Oct – Nov ’03
ISSUE
94
SAN FRANCISCO
BICYCLE COALITION
PROMOTING THE BICYCLE FOR EVERYDAY TRANSPORTATION
FREE
What Would You Do as Mayor?
Swervey \’swer-vã\ (n): A survey taken on the streets of San Francisco by SFBC volunteers who grab
passing bicyclists – sometimes causing them to swerve and avoid hitting us – in order to ask questions
SFBC Endorses
Matt Gonzalez
for Mayor,
Yes on Prop K
ur members have spoken and now it’s official! The SFBC has officially
endorsed Board of Supervisors President Matt Gonzalez in November’s mayoral
race.
“Matt Gonzalez has
shown leadership and
effectiveness in promoting
sustainable transportation
in San Francisco,” says
Leah Shahum, SFBC Executive Director. “We are at a
crucial point in expanding
the citywide Bicycle Network. Matt, as Board President, has stepped up
unequivocally to prioritize
the goal of making biking
easier, safer, and more
convenient. The Coalition is
O
THIS TUBE TIMES SWERVEY took place on Valencia and
Duboce as well as Market and Gough and asked, "If you
were elected mayor in November, what
would you do to make San Francisco the
best city for bicycling in the United
States?"
Aubrey (Upper Haight)
“More bike
racks and close
Market St. to
automobile
traffic.”
INTERVIEWS AND PHOTOS BY
DAVID GARTNER
Bob (Dolores Park)
about bicycling in the city.
Christian (North Berkeley)
Margaret (looking for an apartment)
“More bike
racks – the stupid new parking meters are
kind of a pain
in the ass, to
tell the truth.”
“Start with more
bike lanes,
wider bike
lanes, and more
green areas.”
Jeff (Mission)
“Put in more
bike lanes and
add monorails
to the city to
eliminate
the cars completely.”
Jeremy (Tenderloin)
“I would build
an elevated
bikeway
throughout the
city, similar to
the ‘L’ (elevated) Train in
Chicago, that
would just be for bikes that
would completely separate the
traffic from the bikes.”
Stacy (Castro)
www.sfbike.org
NEW TRAFFIC CIRCLES &
BIKE RIGHTS SIGNS p 3
WOMEN BIKING IN THE
MIDDLE EAST p 6
“I would probably put the bike
lanes on the
sidewalk like in
Germany.”
“I would do a
big education
program to
teach drivers
and bicyclists
both that they
need to share
the road and
behave properly towards one
another, because right now it’s
just ugly.”
Nathan (East Bay)
“I’d do something about
Market Street.”
Adriana (Barcelona)
“Obviously
more bike
lanes, more
bike racks, and
that you don’t
have to wear a
helmet.”
MOUNTAIN BIKING?
IN SAN FRANCISCO? p 8
From Leah’s Desk
TUBE TIMES
Members Provide the
Resources to Carry Out Our
Mission
never stop being amazed at the determination of
Bike Coalition members. Ten years’ worth of advocacy won bike lanes on Fell Street this summer.
The renewed energy to start dozens of member-led
committees is building support for the top 20 Bike
Network projects. And then the ways individual members continually save the day by responding to our
calls for last-minute help. (You know who you are, and
there are literally hundreds of you each month. Thank
you!)
In my first year as Executive Director, I have been
amazed by people’s depth of support – and particularly
their financial generosity — for the work we’re doing
together. I expected fundraising among the membership to be one of the most challenging and intimidating parts of my job but, in fact, it’s one of the easiest
and most rewarding. SFBC members understand the
importance of our work and they generously support it
with time and money, both of which are essential.
We are unusual for a nonprofit group in that a
healthy portion of our funding comes directly from
members, through annual dues and special contributions. And it’s a good thing because this is a difficult
time, to say the least, for winning foundation grants
or government contracts.
So financial support from the membership means
more now than ever, because we’re aiming to
I
Investment in Membership
Shows Results
I had the opprotunity to ride the new
bike lane on Fell St. (along with several
other lanes) to the Power to the Peaceful event in Golden Gate Park. And this
served as a hearty reminder that my
membership-renewal request
had been on my desk for
a few days. The ride on
that short stretch
between Divisadero and
the Panhandle was soooo
worth any money I have given in the
past and will in the future. Then I got to
the event and had the finest of bike
parking volunteers hold onto my ride.
Just figured I should sent a word of
thanks with my renewal, rather than you
thanking me.
achieve more than ever. Given our members’ expectations, strong local political support, the current
unprecedented Bike Network planning effort, and the
potential to increase local bike funding ten-fold (see
Prop. K news, p. 9), it’s not only possible but highly
likely that we will achieve our goal of making San
Francisco a model biking city.
Our success up to this point would not have been
possible without members’ generous financial support and it won’t be possible to increase our success
without your increased support. So please consider
ways you can give a little extra to the Coalition in
these last few months of the year.
All members will receive a letter in November asking for an end-of-the-year gift. Our goal is to raise at
least $10,000 from this annual campaign for the
SFBC’s ongoing advocacy work. Please, give what you
can. You’d probably be surprised at the difference
even a small amount makes to our success.
Or, if a single year-end gift doesn’t fit your budget, consider joining our monthly sustainer program,
where giving $25 a month makes a big difference.
And we’ll make it easier by reminding members of
ways to support the SFBC year-round. For instance,
does your employer offer company matches? This is
an easy way to double your donation. Or do you know
other bike enthusiasts who could support our work?
Help us meet them, either through individual meetings, or presentations at a workplace, or at house
parties. Do you have connections to grant-making
foundations? Or fundraising ideas? Let us know.
Another great way to offer support in the next few
weeks is by helping us solicit donations from local
businesses for our big Winterfest Auction and Party —
our biggest event fundraiser of the year. (See p. 5)
Golden Gate Park that day!
Y’all rock!
Car Crashes Are Worst
According to the lead factoid in the
Aug./Sept. ’03 Tube Times Index, just
12% of bike crashes involve a motor
vehicle. True, but most bike crashes are
merely falls, with little injury. In the
U.S., collisions with motor
vehicles have been
found to increase the
cyclist’s risk of hospitalization four-fold
and to account for 90% of
cycling fatalities, including 95% of fatalities among children.
By failing to include these stats, the
Index inadvertently contributed to the
perception that bikes are inherently dangerous, when the danger actually arises
from the presence of motor vehicles.
Letters
MARK HELLER
Let us all thank the heroic
volunteer valets who parked
more than 5 0 0 bikes in
PAGE 2
CHARLES KOMANOFF,
RIGHT OF WAY
NEW YORK CITY
Thanks, Charles. The point
we were trying to make was
that being hit by a car in a
serious collision happens
less frequently than many
novice riders think — and
crashes of many kinds are
avoidable with good traffic
habits.
Freedom from Oil Brings
Peace
While riding around the city, I often
hear a car to my side keeping pace with
me. I feel the driver leaning over to say
something. I roll my eyes, and think
“What now?” I look over, almost involuntarily, and brace for confrontation.
Though I haven't stopped expecting
drivers to unleash invective, since the
war started in March, it hasn't happened to me. A few months ago I affixed
a sign to the back of each of my bikes
that reads “BICYCLING: A QUIET STATEMENT AGAINST OIL WARS.”
A taxi driver I thought was gunning
Matthew Hoover
EDITOR
tubetimes@sfbike.org
Victor Pérez-Varela
PRODUCTION
Brandon Fine
DISTRIBUTION
Published six times a year by the
SAN FRANCISCO
BICYCLE COALITION
1095 Market St., Suite 215,
San Francisco, CA 94103
phone: (415) 431-BIKE
fax: (415) 431-2468
email: sfbc@sfbike.org
www.sfbike.org
The SFBC is a 4,200-member advocacy organization
working to transform San Francisco’s streets and
SFBC STAFF
Mary Brown
BIKE NETWORK DIRECTOR
Michael Calfee
MEMBERSHIP DIRECTOR
David Gartner, Amy Panella
C O M M U N I T Y O U T R EA C H C O O R D I N A T O R S
Josh Hart
PROGRAM DIRECTOR
Chris Hayashida Knight
OPERATIONS MANAGER
Leah Shahum
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Dale Danley (President)
Peggy da Silva • Chris Fenster (Treasurer)
Carolyn Hanrahan • Sami Iwata
Deb Janes • Ann Lyons • Gabriel Metcalf
Pi Ra • Brian Smith • Darryll White
his engine was instead making a fist in
support as he passed. When I smiled at
him he called out and waved as he
drove away. A man in a truck gave me a
smile and a nod. Coasting down from
Twin Peaks recently, a woman leaned
over to give me a serious thumbs-up,
and her two girls smiled and waved at
me as she pulled away.
Yes, it’s hypocritical to use oil paid
for with wars you say you don’t support.
But I see these expressions of support
as indications that plenty of drivers are
ready to change. When we push to elimSend letters to tubetimes@sfbike.org or
SFBC, 1095 Market St., #215, SF
94103. Please keep them brief; letters
may be edited.
Unclassified Ad
PEDICAB FOR HIRE: Black and
white pedicab with driver for hire
for weddings, parades, and special events. Contact Keith Saggers
by email
(keithsaggers1@juno.com) or
Traffic Circles Arrive
in the Haight
Page Street Bike Boulevard Next?
n one of the boldest and most
visible projects to date by the
city’s new traffic-calming program, on August 5 the Department
of Parking and Traffic (DPT)
began installing trial traffic circles
along Page and Waller Streets in
the Haight. The goal of the project
is to improve the neighborhood
for bicyclists and pedestrians
while decreasing vehicle emissions resulting from sudden braking and acceleration. Funding for
the traffic circle project came
from Bay Area Air Quality Management District, which approved a
grant submitted by the City’s bicycle program.
I
Reaction to the circles has been
mixed. Even frequent walkers and
bicyclists are split in their opinion
of the trial circles. Those in favor
say the circles simplify intersection
movements and allow bicyclists to
maintain momentum, while beauti-
fying the neighborhood (the permanent circles will feature landscaping). The most common concern
we’ve heard is related to right-ofway and safety, and indeed field
observations have noted that some
drivers have interpreted the removal
of stop signs to be an excuse to roll
through an intersection without
exercising due caution. San Francisco has more four-way stop intersections than perhaps any other city, so
it may take some time and prodding
to get residents accustomed to
negotiating new traffic circles.
To address safety concerns, the
SFBC has been working with the
DPT to get the word out about how
to navigate a traffic circle in a safe
and respectful manner (see sidebar). To improve the functioning of
the circles, the DPT is planning to
install "yield to pedestrians" pop-up
signs at each approach to the circles, paint ladder crosswalks where
Traffic Circle Navigation Guide
n Yield and stop when necessary for pedestrians
n Yield to vehicles already in the circle
n Always drive (or ride) counter-clockwise (never cut to the
left of a circle when making a left turn)
n As a bicyclist, take the lane before entering a circle — it is
“Bikes Allowed Use
of Full Lane” Signs
All Over Town
You may have noticed new signs
going up all around the city as part
of the Coexist campaign reminding
drivers and cyclists that, according
to the California Vehicle Code,
bicyclists have the right to ride in
the middle of a narrow lane (CVC
21202). Getting this message out is
particularly important to reduce
the single largest cause of injury to
OCTOBER–NOVEMBER 2003
cyclists in San Francisco — getting
"doored" when passing a parked
car. Ride outside the door zone
whenever possible; it’s your right
to be safe.
The signs are being placed in
critical areas along the
Bicycle Network that
don’t yet have bike
paths and bike
lanes. To determine the best placement and avoid unnecessary sign clutter, the
SFBC volunteers find the circle at Page and Clayton a nice place for a picnic and
some outreach to neighbors.
appropriate, and install more
detailed signage indicating how to
make a left turn. They are also
looking into the possibility of
adding stop signs on cross streets,
which the SFBC supports as an
interim measure that will clarify
right-of-way. Of course the SFBC’s
top priority is safety — that’s why
this project was initiated. We agree
that the design needs to be tweaked
to ensure safety of walkers and
cyclists. We urge neighborhood residents to get behind the project and
continue to work with DPT to
improve the design. It would be a
shame if neighbors threw out the
baby (calmer, safer streets) with
the bathwater (inappropriate driver
behavior).
The SFBC’s baby is a full-fledged
bicycle boulevard along Page St. As
a residential street paralleling major
arterials (Oak and Fell), Page St. is
an excellent candidate for a bike
boulevard — a street that priori-
tizes bicycle transportation by placing restrictions on through motor
vehicle traffic. Bicycle boulevards
typically feature prominent signage,
DPT collected data including traffic
volume, collision history, speed
limits, street grades, number of
lanes, curb lane width, presence of
parking, presence of bus routes,
presence of MUNI bus lane and/or
tracks, and other factors.
The SFBC wishes to thank the
DPT Bicycle Program for
taking the initiative to
install these signs, which
will help make everyone
aware that coexisting isn’t just a
way of life—it’s the law!
traffic circles, stop signs on side
streets giving priority to the bike
boulevard, diverters that force drivers to make turns at major intersections, and cul-de-sacs that are permeable to bicycles, pedestrians, and
emergency vehicles.
Bicycle Boulevards are popular
parts of bike networks in cities like
Berkeley and Palo Alto, and they
could become a common sight in
San Francisco one day, with streets
such as Shotwell in the Mission
having potential for boulevard conversion.
As for the future of the Page St.
boulevard, SFBC members need to
help rally support among Page and
Waller St. neighbors, as anyone
who lives within one block of a
proposed circle will get to vote in
early October whether to accept
that circle or to remove it. If the
circles are rejected, it will be difficult to continue developing a traffic-calming program in the Haight
area. If you are interested in helping with the bike boulevard campaign, contact Josh Hart at
joshua@sfbike.org
“Full Lane” signs have
been or will be installed
on the following streets:
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2nd St.
5th St.
7th Ave.
10th St.
14th St.
17th St.
Cesar Chavez
Battery
Bayshore
Broadway
Circular
Clay
Columbus
Evans
Francisco
Great Highway
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Lake Merced
Larkin
Marina
Masonic
McAllister
Northpoint
Page
Point Lobos
Post
Sanchez
Sansome
Sloat
Stockton
Sutter
Webster
PAGE 3
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for es, and s!
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CHAIN OF EVENTS
OCT – NOV ’03
The SFBC’s Cultural History Tours and
Recreational Rides are free to SFBC members (a $5 donation is requested of nonmembers). Unless otherwise noted, call
431-BIKE or email tours@sfbike.org (for bike
tours) or recride@sfbike.org (for rec. rides)
for more information. Or visit our online calendar at www.sfbike.org. Rain cancels rides.
VELO GIRLS SAN FRANCISCO/
NORTH BAY RIDE
BICYCLE TREASURE HUNT
Sat., Oct. 25 | Noon
Lincoln Park, Alameda
Join a couple hundred of your
pedal pals for an uproarious, funfilled day of cycle sleuthing through
the mysterious (and flat!) island of
Alameda. For details, www.bayhunt.org or (510) 604-4821.
SFBC SAN FRANCISCO
CEMETERY TOUR
Sat., Oct. 25 | 11am - 4pm
Main Library, Fulton St steps
Join the Velo Girls for a different
SF/North Bay route each month at
a moderate pace. Helmets are
mandatory. Any non-Velo Girls
members under the age of 18
wishing to ride must have parent/guardian accompany them to
the ride start. Parent/guardian will
be asked to sign a ride waiver.
See www.velogirls.com for more
information.
Come and learn the spooky history of San Francisco's ban on the
dead as we bike to sites of former
cemeteries. We'll learn how thousands of acres of cemetery land
were reclaimed for parks, schools,
and housing, and where the
unmarked graves are today. We'll
visit some of SF's hidden treasures along the way including the
Columbarium, the Wave Organ,
and the Presidio Pet Cemetery.
Contact Renee for details at
renee_rivera@yahoo.com
BIKE AGAINST THE ODDS
CRITICAL MASS #134 & 135
Sat., Oct. 11 & Nov. 8 | 9:00 am
Sports Basement, 1301 6th St
Sun., Oct. 19
The Breast Cancer Fund is a
national nonprofit working to identify and eliminate the environmental
and preventable causes of breast
cancer. Join TBCF and 800 cyclists
for our inaugural one-day fundraising bike ride, with five routes of
varying difficulty winding throughout
the East Bay. Go to www.breastcancerfund.org for more info.
Fri., Oct. 31 & Nov. 28 | 5:30pm
Justin Herman Plaza
(foot of Market St.)
A car-free grand tour of San Francisco. Still organized and sponsored by No One, including You.
Take the ride somewhere! Just get
up front and go, we’ll follow. Also
see www.critical-mass.org. Don’t
forget your costume for the Halloween ride!
SAN FRANCISCO MOUNTAIN
BIKING TOUR
MATT FOR MAYOR CAMPAIGN
BIKE TOUR
Sun., Nov. 9 | 10 a.m. - noon
McLaren Lodge (Stanyan at Fell)
Sun., Oct. 26 | 10am
Matt for Mayor Headquarters, Horseshoe Cafe
568 Haight Street (between Fillmore
and Steiner)
This 12-mile loop ride with some
hills will take us through Golden
Gate Park, along Land's End to
the Golden Gate Bridge, through
the Presidio on the Bay Area
Ridge Trail, and back via Park Presidio trail. Only some non-paved
trails due to current restrictions,
but the ride will highlight what
could be legal in the future, why
more off-road trails would be beneficial, and how it could be
achieved. Bring plenty of water
and a snack. Contact aaron@
sfmtb.com for details.
SFBC VOLUNTEER NIGHT
Every Wed. night | 5-9 pm
SFBC HQ, 1095 Market St Ste
215
Every Wednesday come to the
weekly SFBC Volunteer night to
do the things that make our
office run, munch on pizza and
snacks, and enjoy the fine company of other cyclists. We can
use your help!
WALK/BIKE CALIFORNIA
2003 CONFERENCE
Wed. - Sat., Oct. 15 - 18
Oakland Marriott Hotel
The California Bicycle Coalition
and the City of Oakland in
association with California
Walks are presenting a worldclass event that highlights the
ability of walking and bicycling
to relieve congestion, stimulate
economic activity, increase
transit use, and create safer
and healthier communities
throughout California and the
western U.S. For details or to
register, visit www.walkbikecalifornia.net.
SFBC BOARD MEETING
Tues., Oct. 21 & Nov. 17
6:30 - 8pm. SFBC HQ,
1095 Market St Ste 215
All members are invited to
attend. Call 431-BIKE x22 for
the agenda.
At the TMobile International pro bike race in September, spectators got valet
parking and information about the SFBC’s many projects.
PAGE 4
Ride with Matt Gonzalez, SFBCendorsed candidate for San Francisco Mayor on this freewheeling
tour of San Francisco. Matt will
discuss issues important to his
vision of the future of our city,
including two-wheeled transportation. Join this rolling campaign
rally as it spreads the message
that Matt is the candidate who will
help us build the citywide Bike
Network.
ELECTION DAY & TUBE
TIMES SUBMISSION DEADLINE
Tues., Nov. 4
Get out and vote, in person or
by mail! (Final push to get Matt
in Room 200 — SFBC and the
Gonzalez campgaign ask
cyclists to take all or part of
the day off and hold up “Matt
for Mayor” signs to get those
last uncommited votes. Contact
Gonzales HQ at 869-1485 to
volunteer.) And do you know an
issue that should be a letter to
the editor? A recreational ride
or cultural history bike tour that
you'd like to lead? An etiquette
question for the Advice Pedaler? All submissions are due
to the Tube Times editorial
staff by midnight tonight. Our
deadline is always (near) the
first of the month prior to the
issue date. Email
tubetimes@sfbike.org.
VELOSWAP: SAN FRANCISCO
Sat., Nov. 15 | 9am - 5pm
The Cow Palace
VeloSwap, a fundraiser to benefit the SFBC and the Northern
California Mountain Biking Association, brings bikes, parts,
demos, accessories, clinics,
samples, and fun to the Cow
Palace for your pedaling pleasure! Visit www.veloswap.com for
details, and see p. 5.
zFederal Bike/Ped
Funding Restored
On September 4, the U.S. House of
Representatives cast a critical vote
for bicycling. By a vote of 327 to
90, the House passed a bipartisan
amendment to restore $600 million
in funding for the Transportation
Enhancements program, the source
of most federal bike and pedestrian
funding.
The amendment restoring funding
enjoyed considerable bipartisan
support thanks to the diligent
efforts of bicyclists across the
nation, including dozens in San
Francisco who contacted Congresswoman Pelosi, who voted to save
the Transportation Enhancements
program. Huge thanks to everyone
who wrote letters, made calls, and
let Congress know that the
Enhancements program is important. You were heard! Many repre-
sentatives spoke fervently in favor
of bicycling and walking, saying
that, "in some cases bike paths
were as crowded as highways" in
their district, and that bicycling and
walking are "real transportation."
This victory not only restores
$600 million in dedicated funding
for 2004, it puts the bicycle and
pedestrian community on strong
footing for the bigger battle over
the reauthorization of TEA-21, the 6year transportation funding bill. For
more information on this historic
victory, go to www.
americabikes.org.
z Bike Lanes on Fell –
Good Can Get Better
After more than a decade of community organizing, bike lanes were
finally, gloriously striped on Fell
Street! The brand-spankin’ new
bike lanes are long overdue relief
to thousands of beleaguered bicyclists who use this three-block
stretch of Fell to connect to the
Panhandle. Much indebtedness to
the early Fell campaigners, and
thanks to the DPT Bicycle Program
for developing a critic-proof study.
One hundred supporters
came out
to celebrate,
toast the new
bike lanes,
eat, drink and
be generally
merry at our
celebration picnic on August 24.
was scheduled to be adopted by the
Authority on August 12. The
agency, composed of mayoral
appointees and charged with
implementing Prop. J, chose not to
adopt the plan, however, in part
due to an appeal filed by the
Alliance for Golden
Gate Park to halt
construction of the
parking garage
planned for the
Music Concourse.
The SFBC will be
working to ensure
that the Bike Plan
is approved as
soon as possible
and that key safety projects aren’t
held up unnecessarily.
Quick
Releases
Unfortunately, the future of these
bike lanes is not ensured! The DPT
is conducting a six-month trial,
after which, the bike lanes will
need to again go before the Board
of Supes for approval. The SFBC
doesn’t feel quite finished with
them either: we’re organizing to retime the stoplights to 25 mph,
revoke the tow-away zone the
length of Fell, and most important:
MAKE THE LANES RED! These bike
lanes are the perfect high-volume,
high-speed, high-conflict zone for
trying out a thick layer of colored
asphalt. It would make the lanes
more visible to drivers and more
comfortable for bicyclists. For
more info about colored bike
lanes, check out www.sfbike.org/
bikeplan/streetdesign, or call Mary
Brown at 431-BIKE x24.
z GGP Park Bike Plan
Delayed by Environmental Appeal
The Golden Gate Park Bike Plan,
produced by the SFBC over the last
year for the Concourse Authority,
z Music Concourse
Garage Debate
Heats Up
The 800-car garage project has
been generating a good deal of
controversy recently. Many city residents are shocked that the project
would destroy century-old pedestrian tunnels, provide no "pedestrian
oasis" as called for by Prop. J, and
include a second garage entrance
inside the Park. The need for a
garage in the park at all is still
being questioned, and improvements to transit, shuttle, bike and
pedestrian facilities could more
efficiently get people to the new
institutions in the park. SFBC staff
has been advocating for bicycle
access into and out of the park at
10th Ave. for months, and the Concourse Authority has responded by
revising their designs to include a
bike lane. You can read about the
SFBC’s position on the garage project, and also download the Golden
Gate Park Bike Plan at www.sfbike.
org/campaigns/ggp_task_force.
z Giant Veloswap Show
Coming to SF
Veloswap, the world's largest bicycle show and swap, is coming to
the Cow Palace on Saturday,
November 15. The event will feature over 100,000 square feet of
bikes, parts, demos, accessories,
clinics, samples, and fun from all
the big names in bikes and gear. It
will benefit the SFBC and the Northern California Mountain Biking
Association. You can get in for free
if you are part of the SFBC’s select
volunteer corps; otherwise it’s $6
in advance and $8 at the door. Visit
www.veloswap.com for more
details. To volunteer, contact
michael@sfbike.org.
z Winterfest Rides
Again
The biggest bike party of the year is
coming soon, with music, live and
silent auctions, food and drinks,
and everybiker who’s anybiker in
attendence! Do you have items or
services to donate for our auctions?
Perhaps an “in” with a company
who’d be willing to support us with
donations of products or services?
Plus we always need lots of volunteer help leading up to and the
night of the event. Contact Kay
Hoskins, Winterfest coordinator, at
845-4610 or kay@sfbike.org to
coordinate donations or to arrange
a volunteer task. Be sure to check
www.sfbike.org and the Biker Bulletin e-mail for the specific date
Fell Street, now with bike lane!
OCTOBER–NOVEMBER 2003
PAGE 5
Helping Women Bike in the Middle East
The story of one SFBC member’s summer vacation
magine the delight of helping a
38-year-old woman learn to
ride a bike for the first time in
her life. Picture the fear and
excitement in her face, the growing sense of liberation spreading
from head to toe like a dip into an
ocean of love. Her dawning awareness of aesthetic and sensual joys
comes naturally as you power,
side by side, your two-wheeled
vehicles through tree-lined bike
paths and quiet roads, away from
noise, drivers, and the demands of
children. A clear moon rises as
you pedal along, drowning the hot
sun, creating another evening of
orange and blue shadows and cool
breezes.
I
Your
new riding companion is Palestinian, and she is training her body
and soul for the first all women’s
three-country bicycle event in the
Middle East. Insh'allah (in God’s
will) next April she will ride from
Beirut, Lebanon, to Damascus,
Syria, to Amman, Jordan, along
with hundreds of other historyPAGE 6
making women. They are riding
through the cradle of civilization to
raise consciousness, drawing attention to the unnecessary suffering of
women and children in the Middle
East. This was part of my summer
in Amman, Jordan.
A New Bike Ride for
Women
Follow The Women For Peace is in
its first year, organized by EuroMed, a young adult cultural
exchange program. The event was
inspired by exchanges between
Israelis and Palestinians, and has
been expanded to include several
countries. It is intended to give
women in the Middle East an
opportunity to take charge of
something in their own lives, get
noticed, and educate as large
an audience as possible
about the situations facing all women who live
in areas of conflict.
The main ride
route, from Beirut
to Damascus to
Amman, covers
approximately
165 miles, and
participating
women will take
several days this
April to complete
the course. Precise dates have
not yet been set.
Another ride will
take place simultaneously in Cyprus, where
Israelis will join Cypriots
and women from other
countries on the island. Additional rides in Denmark, Sweden,
and elsewhere are being organized
as sister rides. Everything culminates in a conference in Amman,
where women will discuss peace,
human rights, and activism.
I left San Francisco for Jordan
in June, aiming to spend the summer volunteering with organizations in support of the people of
Iraq. I wanted to better understand
the Arab world, and experience
first-hand the humanity I felt my
own country was doing its best to
mess up, with my our tax dollars
and in my name. As world events
and my own circumstances evolved,
I found myself with plenty of
opportunities to connect with people right in Jordan, and the unexpected bonus was that it was all
incredibly fun! Getting to volunteer
on a bike seat, well, that was just
over the top.
Riding and Learning
In Jordan we gathered three
evenings per week to train for an
hour or two, meeting at the majestic Sport City in Amman, an impressive athletic facility and park built
with the private funds of the late
and beloved King Hussein. Women
aged 16 to 60 participated, often
toting sisters, aunts, nieces, mothers, and grandmothers. Approximately half of the women team
identified as Palestinian, most of
them having lived in Jordan their
whole lives.
There was a mixture of Muslims, including some who wore the
hijab, the scarf that goes from the
face to the neckline covering all
hair, and Christians, who wore
sleeveless shirts and did not worry
about hiding their curves. Some
women came in their street work
clothes, riding in nice shirts and
slacks, while others had clearly
purchased sweat suits for this purpose, and they wore them every
time we met.
We rode on rented bikes, having paid about $15 at the beginning
of the season to do so. Only one or
two team members actually owned
bikes. Usually these were worldly,
young women who had been
schooled outside of the country, or
had traveled enough to have discovered biking for themselves. The
rented bikes were not the most
reliable, but no one ever complained.
Women’s comfort levels and
familiarity with riding varied, in
line with their ages. Most of the
younger women were savvy and
fearless, having only given up riding upon puberty not so long ago.
But the middle-aged and older
women had not ridden for twenty
or thirty years, or, in some cases,
ever.
I offered my best biking wisdom
to the team, happy to aid the
head coach as he guided
participants through
skills of group riding,
general endurance,
and hill climbing.
My specialty
was helping
new riders,
and many a
time I held a
woman's
bicycle seat
firmly, aiding her balance, running alongside of her,
and reminding
her to keep
pedaling. In
many ways I had to
relearn how to ride,
breaking down my tacit
knowledge to become
explicit about how to mount
and dismount, get the wheels
going, and the all important job of
using the brakes. After watching
and perhaps causing some painful
mistakes, I finally realized that each
of these skills is useless without the
others.
It was hard to convince new riders that the saddle soreness and
general muscle pain was a good
sign of their progress, and it would
eventually subside and result in
better biking. They would look at
me like I was from another planet.
Perhaps I was.
I also tried to convince people
to drink a lot more water, and eat
to support the new needs their
bodies would be having. Fortunately there was a nutritionist on the
team, and she lent her knowledge
as well. Together we campaigned
for appropriate intake. One friend
told me in email that she fainted
one night evening at a practice
shortly after I left Jordan. But she
diagnosed her own situation and it
turns out she hadn't eaten all day.
As anyone who rides regularly
knows, one good bonk teaches a
long-lasting lesson. Insh'allah she
will not have this trouble again.
Few Bikes, Fewer
Women on Bikes
Biking is a radically progressive
activity for women in Jordan. If you
have seen the film, "The Day I
Became A Woman," written
by Mohsen Makhmalbaf
and directed by
Marzieh Meshkini,
you start to get the
idea of how eyebrows and sometimes hackles
get raised when
women ride
bikes in the
Middle East.
Even though
many areas
Amman are
entirely modern, we got
stared at like
crazy. People out
exercising or taking
a breath of fresh air
with their families
would watch us and gawk,
stunned by our grace and
power, I'd like to think. But the
truth is probably that they simply
never saw one woman on a bicycle,
let alone a group of twenty or
more. Often these onlookers would
approach us with wonder, asking
what was going on. We obtained
more than one teammate this way.
Other than our trainings, I only
OCTOBER–NOVEMBER 2003
saw young men, boys, and little
girls on bikes all summer long. No
one commutes by bicycle, either,
although the lead organizer on the
Jordan team, Sahar Al-Fayez, is
planning on doing so as soon as
she can train the cars along her
route to take care. Cars rule the
road in Amman, and even though
there is a symbiotic relationship
with pedestrians — as in, drivers
honk, pedestrians run — it would
be foolhardy to test your luck on a
bike on the main roads.
We did start to ride bikes outside of Sport City near the end of
my stay in August, and that was a
thrill, after many weeks of the riding on the same bike paths for
many weeks inside the park. The
surrounding area was quiet, and in
a large group we were able to look
out for each other. I remember
riding past security guards at the
nearby Ministry of the Interior,
sensing their dumbfounded amazement and hearing cheers of support. Well, I don't speak Arabic, so
I can't be sure, but they seemed
happy for us. Younger boys within
the park were less encouraging,
but you had to forgive them for
their chiding. To them we looked
out of place, ridiculous.
Friday is the holy day and people don't venture out much until
the evening. Around the time I was
finishing my summer visit, the
coach was plotting a route from
Amman to Madaba, a town that figures as Matheba in the Bible, located about 25 miles away. They were
planning that the team could ride
weekly on Friday mornings. Someone in a van would was going to
bring them back to Amman when
they were through. The women
were eager for this adventure, and
there was a lot of excited anticipation.
Back in San Francisco, my
favorite thing to think about is
how some women on the team
just did not want to get off those
bikes. They rode non-stop each
evening, repeating the well-worn
routes, smiling as they flew by those
of us taking a break. It was as
though the bikes had become a part
of them, and to be off was less than
living. The smiles on their faces
were precious. Don't we all know
that feeling?
Ride With Us Locally
In solidarity with these brave
women riders, a group of Bay Area
bikers is cooperatively creating a
shorter local version of Follow The
Women For Peace. We will decide
together what aspects to support.
For instance, we can raise money to
send a scholarship for a woman
who would otherwise not get to
participate, or ship a load of bike
accessories such as reflectors and
bells to ensure greater safety to the
participants, or send funds to beneficiary organizations such as those
that reach out to women in Palestinian refugee camps. Or we might
even send some of our own Bay
Area riders to join one of the rides!
For more information, to make suggestions, or to help create a local
event, please send email to the
author. Men are warmly welcome
to participate.
BY LIZA BEHRENDT
Event website: http://www.
followthewomen.com
Jordan team photos: http://
photos.livingpixels.com/album32
Liza Behrendt: liza@znet.com
PAGE 7
Mountain Biking?
In San Francisco?
The benefits of an integrated multi-use nonpaved trail network
ithin the city limits of San
Francisco, there are many
greenspaces, parks, and
unpaved trails that are beloved by
locals for hiking, mountain biking,
and other recreational opportunities. These are the places that we
can go to exercise, relax, talk, and
think, and to escape the city’s howl,
if only temporarily.
A new group called SF MTB is
being formed, and it is our position
that these open spaces can all be
logically linked into a series of interconnected multi-use trail loops,
encompassing almost the entire city.
There are at least nine separate trail
loops that can be combined by a
small group of key "connecting
greenways" — vital trailways,
though probably unplanned and relatively overlooked, that provide offpavement travel between the other
trail loops.
This San Francisco "Multi-Use
W
Non-Paved Trail Network" exists now
and is not some dreamer’s concept.
However, the organized network
itself does not exist; it has no official
status and is known only by those
who have explored or conceptualized it. This potential trail system
would pass through the green hills
of the Presidio, the rocky paths of
Lincoln Park looking down on the
ocean, the lightly sandy stretches of
Golden Gate Park, the windy panoramas of Twin Peaks, the forested Mt.
Davidson, and by the lapping waters
of Lake Merced, to name a few highlights.
Currently, off-road biking is not
specifically disallowed on most existing non-paved city trails. However,
it is not legal within Golden Gate
Park and is only legal on selected
trails within the Presidio. SFBC and
SF MTB are planning a volunteer
Golden Gate Park trail user survey to
help understand who is using the
trails in the park, their mode of
recreation, how they access the
park, and their opinions on other
trail-use issues. This survey will
assist SF Rec and Park staff to
understand the recreational uses of
the park including mountain biking.
To get involved in this project,
please e-mail Aaron at
aaron@sfmtb.com.
The many benefits of creating this
trail network include:
city, with sustainable
trail building techniques that are being
supported by the
mountain biking community.
If you’re interested in
helping to create an interconnected trail network in
SF, contact me at
aaron@sfmtb.com. To see
a visual concept of the
citywide trail network,
plus maps of existing city
rides, please visit
www.sfmtb.com.
BY AARON DELLOIACONO
THIES
Ride along with
the San Francisco
Mountain Bike
Tour on Nov. 9,
and learn more
about this potential trail network.
See p. 4 for details.
(415) 495-6027, ext. 206
www.fractureinjurylaw.com
PAGE 8
q
Bay Area Ridge Trail section of the
Presidio. This trail goes from the Golden Gate Bridge to Arguello Gate and
is about 2.5 miles long, 1.5 miles of
which is non-paved.
q
Land's End and Sutro Park. If you
piece together the trails in these two
parks, there is about 1.25 miles of
non-paved trail sections.
q
Sunset Blvd, through Stern Grove to
the top of Mt. Davidson. The whole
trip, bottom to top and back, is about
8 miles. It's not all dirt but, there are
some lovely off-road sections and fantastic views. If it's foggy, the cross
atop of Mt. Davidson is surreal.
See www.sfmtb.com for maps.
TUBE TIMES INDEX
San Franciscans who drove to work in 1990: 67.2 %
1
• Reducing the number of local
car trips made by bikers or hikers
who wish to access trail systems.
• Adding more commute and
transportation options for city bikers, which encourages the use of
non-polluting transportation alternatives for those short trips to work,
school, and the store.
• Improving local health and fitness options for city residents, while
connecting neighborhoods.
• Giving tourists more city bike
routes.
• Maintaining and upgrading the
condition of existing trails in the
A Few Offroad Rides in SF
2
3
Percentage of San Franciscans who took public transportation
to work in 1990: 12.2%
4
5
Percent who drive to work today: 51.3%
Percentage taking public transportation today: 31.1%
Households in San Francisco with “no motor vehicle available”:
29%
6
Owner-occupied households with no motor vehicle: 11%
7
Renter households with no motor vehicle: 38%
COMPILED BY ANNA SOJOURNER
All data from 1990 and 2000 United States Census, rounded to the nearest
tenth of a percent, by way of Transportation for a Livable City.
SFBC Endorses
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
ready to mobilize our active
membership base to help elect
Matt as the most bicycle-friendly mayor of San Francisco."
Our 4,200 members had the
opportunity to vote for the mayoral endorsement through the
SFBC web site using an
Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) system. Eleven candidates completed the SFBC’s extensive
questionnaire, and these
responses are at
www.sfbike.org/campaigns/en
dorsements.
SFBC members rated Supervisor Tom Ammiano as a
strong second-place candidate.
"Tom Ammiano has been a
longtime supporter of the
SFBC and the pro-bike agenda
in San Francisco," says
Shahum. "Clearly Tom has a
proven record on sustainable
transportation and would be an
absolutely bike-friendly mayor
as well."
If Matt’s campaign is to be
successful, it is crucial that
SFBC members donate as
much volunteer time and
money as they can. There will
be rides and events throughout
October (see Matt for Mayor
bike tour, p. 4), and we are
asking cyclists to take all or
part of election day off of work
and hold up signs at busy
intersections to remind undecided voters to vote for Matt.
Watch the SFBC web site and
Biker Bulletin e-mails for more
opportunities to get involved.
For volunteer opportunities
and other election info, go to
the official Matt for Mayor web
site, www.mattgonzalez.com.
Prop. K. Means More
$$$ for Bike Projects
In other election news, the
SFBC Board of Directors has
strongly endorsed Prop. K, a
renewal of the county’s half-cent
transportation sales tax. The SFBC
and Transportation for a Livable
City lobbied hard for more bike
funding during the city’s advisory
process, raising funding set-asides
for bikes from $30 million to $70
million. Vote yes on Prop. K!
OCTOBER–NOVEMBER 2003
Bike Plan
and Beyond
ngineers and consultants for
the Department of Parking
and Traffic (DPT) have shifted
into high gear to design detailed,
bike-friendly street options for the
Bike Plan Update's top 20 projects.
Initial analysis and bike-friendly
recommendations on dozens more
mid-term projects will also be
incorporated into the Update,
along with bike policy, education
and innovative design guidelines.
The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition is conducting the community
outreach and planning for the Bike
Plan Update, which so far has engaged the
participation of 900 individuals, plus over
75 community-based organizations. In an
effort to design as many streets as possible
(and not duplicate work), the top 20 don't
include other high-high-visibility projects
covered in separate, concurrent planning
efforts, such as: Market Street between
E
Embarcadero and Octavia; the
Market/Valencia intersection; Fell Street;
Fisherman's Wharf connection; Golden
Gate Park; the Presidio; and Potrero
Avenue. For more info about the Bike Plan
Update, check out www.sfbike.org/bikeplan or contact Mary Brown at 431BIKEx24.
A New Regional Force in
Bike Advocacy
here’s a new name in town for bicycle advocacy:
the Bay Area Bicycle Coalition (BABC). Formerly
called the Regional Bicycle Advocacy Coalition
(REBAC), the BABC has a board of directors that
includes leaders of bicycle groups in all nine Bay Area
counties.
The BABC’s mission is "to ensure that bicycles are
part of an integrated transportation plan throughout
the San Francisco Bay Area." The group’s focus is on
inter-regional projects such as getting bicycle access
on Bay Area bridges, and securing funding for bicycle
projects through the Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s (MTC) Regional Transportation Plan
process.
Besides changing its name, the BABC adopted an
initial platform for MTC’s Regional Transportation Plan
update. It includes a request for full funding for "Safe
Routes to Transit" and the Regional Bicycle Plan, and
bike access on bridges.
Current BABC board members include chair Dave
Burch (who works at the Bay Area Air Quality Management District), vice-chair Josh Hart (SFBC), treasurer
Mark Birnbaum (an advisor to the MCBC), and new
board members Deb Hubsmith (MCBC) and Carol
Levine (who works at Wilbur Smith, a transportation
consulting firm).
Committee chairs were selected for bridge access
projects. If you’d like to help with the West Span of
the Bay Bridge, contact Josh Hart of SFBC at 431BIKE x23. If you’d like to help with direct access on
the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, contact Deb Hubsmith of MCBC at 456-3469 or Robert Raburn of
EBBC at 510-433-RIDE.
The Bay Area Bicycle Coalition is also preparing
grant applications to hire a part-time staff person who
T
1. Fell/Masonic
intersection
2. Masonic
corridor
3. Broadway
Tunnel
4. Polk contra-flow
lane
5. Fifth St.
6. Second St.
7. Townsend
8. Market corridor
9. 16th/17th
corridor
10. Illinois
11. Cesar Chavez
12. Bayshore
13. Alemany
14. Dwewy/Laguna Honda/
Woodside
intersection
15. Portola
16. SFSU
connection
will coordinate action plans for all of the projects listed above. The future looks good for shifting into high
gear on regional bicycle projects.
BY DEB HUBSMITH
Bay Area Bicycle Coalition
Member Organizations
We urge you to find out more about our allied
groups around the Bay and to give them your support!
Alameda and Contra Costa Counties
East Bay Bicycle Coalition
510-530-3444 – www.ebbc.org
Marin County
Marin County Bicycle Coalition
www.marinbike.org – 415-456-3469
Napa County
Lou Penning
Napa County Bicycle Advisory Committee
LPL@interx.net – 707-224-6923
San Mateo County
Peninsula Bicycle and Pedestrian Coalition
www.penbiped.org
Santa Clara County
Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition
www.svbcbikes.org
Solano County
Mick Weninger
Solano County Bicycle Advisory Committee
BikeMick@aol.com
www.solanolinks.com/aboutSTA.html
Sonoma County
Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition
scbc@att.net – 707-545-0153
PAGE 9
Bikes & Clean Water
How Smarter Stormwater Management
Can Benefit San Francisco Cyclists
magine riding around
town on a Bike Network that includes a
series of traffic-calmed
"healthy corridors", with
large mature trees, native
flowers, and wildlife. Now
imagine these roadways
are vital elements in San
Francisco’s effort to keep
stormwater pollution out
of the Bay and ocean.
At first glance, there
might be little in common between
cyclists and water advocates, even
if many of us started using our
bikes as transportation for practical and environmental reasons. But
we both seek to redefine how our
streets are used to improve the
environment and create a healthier,
more livable city. The Alliance
– into the Bay or ocean. This
happens about 12 times per
year at over 40 overflow points
around the city.
I
for a Clean Waterfront, a
coalition of environmental,
neighborhood, and community groups that has been
working on this issue for
the past six years, invites
cyclists to join us in setting
the city on a course to do
just that.
SO WHY STORMWATER? Well, the water
that falls during rainstorms picks
up pollution from the ground as it
flows through the streets – toxic
particles from tires and brakes,
motor oil, animal droppings, litter,
and all sorts of other garbage. In
When rains are heavy, overflows can occur in neighborhood streets or in basements.
Problems can be particularly bad near the
Southeast Plant – the
the ’70s, San Francisco built a
moat around the City to capture
and treat this water, preventing
these pollutants from flowing
directly into the Bay and ocean.
Today nearly all of the water that
falls on the sidewalks, rooftops,
and streets goes into pipes that
carry it to one of the City’s three
treatment plants. The 50-yearold Southeast Plant in the
Bayview treats most of the
stormwater from the northern and eastern parts of
town. When it reaches capacity,
the 65-year-old North Point Plant
on Bay Street near the Embarcadero is activated to take the extra
water. The Oceanside plant near
the zoo treats runoff from the west
side of town.
But there’s a problem. The
stormwater is collected in the same
pipes as city sewage, but the system
simply can’t handle all of the water
during even moderate rainfalls. The
mixture of sewage, garbage, and
road pollution has nowhere to go,
overflowing – essentially untreated
workhorse of the wastewater
system that takes 80% of the
City’s sanitary sewage – aggravating
long-standing environmental justice
concerns in that part of town. The
outdated sewage and stormwater
system ends up degrading our bay,
our neighborhoods, and our
health.
WHAT’S THE
SOLUTION? One way to
eliminate overflows is to prevent
the system from becoming overloaded. Impermeable surfaces prevent water from getting into the
ground, causing these "combined
sewer overflows". Environmental
design and landscape architecture
techniques, permeable paving, and
alternative technologies can be
used to capture, treat, and retain
the stormwater and reduce how
fast and how much gets into the
pipes.
Many of the same things cyclists
need for safe and pleasant rides –
such as traffic-calmed streets, trees,
and green space – are also
stormwater solutions. The Bike
Network Can become more
than a bunch of good routes
from here to there; it’s also
a cost-effective tool way to
help us manage our impact
on the Bay and ocean.
Healthy green corridors throughout the city do more than just link
our neighborhoods and reduce our
impact on the Bay. Other benefits
that come as part of the cost of
providing this indispensable urban
service include neighborhood
PAGE 10
Volunteers: A Special
Caliber of Person
Many hearty thanks to everyone who’s
Philippe Arbeit
Michelle Ashe
Jesse Basbaum
Peter Bejger
April Berger
Steven Bodzin
Nancy Botkin
Danielle Bricker
Eric Brown
Joe Carroll
Liam Casey
Spencer Chan
Max Chen
Suany Chough
Mike Crehan
Sandy Crockett
Bill Davidson
Laura DeFelice
Amad Demetrious
Emily Drennen
Ann Dunn
Lisa Ruth Elliott
Dahu Ellingson
David A. Elson
Nathan Endsley
Michael Ernst
Brandon Fine
Mike Fox
Jim Frank
Tony Frusciante
Niles Guthrie
Arlene Graves
Ken Grosserode
Bert Hill
Phillip Holsten
Matt Hoover
Kay Hoskins
Eileen Hsu
Michael Jak
David Jayne
Rebecca Johnson
Shirley Johnson
Kevin Leach
Robin Levitt
Janet Lohman
Brett Lutz
Douglas Lym
Ann Lyons
Naomi Mahoney
Cassidy Maione
Kimberly Malesky
Norm McAllister
Michael McAssey
Adam Milligan
Angela Mraz
Ralf Muehlen
Patrick Myall
Jim Myint
Brian Neilson
Monica Nolan
Jeff Osbourn
Jennifer Paillet
Benjamin Patterson
Alice Payton
Steven Pitsenbarger
Pi Ra
Arena Reed
Maggie Robbins
Noreen Santini
John Scopelleti
Tim Shea
Kyle Sosebee
Amy Swenson
Ariel Tellez
Stephanie
Theodore
Andy Thornley
Ted Tilles
Dhamiboo Turnbull
Lindasusan Ulrich
Kurt Van Quill
Dianna Waggoner
Brian D. West
James Whitten
David Wilbur
Steven Wilcott
Jim Wolff
Tom Zimlich
beautification, ground water
recharge, creation of wildlife habitat, and environmental education.
The City’s sewage and stormwater
system needs about a billion dollars in fixes and the Public Utilities
Commission has begun a public
process to develop a new master
plan for the system. Bike advocates can join with the Alliance for
a Clean Waterfront to make sure
that the new master plan prioritizes
smart wastewater solutions like
green street corridors. To get
involved, contact Alex Lantsberg
with the Alliance for a Clean Waterfront at 240-0795 or Chris Buck
with Friends of the Urban Forest at
561-6890 x108.
Etiquette for the
Conscientious Cyclist
Ask the Advice Pedaler
Study Shows That City CarShare
Is Making a Difference
hat San Franciscan hasn’t
caught a glimpse of one of
City CarShare’s signature
green VW Beetles by now? After
just two and a half years in business, City CarShare’s fleet has
expanded to 75 cars (not all Beetles—they have Honda Civic
hybrids and roomy VW station
wagons too) shared at 45 Bay
Area locations. While it’s hard to
miss these cars, some people
may still wonder whether or not it
encourages sharing, or just more
driving.
City CarShare’s mission is to
provide Bay Area residents and
businesses with vehicles on a peruse basis — like time-sharing for
cars — to save time, money, and
the environment. Their vision
since 2001 has been a more livable San Francisco with fewer
cars, less congestion and pollution, and safer streets for bikers
and pedestrians. Are they reaching any of these goals?
Recent results from a threeyear survey by the UC Berkeley
Institute of Urban and Regional
Development shows that the
group is reaching these goals, in
a big way. The survey reported
that City CarShare’s almost
3,000 members have dramatically reduced their total motor
vehicle travel, by 47% to be
exact. (Compare this to a 73%
increase in vehicle miles travled
among a non-member control
group!) And because City CarShare operates with fuel-efficient
Volkswagens and Hondas, this
translates into a significant reduction in fuel consumption among
members. The study revealed that
W
OCTOBER–NOVEMBER 2003
members’ average daily car-related CO2 emissions fell by an estimated three-quarters of a pound,
compared to an estimated onequarter of a pound increase
among non-members.
The survey also queried City
CarShare members about
changes in the number of cars
they own. About one-third of members actually got rid of their cars
(that’s about 900 cars), and City
CarShare enabled an additional
68% of members to forego the
purchase of a car. This means
that 73% of members reduced
car ownership or opted not to
purchase a vehicle during City
CarShare’s first two years of
operation! The survey results
also revealed some less-surprising statistics about City CarShare’s members’ preferred transportation options: 60% of them
own bicycles and 65% carry Muni
Fast Passes! For the many SFBC
members who still own a car,
what are you waiting for?!
The only thing these numbers
fail to capture is the bliss enjoyed
by all those City CarShare members who are now car-free. If
you’re a car owner who is not yet
convinced that City CarShare is
for you, visit www.citycarshare.org
or call them at 995-8588. Signing
up for membership online takes
about five minutes, and in about a
week you can reserve a car for
the first time. You pay based on
how much you drive: $4 per hour
between 10am and 10pm, $2 per
hour between 10pm and 10am,
and $0.44 per mile. These rates
cover gas, comprehensive insurance, maintenance, and peace of
mind.
Dear Advice Pedaler: As I walk around San Francisco I notice
lots of people riding their bikes on the sidewalks. Besides the
fact that this is illegal, it is unsafe and inconsiderate to pedestrians. I also think it works against our efforts to put in bike lanes.
I even see people riding on the sidewalk in areas of Market
Street that are striped with bike lanes. Is there an effective, gentle way you could suggest about how to ask people to stop riding
their bicycles on sidewalks? —Sidewalks are for Walking
Dear Walking: You said it. The Advice Pedaler is saddened
whenever she sees scared or safety-minded cyclists riding on
the sidewalk. It means that despite a little hint of a bike lane
here and there on Market Street, despite all the outreach the
SFBC does to cyclists, despite all the angry grandmothers shaking their canes at renegade cyclists, despite the fact that riding
on the sidewalk is not safer than riding in the street… Despite
all this, there are still some cyclists who choose the sidewalks
over the street in some circumstances. The Advice Pedaler carries a clean hanky with her to wipe away the grease and tears.
The Advice Pedaler finds that, in general, the best way to deal
with someone who endangers you (on the street or sidewalk, be
it cyclist, roller-blader, motorist, etc.) is to express your surprise
and terror (“AAAAHH!!!”) rather than express your anger and
indignation. People are more likely to be apologetic and selfexamining when they realize they have scared someone, but they
are likely to be defensive and unapologetic when someone yells
at them
But the advice pedaler is frustrated with the amount of mail
she gets from pedestrians who have been terrorized by cyclists.
She’s getting tired of “gentle and effective.” So listen up, citycyclists! This means you. Grow up, get over it and get off the
sidewalk!
Dear Advice Pedaler: I am running for Mayor. How can I best flit
from meeting to job to house party to fundraiser? It’s going to
be busy between now and Election Day! —Ambitious
Dear Ambitous: Don’t RUN for Mayor, BIKE for Mayor! You can
fit bike shorts under your suit and wear clips to keep your pant
legs from getting dirty. You will arrive in impressive style, fit exercise into your busy schedule, save money and time, and have a
handy excuse for ducking out of boring social functions! “Sorry,
I’ve got to get back on the bike! I’m biking for Mayor!”
You can reach the Advice Pedaler at advice@sfbike.org
PAGE 11
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