FLCC> Commuting and Climate Change

[Wayne Gottlieb]

I would like to propose that at least part of the
answer to making Ithaca more bike friendly is to
encourage (beg?) people to just get out and ride,
despite the obstacles.  As it becomes clear that
cycling is more popular, more people will take notice.
 With more people cycling, we will have more people
complaining.  I would also hope that less people will
tolerate the lack of safe cycling routes for their
children.  I was encouraged today, my first day back
at school, to see many new cyclists joining me from
the Ellis Hollow Area.  I've also heard that one
bicycle shop owner is contemplating making commuter
bikes available. 

I'd like to compile a list of people who bicycle
commute or walk to work.  If you do, or if you know
somebody who does, could you please send me a message
off list to let me know how far you commute and
whether you commute in the winter?  thanks, Wayne

 
--- Bob Nunnink <bobnunnink at gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi Kent,
> 
> Nice to know that the city of Ithaca is listening to
> cyclists.  I
> don't currently live in Ithaca but  plan is to move
> to your city this
> summer.  I ride on many of the FLCC rides.  The
> number one problem I
> see with Ithaca becoming a bicycle friendly town are
> road conditions.
> Your city road are in a very poor condition.  Many
> times I am forced
> further to the left then where a cyclist should ride
> because the
> conditions near the curbs are so poor.  Your streets
> also have
> numerous wide  and raised sewer grates which are
> very dangerous.  Your
> streets were not designed for today's modern
> vehicles wide vehicles.
> There are many roads where it is not wide enough for
> a car and a bike
> and few motorists tolerate bikes taking the lane
> like a car.
> Commuting by bicycle will be frustrating for cars
> and dangerous for
> cyclists unless many of your roads are repaved and
> redesigned to be
> suitable for cycles and cars.  Fixing the potholes
> is nice but not
> much short of repaving most of your city is going to
> fix things.  The
> section of road on Rt 89 right by Cass park is my
> least favorite place
> to ride.  The signs says welcome to Ithaca and you
> have to fold onto
> your handlebars to avoid wrecking. I get off
> Taughanock Blvd as
> quickly as possible.  I realize that the city,
> county and state have
> overlapping responsibilities for your roads but the
> road conditions
> goes from moderate to poor every time I enter your
> city limits.
> Thanks for listening.
> 
> Bob Nunnink
> 
> On Mon, Apr 21, 2008 at 4:47 PM, Kent Johnson
> <kjohnson at cityofithaca.org> wrote:
> > Hello -
> >
> >  Thanks for the comments regarding bicycling
> issues! Feedback such as
> >  this helps to identify problem areas and issues,
> and helps to show that
> >  there is broad community interest in reducing
> those problems.
> >
> >  I look forward to continuing this discussion and
> have signed-up to
> >  participate on the FLCC email list. Often,
> however, these issues defy
> >  brief email replies - so a phone call may be
> better (I can be reached at
> >  274-6528 - you can leave a message outside of
> work hours). (and, did you
> >  know that the City of Ithaca has a "Potholes"
> listing in the phonebook?
> >  - 272-1718 - just tell them where the pothole is
> and they will patch it
> >  relatively soon, really).
> >
> >  At this point, I am trying to brainstorm about
> the best way to move
> >  forward to improve conditions for bicyclists (and
> pedestrians, transit
> >  users, motorists, etc.) and I invite your input.
> >
> >  Thanks,
> >  Kent
> >
> >  PS - I work in the City's Engineering Office,
> Transportation Division
> >  addressing all types of transportation-related
> issues. In particular, I
> >  have been trying to focus extra attention on
> bicycling issues since this
> >  is a topic that is seldom specifically addressed
> and bicycling in Ithaca
> >  seems to be greatly undeveloped as compared to
> other travel modes.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >  Kent Johnson
> >  Transportation Engineering Technician
> >  Office of the City Engineer
> >  City of Ithaca
> >  108 E. Green St.
> >  Ithaca, New York 14850
> >  (607) 274-6528, (607) 327-0316 (cell)
> >  kjohnson at cityofithaca.org
> >
> >
> >  >>> jim eagen <jeplus3 at yahoo.com> 4/20/2008 10:29
> AM >>>
> >
> >
> > Thought this was an interesting blurb, maybe some
> of you saw it, from
> >  the NY Times Magazine this weekend:
> >
> >  "BIKETOWN MELLOW: Johnny, a play on maillot
> jaune, French for "yellow
> >  jersey," was Lance Armstrong's nickname during
> his Tour de France
> >  days. Next month, Mellow Johnny's will be the
> name of a multiuse
> >  facility Armstrong is backing in Austin, Tex.,
> that features bicycle
> >  sales and repairs, a cafe, bicycle parking for
> downtown residents and
> >  commuters, spin classes and showers. The old
> 18,000-square-foot,
> >  yellow-and-red-brick building was, in previous
> incarnations, a Pearl
> >  beer distributorship and a homeless center.
> Armstrong and his general
> >  partner, Bart Knaggs, say they wanted to use as
> much of the existing
> >  infrastructure as possible. The showers from the
> shelter days seemed
> >  like an ideal incentive for bike commuters in a
> city that experiences
> >  spring and summer temperatures for much of the
> year. "If you want
> >  people to ride an hour to work, and their
> workplace doesn't have a gym
> >  and it's 100 in summer," Armstrong says, "you
> can't go to
> >   work that way." While Mellow Johnny's is a
> for-profit endeavor,
> >  Knaggs says he hopes that offering "one
> bazillion" bicycle-parking
> >  spaces at a nominal fee will have a positive
> environmental impact.
> >  "It's more about shifting a local mind-set about
> alternative
> >  transportation," he says, a nod to the fact that
> Texans — even those
> >  in this, the most liberal, eco-conscious city in
> the state — often
> >  feel dutybound to drive even to the corner store.
> And how does Mellow
> >  Johnny's propose to meet its own energy needs?
> With conventional
> >  sources, though pedal power may put a little
> energy into the grid.
> >  "We're looking for ways to use pedal power so
> that we can charge
> >  up the building a little bit," says Armstrong,
> who, while he has no
> >  immediate plans to work the register, might be
> the one whose r.p.m. runs
> >  the espresso machine."
> >
> >  Jim Eagen
> >
> >
> >
> >  ----- Original Message ----
> >  From: Daniel Kidney <daniel.kidney at gmail.com>
> >  To: Peter Ozolins <peter at peterozolins.com>;
> flcc at icycle.org
> >  Cc: kjohnson at cityofithaca.org
> >  Sent: Saturday, April 19, 2008 11:02:41 PM
> >  Subject: Re: FLCC> Commuting and Climate Change
> >
> >  Kent, maybe you could read the below messages,
> also part of our
> >  conversation among the FLCC.
> >
> >  Peter, I absolutely agree. A few times I've had
> my lack of a car
> >  clearly looked down upon when applying for jobs,
> and several times I've
> >  just refrained from
> >  applying as it was clearly stated in the job
> >  description that car ownership was a necessity. I
> understand the motives
> >  of employers in seeking people with reliable
> transportation, but it sure
> >  would be nice if employers actually looked
> positively on bike commuters
> >  (or other non-personal-car commuting). Perhaps
> city businesses could be
> >  offered incentives to encourage their employees
> to 
=== message truncated ===



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