Golden Honesty to open eyes!

8/13/2019 Golden Honesty to open eyes!

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The bike tax is just a distraction: The real problem is the billions on newhighwaysPosted on February 25, 20! by Tom Fucoloro

Package"Fact"#heet"$%"&hen the state #enate 'emocrats un$eiled a transportationpackage last week, (olks were shocked to see a )symbolic* bike tax o( up to 5percent on bike sales in the state+ nd we all (ell (or it, posting about why itmakes no sense+

-ut really, the bike tax is just a distraction (rom the larger problems with thebill, acting like a smoke screen keeping people (rom seeing the real problem:-illions o( dollars to partially (und highway expansions all o$er the state while(ailing to ade.uately address road sa(ety, transit, walking and biking needs+

The -icycle lliance o( &ashington points out that less than hal( o( one percento( the proposed /0 billion would go to in$estments that make it sa(er and easierto get around on (oot and bike+ This is simply unacceptable+

#eattle Transit -log chimed in this morning reporting that the /!+ billion (ornew and expanded highways 1not including the (unds (or repairs to existing(acilities does not e$en (ully (und those projects, meaning they will re.uire

many millions or billions more to complete them (urther down the road+ This isexactly where we are today as the state tries to dig up the rest o( the money (orthe 520 and the 3wy deep bore tunnel projects+

There is some transit (unding in the package, but not nearly enough to (illexpected (unding gaps at 4ing ounty 6etro and other transit agencies in thestate+ nd this comes at a time when the state should be in$esting in (ast ande((icient regional transit, like helping to boost a #ound Transit ! (undinge((ort+

&e cannot widen highways enough to signi(icantly reduce congestion+ -ut we cangi$e people other options to lessen the load+

6eanwhile, lack o( sa(e walking and biking routes to schools is the norm in&ashington+ This is unacceptable and shame(ul+ 7t is also detrimental to thestate8s education goals+

ompared to expanding a highway, making sure e$ery single school in the state hassa(e crosswalks around it and sa(e connections to neighborhoods would cost thestate $ery little+ &hy is #a(e 9outes to #chool absent (rom this plan

9egional trails remain disconnected, unpa$ed or incomplete+ section o( trail iskind o( cool, but a connected network o( trails and separated routes is a power(ultransportation system+ ities (rom across the nation look to &ashington8s -urke";ilman Trail as a premier example o( a regional bicycle highway, yet the stateremains uninterested in completing other similar routes in its towns and cities+

The new complete streets (unding is a step in the right direction, but the state8sown (act sheet describes that pool o( money as a (und to make sa(ety impro$ements(or people on bike and (oot+ This completely lea$es out the (act that the biggestsa(ety impro$ements (rom complete streets come (rom reductions in car"on"carcollisions+ This is a great idea, o( course, but it8s not only a biking andwalking thing+ The scale o( the (unding is also so completely out"o("scale withthe rest o( the package that the (act sheet pie graph rounds it to


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sa(ety projects and /200 million per year in transit (unding+ t those rates, itwill still take a long time to catch up on the massi$e needs (or biking andwalking sa(ety and access, but at least it would make a dent in the problem+

#o while the bike tax is certainly a bad idea, let8s not take our eye o(( theball+ =arge transportation packages don8t come along $ery o(ten, and this one hasgotten o(( to a $ery bad start+ People working toward ade.uate (unding (or bikingand walking sa(ety are starting with $ery little on the table+ To make matters

worse, a tough, only"i("we"absolutely"ha$e"to"do"it"to"get"something"worthybargaining chip>the bike tax>is already on the table (or some reason+ 7t8s hard tobargain when you start by gi$ing up e$erything and recei$ing nothing+

7( it comes to it and the only way to get ade.uate or bold biking and walking(unds is to o((er up the bike tax, then it might be worth it to swallow that $erybitter pill 1see ?eil (rom 6ontlake -ike #hop explain why it would hurt his smallshop+ @n(ortunately, that8s not the situation we8re in+ an we get there'emocrats better hope so i( they want to a$oid bitter opposition to their plan+

-ecause &ashington can8t a((ord another massi$e in$estment in the exact kinds o(highway projects that got us into this mess o( unsustainable, dangerous,(rustrating and economically draining congestion+ nd we certainly can8t start

taxing bicycles to pay (or it+

&hatAs our bicycle Bsocial contractB

by 'a$id lpert C Danuary 5, 20 :!E pm

&ith the (re.uent calls (or cyclists to Bstart beha$ing,B itAs clear that a numbero( people dri$ing and walking are unsettled by the conduct o( at least some peopleon bikes+ -ut people in cars speed all the time, and people walking cross againstthe light, and neither generates as many newspaper letters to the editor+ &hat isthe di((erence

ne explanation is that people naturally notice in(ractions by others on di((erent

modes more than those on the same mode+ People dri$ing tend to see misbeha$ior bypeople walking and cycling rather than (rom other people dri$ing, (or example+#ince relati$ely (ew people ride bicycles while a great many dri$e, the outragedletters would skew toward misbeha$ior by those on bikes and away (rom that bypeople in cars+

Felix #almon proposed another interesting explanation a while back+ -asically, heargues that weA$e de$eloped a clear understanding o( what to expect (rom peoplewalking and dri$ing generally, but lack that consensus (or people bicycling:

The trouble all starts when you drop bicyclists into the mix+ t that point, awhole new set o( combinations comes into play, and as a city we ha$enAt worked outhow to make them work+ 7n other cities, especially in places like openhagen or

@trecht, bicycles are ubi.uitous and e$erybody knows how to beha$e on and aroundthem+ -ut weAre not there yet+

&e expect that people on (oot stay on the sidewalk most o( the time, and crosswhen thereAs a walk signal or an unsignali


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and not dri$e up onto the sidewalk+ &e also expect that people dri$ing may go alittle o$er the speed limit, which can increase the risk o( (atal crashes but isgenerally widespread+ =ikewise, people dri$ing o(ten donAt stop (ully at a stopsign, which adds a small amount o( danger but not that much, and so itAs generallytolerated+

-ut what do we expect (rom people biking &hat should they do thatAs legal, andwhat are they going to do thatAs not technically legal, like people crossing on

(oot against the light or dri$ing a bit o$er the speed limit

s Felix #almon noted, weAre not in northern Gurope where people riding bikes aree$erywhere+ There, there are so many people on bikes that i( H o( them beha$e acertain way, people walking and dri$ing are used to it and will generally expectit+ Those that stray outside those boundaries will (ace criticism+

3ere are a (ew examples o( bicycling beha$iors that are (airly common, and myopinion about whether they should be part o( the bicycle Bsocial contractB or not:

kay: The 7daho #top+ -asically, people on bikes ought to treat intersections aspeople on (oot generally do+ 7( itAs a stop sign, look care(ully, and proceed i(itAs sa(e to do so+ 7( thereAs a light, stop, look e$en more care(ully, but itAs

still okay to proceed i( itAs sa(e and continuing wouldnAt inter(ere with anypeople dri$ing or walking+

-ad: -lowing through an intersection against the light without slowing down+ Thisshould go without saying, but some do it+

The B maneu$er+B-ad: The B maneu$er+B 7 o(ten see people on bikes approach a moderately busy two"way cross street, then turn right onto that street, merging into the right"mo$ingtra((ic, then make a @"turn merging into the le(t"mo$ing tra((ic, and (inally turnright to get back onto the original street continuing along+ 1an you come up witha better name (or this

;ood: 9iding in the middle o( the lane+ This is legal but most people riding bikesdonAt do it+ 7( youAre tra$eling on a bike down a street that doesnAt ha$e a bikelane, itAs best to act like a car+ 9ide in the $ery middle o( the appropriate carlane, as i( you were in a car+

6ost people on bikes ride on the right edge o( the roadway+ -ut this entices thepeople dri$ing cars to try to pass them in the same lane+ nd i( that person inthe car turns right, they might Bright hookB the person on the bike+ -eing in thecenter o( the lane makes you $ery $isible+ 7( itAs a one"lane street, people onany mode probably shouldnAt be tra$eling that (ast+ 7( itAs a multi"lane street,people in cars can go around+

-ad: Dumping the .ueue when itAs not really necessary+ 7( youAre on a bike, and

thereAs one car ahead o( you at a stoplight with enough cross tra((ic that itAsnot sa(e to 7daho #top across, why go around that car only to make the persondri$ing it pass you again Dust wait behind the car, as i( you were in a caryoursel(+

kay: Dumping the .ueue when there are a lot o( cars waiting+ 7( thereAs a lot o(tra((ic, cyclists are going to s.uee


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&hat do you think about these &hat other bicycle beha$iors should be part o( theideal Bsocial contractB that will allow people on (oot, on bikes and in cars tocoexist peace(ully, knowing what the others are likely to do and not do

-ritish 97;3T# F &I 'GF7?7T7?#:9ights o( way (all into two categories, Public rights o( way and Pri$ate rights o(

way+Public rights o( way3ighways are a way in which the public ha$e the right to pass and re"pass by (oot,on horseback or with $ehicles+ -ridleways, (ootpaths and metaled roads1carriageways are all examples o( highways+arriageways are a way constructed or comprised in a highway 1other than acycle track o$er which the public ha$e a right o( way by (oot, on horseback orwith$ehicles+-ridleways are a highway o$er which the public has a right o( way on (oot, onhorseback or leading a horse+ There is also a right to use a pedal cycle on abridleway pro$iding the cyclist gi$es way to pedestrians and riders+Pri$ate rights o( way (all into two categories, the (irst being (or the bene(it o(

alandowner in respect o( accessing his own land $ia someone else8s and where publicaccess is restricted and the second being Jpermissi$e paths8+ Permissi$e paths arepaths and tracks that are not public rights o( way+ There is no statutory right tousethem and they are not co$ered by rights o( way legislation+ (ten there will be anotice at either end o( the route explaining this and setting out any conditionstheowner has set+ Iou may (ind, (or example, that use is restricted to daylighthours,that dogs are banned entirely, or that the path may be mo$ed or closed at certaintimes+

?otice, Gngland has no massi$e amounts o( legal pages o( BmericanB negati$itythat one has to o$ercome to pro$e innocence Thus no problems with BneededBattorneys, helmet laws, police bulliesK &hen peace is maintained by simplicity+

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Golden Honesty to open eyes!