- AT-Network - University of Manitoba Mailing Lists

Forget the rest: The real reason to support active commuting
by Beth McKechnie 10 Aug '17

10 Aug '17

A new study offers perhaps the most definitive reason yet why society should be doing more to encourage cycling, and serves as another reminder that the health benefits of cycling far outweigh the risks. This British study <http://www.bmj.com/content/357/bmj.j1456> took a comprehensive look at the health benefits of bicycle commuting, and the results are staggering. Over the course of the study, the 263,450 subjects who were under review had a 41 per cent lower chance of death than those who didn’t. “Cycle commuters had a 52 per cent lower risk of dying from heart disease and a 40 per cent lower risk of dying from cancer. They also had 46 per cent lower risk of developing heart disease and a 45 per cent lower risk of developing cancer at all,” the study’s authors wrote <http://theconversation.com/cycling-to-work-major-new-study-suggests-health-…> . Just let those numbers soak in a bit. They truly are significant. If a pharmaceutical company created a pill that could reduce your chance of dying by almost half, with particular success against those stubborn scourges of humanity of cancer and heart disease, it would be heralded as a wonder drug. Luckily, this pill is already hanging from the rafters of your garage. Two things struck me particularly from the study. In their analysis, the researchers accounted for the risk associated with road accidents, which offers further evidence that even the supposed risks of riding a bike are vastly outweighed by the benefits of riding. Put another way: Our irrational fear of the relatively small risk of a blow to the head is overriding the guaranteed health benefits of bicycle commuting. Our assessment of risk in this context is, to be blunt, pretty messed up. This mirrors the message of this new Australian documentary <https://youtu.be/nGsM-XIuGwo>This mirrors the message of this new Australian documentary arguing against the country’s mandatory helmet law. In it, public health doctors and advocates express the same message: the health benefits of cycling far outweigh the risk of injury, so we should be doing more to make it easier to ride bikes daily for transportation. Which leads me to the second aspect of the study that really caught my attention. Of most benefit here wasn’t just riding a bike, but bicycle commuting. This is a pretty significant distinction. That distinction is the difference between encouraging people to get out and exercise and making it easier for people to simply use a bike in their everyday lives. The medical community has been encouraging us for nearly a century to do the former, and despite the mainstreaming of things like running and going to the gym, we keep getting more sedentary, more obese and more unhealthy. That approach to health isn’t exactly a ringing success. But this study seems to be mirroring what many cycling advocates have long said, and what bike commuters preach about all the time: But this study seems to be mirroring what many cycling advocates have long said, and what bike commuters preach about all the time:* Active living works when it’s part of our day, not an add-on.* The study found most of the benefits from cycling come in those situations in which cycling has already been built into the daily lives of people. In the world’s great bike cities, for example, people don’t bike because it’s good for them any more than they bike because it improves the street life of the city or because, God forbid, it reduces their carbon footprint. If you ask them, they will tell you that they ride a bike because it’s quick and easy. “Policies designed to affect a population level modal shift to more active modes of commuting, particularly cycle commuting (eg, cycle lanes, city bike hire, subsidised cycle purchase schemes, and increasing provision for cycles on public transport), present major opportunities for the improvement of public health,” according to the study’s conclusion. Therein lies the solution. If we want society to realize that 41 per cent improvement in our health that comes with bicycle commuting, we need to make it fast and easy to get places on a bike. That means continuing to accommodate bikes on our streets and building cities around the idea of active transportation. We’ve already started in most cities. We just need to hurry up. http://shifter.info/forget-all-the-other-reasons-you-should-be-riding-a-bik…

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Downtown Columbus will buy bus rides for 43, 000 workers
by Beth McKechnie 09 Aug '17

09 Aug '17

Property owners in the Ohio capital's core are rethinking the relationship between cars and jobs. https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2017/08/downtown-columbus-will-buy-b… Despite a surge of redevelopment in downtown Columbus, office rents are tumbling and vacancy rates are on the up. The problem, business leaders say: Lack of parking. A structured parking space in the Ohio capital’s space-crunched core runs nearly $25,000 a year, which typically isn’t covered by revenues. So developers feel hamstrung from building new garages, and the city is wary of subsidizing them; building to meet parking demand, after all, is an exercise in futility <https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2016/01/the-strongest-case-yet-that-…>. Meanwhile, employers fear they’re losing ground to suburban competitors. Now Columbus has found an out-of-the-box solution, following a vote by downtown property owners last week. Starting next summer, they’ll buy transit passes for thousands of workers <http://www.dispatch.com/news/20170802/program-approved-to-give-free-bus-pas…> . Some 43,000 employees inside a special improvement district will be eligible for annual bus passes, free to them and paid for primarily by the 550 building owners in the area. “Capital Crossroads” property holders will pay 3 cents per square foot of space per year, which will generate about half of the $5 million subsidy. Grants and fundraising by Capital Crossroads board leaders will raise the rest. The Central Ohio Transit Authority has said it will offer the passes at a deep discount <https://nextcity.org/daily/entry/columbus-ohio-free-bus-passes>. The decision follows a successful pilot that ran from June 2015 through January 2017, which doubled the share of bus commuters among 844 employees at four companies in the district from 6.4 percent to 12.2 percent. If those results can be replicated across the entire downtown district, “Capital Crossroads estimates that it would free up 2,400 parking spaces—about four parking garages—and allow for 2,900 more people to work in the district,” according to the *Columbus Dispatch* <http://www.dispatch.com/news/20170312/building-owners-might-subsidize-free-…> . “Between 4,000 and 5,000 people would trade their cars for COTA on their commute, the district estimates.” In some ways, Columbus’ solution is a textbook “transportation demand management” strategy to nudge drivers out of single-occupancy cars, and reduce congestion, pollution, and road wear. San Francisco, Boulder, Cambridge, and others have TDM ordinances requiring developers to include transit-oriented amenities in new properties. Cities all over the country require developers to pay infrastructure impact fees, which often feed transit budgets <http://sf-planning.org/impact-fees>. And employers often help cover the cost of their employees’ transit passes. But this program will be the first in the country where bus passes are directly funded by property owners, according to Cleve Ricksecker, executive director of Capital Crossroads, and many cities are keeping a watchful eye on its deployment. “The more people who think about this, the more sense it makes,” Ricksecker told the *Columbus Dispatch* <http://www.dispatch.com/news/20170802/program-approved-to-give-free-bus-pas…> . There is deep and rather remarkable logic coming to the surface here. As the famed transportation scholar Donald Shoup has put it, the true costs of parking are largely hidden from drivers. Developers, property owners, employers, and cities subsidize the costs of parking infrastructure because of the seemingly un-severable connection they make between car access and economic viability. Columbus’s new program adds capacity to the number of commuters downtown can handle, and it also shows an optimism among property owners—who have everything to lose—that cars aren’t everything when it comes to a thriving downtown economy. Transportation demand management isn’t a silver bullet; many programs that pay commuters to take transit rather than drive have not yielded enduring behavioral changes. Some critics say that courting transit commuters with free passes takes the pressure off transportation authorities to build the higher-capacity, higher-frequency service that would organically attract more riders.

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New, authoritative reference on protected bikeways (ITE)
by Beth McKechnie 08 Aug '17

08 Aug '17

*From People for Bikes:* If the new *Protected Bikeways Practitioners Guide *from the Institute for Transportation Engineers were a record, it'd be a Jay-Z album: sampling the famous and the obscure to create something new. The 36-page document published this week (and available <http://ecommerce.ite.org/IMIS/ItemDetail?iProductCode=IR-144&Category=PUB&W…> to ITE members for $25, nonmembers for $31.50) remixes some of the most useful data, recommendations and perspectives from the latest bikeway design guides, from the 2016 Dutch CROW manual <http://www.peopleforbikes.org/blog/entry/the-worlds-best-bikeway-manual-jus…> to the 2015 Separated Bike Lane Planning & Design Guide <http://www.peopleforbikes.org/blog/entry/massachusetts-is-about-to-release-…> from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. In addition to including a helpful list and healthy sampling from other guides, it also adds original work in several areas: how to integrate protected bike lanes on suburban-style curving roads, how to clear snow from protected lanes and how to evaluate their performance after installation. Read on for more highlights <http://www.peopleforbikes.org/blog/entry/heres-a-new-authoritative-quick-re…> -- *Beth McKechnie* | Workplace Commuter Options <http://greenactioncentre.ca/>Green Action Centre <http://www.greenactioncentre.ca/> <http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/> 3rd floor, 303 Portage Ave | (204) 925-3777 x102 | Find us here <http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/> Green Action Centre is your green living hub Support our work by becoming a member <http://greenactioncentre.ca/support/become-a-member/>. Donate at CanadaHelps.org <http://canadahelps.org/>

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Undercover bike police seek out dangerous drivers
by Beth McKechnie 02 Aug '17

02 Aug '17

*Undercover bike police seek out dangerous drivers* https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/undercover-bike-police-seek-out-dan… Undercover police officers wearing plain clothes and video cameras have been sent out on bicycles to catch motorists who endanger cyclists by driving too close or cutting them up. The initiative was launched by the Metropolitan Police yesterday to increase safety for cycling commuters in London, where more than half a million daily journeys are made by bicycle. Analysis from City of Westminster council in 2013 showed that more than two thirds of collisions between bicycles and motor vehicles in central London were the motorist’s fault. Police have launched the programme to focus on motorists who drive dangerously, but officers will also pull up cyclists who misbehave, with one senior officer warning: “We can’t be everywhere, but we could be anywhere.” Motoring groups have welcomed efforts to increase safety for cyclists, but expressed concerns that resources could be better deployed by having more visible traffic officers, whose numbers have been cut by more than a quarter over five years. The Met said: “Officers . . . will go to any location, at any time, in any borough, based on intelligence and complaints, to ensure drivers properly obey the rules of the road.” The officers, riding unmarked bicycles donated by BMW, will prioritise three common driving offences, including the tailgating of cyclists, unsafe overtaking, and turning across a cyclist’s path. “If officers encounter a driver committing any of these offences, they will identify them to a nearby, marked police motorcycle rider, who will stop and engage with them,” police said. The motorist will be given a presentation on Highway Code rules governing safe driving around cyclists and will have to provide insurance and licence details and pass an eyesight test, while their vehicle is checked. Professional drivers will be reported and may have to appear in court, as will all motorists who are guilty of “particularly bad” driving. A similar initiative in Edinburgh this year resulted in almost 70 drivers pulled over in the first week. Sergeant Andy Osborne said: “We want all road users to obey the Highway Code. This tactic is about education and encouraging motorists who do not comply with the rules of the road to start doing so, for everyone’s safety and protection, theirs included.” Will Norman, London’s walking and cycling commissioner, said: “We know that safety concerns are one of the biggest barriers to cycling in London. That’s why we’re working hard to build high-quality safe routes to encourage even more people to cycle, and why I’m so pleased to see the Met tackling some of the dangers that we see on our roads.” Neil Greig, director of policy and research at IAM RoadSmart, said he wanted to see improved safety for cyclists, particularly through segregated cycle routes, but added: “Our members want to see more traffic police out there. If you have enough manpower to have [undercover officers] out there, then have them in uniform.” Mr Greig said that motorists had become used to cameras mounted on bike helmets and dashboards and would not be unduly concerned by the police’s use of cameras. Edmund King, president of the AA, said: “I think drivers are generally quite considerate, but there are some who pass far too close and I don’t think they understand the consequences of their actions, which could be fatal.”

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*Exciting event alert!* BIKE!BIKE! Aug 24-27
by Beth McKechnie 31 Jul '17

31 Jul '17

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Wrench Volunteers <wrenchvolunteer(a)gmail.com> Date: Mon, Jul 31, 2017 at 1:37 PM Subject: *Exciting event alert!* BIKE!BIKE! Aug 24-27 Okay everyone, *we've got something very very exciting on the horizon!* *Next month (August 24-27th) our lil' prairie city is hosting Bike!Bike! ; an international Community Bike Shop conference!* Bike!Bike! is a gathering of folks from all around North America (even Mexico!) who are committed to using bicycles as a vehicle for social change. We'll be hosting 200-300 bike nerds & geeks from all over the continent and we're gonna need a lil help from y'all; 1.*Hosting conference attendees*; Got a floor? Couch? Spare bed? Even a patch of grass would be great! *Conference attendees get billeted out with local hosts and we need hosts to sign up online.* There's a short survey that's part of the Bike!Bike! registration <https://en.bikebike.org/conferences/Winnipeg2017/register/> about how much space you have, location, pets, loaner bikes, etc. If you're able and willing to host even one person please sign up asap! Just register for the conference as a host rather than a participant. It only takes 3 minutes! 2.*Participate*!: Bike!Bike! isn't just about bike nerdery but more-so about social justice and how we're trying to make the world a more equitable, sustainable, radical place using bikes and bike-based education. If you think you have any sort of knowledge or skills that would be useful to share with a bunch of other rad, eager-to-learn peoples then please register to attend and put together a workshop. Registration fees are pay-what-you-can (suggested $50-$100) with 2 meals a day and free entry to a bunch of great parties. Please inquire with me if you're not sure whether your workshop would be a good fit or not. Register or submit a workshop here <https://en.bikebike.org/conferences/Winnipeg2017/register/>. 3.*Volunteer/Loaner bikes* - We're looking for volunteers to help out of course. Most volunteers will be needed in the week or two leading up to the conference and tasks are many and varied. We also may need some loaner bikes for attendees to borrow. If you're able to volunteer or loan a bike there's a quick volunteer survey here that you can fill out; https://goo.gl/forms/ gt0MPFASygvRXoFg1 *4. Please share the Facebook event page / Pass this info on to other folks who might be interested in attending!* Bike!Bike! Facebook event page HERE <https://www.facebook.com/events/344539605974805/?context=create&previousact…> Thanks! Greatly appreciate your help on this! Cheers, Sarah Thiessen *Volunteer Coordinator* The *W*innipeg *R*epair* E*ducation '*N*' *C*ycling *H*ub 1057 Logan Ave, Winnipeg 204.296.3389 <(204)%20296-3389> www.thewrench.ca

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The Criminalization of Walking
by Beth McKechnie 27 Jul '17

27 Jul '17

The simple act of walking is sometimes criminalized in the United States. Anti-jaywalking statutes and ordinances—originally motivated by auto-industry lobbyists in the 1920s—call for fines and, sometimes, imprisonment for crossing the street. Additionally, some localities have interpreted statutes against “child neglect” to encompass a parent’s decision to let their kid walk outside alone. The result of this criminalization? Such policies have reduced pedestrian liberty, increased automobile traffic and pollution, and created a disincentive for physical activity in the midst of an obesity and diabetes epidemic. In addition to discussing these effects, this Article argues that the purported safety benefits of criminalizing walking pale in comparison to those of decriminalization. In the context of currently vague child neglect laws, this Article suggests a bright-line rule that would empower parents’ decision to allow their children to do the unthinkable: walk themselves to school. Download full article <https://illinoislawreview.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Lewyn.pdf> [pdf] from *University of* *Illinois Law Review* A few highlights are provided in another article <http://www.placemakers.com/2017/05/16/the-irrational-criminalization-of-wal…>(which also includes an interesting personal anecdote): Lewyn examines all this through the lens of jaywalking laws and child endangerment statutes, pointing out the irrationality inherent in the justifications used to defend both. A few tidbits: - Where jaywalking is not an offense or in areas where it’s not enforced or enforced with inconsequential penalties, rates of pedestrian deaths are greatly reduced. - Statistically speaking, were a parent intentionally seeking to have their child abducted they would need to leave them outside, unattended, for 500,000 years before it would be likely to happen. - An American child is fifty times more likely to die from a car crash than from an abduction by a stranger. -- *Beth McKechnie* | Workplace Commuter Options <http://greenactioncentre.ca/>Green Action Centre <http://www.greenactioncentre.ca/> <http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/> 3rd floor, 303 Portage Ave | (204) 925-3777 x102 | Find us here <http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/> Green Action Centre is your green living hub Support our work by becoming a member <http://greenactioncentre.ca/support/become-a-member/>. Donate at CanadaHelps.org <http://canadahelps.org/>

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Hamilton's AT Benchmarking Program
by Beth McKechnie 27 Jul '17

27 Jul '17

Interesting to see what the City of Hamilton is doing with their AT benchmarking program, given they're similar to Winnipeg in terms of size and density. https://www.hamilton.ca/mapping-business-reporting/activity-reports/active-… -- *Beth McKechnie* | Workplace Commuter Options <http://greenactioncentre.ca/>Green Action Centre <http://www.greenactioncentre.ca/> <http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/> 3rd floor, 303 Portage Ave | (204) 925-3777 x102 | Find us here <http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/> Green Action Centre is your green living hub Support our work by becoming a member <http://greenactioncentre.ca/support/become-a-member/>. Donate at CanadaHelps.org <http://canadahelps.org/>

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The WRENCH is hiring, please share!
by Beth McKechnie 19 Jul '17

19 Jul '17

Hi everyone, In case you know someone who would be a good fit, the WRENCH is looking for a new Co-Executive Director. It's a rewarding time for the right person to get involved as the WRENCH is apparently looking at some exciting major new projects in the next couple of years. *Application deadline: Fri, August 11th * cheers, Beth -- *Beth McKechnie* | Workplace Commuter Options <http://greenactioncentre.ca/>Green Action Centre <http://www.greenactioncentre.ca/> <http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/> 3rd floor, 303 Portage Ave | (204) 925-3777 x102 | Find us here <http://greenactioncentre.ca/content/ecocentre-directions-and-travel-options/> Green Action Centre is your green living hub Support our work by becoming a member <http://greenactioncentre.ca/support/become-a-member/>. Donate at CanadaHelps.org <http://canadahelps.org/>

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8 Best Cycling Innovations from Velo-City 2017
by Beth McKechnie 12 Jul '17

12 Jul '17

1. Dockless bike sharing 2. Paying people to cycle 3. Smart traffic lights 4. Cobbled roads 5. New intersections 6. Harnessing user data 7. Bike paths for high rises 8. Solid tires Full article: https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2017/jun/17/10-best-cycling-innovations-…

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The Lance: New outdoor bike repair station on greenway (Jul3'17)
by Beth McKechnie 04 Jul '17

04 Jul '17

*New outdoor bike repair station on greenway* http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/our-communities/lance/New-outdoor-bike-rep… Cyclists in Winnipeg who enjoy life in the saddle now have even more reason to get their fix. Two new outdoor bike repair stations were opened recently, one donated by Coun. Brian Mayes (St. Vital) and one donated by Coun. Jenny Gerbasi (Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry). The station donated by Mayes was officially opened on June 20 in St. Vital on the Bishop Grandin Greenway and the Dakota/Dunkirk Pathway at the northeast corner of Bishop Grandin Boulevard and Dakota Street, while the station donated by Gerbasi officially opened on June 22 in West Broadway at the Broadway Neighbourhood Centre at 187 Young St. Mayes said he became motivated to support the creation of the station after Coun. Janice Lukes (South Winnipeg-St. Norbert) supported one in her ward last year. He said the station will serve the hundreds of cyclists that use the greenway on a daily basis. The stations are made in Manitoba by Rackworks, and they provide cyclists with free access to a variety of tools necessary to perform basic bike repair and maintenance. The stations consist of an air pump, and a repair stand that includes a selection of tools such as screwdrivers, levers, and wrenches that are attached to the stand by wires. "The whole idea is that there’s help if you have an issue with your bike," said key organizer Currie Gillespie of Rackworks, an avid cyclist and St. Vital resident, at the opening ceremony. "You might need air in your tires, or your seat might be slipping, or your handlebars need tightening up. There are more than 15 commonly-used tools here, and the stand is designed for all bikes." Gillespie is not only encouraging community members to enjoy the station, but also to help ensure it remains in good working order. "It’s a community repair stand, and it’s here for the community, so if somebody vandalizes it, it takes away the ability of the community to use it. If someone sees any vandalism, they can contact us at Rackworks," Gillespie said. He said the greenway and the many interconnecting bike paths and active transportation trails in the south end of the city are a massive boon. "The south end of the city is the best part of the city for cycling," he said. "For example, I can ride from my house in St. Vital to The Forks without playing with traffic." Mayes added the location of the repair station is a perfect one in light of the volume of bicycle traffic. "It fits in with the greenway, and it’s at the intersection of two main bike routes, so it’s a great place to do it. Currie has been great with this," he said. simon.fuller(a)canstarnews.com

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