Huntsville Bike Committee

Here are minutes from the previous public forum. 

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Public meeting June 10th 2009 – Collective list of concerns, questions, and requests from meeting:

      1.        All road infrastructure projects… Public wants to know who makes the final decisions on projects that pass and get funded… Protocol.. How the public can propose and secure projects in the coming budget! They want a clear explanation of whom or what city departments make these final decisions on what does and doesn’t get funded or done.

      2. Educational Material for Motorists and -Cyclists (4×5, -double-sided sheet, or tri-fold pamphlet) to be stocked at bike shops and visitors center. . . DMV/Drivers Ed.

3.      Notes gathered on awareness, infrastructure, and education:

·         Harassment of cyclists by motorists continues.. . Use of threatening verbiage, Improper use of horns, Objects thrown at cyclists, Motorists passing unaware, too close, and at high speeds.

·         Better motorist awareness on Bailey Cove, Whitesburg, Holmes, Meridian, Old Madison Pike, Drake, Bob Wallace, Airport & parkway crossings

·         Make bike advocacy advertisements more personal so non-cyclists don’t see cyclists as a nuisance. Right now motorists see bikes as something to “give a little room” on the road. If they see us as friends, neighbors, sisters, brothers, parents, children, etc…, perhaps they’d be more inclined to truly “SHARE THE ROAD”

4.      Lengthen Timing of Lights at key bike crossings intersections… Governor’s & Gallatin, Gallatin & Bob Wallace (near HSV High)

·         Sensor triggers for cyclists.., painted on ground/special push button. Many lights in Huntsville won’t trip unless a car is present. Many are green for too short for cyclist travel speed. This is why many cyclists are witnessed or have to resort to running lights.

5.      Bicycle/Pedestrian yield light and painted crosswalk at Hastings & Drake.
(Marathon Trail & Bike route 59).

6.      Help stop “Police Harassment” of cyclists.

·         Stop recent backlash of roll-call education… cyclist are being unjustly targeted by officers. Cyclist have reported being pulled over without “real” probable cause and harassed.

·         Public request that bike patrol ride streets as plain clothed cyclists to experience first hand the average cyclists experience in HSV.

·         Stop misinformation by Bike & Patrol Car officers about helmet laws, light laws, as well as -cyclists’ “Rights -to -the -Road”.

·         Police be more aware of motorist responsibility to “Share the Road” with cyclists.

·         Police program to give out lights to cyclists.

·         Share the road bumper stickers on police cruisers.

7.      Fix the poor road conditions on Church, Meridian, and Holmes Streets.

8.     Hire a full-time, qualified, bicycle & pedestrian coordinator for Huntsville to
facilitate necessary change

9.      Pedestrian crossings at Parkway & Drake, Airport, Bob Wallace etc…. Needed!

10.  Outreach education for Middle & High School Students… PE Credit for motorist and cyclist road awareness training In school PE Class.. . Credit for home school PE requirements as well.

11.   Larger, more visible “share the road signs” on multi-lane “larger” roads. Example: Whitesburg.

12.  Sharrows. . . placed or painted on roads on high traffic roads.

13.  Widen and put Bike lanes on Old Madison Pike bridge before Slaughter Rd. @ greenway entrance in Research Park. High danger spot for commuting cyclists into Research Park. Are there city Plans for east/west greenway?

14.  Multi-use path between F-565 &the railroad fnrn 4ewntwn out to Research Park and connect wflndian creek greenway.

15.   Police enforcement of speed and cyclist harassment on 5 Lane portion of
Meridian St. . . between Oakwood and Winchester, On Whitesburg, and Betts
Spring Branch of Greenway.. . East side of Zeirot.

Bike lanes: In some cities people are literally dying to have them and some people go so far as to mark their own. Here in New York City, it feels like every time I get on my bike there is a new bike lane – sometimes on the left, sometimes buffered, and sometimes completely separated from automobile traffic. To understand these lanes, I had the opportunity to go for a ride with the NYC DOT bicycle boys. They explained the classes of bike lanes and showed off some of these inventive facilities. You can use Ride the City to find a safe bike route in New York City and watch this video to see what lanes are used on your route.

by Bello Velo

http://bellovelo.blogspot.com/2009/10/cyclist-hit-last-night.html

First off he was ok just a bruised shoulder.

From Ken Kobayashi :

I was going eastbound on Old Madison Pike, just west of Diamond Dr, around 6:20 pm. I was on the right side of the outer lane, and with my taillights on. I was hit from the rear. By the time I noticed the headlights rapidly approaching in the rearview mirror, it was too late to do anything.

The driver said she didn’t see me until the last second, when she tried to swerve but didn’t make it. She didn’t say *why* she didn’t see me, I can’t think of any good reason as the road had good visibility and my vehicle has large reflectors in the rear in addition to the taillight.

The police officer did say the car driver was at fault, but also made comments about how he’d seen me on the road many times and it’s hard to see me because I’m so low. He also knew that I’d been hit before, and made sure I gave him the same vehicle information that I gave “to the other officer”, which made me rather uncomfortable.

The Alabama Bicycle Coalition Announces a Special Event:

Please help AlaBike cast a Long Shadow!

Sunday October
18

Ride, Dinner and a Movie at The Flying Monkey Arts
Lowe Mill, Huntsville, AL
2211 Seminole Dr 35801

Ride with World Champion Mike Olheiser !
Registration includes: Bike ride, Event T-shirt, Dinner at the Lowe Mill,
Olde Towne Beer,
AlaBike 2010 membership, and
A Movie - North Alabama Exclusive Premier of
Veer, the Movie
A feature-length film on Bike Culture

Long Shadows Rally Registration Fee $40

Expanded fee schedule:

AlaBike member in good standing : $30

New or renewing (2010) student member: $35

New or renewing (2010) member: $40

Rally Registration, AlaBike membership and a little extra: $50

*** Movie (“Veer”) Only: $10

New or renewing (2010) family membership (1 person attending): $50

New or renewing (2010) family membership (more than 1 person): $70

Limited number of Volunteer Stipends (email: alabike-volunteers@alabike.org)

Please RSVP Eddie Davidson: (email: alabike-volunteer@alabike.org) to estimate food!

Or mail registration to: AlaBike P. O. Box 18984 Huntsville, AL 35804

OR Pre-register at: http://www.active.com/event_detail.cfm?event_id=1800368

For more info: www.alabike.org

SmartBike DC from EMBARQ Network on Vimeo.

The large bicycle helmet-shaped structure — a project that’s been in the works for six years — outside of Union Station finally opened to the public during a ribbon-cutting ceremony this morning attended by a veritable “who’s who “of Washington’s bicycling community. Members of DDOT, Mayor Adrian Fenty, Councilman Tommy Wells, and representatives of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) attended and showed their support.

“It’s a new vision for how we’re thinking through how a great, asset-rich urban environment should be,” Wells said.

Bikestation, a nonprofit organization based in Long Beach, Calif., unveiled its newest facility with the goal of reducing traffic congestion, reducing vehicular emissions, improving access to mass transit, and increasing transport options in the nation’s capital. Similar parking stations have already been built in Long Beach, Palo Alto, Berkeley, Seattle and Santa Barbara.

Evan Bender, a local bike commuter, checks out the interior of the new facility. Photo by Rhys Thom.

The ultra-modern, glass and steel building, sitting under the shadow of Union Station’s iconic columns, cost $3 million to construct (plus $1 million of associated site improvements) and will house approximately 130 bicycles. It was funded mostly by the Federal Highway Administration, with the goal of alleviating traffic and helping the environment. And it very well may work. Andrea White-Kjoss, the President and CEO of Bikestation, estimates that 30% of expected users will be former drivers, and 60% will bike more frequently than they did before the station’s existence.

The station provides lockers, a changing area, bike rentals, repair and maintenance, and of course, indoor parking. Members, who pay an annual fee, will have 24/7 access to the facility, while rentals and maintenance occur from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

During the fall and winter months, there will be three people staffing the facility: two mechanics to run the full-service repair shop, and one rental assistant to promote Bike and Roll tours of the city. Users will be able to fix a flat, repair a broken chain, or buy some gear, like reflective leg bands.

Two mechanics will be on staff 7am-7pm. Photo by Rhys Thom.

read more here