News
Surface Parking
Are surface parking interests blocking downtown redevelopment? Surface parking lots: – decrease commercial & residential densit – decrease the city’s tax base – increase MSD’s combined sewer outlet problems. – increase the urban heat island. – decrease public transit use/development. What measures can the city take to make surface parking interests – invest in parking garages? – invest in huge tree canopies over the lots? – invest in solar panel systems over the lots? – sell out to higher redevelopment uses? Image above is of the intersection of First & Main (southern blocks) – over 50% of which are both covered with surface parking...
Ontario / Louisville
Ontario commits $25 million for cycling infrastructure. Louisville committed how much? OK, time for a Mayor Rob Ford / Mayor Greg Fischer joke. Actually, Ford is out of Toronto....
Tour de Lou & 20 is plenty
Wonder if KY Derby Festival will support Twenty is Plenty, Louisville – 20mph to make next year’s event safer? Watching motorists passing novice cyclists at 35 mph on Market Street was anxiety producing. Watching motorists cut off cyclists was worse. Twenty is Plenty....Where the young & educated want to live
Main stream media is finally catching on that people want to live in cities that are focused on people, not cars! ‘… the most popular cities … model mixed-use development and pedestrian-friendly spaces.”These places seem to be built for people, not for automobiles.” ‘ Louisville is in the bottom third of the long, long list of US cities....Walking/Biking & Healthier/Safer Cities
“Levels of obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes are lower in cities where a higher percentage of commuters bicycle or walk to work, and cities where drivers get used to sharing the road with bikers and walkers generally have lower rates of pedestrian and bike fatalities.”...Cycling & Density
“It (cycling) works here,” says cyclist and pedicabbie Austin Matherne. “Also, the way that downtown is set up, all the entertainment districts are so close together that it really is a viable transportation option for us.” Density – the key to cycling, walking, public transit....
Urban Bike Tours begin March 31
Urban Louisville bike tours will be offered Mondays, Tuesdays & Thursdays at 1:00pm beginning March 31, leaving from the Bike Couriers Bike Shop at 107 W Market. Details are on our website. ...
2014 Jamis Nemesis 650 Sport
Some photos of the new 2014 Jamis Nemesis 650 Sport we recently assembled for a customer. A great XC bike for just $659! New on the 2014 model: Kinesis triple-butted aluminum frame RST Blaze 650B TNL fork with 100mm travel Shimano Alivio/Acera 24 speed drivetrain Tektro HDC-300 hydraulic brakes Gear AKA 650B x 2.2″ tires Frame Triple-butted 6061 SuperPlastic Formed (SPF) aluminum, 1.5 – 1 1/8″ tapered head tube, over-sized seat tube, crown-clearing down tube, over-sized stays with post mount disc brakes, replaceable derailleur hanger Fork RST Blaze 650B TNL, MCU/coil spring with Turn-n-Lock lock-out and external preload adjustor, 30mm stanchions, 100mm travel Headset FSA Orbit 1.5 Zero-Stack internal cup, 30mm shim stack Wheels Alex MD19 650B double-wall disc-specific rims, Formula alloy 6-bolt disc hubs, 14g black stainless steel spokes Tires Geax AKA, 650B x 2.2″ Derailleurs Shimano Alivio M410 rear, Shimano M190 front Shiftlevers Shimano Acera M310 8-speed Chain KMC Z72 Cassette SRAM PG-820, 8-speed, 11-32 Crankset Shimano M311, alloy crank arms, 42/32/22T rings, 170mm (15″) 175mm (17-21″) BB Set FSA sealed cartridge bearing Pedals ATB platform, hi-impact resin cage & body Brakeset Tektro HDC-300 hydraulic disc brakes with 160mm rotors Handlebar Jamis XC alloy riser, 31.8 x 8° x 25mm rise x 680mm Stem Jamis XC alloy threadless, 7° rise x 90mm (15″), 100mm (17″), 110mm (19″), 120mm (21″) Grips Dual compound Seat Post Jamis OS alloy micro-adjust, 31.6 x 400mm Saddle Jamis ATB Comp with pressure relief channel Sizes 15″, 17″, 19″, 21″ Color Pearl...
Bridge Backstory (Clark Memorial)
OK, too many people are asking, so here it is. Wednesday I called the two parties responsible for the decision to close the bridge to pedestrians, Walsh Construction & KY Transportation Cabinet (contacts: Max Rowland of Walsh and Andy Barber KYTC Project Manager). Even though the work affecting the bridge is on the Indiana side of the bridge, KYTC is the responsible agency rather than IN Department of Transportation. INDOT is responsible for the east end ORBP bridge, KYTC is responsible for the downtown ORBP bridge. Walsh Construction was contacted because they will have to do the actual work as outlined by KYTC. Contacts were made with media, the mayor’s office, several attorneys, Barry Zalph (founder of Bicycling for Louisville), agencies on both side of the river and others. Thursday morning city engineer Dirk Gowin called, ah, the chronology is wrong, Max called back stating that Walsh simply figures out how to execute and then executes the decisions of KYTC. I assured Max that we understood Walsh’s role and that our contact was one of courtesy to make sure Walsh had adequate ‘heads up’. OK, back to city engineer Dirk and friend of many years. Dirk called with a quick, simple plan that guaranteed pedestrian access across the river/state line. I agreed with him that his was an elegant solution assuring him that we would support his plan. I had not hung up the phone from that call before a KYTC manager called. His was a hard line ‘No. We are closing the bridge to pedestrians… We did not have to accommodate pedestrians in Madison… etc.’ I suggested that...?Was the Big4 closed to the public Thunder 2013?
Question re: last year’s Thunder & Big 4 bridge… Was B4 closed to the public Thunder 2013?...
Reasons you should ride a bicycle
Petroleum Free Transportation
combats global climate change
improves local air quality
leaves no oil on our streets and in our drinking water
keeps local dollars local
frees our military from protecting foreign oil
promotes global peace
Bikes Are
healthy exercise
smart personal economy
great traffic calming influences
family-friendly
not electric (coal or fracked gas fueled) vehicles
fun!
