Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Commuting
Reload this Page >

My town has gone bike CRAZY!

Notices
Commuting Bicycle commuting is easier than you think, before you know it, you'll be hooked. Learn the tips, hints, equipment, safety requirements for safely riding your bike to work.

My town has gone bike CRAZY!

Old 04-13-09, 05:27 PM
  #1  
Senior Member
Thread Starter
 
fredgarvin7's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 371
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
My town has gone bike CRAZY!

2 Weeks ago I read that Woodbury N.J. had gotten a state grant for $150,000 that they were going to use for a bike trail and bridge to conect with a pedestrian bridge over the Woodbury Creek. Then a week later I read the state plans to change st. rt. 45 AKA Broad st. They are supposed to change it from 4 lanes to 2 lanes with a central left turn lane and add bike lanes on both sides. This in a county that to my knowledge has NO bike lanes of any kind. Wow!
fredgarvin7 is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 05:30 PM
  #2  
Buh'wah?!
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Charlottesville VA
Posts: 2,131

Bikes: 2014 Giant Trance

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 2 Times in 2 Posts
Lucky. There isn't a single bike rack in my entire town.
-Gene-
Amani576 is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 05:33 PM
  #3  
Senior Member
 
mechanicalron's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Downtown Detroit, Mi.
Posts: 781

Bikes: Surly LHT, 94 Cannondale track bike, 80's Cannondale track bike, 60's Raleigh 5 speed, 1888 Eldridge wood wheel track bike and my old 76 DG BMX from when I was a kid.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
That is so cool! I hope this is the trend to come.
In Detroit we have 1 short bike lane in front of GM (of all places) that is used for a taxi stand!

I think it was for a photo shoot to make GM look good!
mechanicalron is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 05:38 PM
  #4  
Senior Member
 
mechanicalron's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Downtown Detroit, Mi.
Posts: 781

Bikes: Surly LHT, 94 Cannondale track bike, 80's Cannondale track bike, 60's Raleigh 5 speed, 1888 Eldridge wood wheel track bike and my old 76 DG BMX from when I was a kid.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
yea, that is a valet sign without a sign in the middle of the bike lane! I have a sticker just for it I think i should use and take a photo of that! This is on my way home from work.
mechanicalron is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 05:43 PM
  #5  
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 435

Bikes: Giant OCR1

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by mechanicalron
That is so cool! I hope this is the trend to come.
In Detroit we have 1 short bike lane in front of GM (of all places) that is used for a taxi stand!

I think it was for a photo shoot to make GM look good!
That body of water is awfully close to that sign... be a shame if it somehow or another ended up in it, floating away.

I generally take any sign I find placed in a bike lane and toss it into whatever ditch or shrubbery happens to be nearby. If I'm feeling nice I'll just toss it on the shoulder.
vaticdart is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 05:54 PM
  #6  
Senior Member
 
mechanicalron's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Downtown Detroit, Mi.
Posts: 781

Bikes: Surly LHT, 94 Cannondale track bike, 80's Cannondale track bike, 60's Raleigh 5 speed, 1888 Eldridge wood wheel track bike and my old 76 DG BMX from when I was a kid.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by vaticdart
That body of water is awfully close to that sign... be a shame if it somehow or another ended up in it, floating away.

I generally take any sign I find placed in a bike lane and toss it into whatever ditch or shrubbery happens to be nearby. If I'm feeling nice I'll just toss it on the shoulder.
OMG, ha ha ha that is the Detroit river and that sign is at the front door of GM so it is protected by security, Det police, the coast guard and home land sec!!! You should have seen it when I stoped the other day to take this picture! I was surrounded by 3 people with radio's talking to other people saying stuf like "yea, we are talking to him now". So make sure you pay your taxes to take care of people like us when we think to much!
mechanicalron is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 05:55 PM
  #7  
uke
it's easy if you let it.
 
uke's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: indoors and out.
Posts: 4,124
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time in 1 Post
Originally Posted by vaticdart
that body of water is awfully close to that sign... Be a shame if it somehow or another ended up in it, floating away.
lol.
uke is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 05:58 PM
  #8  
Senior Member
 
Fremdchen's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Atlanta, GA
Posts: 549

Bikes: 2007 Fuji hybrid

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by mechanicalron
OMG, ha ha ha that is the Detroit river and that sign is at the front door of GM so it is protected by security, Det police, the coast guard and home land sec!!! You should have seen it when I stoped the other day to take this picture! I was surrounded by 3 people with radio's talking to other people saying stuf like "yea, we are talking to him now". So make sure you pay your taxes to take care of people like us when we think to much!
Did you ask them to move it out of the traffic lane?
Fremdchen is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 06:02 PM
  #9  
Senior Member
 
mechanicalron's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Downtown Detroit, Mi.
Posts: 781

Bikes: Surly LHT, 94 Cannondale track bike, 80's Cannondale track bike, 60's Raleigh 5 speed, 1888 Eldridge wood wheel track bike and my old 76 DG BMX from when I was a kid.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by Fremdchen
Did you ask them to move it out of the traffic lane?
Yea over a year ago and I hate that thing but look at all the cabs in it at the stop! The bicycle police have to go around them!!! WTF!
mechanicalron is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 06:08 PM
  #10  
Senior Member
 
mechanicalron's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Downtown Detroit, Mi.
Posts: 781

Bikes: Surly LHT, 94 Cannondale track bike, 80's Cannondale track bike, 60's Raleigh 5 speed, 1888 Eldridge wood wheel track bike and my old 76 DG BMX from when I was a kid.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
O yea and if you lock your bike in front of GM they wont say a thing. But when you come back 10 min later you find out they cut your lock and are going to put it in the police pound! They will not give it back to you and you have to go to the police dept and be told you are a security risk! DETROIT HATES BIKES?
mechanicalron is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 06:19 PM
  #11  
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 247
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Well Detroit is rotting to hell. The mean house price in Detroit is what? $7K?
gascostalot is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 06:56 PM
  #12  
Cycle Year Round
 
CB HI's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Honolulu, HI
Posts: 13,644
Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1316 Post(s)
Liked 92 Times in 59 Posts
Originally Posted by fredgarvin7
...I read the state plans to change st. rt. 45 AKA Broad st. They are supposed to change it from 4 lanes to 2 lanes with a central left turn lane and add bike lanes on both sides... Wow!
Oh goody, goody, more glass and other debris to ride through as motorist yell, "get off the road, get in the bike lane"!
CB HI is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 07:11 PM
  #13  
Senior Member
 
adaminlc's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Las Cruces, NM
Posts: 328

Bikes: 2007 Surly Cross Check, 199? Novara Alpine

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
I like bike lanes, they make me feel special .
adaminlc is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 08:47 PM
  #14  
Senior Member
 
Kimmitt's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Long Beach, ca
Posts: 952

Bikes: RadRunner Plus, Kona Dew Deluxe

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 3 Times in 3 Posts
I like bike lanes on busy streets; coming down University Avenue out of UH Manoa, that little lane does make me feel a lot safer. The predictability it implies delights.
Kimmitt is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 09:31 PM
  #15  
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Eastern Iowa
Posts: 502

Bikes: surly cross check

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by CB HI
Oh goody, goody, more glass and other debris to ride through as motorist yell, "get off the road, get in the bike lane"!
+1

Thats all I need around here, another excuse for the cagers to yell profanities while they are buzzing me.
ryanwood is offline  
Old 04-13-09, 10:58 PM
  #16  
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Omaha NE
Posts: 109
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Now this is a pedestrian Bridge. This is In omaha And ive been on it a few times its pretty cool. Big waist of GOV money tho.
hockey4mnhs is offline  
Old 04-14-09, 02:18 AM
  #17  
Cycle Year Round
 
CB HI's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Honolulu, HI
Posts: 13,644
Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1316 Post(s)
Liked 92 Times in 59 Posts
Originally Posted by hockey4mnhs
Now this is a pedestrian Bridge. This is In omaha And ive been on it a few times its pretty cool. Big waist of GOV money tho.
Maybe not, if it keeps the peds on the bridge and off the bike paths.
CB HI is offline  
Old 04-14-09, 07:02 AM
  #18  
Senior Member
 
rumrunn6's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: 25 miles northwest of Boston
Posts: 29,528

Bikes: Bottecchia Sprint, GT Timberline 29r, Marin Muirwoods 29er, Trek FX Alpha 7.0

Mentioned: 112 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 5219 Post(s)
Liked 3,564 Times in 2,331 Posts
Just heard on the news this morning that Boston is lagging behind the rest of the country.
rumrunn6 is offline  
Old 04-14-09, 07:56 AM
  #19  
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Omaha, NE
Posts: 163
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
I haven't been riding on the bridge yet - I'd like to some day, but hate to drive to bike anymore...and I'm 20+ miles from it...streets going east/west in Omaha are not really friendly, but can be done...
schu777 is offline  
Old 04-14-09, 10:55 AM
  #20  
Senior Member
 
SlimAgainSoon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Down South
Posts: 1,267
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 10 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 2 Times in 2 Posts
Sounds like Woodbury, N.J., is gonna get a lot of bang for $150,000. I mean, a trail, a bridge ... they should teach other city governments how to do that ... or maybe they need to recheck their math.
SlimAgainSoon is offline  
Old 04-14-09, 11:18 AM
  #21  
Senior Member
 
mechanicalron's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Downtown Detroit, Mi.
Posts: 781

Bikes: Surly LHT, 94 Cannondale track bike, 80's Cannondale track bike, 60's Raleigh 5 speed, 1888 Eldridge wood wheel track bike and my old 76 DG BMX from when I was a kid.

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by hockey4mnhs
Now this is a pedestrian Bridge. This is In omaha And ive been on it a few times its pretty cool. Big waist of GOV money tho.
What, is that water toxic?
mechanicalron is offline  
Old 04-14-09, 11:31 AM
  #22  
Go Leafs
 
kgriffioen's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Milwaukee
Posts: 348
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Big waist of GOV money tho.
Please remember that it's not GOV money. Its OUR money!
kgriffioen is offline  
Old 04-14-09, 05:05 PM
  #23  
Commuter
 
Anthony87's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 94

Bikes: 2005 Specialized Hardrock Comp Disc, 2009 Trek 7.3FX

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by kgriffioen
Please remember that it's not GOV money. Its OUR money!
WE are our Gov!

Last edited by Anthony87; 04-14-09 at 06:12 PM. Reason: freedom
Anthony87 is offline  
Old 04-14-09, 05:52 PM
  #24  
Female Member
 
KitN's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: NYC
Posts: 915

Bikes: Citizen Tokyo (Silver), Schwinn Collegiate (1980's)

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Originally Posted by mechanicalron
That is so cool! I hope this is the trend to come.
In Detroit we have 1 short bike lane in front of GM (of all places) that is used for a taxi stand!

I think it was for a photo shoot to make GM look good!
Go back and video tape this (you can use a bike or helmet mounted camera to do it on the sly) and take as many pictures as you can. Then contact GM's "Customer Relations" or "Public Relations" department. Mention how this is against the law and completely obstructing a lane of traffic, not to mention dangerous! (It's no different than them putting this sign in the middle of the car lane.)

Then tell GM that if it's not removed immediately that you will be contacting your local newspaper and TV station telling them how GM is trying to discourage biking by bold-faced blocking bike lanes in a sad attempt to get people to buy their crappy cars.

Also contact your local community board and tell them about it too.

It's up to YOU to get the word out and "persuade" GM to act legally and responsibly since they can't seem to be able to do it by themselves. This is putting YOUR safety at risk the second you have to now dive into traffic or swerve to avoid the sign.
KitN is offline  
Old 04-14-09, 06:13 PM
  #25  
Senior Member
 
degnaw's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Bellevue, WA
Posts: 1,606
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 2 Times in 2 Posts
Originally Posted by Amani576
Lucky. There isn't a single bike rack in my entire town.
-Gene-
We have a couple U-shaped racks adjacent to the curb of a few major arterials. Problem is, I live in a suburb where every major building (grocery stores, dept. stores, schools, community center) is set back at least a 1-3 minutes' walk from the road.
degnaw is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.