From the “Not all news is bad” Department, a great video taken from Cunningham’s piece in today’s NY Times (above), with Cunningham talking about Park Avenue’s weekly closures to motorized vehicles here.

–EBR

I read this New York Times article yesterday about First Lady Michelle Obama’s successful campaign to persuade Wal Mart, Walgreens, and other retailers to provide healthier food choices and reduce the prevalence of “food deserts” in our communities. A food desert is an area where more than 500 people live further than one mile from a reliable source of healthy food.

After thinking about it for a second, I realized that I live right in the middle of such a place. So I went to the USDA’s Food Desert Locator to make sure.

It turns out that an awful lot of Tucsonans live in a food desert, and Arizona ranks nearly five times the national average for urban housing units inside food deserts, at 10.2 percent. Nearly fourteen percent of all Arizonans live in a food desert.

I am no fan of Wal Mart and I’m not going to start shopping there, but I have to salute them for taking this step, and I admire the work Mrs. Obama has done on this issue. I wonder if fixing our food desert problem might go a long ways toward fixing our bike-friendliness problem, too.

–Erik Ryberg

I raced to Fourth Avenue and discovered the Bike Swap, thank god, was not on November 6 this year. It’s next week! Don’t forget! Don’t be late! This is one of those things that makes Tucson a great place to live (and bike — but that’s redundant).

–Erik Ryberg

I’ve given generously to her campaign and hope you will consider doing so, too. She is in a very tight race against two people (Terri Proud and Vic Williams) who have shown no interest in creating a Tucson that bicyclists might feel safe in.

If you are in her district, you will have the opportunity to vote for two candidates, but if you only cast one vote, for Young Wright, you will be increasing her chances.

–Erik Ryberg

Since I needed to go pick up my CSA share anyway I joined them for a block down Church, and spoke with one of the attendees. She told me they are considering reducing the car lanes along the stretch of Church between Cushing and Broadway, and adding a bike lane. I told her how much I would like to see that and she said that she did not object to a bike lane but preferred to keep all the (currently five) car lanes.

I looked around and observed that it was 4:15 PM on a Tuesday and there was not a car in sight going either direction on the road. She conceded that point but reminded me that during events at the Tucson Convention Center, traffic can get backed up.

Well, do not get me started on the Tucson Convention Center, which was built over the ruins of 80 acres of historic buildings and which resulted in the re-location of 1,200 people from a neighborhood very much like the one my office is in now in the historic barrio.

I thought her response had some merit, but why should we dedicate this enormously wide swath of pavement to accommodate those who wish to drive their lumbering vehicles directly to the door of the Tucson Convention Center? Can’t they wait a few extra moments the once or twice a year they attend these events in order that we could dedicate this property to other uses? What about super-wide sidewalks and cafes along that stretch instead of five wide lanes of roadway? Why not? What kind of a Tucson do we want to live in, anyway?

Continuing on through the Congress intersection, I watched in horror as a car in the left lane faked to the left and then swung right across traffic into an angled parking space. It very nearly took out the car in the right lane as it did so and there was much honking and commotion. I thought to myself: I am very glad was not about two seconds ahead of where I am now, or I might be on the pavement right now. As I passed I looked at the driver, a very, very old man who looked frightened.

Then coming back along 4th Avenue I saw a young girl in some gigantic SUV nearly take out a pedestrian. She was on the phone, of course. She stopped and apologized. He took it well but was shaken.

I was beginning to feel a bit frazzled by that trip.

Later that day I was driving on the frontage road (for those of you who do not live in Tucson, this is a high-speed road alongside the freeway that goes all the way through town) and discovered a cyclist riding the wrong way down the inside shoulder of that road! Worse still, as I passed him I recognized him as a young man who had been ticketed on a recent Tuesday Night Bike Ride for blowing through a stop sign at full speed (my friends and I were stopped at that very stop sign when he ran it). Sigh.

–Erik Ryberg

I had to tell him that generally speaking, probably no. I do remember a time when people would bring their young kids on the TNBR, but that was back when the routes were a little more carefully chosen and the ride started earlier. Most parents would probably prefer not to guide their nine-year-old down Sixth Street at 9:30 PM on a bicycle.

Why isn’t there a ride in Tucson that would accommodate my friend and his daughter? It seems like there should be one. Right now the best I can think of is the annual Ciclovia and the BICAS bike-in movie rides.

–Erik Ryberg

He is also working on a map that shows the location of bicycle collisions, which will ultimately lead to some pretty good information about where the dangerous areas are.

I think the City should be paying him to do this, but he’s doing it for free.

–Erik Ryberg

Above is a sign near Flagstaff, which a reader of mine alerted to me a few weeks ago.

And this sign, above, is from Tempe. Tom Thivener, City of Tucson’s Bike/Ped Coordinator, sent me this when I asked him about the Flagstaff sign. I had asked him if the Flagstaff sign was an official DOT sign, and if we could expect to see more of them around the state.

He did some looking into it and wrote me back to say, “The State and the Feds don’t want jurisdictions experimenting with signage without an official experiment process being undertaken. Sounds like Flagstaff will retroactively apply for experimentation process for the one sign they have. Could be a long process before anything like that is accepted for mainstream use.”

I guess progress is progress! I hope they can approve a sign soon and put some up around Tucson.

–Erik Ryberg

It could be yours if you hurry and buy your ticket to the BICAS/Ballet Tucson Urban Lunch Box Picnic and fundraiser, to be held this Friday.

Or, perhaps your tastes run to the more rugged, bikey look, in which case you will want this gorgeous piece by long-time BICAS employee, volunteer, and supporter Kenneth Armstrong:

Then there is beautiful piece by Raices Gallery and BICAS superstar John Salgado (who serves as BICAS’s Administrative Coordinator) for those looking for something more colorful and exotic:

Or maybe you’ll want this piece by BICAS’s master blacksmith, tall-bike builder, and local artist Zach Lihatsh If you do, be warned: you will be bidding against me, and I’m bringing my wallet. (I already have one of his pieces and I’m aiming to corner the market early, while I can still afford his work).

Each of these will be auctioned off this Friday at the annual Urban Picnic lunch and fundraiser, with proceeds benefiting BICAS and Ballet Tucson. A 45$ ticket buys you an auction paddle and a lunch, and if you act now you even get to sit at a table full of gregarious criminal defense and civil plaintiff’s lawyers, where legal advice of unknown merit or value will be dispensed at no cost.

Oh and and there’s more where those came from! There is also a silent auction packed with other art, from small, modest pieces to heavy-hitters including a Rufino Tamayo. (Yes you read that right.)

The fundraiser is from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM at La Encantada Mall. The live auction commences at noon for those who have only their lunch hour to purchase a Rufino Tamayo or Troy Neiman.

There are still seats available at my table. Please email me at ryberg@seanet.com if you would like to join me. I’ll be there at noon, cheering on all the pieces and showing how proud I am of BICAS.

–Erik Ryberg

When I started this blog almost three years ago it was in part out of revulsion for the idea that Tucson might become a “Platinum” bike-friendly city (an application for that status was being prepared at the time). I did not think we deserved it, and I feared that if we got that award we would have no incentive to continue improving. I still don’t think we deserve the highest award, but I am growing a lot more convinced that we are deserving of our current “gold” status, and the changes I have seen just in the last few years astonish me. Bicycles and bicycling are rapidly becoming more common in this city, and riding is becoming more safe. I am no longer the only person riding a bike around town in a suit and tie. More and more upright bikes are appearing with regular folks using them to get around. Drivers are getting used to us, and more tolerant. There is a greater diversity of age and gender among the people on bikes now, which signals that more people feel comfortable and safe on a bicycle. And the city is pretty much behind us. Mayor Walkup rode the Cyclovia and had intelligent things to say about it.

I want to say that we owe the volunteers who put the Cyclovia together, from scratch, on short notice, with next to no money, a huge thank-you. They include Jennifer Donofrio, Tom Thivener and Ann Chaneka from Tucson and Pima County governments, and many local folks who contributed their time and skills to pulling this thing off. If I try to list them I will leave people out, so I am not going to start, but many hard-working people donated their design skills, their computer skills, and their time. Daniela Diamente was corralled and talked into taking the lead just two months ago and she pretty much got the whole thing off the ground.

A round of applause to all. I’m proud to live in Tucson.

–Erik Ryberg