by Bike Courier | Jan 28, 2016 | Advocacy
“It’s hijacking transportation planning in favor of the automobile industry,” Hixson said. “That’s something most scientists and advocates of sustainable transportation say we need to move away from.” He said CART also wants the city to articulate how Smart Cities will address issues such as climate change, racial segregation, joblessness in low-income areas and access to efficient transportation for the poor. Local advocates are also asking about the status of an overdue study, Move Louisville, a consultant-aided project set up to determine the community’s long-range transportation plans. “Am I worried? No. Am I angry? Yes,” Green said. “It’s just typical, we still don’t have a vision for a foundational issue, which is transportation.” Image: courtesy of Courier-Journal...
by Bike Courier | Jan 27, 2016 | Advocacy
Image courtesy of WAVE 3 TV http://www.wave3.com/story/31052598/bicycling-advocate-offered-deal-on-traffic-charges http://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/2015/12/14/biking-advocate-rejects-plea-offer/77309418/ http://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/crime/2015/11/13/cyclists-risk-jail-time-not-using-lanes/75723738/...
by Bike Courier | Jan 26, 2016 | Advocacy
First, the timeline… November 13 – cyclist charged with: 1) Disregarding Traffic Light and 2) Obstructing a Highway… December 14 – Traffic Court – the defendant rejected the deal offered by the court… January 25 – Pre-Trial Conference – Prosecution amended the Obstruction charge (???), then, again proposed dismissing the Obstruction charge if the defendant pleaded guilty to the Disregarding Traffic Signal charge, took an online traffic course and paid $179 in court costs. The deal would have achieved two objectives: 1) avoiding a 90 day jail term on the Obstructing a Highway charge and 2) establishing that cyclists do not have to use bike lanes. The deal, however, would have denied the court the opportunity to wrestle with two issues: 1) the laws (Kentucky and Metro) which convey to cyclists the latitude to take measures which increase safety, and 2) the double standard where a motorist who just hit and killed a pedestrian can avoid prosecution on the plea “I did not see the pedestrian”, while a cyclist, pleading “I did not see the light” is prosecuted for moving safely through an intersection unaware of the color of a light… March 10 – Second Pre-Trial Conference – prosecution wants to review dash cam and body...
