Op-ed: The Oklahoma Bike Summit

Here's what I wrote yesterday about the Oklahoma Bike Summit:

Andy Clarke, president of the League of American Bicyclists, addressed the meeting after lunch. Clarke is an engaging speaker and covered a wide range of bicycling-related topics. He spoke of Copenhagen, where the average number of commuting cyclists would be considered a huge turnout for any North American tour. Clarke brought out the 'safety in numbers' argument, which seems to indicate that increasing numbers of bicyclists do not lead to a proportional increase in bicycle crashes. He said, “We need complete systems, not just infrastructure.” That includes promotion, marketing, and education.

Clarke was concerned over the possible loss of transportation enhancement funds due to the political wrangling in Washington. He strongly advised those present to contact their senators and congressmen. “It's all about showing up,” he said, referring to the political adage that policy is set by those who make an effort to attend meetings.

When asked about the Reed Bates case in which a cyclist was arrested and jailed for riding on a public roadway, Clarke said, “His case was a disaster waiting to happen. It would not have set a precedent. He was not a sympathetic character.” Clarke defended the League's record regarding challenges to cyclist's rights by saying, “We have been involved in a number of such cases over the last several years.”

There was much more, of course, and most of it was omitted for the sake of brevity. I'll say this for Clarke, he's an excellent speaker. He pushed all the usual buttons: Copenhagen, safety in numbers, 'normal' cyclists, trip distances, bike sharing, and a statistic saying that a single traffic fatality has a $6 million cost. Clarke is concerned over the possible loss of transportation enhancement funds in the coming fiscal year, and like other cycling insiders, he seems to be concerned about demographics.

Demographics cut to the heart of cycling advocacy. Bikes Belong has a demographics report on the website detailing many items of interest to cyclists. The bar graph showing the age distribution of survey respondents caught my eye. It indicates that the average age of an 'enthusiast' cyclist is in the mid-forties. Now, please remember that this is a self-selected survey, so the results should not be regarded as representative of the entire population of cyclists, but the last census put the median age at about 37, well under the supposed average age of cyclists. Experienced bike riders are an aging population, and since they're the League's membership, the clock is ticking on an eventual downturn.

In the 1990s, the Amateur Radio Relay League surveyed their members and found that the average age was in the mid-fifties. ARRL pushed for some changes, eliminating Morse code entirely, simplifying the license structure, and updating the technical aspects of their testing to more modern standards in an effort to attract a younger crowd. Should LAB consider similar changes, and if so, what changes should they make?

There are huge, untapped demographics that go largely unnoticed by most of organized cycling; the poor who use bikes for basic transportation, and those young bike riders in their teens and twenties who comprise fully half of all bicyclists. Among the experienced cyclists, roughly half ride for transportation if only occasionally, but the bulk of their rides are for fitness and recreation.

Grist had this to say:“Contrary to popular convention, the biggest share of bicyclists isn't yuppies, it's low income people. In fact, the lowest-earning quarter of Americans make nearly one-third of all bike trips.”

Clarke obliquely touched on this when he said that he wanted cyclists to be 'normal' in the sense that they don't need to ride in dedicated cycling clothing for short trips. Meanwhile, those low income cyclists are already riding – to work and back – in ordinary street clothes. They don't have much disposable income, meaning that they won't consider spending money to join an organization unless it provides some tangible benefits. At present, LAB doesn't do that for existing members, so enormous changes would be demanded if the organization wants to tap this demographic.

Seventy percent of the respondents to Bikes Belong were happy or somewhat happy with existing facilities. The message is that the loss of transportation enhancement money would not have a great impact for them. It would seem natural that LAB would pivot on this and push their education program because it teaches cyclists how to use all streets safely, not just those with bike lanes. Education has been the red-headed step child at LAB for quite some time. It would be a heartening change to see it given greater emphasis.

League of American Bicyclists reform candidates

(Full disclosure: I'm working with LAB Reform in an effort to put some reform-minded candidates onto the League's board of directors. We're asking LAB members to sign the petition to put John Brooking, Eli Damon, and Khal Spencer on the upcoming ballot.)

The League board changed their bylaws in July this year. The change permits 7 of 15 board members to be appointed rather than elected by the membership. This weakens the members influence.

LAB Reform, a loose coalition of like-minded bicycling advocates, believes this is unacceptable in a membership organization. They're working to support John Brooking, Eli Damon, and Khal Spencer as candidates for the board. Their goal is to make all board positions elective and responsive to the members. They believe that LAB has been ineffective in supporting cyclist's rights and representing members interests.

Hans van Naerssen, Chair of the League Board, wrote that the increase in board members is intended to "encourage a greater diversity of opinion, skills and perspectives." While this sounds nice, it doesn't help make the board more accountable to the members or responsive to their needs. LAB needs more transparency and that doesn't come from unelected board positions.

Currently, the board determines who may be on the ballot. They've accepted only one reform candidate, Bill Hoffman, who is currently serving. John Brooking, Eli Damon and Khal Spencer must collect over 1000 petition signatures to get on the ballot.

Please sign the ballot petition. You can find it at: http://www.PetitionOnline.com/0league0/petition.html

If you want more information and especially if you would like to help collect signatures, please see http://www.labreform.org/campaign/

Reed Bates update

Reed Bates sent an email describing and clarifying the events that lead up to his 18 days in the Ellis County jail in Waxahachie. As noted by Serge in comments to a previous Examiner post, Bates' was held on a $5000 bail for failure to appear at the Ellis County Court on May 7th. The bail was not for charges on his bicycling offenses.

At the end of April, Bates moved from Ennis, Texas, to Dallas where he found work and a new place to live. He admits to screwing up by not informing the Ellis County Court of his address change.

May 7th was his trial date, and the district attorney offered a plea deal prior to that. Bates did not receive any notice of that, of course, but neither did his attorney, Mr. Jones. However, according to Bates, Jones was not listed as his attorney on this particular charge, so Bates takes full responsibility for missing the May 7th hearing.

Ellis County issued a warrant for his arrest on May 7th, and he was subsequently taken into custody in Rockwall on June 8th. He was held in the Rockwall County jail on a $5,000 bond. He couldn't raise the bail money.

On June 21st, he was transferred to the Ellis County jail. Two days later, his second attorney, Mrs. Summers, attended a hearing to sort out the various charges against him. There were several issues. First, who would represent Bates? Next, what were the charges against him, an appeal to the Ennis City convictions, or the Ellis County reckless driving charge? Finally, some consideration was given to reducing the bail.

Mrs. Summers told him of the plea bargain offer from the Ellis County district attorney. If Bates would plead guilty and pay a fine of $200 and court costs, he would be free to go. Bates refused, saying that he would not plead guilty when he hadn't committed an offense. Summers said that Bates would probably have to remain in jail until the trial.

On Friday, June 25th, Mr. Jones arrived to represent Bates. Mrs. Summers deferred to Bates' selection of Jones as his sole attorney. The judge wanted to know how much time Jones would need to present his case, and further, asked if the charge and the appeal could be presented the same day. Jones said he'd need two hours, and the judge set a trial date of July 29th to hear the reckless driving charge, a procedural question about the appeal, and (possibly) an impeding traffic charge.

The district attorney offered a new plea deal: time served plus court costs and three months probation. Bates declined.

On Saturday, June 26th, bail was reduced to $300 and with a friend's help, Bates was released.

Reed Bates insists that he did nothing illegal and therefore he will not plead guilty. How many of us could do the same? It would be easier to simply accept the deal, plead guilty and pay the fines, and then put the matter behind us. At the very heart of all this is Bates' simple assertion of his rights as a bicyclist. He was under no legal obligation to ride on the shoulder of the road. No law requires it of any cyclist in Texas, yet when the authorities couldn't charge him with breaking a non-existent law, they brought other far more specious charges.

The League of American Bicyclists and the Texas Bicycle Coalition remain silent on this issue. The League - which claims it exists to protect cyclist's rights - apparently doesn't believe the rights of this cyclist are worth protecting.

Reed Bates jailed again

(UPDATE, SATURDAY AFTERNOON: Reed Bates' bail was reduced from $5000 to $300. Yes, they wanted $5000 for a bicycling offense.)

(UPDATE, SUNDAY MORNING: Bates was released at 4:15PM yesterday. Trial date on July 29 in Waxahachie. Possibly on all pending charges.)

The story of Reed Bates and his struggles with the legal system in Ennis, Texas, has taken on a Kafkaesque quality. Several times in the last year, Bates was arrested and jailed for the 'crime' of riding his bicycle on the road. Police tried to cite him for not riding in the bike lane, but discovered the town doesn't have any legal bike lanes, so they charged him with failure to ride in the right hand lane.

In the midst of all this, Bates was laid off from his job. With some assistance from other cyclists, he moved to Dallas and found work in a green energy company. He also obtained the services of an attorney to help fight the charges in Ennis. When his company applied for solicitor permits in Rockwall, Texas, local police told Bates there was a warrant for his arrest for failure to appear at an Ellis County court date. Neither Bates nor his attorney were informed of this appearance. Bates was taken into custody on June 8th.

As of Friday, June 25th, Reed Bates has been in the Ellis County jail for 17 days.

Thinking that perhaps the attorney had dropped the ball on this, Bates' employer helped him get assistance from another attorney. She ran into the same brick wall.

Bates is not a flight risk. In fact, he is eager to have his day in court. Yet the authorities in Ellis County seem hellbent on using the justice system to punish this man for having the temerity to stand up for his rights. Even from a distance, this has the appearance of local government officials trying to impose their will on a lone citizen. The corrupt southern red neck stereotype is used to comic effect in numerous television shows and movies, but in real life it's not at all funny. We pride ourselves on the rule of law, but apparently in the Ellis County judicial system, that law is whatever the authorities say it is.

And where are the Texas Bicycle Coalition and the League of American Bicyclists in all this? Why, they're waiting for the perfect case to come along before they'll get involved. Cue the crickets.

Cycling in Hell

(Image from Wikimedia)

Those of you who read CycleDog regularly know that I'm not afraid to rub a cat's fur the wrong way. So it shouldn't be a surprise that I'm not a fan of the Copenhagen style bike lane plans, or their foaming-at-the-mouth, overly ardent admirers. If you want such facilities, move to Copenhagen, but don't make the mistake of believing that similar projects are possible here. There are simply too many differences between our cultures.

First, taxes in Europe are exorbitant by our standards. Sure, they get a lot of public services in return, but if Americans were taxed at similar levels we'd overthrow the government.

Second, fuel costs are staggering. A gallon of gasoline costs roughly the equivalent of eight dollars. Is it any wonder they drive tiny, fuel-efficient cars? Is it any wonder they use bicycles for short trips?

Third, the oldest parts of European cities are laid out on a pedestrian scale. Streets can be narrow, sidewalks almost non-existent, and parking is often some distance away. Some cities have had the dubious benefit of rebuilding their cores after seeing them flattened in two world wars. I don't know of any sane people who'd advocate total destruction as an urban redevelopment option.

Finally, they enjoy extremely high population density, getting to live cheek-by-jowl with the neighbors. "Hey honey! CycleDog is having sauerkraut tonight! Let's get out of here!"

Now, the admirers of the Copenhagen plan would have us believe it's a cycling utopia, and if only we'd build similar facilities here, we'd find our paths strewn with flowers by tall, tastefully dressed Nordic women in stylish footwear.

So imagine my dismay at seeing the following:

In a measure to protect their cyclists, the Danish city of Grenå is funding a large-scale project called “See Mi” that will make navigating the city’s busiest streets easier for both cyclists and drivers. The initiative will see the installation of battery-powered RFIDs in the steering columns of 300 bikes as well as receivers at seven of the city’s most dangerous intersections. The RFID from the resident’s bicycle will send a signal to the traffic light when approaching the intersection; in turn, the traffic signal will automatically flash a ‘cyclist’ sign to warn drivers that they should keep an eye out for cyclists before making a right turn.

(LINK)

RFIDs are usually passive and do not require battery power. But that's a minor point. A much bigger one it this - MOTORISTS DO NOT LOOK FOR CYCLISTS ON THEIR RIGHT, EVEN IN UTOPIA. And a bike lane system merely reinforces this behavior. Cyclists are 'safely' segregated, out of sight and out of mind.

So in order to make this supposedly Utopian system work as it should, another modification, another layer of bureaucracy, another layer of control, and another equally pointless layer of gold leaf has to be applied to Copenhagen's turd of a bike system.

Tell you what - put the cyclist and the driver in the same lane and treat both of them as responsible vehicle operators, and this problem will go away without resorting to another Band-Aid approach. No one questions the underlying assumptions of these segregated bikeways, that cyclists are incapable of learning to ride in traffic, or that it's even possible to ride safely on a city street, because there's too much money and prestige tied up in building more and more facilities. Thunderhead Alliance, Bikes Belong, and a host of advocacy organizations including my favorite, the League of American Bicyclists, turn away from any serious discussion of this.

This just in...

	League Responds to U.S. Transportation Secretary's comments on PBS
	Transportation Secretary Mary Peters talks about infrastructure problems and travel initiatives. More Info Peters cited "bicycle paths" as a prime example of the waste Last night on the PBS NewsHour with Jim Leher, DOT Secretary Mary Peters was interviewed by Gwen Ifill. Peters, when asked about a possible gas tax increase, repeated President Bush's response - No, there can be no tax increase because Congress is wasting the money they already get. Peters cited "bicycle paths" as a prime example of the waste because bicycles are not a transportation use of the gas tax money. It is disappointing that the administration is attacking Jim Oberstar for his efforts to get the Minneapolis bridge repaired along with raising all the funding for transportation maintenance, by using Oberstar's support for bicycles as a weapon. The League of American Bicyclists feels strongly that this should not go without a response and we have sent a letter to Secretary Peters voicing our view. Click here to view our response. For those of you who feel strongly about bicycling issues, we would also urge you to contact the Secretary to share your personal viewpoints. To view a copy of the program click here