Things have gotten bad enough in some of LA's more backward council districts that a community coalition struggling to convince the uncivil bureaucracy not to turn a bridge between two shopping streets into a speedway has finally decided, So Sue 'Em.

But in CD14, graced for now with a truly community-minded council member, you should see the good things that are happening On Broadway.

Richard Risemberg on Wed, 29 Jul 2015 20:59:25 -0800 [link]  

On Orange 20 Bikes this week, I revisit the Sixth Street road diet debacle in Do These Lanes Make Me Look Fat? Be Honest Now…. It's still got a bad safety record, and it's still uncorrected, thanks to former council member LaBonge's cluelessness. With luck, and a new representative….

Meanwhile, at Flying Pigeon LA, To TOD, or Not to TOD? questions whether LA will ever effing get it…. Ever.

Richard Risemberg on Wed, 22 Jul 2015 21:19:14 -0800 [link]  

Orange 20's post this week, We'll Always Have Paris, examines some misconceptions that have been floating around the Enlgihs-language press about the City of Light's alleged granting of permission to "run red lights" to its cyclists. Not quite true, but still, what they have done is worthy....

And at Flying Pigeon LA I give a little shout-out to the Wilshire bus/bike lanes that run by Bicycle Fixation's HQ in Room for All…a job well done by Metro!

Richard Risemberg on Wed, 15 Jul 2015 19:58:01 -0800 [link]  

Here we go again!

I wrote on Independents Day for Orange 20 Bikes on Saturday, and though the holiday inferred is past, the subject is still topical, so check it out.

Meanwhile, across town at Flying Pigeon LA, I remind our local DOT that there's implementation, And Then There's Maintenance, and that the one without the other doesn't do much good....

Richard Risemberg on Wed, 08 Jul 2015 18:26:39 -0800 [link]  

On Sunday, July 26th, 2015, at 4:00PM, Los Angeles writer Richard Risemberg (AKA the editor of Bicycle Fixation) will be reading from two of his books, signing copies, and accepting questions, comments, and personal abuse at The Battery Books and Music in South Pasadena, near Los Angeles.

The evening will start off with a selection or two from Our Own Day Here, his recent collection of essays on urban life, gathered from nearly twenty years of writing, ranting, and blogging about development, transportation, politics small and large, and the economy.

It will be followed by a reading from his urbanist noir novel, The Dust Will Answer. This is the story of two friends looking for a lost girl who doesn't want to be found, and the secret worlds they discover among the hobo jungles and warehouse squats of downtown Los Angeles, back in the days when the coming gentrification was no more than a gleam in a banker's eye. Get a taste of what the two endure as they run the gantlet of bikers, punks, tramps, redneck ex-cops, and an innocent-looking dope dealer, ultimately discovering that in the dark world they have fallen into, the shortest distance between two points is often a very crooked line.

Both works will be available for purchase in print and e-book versions—and for those who prefer e-books, we will have limited edition commemorative cards to sign in lieu of physical volumes. (You can also, of course, buy copies of either version ahead of time at the URL below.)

Afterwards, there will be a general confabulation, Q&A, listening to The Battery's excellent collection of vintage vinyl, and commiserating with fellow audience members over the torment recently endured. There is a bar next door to help you recover, as well as numerous establishments offering comfort food nearby.

Sunday, July 26th, beginning at 4:00PM
The Battery
1005B Mission St.
South Pasadena, CA 91030
Metro Gold Line Mission St. station
(626) 376-9913
BatteryBooks@gmail.com
Buy paper or e-book versions on Amazon.

Richard Risemberg on Sun, 05 Jul 2015 18:16:04 -0800 [link]  

Will the blogging never stop? Not for a while, at least….

So, this week on Orange 20 Bikes, Blood and Blame looks at the latest death on LA's North Figueroa Street, why it happened, and why a "proven safety countermeasure" was withheld for years after its was promised, planned, and funded.

While on Flying Pigeon LA, I explore how LA keeps Lagging Behind while cities around it build brighter, busier, and less car-addled futures for themselves.

Richard Risemberg on Wed, 01 Jul 2015 18:10:17 -0800 [link]  

BikeLoveJones
BikeSnobNYC
CycloCulture
Kent Peterson
LADOT Bike Blog
Lovely Bicycle!
Saddle Americana
Streetsblog
Velobakery