LACBC
Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition Newsletter

November 23, 2011 

In this issue
Spring Street & 1st Street Green Bike Lanes Are Ready to Ride
South Bay Bicycle Plan Clears Its 7th and Final City: Yay, Torrance!
Santa Monica Bike Action Plan Unanimously Approved by City Council
West Hollywood Bicycle Coalition Happenings
Join Us for the Larchmont Holiday Sunday Funday Ride
LA County Bike Plan Update
Action Item: Keep Sending those Letters to Support the LA River Bridge
We're Looking for County Bike Plan Workshop Locations in Central and South LA
Events, Meetings, & Volunteer Opportunities
Spring Street & 1st Street Green Bike Lanes Are Ready to Ride
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It seems like we've had a Spring Street update every week. Less than a month after we first announced that Spring Street would be springing for a bike lane this Fall, we can now ride that lane and not rely on Photoshopped renderings to imagine what the green buffered lane could look like.
 
On Monday afternoon, over 80 people gathered for a celebratory press conference and ribbon-cutting ceremony on Spring and 2nd Streets in Downtown LA.
  

Spring Street's buffered, green bike lane, which runs for 1.5 miles from Cesar Chavez to 9th Street, features a 6-foot wide lane and 4-foot wide buffer!

 

The bike lanes on 1st Street in Boyle Heights have also received a green treatment along the 1.6-mile stretch from Boyle to Lorena, but with green thermoplastic used only in conflict zones instead of for the entire length of the lane.


Many thanks to councilmembers Perry and Huizar, Mayor Villaraigosa, the Downtown LA Neighborhood Council, and LADOT for making this all possible! And thanks to everyone who came out to the press conference, the volunteers who did outreach leading up to the bike lane's implementation, and the Downtown businesses and residents who supported turning Spring Street into a neighborhood street!

 

Read more about the press conference and our new green lanes on the LACBC Blog. View more photos on the LACBC Facebook Page.

 

You can also check out additional coverage in the LA Times, blogdowntown, LA Streetsblog, and KCET. 

South Bay Bicycle Plan Clears Its 7th and Final City: Yay, Torrance!

 

Torrance City CouncilSouth Bay, congratulations on your new regional bike plan! Last night, Torrance became the 7th and final city to approve the South Bay Bike Plan, and Torrance did so unanimously. Torrance is the largest of the seven participating cities and is among the most demographically diverse. This marks a major milestone for LACBC and the South Bay Bicycle Coalition and for a new model in multi-jurisdictional bike planning. We look forward to a bike-friendly South Bay and thank our city partners and supporters for all their efforts!

Learn more about the South Bay Bicycle Coalition at: southbaybicyclecoalition.org. Join SBBC, a regional chapter of LACBC, when you become an LACBC member.
Santa Monica Bike Action Plan Unanimously Approved by City Council

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Give it up for our regional groups! A few days after Santa Monica welcomed the country's largest bike parking facility in the brand new Bike Center, the Santa Monica City Council approved the Santa Monica Bike Action Plan last night! Congratulations, Santa Monica!

 

An enthusiastic mayor, council and City staff were all pleased when last night council voted unanimously to approve the Bike Action Plan with all the amendments recommended by the planning commission and supported by the bike community.

 

Read more about the Plan and the suggested amendments on the Santa Monica Spoke blog

 

Learn more about Santa Monica Spoke at: smspoke.org. Join Santa Monica Spoke, a regional chapter of LACBC, when you become an LACBC member.
WeHo
West Hollywood Bicycle Coalition Happenings
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Ride & Rally for the WeHo City Council meeting

When: Monday, December 5; Meet at 4:30 PM and roll at 5 PM sharp
Where: Meet at Plummer Park - (in front of the community center building)

Join the West Hollywood Bicycle Coalition on a ride to the December 5 City Council meeting! Urge WeHo council members to accept the Bicycle Task Force recommendations report, which includes proposals for improving bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure and implementing active transportation education in West Hollywood. See Facebook Event

WeHoBC will be handing out a special spoke card that enters riders in a raffle drawing!

We'll be riding to the new West Hollywood Library at a slow pace. We'll take mostly side streets-all levels welcome! Bring helmet, lights (back and front), bike lock, and hydration.

An Evening of Moving Beyond the Automobile: West Hollywood's Commitment to Active Transportation presented by the Bicycle Task Force

When: Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2011 from 7 to 9 PM
Where: West Hollywood Library, Community Room

Join the West Hollywood Bicycle Coalition for a fun and informative evening organized by the Bicycle Task Force. There will be a screening of film "Moving Beyond the Automobile" followed by panel discussion of general regional efforts to encourage biking and walking, as well as West Hollywood's plans and recommendations. Come and give your input! Light refreshments will be served.

See more info about both events on the WeHoBike.org projects page.

Learn more about the West Hollywood Bicycle Coalition at: wehobike.org . Join West Hollywood Bicycle Coalition, a regional chapter of LACBC, when you become an LACBC member.
LarchmontJoin Us for the Larchmont Holiday Sunday Funday Ride 
4th st xmas lights 
When: Sunday, December 3; Meet at 4:30 PM
Where: Meet at Rotary Club Christmas Tree Lot - 568 N. Larchmont Blvd.

It's the Holidays! Kids young and old look forward to this special magical time all year, and now that it is here, LACBC's ongoing Sunday Funday ride series is celebrating with our first evening ride that is especially geared for you to bring the kids. Our Holiday ride combines cycling fun with caroling, cookies, and cocoa in beautiful Larchmont Village.

We will meet at 4:30 PM at the Christmas Tree lot on Larchmont Blvd. just south of Clinton street on the east side of the street. We'll ride approximately two miles around the neighborhoods surrounding Larchmont and Larchmont Blvd. itself, stopping to admire the dazzling decorations, sing carols to holiday shoppers, and enjoy some cocoa and cookies afterwards.

The route is flat and suitable for even the littlest riders. Heavy rain cancels.
LA County Bike Plan Update

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Last week, the LA County Planning Commission heard the LA County Department of Public Works (DPW) and the Department of Regional Planning (DRP) present on the draft LA County Bicycle Master Plan, which covers the many unincorporated communities of LA County. 
 
While we feel the current draft plan has improved since the first draft and we acknowledge the complexities of planning bikeways for such a large and geographically diverse area, we feel there are still some improvements to the plan that need to be made. You can view some of our concerns on the LACBC blog and read coverage of the meeting on Supervisor Yaroslavsky's blog.
 
So we are pleased that the LA County Planning Commission has deferred making a decision to approve the Plan until January 11th, 2012. We hope to work with LA County DPW and DRP between now and then to address some of the issues we think could easily be remedied.
 
This also means you have an opportunity to submit your comments on the various bikeways, policies, and programs in the Plan to the LA County Planning Commission and DPW. Submit your comments to: [email protected][email protected] and of course to us ([email protected]) - so we better represent your needs and concerns!
Action Item: Keep Sending those Letters to Support the LA River BridgeBridge Rendering
 

The City of Los Angeles has an opportunity to approve a new bridge for bicyclists, pedestrians, and equestrians that would connect Griffith Park and the LA River Bike Path on the west side of the LA River to north Atwater Village on the east side of the River. This project would be a huge benefit to bicyclists as well as pedestrians and equestrians!

 

The bridge entrance would be from a residential neighborhood in north Atwater Village, thereby making access to the River Path and Griffith Park by bicycle easy and safe for cyclists of all abilities, including families with small children.

 

Read more about the project and how you can write a letter of support by November 30th by visiting the LACBC blog.

We're Looking for County Bike Plan Workshop Locations in Central and South LA
 

We have begun doing L.A. Bike Master Plan workshops in both English and Spanish throughout Central and South Los Angeles in an effort to engage low-income residents in identifying streets that have been planned under the five-year implementation strategy and to have participants voice their support and/or concerns of the bicycle infrastructure in the proposed area. We will hold community meetings throughout 2011-2012 calendar year!   

 

Know of an organization in Central or South Los Angeles that may benefit from this community meeting? We are looking for interested organizations to take part of this engaging process! We are currently booking dates and times from Monday through Sunday. 

 

You can contact Andy Rodriguez, Bilingual Bicycle Safety Coordinator, via e-mail at: [email protected]  or 213-629-2142.
Events, Meetings, & Volunteer Opportunities

 

 

Pasadena Mobility Workshop in Spanish

When: Thursday, December 1; 6:30 PM

Where: Villa Parke Community Center Auditorium - 363 E. Villa St.

The City of Pasadena Planning staff hosts this Mobility Workshop in Spanish for stakeholders to share "thoughts about the future of driving, biking, walking and riding transit" in the City. The workshops are the latest outreach opportunity of the City's General Plan update process. More info

 

La Bici Grafica Screensprinting and Bike Safety Workshop

When: Saturday, December 3; 12 PM - 5 PM

Where: Solidarity Ink - 1749 North Main St., Los Angeles, CA 90031

Ever wanted to create your own screen print but never had the chance? Or learn about bicycle safety and mechanics? Here's your opportunity to do both! LACBC's City of Lights, Bici Digna, and Solidarity Ink are happy to announce our most recent collaboration: an all-in-one bicycle experience in which you'll have an opportunity to create and screen print a bicycle related print in either paper or t-shirt, learn about safety and cyclists' rights, and basic bicycle tune-up by our very own Bicidignarios. More info about RSVPing (Facebook link).

 

Montrose Christmas Parade with Walk Bike Glendale

When: Saturday, December 3; 6 PM

Where: Meet at the staging area on Honolulu between La Crescenta and Rosemont Ave. in Montrose

Join the newly named group Walk Bike Glendale in the Montrose Christmas Parade to celebrate the holiday season and support safe and healthy streets for people who walk and bike in Glendale! Bring your bike or a good pair of walking shoes and have fun! Contact Rye Baerg at [email protected] to RSVP. More info & the Facebook event.

  

Larchmont Holiday Sunday Funday Ride

When: Sunday, December 4; Meet at 4:30 PM

More info in newsletter.

 

Ride & Rally for the WeHo City Council meeting

When: Monday, December 5; Meet at 4:30 PM and roll at 5 PM sharp
More info in newsletter.
 
An Evening of Moving Beyond the Automobile: West Hollywood's Commitment to Active Transportation presented by the Bicycle Task Force
When: Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2011 from 7 to 9 PM
More info in newsletter. 
Other Events Around Town

Join LACBC or Renew

 

The Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition is a member-supported organization that works for you to build a better, more bike-able L.A. County. 

Members are the backbone of LACBC! Help keep LACBC strong by becoming an 
LACBC member (or renewing your membership) and be part of the change!
Contact Information

Carol Feucht
Membership & Communications Manager
Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition

[email protected]

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