28 °F Wind Chill: 19 °F.
I know this guy. He's a photographer for the New York Post who uses his bike to get to assignments. Following in the journalistic tradition of George Plimpton!
Because the Wards I pedestrian bridge is closed for the winter, we had to take the RFK to Randalls Island, and I noticed this sign. When traffic is flowing smoothly on the FDR, cars exiting the RFK into Manhattan are encouraged by this sign to stay on the FDR rather than using the grid in East Harlem. But when there are delays on the FDR, the cars encouraged to enter the grid. Is that a good idea?
After conducting seriously negligent inspections of garages that were illegally refusing to park my bike, and telling me they had a policy of issuing no violations for the first 90 days the bike parking law was in effect, the DCA has suddenly found its backbone and issued violations to the offending garages. Of course, the garages can try to challenge these violations at a hearing, but this is at least a step in the right direction.
Go here to find out how to make a complaint of your own.
Thanks Streetsblog for helping DCA see the light! My faith in government is (nearly) restored!
Here was my dream transit system for Boston when I lived there from 1992 to 2003. no luck... seems like china will surpass us in quality transportaton real soon.
I only rarely do laps on the Central Park Loop, but I did this morning to give myself a "reality check" on the issue of whether there is a traffic management problem in the bike lane. I took my camera with me and here are some clips of what I found. All of these clips were taken while doing two laps in the span of an hour, on the portions of the Loop that were open to motor vehicle traffic. I have no problem with sharing a roadway with pedestrians and joggers (as on the West Side bike path), but being sandwiched between them and motor vehicle traffic is a different matter altogether.
This is not about criticizing the joggers. In the big city, most people simply take whatever they can get, and there are more joggers out there than cyclists. The root of the problem is the Parks Department/Central Park Conservancy, who jointly run the park. They've put signs up all over the Park telling cyclists to keep out and posted Parks Department cops to enforce those and other rules against cyclists. No other group of recreational park users gets this treatment. Except for the cyclist decals in the bike lane, the message is pretty clear--cyclists don't belong in the park. So I can't really blame these joggers too much for disregarding the decals.
Note that the lanes designated for exclusive jogger use are virtually always empty, with at least 80% of the joggers occupying the bike lane. What would Parks/CPC do if the situation were reversed--if 80% of the cyclists were on the pathways instead of in the bike lane? We'd be talking about banning cyclists from the park entirely, for sure.
Cyclist hemmed in by joggers, signage and motor vehicles on the Central Park Loop. If Central Park is unwilling to get the cars out, and is going to regulate cyclists to death, then how about some regulation to keep the bike lane clear?
Cyclists in Central Park are getting squeezed from every direction. Cars occupy two of three lanes on the Loop during the morning rush. Joggers, like these two, all too often take over the narrow ribbon of bike lane so that can chat while they jog. NYPD has given out summonses to cyclists for failing to keep within the bike lane on the Loop. Central Park Conservancy is pushing hard to
force cyclists off the park paths. And DoT still hasn't fixed the deadly hazards that await cyclists on the transverses.
Don't cyclists belong in the park too?
I'm happy to share the Central Park Loop with joggers, including leaving the narrow bike lane to their exclusive use when cars aren't in the park. But when the cars are present, joggers running abreast of each other in the bike lane, like these two here, force cyclists out into danger. With all the signage that Central Park Conservancy has purchased to remind cyclists that they are excluded from the vast majority of the park's paved areas, isn't there room in the budget for signs asking joggers to keep out of the bike lane when cars are allowed on the Loop?
I hate to fight over scraps, but what is the alternative for cyclists?
We selected the 106th Street crosstown bike lane as our connector from the West Side Bike path to Central park, because it has a buffer and other advantages. However, numerous vans from a nursing home, a cable TV truck, and a police car were blocking the bike lane. <a: href=http://www.flickr.com/photos/bicyclesonly/4301084050/When asked, the officer explained that it was necessary for the nursing home to station its vans in the bike lane this way, but had nothing to say about his own presence in the bike lane while making a cell phone call, or that of the cable truck directly behind him.
If the nursing home in fact needs to have all these vans parked right in front (unlikely), the curbside parking should be exclusively devoted to parking those vans, not private cars. Even then, other vehicles like the police car and cable truck will no doubt continue to block bike lanes unless they are physically protected from traffic.
Vans and Cops in the Bike Lane--Why the Upper West Side Needs Protected Bike Paths
One of the teachers and some of the students asked this cop why there were so many vehicles blocking the bike lane. He explained that there was a nursing home here, so it was permitted for the vans to park in the bike lane. Hmmm. . . .
RTD places bike-on-bus practice racks at key locations around town, so users can become comfortable with the process without holding up other passengers on a full bus.
This particular one is at Denver Union Station, but there are some in Boulder too.
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The bike trail adjacent to Boulder Creek in Boulder, CO crosses under Broadway free of interaction with car traffic. One of many bike/ped underpasses in Boulder.
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Boulder has a counter-flow cycle track on 13th Street in downtown. Unlike the DC or New York cycle tracks, it is separated by attractive landscaping.
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The University of Colorado has a bike station centrally located on campus. It features racks for hundreds of bikes, registration, minor maintenance, parts recycling, info on Boulder trails and transit, and free bike-sharing for students.
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We all know Boulder is famous for its cycling infrastructure.
The main north/south street in Boulder is called Broadway. Parallel to Broadway the city provides an off-street trail. For much of its length the trail is directly adjacent to the sidewalk.
There is plenty of friction between cyclists, pedestrians, and skateboarders (which are common in Boulder), but it's much better than cycling on Broadway itself.
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I see we've got our priorities straight here...
www.startribune.com/local/81964957.html?elr=KArksLckD8EQD...
"Squad crashes into south Minneapolis restaurant"
DOWNLOAD FULL SIZE www.seankenney.com/downloads/streetsblog/sbs-station.jpg
My thoughts on NYC's east side street redesign. Full set of renderings: www.flickr.com/photos/seankenney/tags/sbs/
Last week the NYC DOT and MTA released a redesign of these streets to better serve all road users and to implement a speedy busway. Their plans fell short of what everyone expected from an otherwise very forward-thinking department.
I've presented some ideas that still service the design goals while addressing their concerns and can be implemented with relatively little budget.
DOWNLOAD FULL SIZE www.seankenney.com/downloads/streetsblog/east-side-sbs.jpg
My thoughts on NYC's east side street redesign. Full set of renderings: www.flickr.com/photos/seankenney/tags/sbs/
Last week the NYC DOT and MTA released a redesign of these streets to better serve all road users and to implement a speedy busway. Their plans fell short of what everyone expected from an otherwise very forward-thinking department.
I've presented some ideas that still service the design goals while addressing their concerns and can be implemented with relatively little budget.
Hard to believe these things have to be cut out this way. I asked these guys whether the benches would be replaced, and was able to get a one word response--"new"--from them, so I'm hopeful. Given the fine condition of the benches they are removing, hard to see why this is a priority.
Here's what Jane Jacobs had to say (in 1961) about the importance of these benches to the life of the street:
"That the sight of people attracts still other people, is something that city planners and city architectural designers seem to find incomprehensible. They operate on the premise that city people seek thesight of emptiness, obvious order and quiet. Nothing could be less true. People's love of watching activity and other people is constantly evident in cities everywhere.This trait reaches an almost ludicrous extreme on upper Broadway in New York, where the street is divided by a narrow central mall, right in the middle of traffic. At the cross-street intersections of this long north-south mall, benches have been placed behind big concrete buffers and on any day when the weather is even barely tolerable these benches are filled with people at block after block after block, watching the pedestrians who cross the mall in front of them, watching the traffic, watching the people on the busy sidewalks, watching each other. Eventually Broadway reaches Columbia University and Barnard College, one to the right, the other to the left. Here all is obvious order and quiet. No more stores, no more activity generated by the stores, almost no more pedestrians crossing—and no more watchers. The benches are there but they go empty in even the finest weather. I have tried them and can see why. No place could be more boring. Even the students of these institutions shun the solitude. They are doing their outdoor loitering, outdoor home-work and general street watching on the steps overlooking the busiest campus crossing."
--Jane Jacobs, The Death and Life of Great American Cities
Back in high school when I lived near Broadway, I remember being told once by an old lady to give her my seat on one of these benches because they were "for old people."
It's not clear whether the new benches would look like this or would instead be the new bike rack-benches combo units, which according to reports were to be installed only at the 76th, 86th and 91st Street malls.
Crew Thinks "New" Benches are Coming to This Portion of the Broadway Mall at 83th Street
Is this the design of the replacement benches that will be installed on the Broadway malls? This is found on 69th Street, where the city's ripout operation stopped. Not much different than what was there before. I can think of ten street amenities I'd rather see on Broadway ahead of a bench upgrade.
The only Broadway mall benches left standing north of 69th Street, apparently because they are dedicated to Stanley Zabar and Diana Biederman and Douglas Rosefsky I can't see why these benches are being removed. There are so many other street projects and amenities that money could have been better spent on, as shown by the new blueprint for a livable UWS.
Did The Broadway Mall Benches Really Need Replacing?
Now that we have returned to below-freezing temperatures, the 96th St. Transverse is once again impassable. There is also a sizable ice patch on the westbound lane, which has only occured this winter since the rock blasting and widening of the Tranverse corridor last year.
Yesterday, Streetsblog ran a post and short film showing NY PD's lack of enforcement of rules against cars using "bus only" lanes, and then by coincidence I ran into this officer doing just that kind of enforcement. I was riding on the line that separates the bus lane from the traffic lane, and he waved me through but stopped this guy in the Mercedes. He really ought to wear a hat on a morning like this!
Bus Lane Enforcement on Lexington Ave. @ 35th Street
New York city garages are finally starting to comply with the law which took effect on November 11, requiring them to accept bicycles for parking. The details of the law are described here.
Unfortunately, many of them are charging too much--this is actually the lowest rate I have seen, among the handful of garages that will accept bikes for parking at all. Even worse, the garages are all charging parking tax, which by state law can only be collected on the parking of motorized vehicles. I guess no one told them they can't do this! DCA has dropped the ball on this big time.
Bike Parking Comes to NYC Garages . . . With Illegal Tax
This rule has been in effect for a while, but this is the first time I notice this sign (which appears only as you exit the boathouse parking lot) spelling out the rules for cabs on East Drive between 72nd St. and 90th Street between 10 and 3 pm. Even though this sign contradicts the info on the cycling map and other city maps, declaring this stretch of road to be car-free during those hours--it is posted only where motorists can see it. Just like the lame posting of extended hours for cars during December and January, that failed to effectively advise anyone except motorists. This sign should be posted on the Loop as well.
Even though the volume of cabs created by this exception to car free hours is not large, they generally don't follow these rules--especially the speed limit of 15. I've also seen them north of 90th Street where they don't belong. So the exception means you have to constantly be looking over your shoulder.
We'd never been in a store like this before, and aren't likely to visit one again, so I decided to take some pictures. A manager came running over and told us photos were not allowed in the store. Preserving the mystique, I guess. Very mysterious!
In freezing temperatures, a mini-glacier reaching far into the roadbed quickly forms, making the 96th Street Transverse extremely hazardous for cyclists.
Even though there was a multi-million alteration to this corridor wall in the last year, to prevent rockslides, DoT failed to address the leakage problem. Let's see if they'll return and fix this.
There's an effort underway to force cyclists off the Central Park pathways,--the only safe, legal crosstown routes for cyclists. Supposedly, cyclists should use the transverses to get crosstown, but this photo shows just one of the hazards that await them there (here are two more).
Because the aggressive transverse motorists won't tolerate a cylist taking the lane, and there is no shoulder to speak of, cyclists have to navigate the margin of the roadway with traffic whizzing by under icy conditions caused by this unaddressed leak. The issue has been brought to DoT's attention, and I've been told there should be a response from the DoT's "Alternatives Modes Unit" by January 8. I hope no one gets hurt in the meanwhile.
Water Pooling and Freezing on 96th St. Transverse A Hazard for Cyclists
This is an old link, but I have a NEW STORY. I've received some letters from NBC Universal about their so-called 'Evolution' project. The most recent came last week with an enclosed postcard asking for feedback. I returned it with the following comment: "Help us develop the LA River Bike path instead of blocking it."
If people have a car available to share when they need it, they will use less space for parking and be more likely to walk, bike or use transit when they don't really need a car.
How do we utilize NYC's existing 6K miles of roadway and accompanying 12K miles of sidewalk as an opportunity for stormwater management? The majority of roads are crowned, water flows some distance along a gutter adjacent to sidewalks and existing vegetation and escapes into a storm drain. What can we do with what we’ve got? Where is your intervention?
There used to be a time when Americans frowned upon going into debt. But historians say that changed nearly 100 years ago. Stephen Smith looks back on how our debt-driven society hit the gas with General Motors.
Here’s a short list of what is wrong with this picture:
- Major bus stop is blocked forcing busses to pick up and drop off in the street. If this were a better picture, you could see the woman with a cane that would have had an easier time boarding from the curb.
- Police vans backed up onto the sidewalk are blocking about half of it.
- Busses stopped in one of the travel lanes cause other street traffic to back up for blocks.
Brooklyn cyclist and DJ Solange Raulston, 33, was killed in a collision with a truck this past Sunday while lawfully riding her bike westbound on Nassau Avenue...In a cruel twist of fate, the collision coincided with a mock funeral for the bike lane on Bedford Avenue, which was removed by the DOT on December 1.
Not much Foothill Extension news (minus a few editorials and a celebration) has made it into the papers since the LRTP was approved in October. With traditional news media historically reporting on the bad stuff, that’s a good thing. Unfortunately that gravy train stopped this week with a report that could potentially alter the Foothill Extension’s aggressive schedule to break ground in June 2010.
On December 14, Recycle-A-Bicycle will be holding its 15th Birthday Celebration and Bike Art Benefit from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM at Superfine, a Downtown Brooklyn restaurant at 126 Front Street.
A fifteen-year-old cyclist was struck and killed Wednesday afternoon in Smithtown, Long Island, once again bringing into question the safety of the area's streets and the extent of personal responsibility on the road.
This past Saturday, dozens of elected officials, hundreds of San Gabriel Valley residents, along with Metro CEO Art Leahy and Board Chair Ara Najarian came out to the historic Santa Fe train depot in Monrovia to celebrate last month’s hard-fought victory and to witness the unveiling of the first of six station signs at the future Foothill Extension stop – all the while looking forward to a brighter future for the region. There was food, coloring book tables for the kids, and a kiddie train that, for a brief moment, was being driven by Congressman David Dreier with Authority CEO Habib Balian and a few elected officials as passengers (more on that later).
Animation showing why pedestrians cross mid-block. There's no incentive to go out of your way to use a crosswalk. Orlando is the worst city in the US for ped safety because we've abandoned the crosswalks.
Amidst a flurry of editorials, stern lectures from Congressional representatives (as well as State legislators), and staged protests from bus riders in front of Metro headquarters, the Metro Board of Directors came in yesterday with their game faces on and with the intent of passing the 2009 Long Range Transportation Plan.
If Metro was looking for delegates to help them get that federal New Starts funding for the Subway to the Sea and Regional Connector (their priority projects), they should probably look a lot harder – because the majority of the current crop of our county’s Congressional representatives aren’t too happy with some of the Board’s recent decisions.
As expected, the 2009 Long Range Transportation Plan moved virtually (and almost uncharacteristically) without a whimper through the Metro Planning and Programming Committee on Wednesday (the committee is comprised of six Metro Board members). This sets the stage for the big and final vote by the Metro Board of Directors at next Thursday’s Board meeting. If you ever had to bet that the Metro Board would vote on the LRTP, now would be a good time to do it. But before we move on to next week, there were a few things to highlight at the meeting – mainly how the San Gabriel Valley fared with a few lingering requests for the Gold Line Foothill Extension.
A response to Robert Sawyer's City Room article," Idealism and New York reality collide in the bike lane," in which he longs for a grittier city of yesterdecade, gelato- and cycle-free.
You’ve seen these four words tossed around quite a bit: Long Range Transportation Plan, or LRTP for short. It is the grand-daddy of transportation plans in Los Angeles County. It sets on paper what, how, and when transit projects can be funded – of which the Metro Board can change with a majority vote. This lone document has fueled more articles on this blog than any other transit topic or issue (federal funding will take the crown after a few more months). With the exception of the Bus Riders Union and bike advocates, probably no other group has agonized more over the details of the LRTP than the supporters of the Foothill Extension – and for good reason.
Opportunity Green is launching The Tour de OG; a 5 day, 4 night supported cycle tour raising awareness and generating a social media buzz for green business. Riders will travel 450 miles down the California coast from San Francisco to Los Angeles, to attend the 3rd annual Opportunity Green conference at UCLA.
Bike messengers reduce congestion, improve air quality, and guarantee same-day (and sometimes same-hour) delivery of our city's most essential cargo. Your chance to thank them is October 9th.
The Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority held a workshop on Tuesday to pursue partnerships with the private sector in an attempt to accelerate construction of the Foothill Extension. While the focus of the day was all business for Authority CEO Habib Balian and the many firms present, our focus was on the keynote speech delivered by Metro Chairman Ara Najarian – and what a speech it was.
At yesterday’s meeting, Metro staff reported that the county faces the prospect of losing out on hundreds of millions of dollars from the federal government, starting in 2011, if they do not pursue any local rail projects for the New Starts program (at this point, the Metro Board had not formally recognized the Subway and Regional Connector as their choices). The comments that followed from the Board and staff were no less grim.
After a two month hiatus, the Metro Board of Directors is set to host another monthly board meeting. If you recall from the last public meeting in July, this meeting was supposed to be the day the Metro Board voted on the Long Range Transportation Plan – along with their plan to pursue federal funding for certain preferred projects as well. But like Board member Richard Katz remarked in July, “MTA never fails to miss an opportunity to delay,” the opportunity has been delayed once again. The discussion and vote has moved to their October meeting. However, that’s not the source of our recent frustrations and questions.
In collision tests, hood-mounted air bags are estimated to reduce injury by half in a vehicle-pedestrian accident. While ignored in America, the Dutch Federation of Cyclists is asking manufacturers to install them on every auto in an effort to decrease traffic fatalities in the Netherlands.
That seems to be the mantra for Los Angeles County when it comes to transportation.
We all know that Measure R was passed partly as a reactive (and somewhat proactive) effort to ease the everyday pain of being a commuter in Los Angeles. Of course, most major cities’ residents suffer the same fate every weekday to and from work as well – so why does our region deserve special attention?
The Dutch gift of 200 bicycles to NYC symbolizes a shared past marked by friendship, tolerance, and ingenuity, as well as hopes for a shared future of peaceful cycling and urban generosity.
by Ben Lane // The CO2 stats are generalized estimates, and the message about attempts to protect jobs is too oversimplistic, given other economic factors (e.g. efforts to protect company exec bonuses)
Though recent regulation of NYC's pedicab industry has been praised by officials, such as requirements for safety standards, insurance, registration, and driver conduct, a few aspects of the law hinder the growth potential of an otherwise benign and promising industry and put them on an unequal footing with comparable vehicles in Manhattan.
So the Bixi bike share pop-up spots have been showing up as scheduled, Union Square, and on Sunday on Avenue A outside Tompkins Square Park.
As they were cleaning up and picking up the bikes, however, some Bixi employees couldn't be bothered to
After the death of Pablo Pasarán in Queensbridge, Mexican food delivery cyclists discuss the dangers of their work in Queens, especially near the "Boulevard of Death." They are in greater danger than other cyclists in the area because they ride as fast as possible due to pressure from their employers and the desire to get more tips. A taxi driver blames the "fools" for taking unnecessary chances while riding. There are also quotes from Leah Todd of the Streets Memorial Project and Wiley Norvell of Transportation Alternatives.
Three articles in Friday’s editions of the Los Angeles Times and the Los Angeles Daily News focused on the the Subway to the Sea and its federal funding status (status: unknown). Now we support the Subway to the Sea as much as your average West LA folk, so there’s no issue with the project itself. Mass transit options, whatever and wherever they are, are good. The whole county is in dire need of a legitimate public transit alternative to the congested freeways as well as freedom from the polluted air that comes with traffic snarls.
A cyclist waiting at a stop light prevents a line of cars from illegally using the bike lane to make a right turn on a red light. An irritated motorist takes matters into his own hands.
The Senate is considering adding an additional $50 BILLION to highway expansion in the latest stimulus package.
If the new Democratic leadership wants to be 'green', they'll recognize that highways aren't the answer- transit and smart growth are the 21st century solutions.
To show that, I remixed of the 70's 'Crying Indian' PSA. Originally for showing that litter was bad for the environment, it's clear today that cars and highways do far more damage than any amount of personal litter.
Thanks to Dave Snyder for the original impetus.
For more on how to stop the highway expansion see:
www.streetsblog.org
www.t4america.org
This has been happening every day, for much of the day, for a couple years (they're even visible in Google maps street view). I believe the vehicles are owned by, or serve, the Park Central Hotel. I have emailed them twice to try to get them to stop but I have seen no response or action.
I will post more videos of this same group of vehicles idling to show how it is a constant problem. It is, of course, illegal, and destructive in countless ways.
This video was recorded the morning of 2/3/09.
Time lapse video of my roughly 2-mile walk to work through SF's Potrero Hill, Showplace Square and SoMa neighborhoods.
Music: Royksopp - Sing A Song
Higher res: http://www.vimeo.com/2354287
Community Design Group is an urban planning firm specializing in bicycle and pedestrian planning, placemaking and urban design, and community engagement. They work with communities of all sizes to develop people-centered, asset-based and sustainable approaches to mobility and place. Antonio Rosell, director and founder, says that the purpose of the firm's work is to support the creation of humane, interesting, thriving and sustainable environments that allow our communities to grow and prosper economically, socially, artistically and ethically.
The Great Commuter Challenge is a race between 3 modes of transportation: the bicycle, the car, and walking/transit. Three local celebrities raced along one Twin Cities route, running typical errands on the way to to the finish line. The outcome is certain keep you on the edge of your seat!
Watch watch the action right here and root for one of three contestants:
Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak - Bike
Roadguy (aka Star Tribune reporter Jim Foti) - Car
Ramsey County Commissioner Toni Carter - Walking & Transit
High speed pass before sunrise. Kent Ave is a race track and is without any NYPD presence. 18 wheelers pass each other just like this moron passed us and another car
Green Spaces and SPN: Blogging Sustainability Pt.3
Green Spaces hosted Blogging Sustainability in Partnership with the Sustainable Practice Network on June 26th, 2008. Over 60 people showed up to hear the take from leaders in blogging, take a rooftop tour and have some organic wine provided by the Greene Grape in Fort Green Brooklyn.
Jill Fehrenbacher, Editor, Inhabitat.com
Jill Fehrenbacher edits Inhabitat www.inhabitat.com, and is a freelance designer and student at Columbia's Graduate School of Architecture and Urban Planning. She created Inhabitat in the Spring of 2005 as a way to catalog her endless search for new ways to improve the world through forward-thinking, high-tech, and environmentally conscious design. Educated at Brown University, where she received a B.A. in Art Semiotics, and Central St. Martins, where she received an M.A. in Design Studies, she currently resides in New York City, which so far has been good for her obsession with rooftop gardens and vegan junk food restaurants.
Ken Rother, President/COO of Treehugger
Ken, President and COO, is responsible for bringing the vision and strategy of TreeHugger to life. Ken has been involved in the Internet since the early 90's when he co-founded Mountain Lake Software in Toronto Canada. Mountain Lake helped some of Canada's largest financial institutions take their first steps onto the WWW. Ken has held various roles including VP of operations responsible for all deliverables of their internet consulting division and later as divisional CIO introduced process altering technology to their globalization business. His interest in the environment dates back to his first summer job leading low impact canoe trips in northern Quebec.
Aaron Naparstek, Editor-in-chief Streetsblog.org
Aaron Naparstek works for the Open Planning Project where he is editor-in-chief of StreetsBlog.org. Aaron is a journalist, author and community organizer working on urban environmental issues in NYC. He is the author of Honku: The Zen Antidote for Road Rage, a book of humorous haiku poetry inspired by the unique brand of motorist sociopathy observed from his apartment window. Naparstek lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two sons. He is a founder of the Park Slope Neighbors community group and an organizer of the Grand Army Plaza Coalition.
Green Spaces and SPN: Blogging Sustainability Pt.2
Green Spaces hosted Blogging Sustainability in Partnership with the Sustainable Practice Network on June 26th, 2008. Over 60 people showed up to hear the take from leaders in blogging, take a rooftop tour and have some organic wine provided by the Greene Grape in Fort Green Brooklyn.
Jill Fehrenbacher, Editor, Inhabitat.com
Jill Fehrenbacher edits Inhabitat www.inhabitat.com, and is a freelance designer and student at Columbia's Graduate School of Architecture and Urban Planning. She created Inhabitat in the Spring of 2005 as a way to catalog her endless search for new ways to improve the world through forward-thinking, high-tech, and environmentally conscious design. Educated at Brown University, where she received a B.A. in Art Semiotics, and Central St. Martins, where she received an M.A. in Design Studies, she currently resides in New York City, which so far has been good for her obsession with rooftop gardens and vegan junk food restaurants.
Ken Rother, President/COO of Treehugger
Ken, President and COO, is responsible for bringing the vision and strategy of TreeHugger to life. Ken has been involved in the Internet since the early 90's when he co-founded Mountain Lake Software in Toronto Canada. Mountain Lake helped some of Canada's largest financial institutions take their first steps onto the WWW. Ken has held various roles including VP of operations responsible for all deliverables of their internet consulting division and later as divisional CIO introduced process altering technology to their globalization business. His interest in the environment dates back to his first summer job leading low impact canoe trips in northern Quebec.
Aaron Naparstek, Editor-in-chief Streetsblog.org
Aaron Naparstek works for the Open Planning Project where he is editor-in-chief of StreetsBlog.org. Aaron is a journalist, author and community organizer working on urban environmental issues in NYC. He is the author of Honku: The Zen Antidote for Road Rage, a book of humorous haiku poetry inspired by the unique brand of motorist sociopathy observed from his apartment window. Naparstek lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two sons. He is a founder of the Park Slope Neighbors community group and an organizer of the Grand Army Plaza Coalition.
Green Spaces and SPN: Blogging Sustainability Pt.1
Green Spaces hosted Blogging Sustainability in Partnership with the Sustainable Practice Network on June 26th, 2008. Over 60 people showed up to hear the take from leaders in blogging, take a rooftop tour and have some organic wine provided by the Greene Grape in Fort Green Brooklyn.
Jill Fehrenbacher, Editor, Inhabitat.com
Jill Fehrenbacher edits Inhabitat www.inhabitat.com, and is a freelance designer and student at Columbia's Graduate School of Architecture and Urban Planning. She created Inhabitat in the Spring of 2005 as a way to catalog her endless search for new ways to improve the world through forward-thinking, high-tech, and environmentally conscious design. Educated at Brown University, where she received a B.A. in Art Semiotics, and Central St. Martins, where she received an M.A. in Design Studies, she currently resides in New York City, which so far has been good for her obsession with rooftop gardens and vegan junk food restaurants.
Ken Rother, President/COO of Treehugger
Ken, President and COO, is responsible for bringing the vision and strategy of TreeHugger to life. Ken has been involved in the Internet since the early 90's when he co-founded Mountain Lake Software in Toronto Canada. Mountain Lake helped some of Canada's largest financial institutions take their first steps onto the WWW. Ken has held various roles including VP of operations responsible for all deliverables of their internet consulting division and later as divisional CIO introduced process altering technology to their globalization business. His interest in the environment dates back to his first summer job leading low impact canoe trips in northern Quebec.
Aaron Naparstek, Editor-in-chief Streetsblog.org
Aaron Naparstek works for the Open Planning Project where he is editor-in-chief of StreetsBlog.org. Aaron is a journalist, author and community organizer working on urban environmental issues in NYC. He is the author of Honku: The Zen Antidote for Road Rage, a book of humorous haiku poetry inspired by the unique brand of motorist sociopathy observed from his apartment window. Naparstek lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two sons. He is a founder of the Park Slope Neighbors community group and an organizer of the Grand Army Plaza Coalition.
7 miles of NYC streets, from the Brooklyn Bridge to Central Park, is closed to traffic and freed for use by everyday New Yorkers and visitors. We loved it!
This clip is in front of the south façade of Grand Central, which is usually only accessible to cars. Everyone was so thrilled to be able to take in the iconic view and see the Vanderbilt statue up close for the first time!
7 miles of NYC streets, from the Brooklyn Bridge to Central Park, is closed to traffic and freed for use by everyday New Yorkers and visitors. We loved it!
This is a stretch through Astor Place and south down Lafayette St. Listen for Kate Mikuliak from Councilmember Rosie Mendez's office saying hi to me as she rode past in the first 0:15! Everyone was out in the streets!
Here's a 3 minute short video of the Aug 9th "Summer Streets" in NYC which closed 7 miles of roads to cars and opened them to pedestrians and bikes etc
Blogging Sustainability
Moderator: Bonnie Hulkower, Treehugge
Panelists:
Jill Fehrenbacher, Editor-in-chief Inhabitat.com
Ken Rother, President/COO Treehugger
Aaron Naparstek, Editor-in-chief Streetsblog.org
Date & Time:
Thursday June 26, 2008, 6-8pm
Location: Green Spaces
33 Flatbush Ave (corner Flatbush & Livingston)
Brooklyn
Mass Transit - take B, Q, and R to Dekalb Ave, or the 4, 5 to Nevins Street, or A, C to Hoyt Shermerhorn St.
Please RSVP events@sustainabilitypractice.net
For more information, or to join SPN, visit www.sustainabilitypractice.net
Blogging has become an influential form of information gathering, particularly in the green world. New media forums, websites, and blogs have played a major role in furthering the message of sustainability. In doing so, they have helped move sustainability to the mainstream, often covering issues before the traditional media gets to them. Websites vary from magazine offshoots to personal advice to the musings of corporate executives. What these websites often share is an informal and interactive readership.
On these websites writers are often more easily criticized and held accountable, and commentators evoke a wide range of perspectives. Yet, fact-checking is not mandatory, and people may seek out like-minded "communities of interest" and echo chambers, which can foster a narrower perspective.
How do today's citizens inform themselves? What are the effects of the shift away from one-to-many media formats?
This panel will examine how websites such as www.streetsblog.com, www.Inhabitat.com, www.Treehugger.com, and others further the message of sustainability. Panelists will discuss how new media can reach out to untapped audiences, and how to spread the message further.
Bios:
Jill Fehrenbacher, Editor-in-chief, Inhabitat.com
Jill Fehrenbacher edits Inhabitat and is a freelance designer and student at Columbia's Graduate School of Architecture and Urban Planning. She created Inhabitat in the Spring of 2005 as a way to catalog her endless search for new ways to improve the world through forward-thinking, high-tech, and environmentally conscious design. Educated at Brown University, where she received a B.A. in Art Semiotics, and Central St. Martins, where she received an M.A. in Design Studies, she currently resides in New York City, which so far has been good for her obsession with rooftop gardens and vegan junk food restaurants.
Ken Rother, President/COO of Treehugger
Ken, President and COO, is responsible for bringing the vision and strategy of TreeHugger to life. Ken has been involved in the Internet since the early 90's when he co-founded Mountain Lake Software in Toronto Canada. Mountain Lake helped some of Canada's largest financial institutions take their first steps onto the WWW. Ken has held various roles including VP of operations responsible for all deliverables of their internet consulting division and later as divisional CIO introduced process altering technology to their globalization business. His interest in the environment dates back to his first summer job leading low impact canoe trips in northern Quebec.
Aaron Naparstek, Editor-in-chief Streetsblog.org
Aaron Naparstek works for the Open Planning Project where he is editor-in-chief of StreetsBlog.org. Aaron is a journalist, author and community organizer working on urban environmental issues in NYC. He is the author of Honku: The Zen Antidote for Road Rage, a book of humorous haiku poetry inspired by the unique brand of motorist sociopathy observed from his apartment window. Naparstek lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two sons. He is a founder of the Park Slope Neighbors community group and an organizer of the Grand Army Plaza Coalition.
The Sustainability Practice Network (SPN) is a NYC-based forum and list server for professionals, academics and students working with corporate responsibility and sustainability issues to build a community based on learning, discussion, information and idea exchange. SPN supports the growth of sustainability practice and bridges disciplines to advance sustainable development by drawing on the knowledge and expertise of its members.
Green Spaces Green Spaces is a hub for leading green entrepreneurs, providing networking programs, infrastructure and a community to launch their business.
This message was sent from Jennie Nevin to feinberg@design21sdn.com. It was sent from: Green Spaces, 33 Flatbush Ave Floor 5, Brooklyn, NY 11217. You can modify/update your subscription via the link below.
Green Wheels NEC members noticed sidewalks were overgrown in Arcata, California, making it difficult to walk. So they headed out to do something about it...
More at www.green-wheels.org
Volunteers are Chris Rall, Chad Johnson, Sara Dykman, Aaron Antrim and Adam Jamin
Radar gun session demonstrates routine speeding by motor vehicles on 65th St. Transverse in New York's Central Park during morning rush hour. the speed limit here is 30 MPH, and the traffic sign the back of which is visible on the left reads: CAUTION-SLOW-LANE NARROWS TO 11'0."
An account and discussion of the fatal crash that occurred here in December 2006 is found here:
http://www.streetsblog.org/2007/08/22/central-park-66th-street-transverse-is-unsafe/
Pictures and excerpts from the police investigation of the fatal accident are found here:
http://flickr.com/photos/11992136@N08/sets/72157601595007852/
New York Department of Transportation and Police Department have been advised of this dangerous condition. Will steps be taken remove the hazard presented by the routine speeding next to this hazardous pinch point before another bicyclists is injured or killed?
The traffic trying to exit the Central Park Loop this morning at 7th Avenue and 59th Street was backed up nearly to 72nd Street. There was no apparent reason for this other than congestion. Perhaps those who formerly used the CP Loop between 7 and 8 am and have under the new schedule simply shifted their trip to later, causing this congestion. It shouldn't take folks too much longer to figure out that they must simply stop driving through the park (or at all), rather than clinging to old habits. The best way to get the message across to these people is to eliminate cars from Central Park entirely.
here are the two previous installments in this series:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxBv2Hx52rM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaD0fgKfFo4
South Shore Motorists Allow Pedestrians To Take Over Roadway
A common sight on Long Island's south shore--recreational walkers ignore the grassy shoulder and walk instead in a single lane roadway. This is illegal but the pedestrians in these parts do it routinely. The motorists make sure to pass at a safe distance and speed. Why do so many of these same motorists, when in NYC, fail to yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk and otherwise play "chicken" with pedestrians?
Here on Long Island's south shore, the motorists seem to understand the need to keep a safe distance from bicyclists and pass them only when it is safe to do so--even if it slows them down temporarily. Why do so many of these same motorists, when they return to NYC, routinely endanger bicyclists by pushing them to the margins of the roadway and passing at unsafe distances and speeds?
The nine-year old bicyclist shown in the previous clip explains why a westbound bike lane on East 91st Street would be good for bicyclists, children, and others who use this street, despite the objections of some.
