36 bikes? That's it?

Local cyclist - and avid Spoke N Word reader - Chip Haynes is in Sunday's St. Petersburg Times with a profile by Jeff Klinkenberg. His large collection of two-wheeled machines must certainly be one of the largest in the state.

Neighbors see him in his garage working on bikes on Saturdays. They see his favorite bikes lining the driveway on holidays. He has adult tricycles, fat-tired paperboy specials from the Eisenhower era and an assortment of folding conveyances. He might be the one person in Clearwater — if not Florida — who boasts his very own bicycle rickshaw.

 Chip also just wrote a witty book called The Practical Cyclist (New Society Publishers, $14.95), in stores this week. "It's a bike book for real people,'' he says. He'll be signing copies at Chainwheel Drive on April 18 from noon to 3 p.m. Maybe he'll even bring a few of his bikes!

City official wants bike-friendly vibe

by Joshua Neiderer

Ask bicycle advocate Alan Snel if Tampa is a bike-friendly city, and he’ll give you a matter-of-fact answer.

“Tampa has a reputation of not having a large bicycle infrastructure,” he said.

Tampa City Council member Linda Saul-Sena hopes to change that reputation.

But first, she says, city administrators need to change the way they think about bicyclists.

“We need to recognize bicycles are not just a recreational mode of transportation,” she said.

On Feb. 26, Saul-Sena hosted a meeting to discuss improving infrastructure for cyclists in Tampa. She invited advocates including Snel, who is the director of the South West Florida Bike United Dealers.

Reforming Tampa’s reputation as a bad city for bicyclists became a central topic of discussion.

After the meeting, Saul-Sena wrote a memo, which she will present to the City Council. The memo asks council members to request that the mayor’s office appoint an employee in the city’s Department of Transportation to become an advocate for bicycle planning and implementation.

A similar position exists in the city’s department of parks and recreation. But, as the city’s view on bicycles changes, the position should shift, Saul-Sena says.

“Bicycling is a key to the city’s healthy future,” she said.

Gandy Bridge going nowhere

The Friendship Bridge will likely never return to cyclists' use, but what about the replacement, the Gandy? Some folks are willing to make the trek along the shoulder, but is a separated bike lane a possibility? Don't count on it. Alan Snel contacted the local DOT representative on behalf of SWFBUD regarding the issue and this is the response he got:

The department has evaluated the feasibility of providing for a physical barrier between the traffic lanes and the shoulder of the Gandy Bridge.

Our findings indicate the required six foot, one-way or twelve foot, two-way, clear width required for multi-use paths across the Gandy Bridge cannot be provided for two significant reasons.

First, the bridge structures were not designed to accommodate the additional loading from the weight of the barrier walls required.

Second, the addition of a separated multi-use path would eliminate the required pavement shoulders across the bridge. These pavement shoulders provide for a critical safety feature for vehicles to use for emergency purposes.

In accordance with Section 335.065, Florida Statutes, the department has also evaluated designating the bridge shoulder as a bicycle and pedestrian way by means of pavement markings without a physical barrier.

At present, the department cannot designate the bridge shoulders for bicycles and pedestrians due to a 5 year crash history from 2002-2007 indicating a significant number of crashes involving the barrier walls and also due to the lack of required pedestrian and bicycle railings on top of the barrier walls.

Please note that S.R. 600 (Gandy Boulevard) is not a limited access facility and the department’s policy is not to restrict bicyclists or pedestrians from using the shoulder across the Gandy Bridge.

In consideration of the above, the department will add street signs along the roadway approaches in advance of the bridge ends to indicate that motorists must share the shoulder.

Please expect these signs to be installed within four weeks from this date.

The department appreciates the time you have taken on behalf of thousands of bicyclists in the Tampa Bay area to express interest of a multi-use path across the Gandy Bridge.

Thank you for your interest and concern for the bicyclists in the Tampa Bay area. If there is any additional information we can provide you regarding the Gandy Bridge, please contact Mr. Ronald Chin, P.E., District Design Engineer at Ronald.Chin@dot.state.fl.us or at 813/975-6030.

Sincerely,

Donald J. Skelton, P.E.
District Seven Secretary

Here's my prediction: Eventually someone will be struck and killed riding along the side of the Gandy Bridge. The authorities will determine bicycle traffic is not safe, and close it to bikes and pedestrians. There will be no public funds to find a replacement any time soon and Tampa Bay cyclists will be forced to stay on their own sides of the bay.

A letter to the City of Tampa

Local cycling advocate and blogger Jack Sweeney, also known to many as Ghost Rider, penned this letter to Tampa's Public Works Director Irvin Lee about the repaving of Busch Boulevard, which unfortunately did not include a bike lane.

Dear Mr. Lee,

I was riding around Tampa today when I came across the extensive repaving/restriping project along Busch Blvd., from I-275 east to the Busch Gardens area.

I was dismayed to see that once again, the City of Tampa failed to add any sort of bicycle-friendly infrastructure such as painted bike lanes, to this project. I understand the    desire for a smooth road to thrill first-time visitors to the Tampa area as they head toward exciting tourist destinations, but I'm convinced that Tampa could (and SHOULD) do more to make this a more liveable city for the actual residents...

What better time to add a bike lane stripe than during a repaving/restriping project? Also, think of the message a freshly-paved boulevard with painted bike lanes and appropriate "share the road" or "bike route" signage would send to those many tourists: "Tampa is a progressive community that is thinking about alternative transportation forms."

I encourage you and your staff to seriously consider and make efforts to implement the addition of bike lanes and signage during future repaving projects in and around the City of Tampa -- there is a small but growing group of residents who choose to use bicycles as transportation rather than contributing to the motorized traffic our city is plagued with, and we would sure love to see some improvements in the infrastructure available to us.

Sincerely,

Jack Sweeney
"Ghost Rider"
Tampa, Florida
Writer/editor -- www.bikecommuters.com
Seminole Heights Bicycle Club member

While it's a shame it is too late to have a lane installed on Busch, we can only hope that the city's future improvements are more bike-friendly. Then again, judging from the city's response, I wouldn't hold your breath for things to change quickly.

No more 'I'm somewhere on the trail'

By Richard Danielson, Times Staff Writer
In print: Friday, January 2, 2009

If you need help on the Upper Tampa Bay Trail, whether because of a bike crash, medical emergency or scary stalker, just look down.

Chances are you'll see a bright yellow decal, if not at your feet, then close by.

Hillsborough County park rangers recently installed 229 of the decals every 200 feet along the trail so bikers, joggers and skaters can tell 911 dispatchers exactly where they are.

As part of the $3,000 project, sheriff's deputies and firefighters have maps showing the location of each marker, as well as other information they may need, such as directions. If there's a locked gate between them and one of the marked locations on the trail, they'll also have the combination or the key to the lock, officials said.

Continue reading...

Photo: Senior park manager Tina Russo checks for cyclists, then puts a decal on the Upper Tampa Bay Trail. Other trails are next. Photo by Richard Danielson/Times.

Michael Franklin Bentley

Sweeping the Gandy Bridge

Now, no one is going to argue that it's the safest or most sensible option, but it is possible to ride over the Gandy vehicle bridge. Since the Friendship Bridge closed last week, this has been the only option for cyclists.

The shoulder of the Gandy Bridge, however, is hardly cycling-friendly. It's usually covered in debris and glass.

The good news: Cheryl Stacks, the St. Petersburg Bike/Ped coordinator let me know that the Florida DOT has agreed to double the number of sweepings of the bridge from once a month to twice monthly until the future of the Friendship Bridge is resolved.

It's not a perfect solution, but it will help.

Recumbents in pacelines: No thank you

I'm having nightmares about having a whirring chainring shoved right up my backside.

Recumbents in group rides: Worse than aerobars? No big deal? Discuss.

Bailing out bike commuters

Tonight the House votes on the “Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008″ (a.k.a. The Bailout) after it has already passed the Senate. You may think this is the kind of thing that politicians would want to get through quickly and without a lot of fuss, but of course, that's not the way things work in Washington.

In an effort to attract votes from lawmakers who do not endorse the plan, plenty of "pork" provisions have been added.

Interestingly, one such amendment includes a $20 a month benefit to "qualified" bike commuters. Someone who qualifies is someone who:

“(I) regularly uses the bicycle for a substantial portion of the travel between the employee’s residence and place of employment, and

“(II) does not receive any benefit described in subparagraph (A), (B),
23 or (C) of paragraph (1).”.

Sounds like quite a few people I know, including myself. I don't know about you but I'd love to have an extra $20 a month.

Of course, the bill has been garnished with all sorts of other partisan trimmings that folks will agree or disagree with. If you're feeling adventurous, you can read the complete bill online.

[via EcoVelo]

The best and worst states for riding

The League of American Bicyclists has released their rankings of the friendliest states to ride. Check out their cool interactive map here.

Florida currently ranks.... 20th. St. Petersburg holds a bronze star for its engineering accomplishments. Gainesville is the most decorated Florida city. The stated reasons for the ranking: "Florida has an excellent complete streets policy. However, the state has no cell phone use restrictions and high crash and fatality rates."

So, I'm not really sure what to think of this. Sure, Florida has a long way to go to get to the top of the list, but it's amazing how well it fared in relation to other Southern states, notable Georgia, which is ranked 49th. With the Tour de Georgia, plenty of hills and a strong Atlanta cycling community, I would think it would have ranked higher.

Maybe we don't have it so bad after all.

Top 5

1. Washington
2. Wisconsin
3. Arizona
4. Oregon
5. Minnesota

Bottom 5

46. North Dakota
47. Mississippi
48. Alabama
49. Georgia
50. West Virginia

[via RoadCycler.com]