Commuting - Anti Cycling High School Principal

It's just ridiculous that the most dangerous thing the average Joe does (ride in a car) is considered to be the safe alternative.



That's the point I was about to make, and something I've been thinking a lot about lately.

Our culture is completely absurd.

It's not OK to drive a 30 lb. vehicle 15 MPH.

But driving a 3,000 lb. vehicle 45 MPH instead, making life more difficult for someone in the above case? No problem!

Fortunately, I think the tides are finally turning. Thank god.

And yet they provide parking for 200.

And obviously anyone who gets in a wreck on the way to their parking spot can hold the school liable

Students at the Bridgewater-Raritan NJ High School raised money and offered to purchase and install a bicycle rack. Their offer was declined by Principal James Riccobono. In an effort to protest this decision, 50 students cycled to school and locked their bikes to signs, trees and other posts surrounding the circular driveway at the school.
50 students riding bikes to school, and no support from the principal?

He must be afraid of somebody bigger than he is...

Oh wow. 200 parking spots? My high school is about to go to one bike rack (averaging three bikes a day including mine) and 800 parking spots.

What a dumbass, in so many ways.

I was surprised reading an article in our local paper about the cuts the schoolboard is looking into making, P/E, art, music, then way down at the end 'and also considering curtailing bus service to students within 1 mile of their school'. I can't believe that wouldn't be the first thing to go.

1 mile? lucky *******s, my middle school and highschool had a 5 mile radius.

i knew a guy who had to walk a mile away from school to get on the bus.

What a dumbass, in so many ways.

I was surprised reading an article in our local paper about the cuts the schoolboard is looking into making, P/E, art, music, then way down at the end 'and also considering curtailing bus service to students within 1 mile of their school'. I can't believe that wouldn't be the first thing to go.

Their poor wittle wegs can't walk for twenty minutes!

Don't they make things called Pedestrian Overpasses?

http://i236.photobucket.com/albums/ff168/cyclearkansas/walkway.jpg

Boy, that was hard to solve. Do I get a commission?

Students at the Bridgewater-Raritan NJ High School raised money and offered to purchase and install a bicycle rack. Their offer was declined by Principal James Riccobono. In an effort to protest this decision, 50 students cycled to school and locked their bikes to signs, trees and other posts surrounding the circular driveway at the school. The principal was presented with a letter describing the environmental clubs intent with the donation of the bicycle rack to the school. The response was a letter in response with one line in bold that stated "in as much as the district provides courtesy busing to students who live within walking distance of the high school, because of the danger on Garretson Road, it does (not) make sense, in my opinion, to promote the riding of bicycles to school".

This was printed in the local paper.
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/union/index.ssf?/base/news-3/120961664666210.xml&coll=1

Another example of life in the Peoples Republic of New Jersey

What they should be doing is promoting riding bikes instead of pollution and laziness. It is very realistic for high school student to ride a bike 5 miles to school if they have a safe route to school.

Students at the Bridgewater-Raritan NJ High School raised money and offered to purchase and install a bicycle rack. Their offer was declined by Principal James Riccobono. In an effort to protest this decision, 50 students cycled to school and locked their bikes to signs, trees and other posts surrounding the circular driveway at the school. The principal was presented with a letter describing the environmental clubs intent with the donation of the bicycle rack to the school. The response was a letter in response with one line in bold that stated "in as much as the district provides courtesy busing to students who live within walking distance of the high school, because of the danger on Garretson Road, it does (not) make sense, in my opinion, to promote the riding of bicycles to school".

This was printed in the local paper.
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/union/index.ssf?/base/news-3/120961664666210.xml&coll=1

Another example of life in the Peoples Republic of New Jersey

Ah yes, the same 'People's Republic' that tried to ban quick release wheels because of the danger of them falling off.

Their poor wittle wegs can't walk for twenty minutes!

yes a 20 minute walk is a pia when you have to catch a buss at 6:30, and get dropped off at 3:30, throw in a practice (band, football, whatever) and some home work, and you will wish you had those 40+ minutes back every day, even more so in the rain, when the buss is late or if it is cold out side

not that its really that bad, just dont patronize others for their lack of enthusiasm when it comes to a mile+ trek at 6:10, everyday without choice

Better call a WHAM-bulance. I kid. I kid.

The problem I see, is that people did it for centuries. Why is it so hard now?

Seems like this principal is much more worried about the politics of his position than in being an educator.

His stance is simply reinforcing the car-centric stance that dominates most media sources available to the kids (we discussed the State Farm commercials recently).

He is missing several (at least) golden educational opportunites in what used to be called "Civics"--and the kids are already there in acting to provide their own rack. If the road conditions near the school are unsafe, how then should good citizens approach such a problem (presumably more than a few of these kids will soon be [if some are not already!] parents)? What about their future kids and their schools?

How about a bike safety seminar (featuring New Jersey traffic regs) tied maybe to Home Room (if such a thing still exists) and/or to the Drivers Ed classes? Seems like all of these things would help make for "better citizens," and, in fact, better prepare the kids for life as adults.

Sounds like this principal has long-since ceased to be an educator, and is simply an administrator (career-climber?). The kids deserve better...

"I know the roads are dangerous, that's why I use my Excursion to drive little Timmy to school."

LOL!! Unfortunately that's seems to be the mentality of "Joe Citizen". I work with a 27 year old upwardly mobile IT Manager who drives an H2. Why? Because he can afford it and enjoys "the respect it commands". (WTF?!!!) Needless to say he views me as a lower life form because I ride a bicycle to work.

Don't they make things called Pedestrian Overpasses?

http://i236.photobucket.com/albums/ff168/cyclearkansas/walkway.jpg

Boy, that was hard to solve. Do I get a commission?

Hey that's in my neighborhood. I never use that bridge on my way to and from work, the traffic light 1 block away works just fine.

yes a 20 minute walk is a pia when you have to catch a buss at 6:30, and get dropped off at 3:30, throw in a practice (band, football, whatever) and some home work, and you will wish you had those 40+ minutes back every day, even more so in the rain, when the buss is late or if it is cold out side

not that its really that bad, just dont patronize others for their lack of enthusiasm when it comes to a mile+ trek at 6:10, everyday without choice

I had to deal with about a 1-1/4 mile walk to and from school, and I had zero problems with it. I did some extracurricular activities, and occasionally would catch a ride with someone else. But again, it was no problem. And it rained. And it snowed. And guess what else--I'm still fairly fit (unlike quite a few people with whom I went to school). Oh yeah, and I know how to spell 'bus'.

Where are kids going to meet to get beat up?

Exactly - that is how I avoided fighting in HS. I challenged the lunk heads to meet me afterschool at the bikeracks which resolved the short term conflict ... and I bet some of them are still looking for the bike racks ... which aren't there.

The rest of the fights I won by about 2 1/2 blocks.

double post

Hey that's in my neighborhood. I never use that bridge on my way to and from work, the traffic light 1 block away works just fine.


There is another great idea. How about a traffic light or a crossing guard?

Better call a WHAM-bulance. I kid. I kid.

The problem I see, is that people did it for centuries. Why is it so hard now?

Apparently sometime in the Nineties they began making kids out of sugar.

OK, they got nowhere with the Principal. Next stop, the Superintendent of schools, and after that, the school board. Chances are, that's where the Principal got his direction about this matter...

"In the first place, God created idiots. That was for practice. Then He created school boards" - Mark Twain

In my almost 50 years on this planet this time around, I've seen very little that contradicts this quote...

this thread got me thinking about my high school days- I google mapped my high school and my house- exactly a 1 mile walk. I did it no problem for four years but admittedly that's one of the things that got me started on biking- riding to high school.

The high school drivers and buses are potentially very dangerous and not to be dismissed as inconsequential but not enough to justify the principal's stupid decision to block the addition of a bike rack.

*edit- wow! my walk to junior high school was 1.5 miles I remember it being long when I was a kid.

It's probably mainly the high school drivers that make it more dangerous to ride bikes around the high school. If the high schoolers weren't driving, it might be safer there. Except then you'd have moms dropping the kids off, because, you know, kids are allergic to both weather and busses.

If the main danger is cars, then the solution is to, wait for it, wait for it, ban cars from a certain radius from the school.

If only, if only...

It is kind of interesting how concerned we are with childhood obesity in the US. Even to the point that vending machines are being banned in some districts. Now if only there were a good way to get kids to exercise on a daily basis...

Where is the light bulb icon?