all talk about improving facilities?

Helmet Head

Alex, I'll take Lemmings Who Don't Know Better for $100.

Bekologist

i guess clueless is your strong suit, helmet head.