Bicycling

...if they every finish it.

Last Thursday, May 18, was the day of the International Ride of Silence. In many cities—26 Californian cities, according to the California Bicycle Coalition—bike riders gathered to commemorate bicyclists and pedestrians who have died in traffic crashes. San Francisco was one such city. So was Richmond. But that city's Ride of Silence was about a lot more than traffic violence.

Professor Jason Henderson's "Bicycle Geographies" class wants the ride from Daily City BART to San Francisco State University's campus to be comfortable and fun.

Downtown L.A. will get a little more bike-friendly with the launch of Metro bike-share, just announced for Thursday, July 7, 2016. Metro bike-share will include 1000+ bikes at 65 docking stations. The system is expected to expand to Pasadena in 2017, and other areas in future years.

Caltrans is hosting a series of meetings around the state to get input on the California State Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan (CSBPP). The plan kicked off last year and is expected to be completed and approved by Caltrans management in early 2017.

With a road diet, new parking configuration, and protected bike lanes on Telegraph Avenue, Oakland is saying to its car drivers: slow down, take it easy. And to its bike riders: you're welcome here and safe.

Telegraph Avenue in Oakland is finally getting its long-awaited separated bike lanes.

The Alliance for Biking and Walking just published its 2016 Benchmarking Report, which ranks states and cities on key statistics including the percentage of people commuting by bike. Every biannual report is a little bit different, as states develop their data collection and the Alliance is better able to compare statistics across fields.

Megan Schwarzman, 42, a research scientist at the Berkeley School of Public Health, was riding her bike southbound on Fulton Street near Bankcroft Way on Tuesday around 5 p.m. when she was hit and dragged under a car driven by Berwick Haynes, a Sunnyvale resident. Haynes remained at the scene and was later arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs, according to reports. Schwarzman's injuries were so severe that the Berkeley Police sent its “Fatal Accident Investigation Team.” Fortunately, Schwarzman is expected to live, reported Berkeleyside, an independent news site.