Last week BIKEable Communities sent the following e-mail and questions to candidates for Long Beach Mayor, the contested council sets (Districts 1 and 5) and the State Assembly seat for Long Beach and San Pedro.  We will be posting the responses as we receive them from the candidates.

Below is the e-mail and the five questions.

The election is on Tuesday June 3.  You can register to vote by clicking here up until next Monday May 19 (15 calendar days prior to the election). We are going to see a significant turn over in our elected officials.  Our current council members have been very supportive of the the city’s biking and walking agenda.  Please take a few minutes to find out where the current candidates stand on these issues. And please take the time to vote for the candidates of your choice.

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Thursday May 15 is bike to work day in LA County.

- Free bagels

- Free Coffee

- Free Juice

Blue Line at Anaheim from 6:30 to 8:30 AM

BIKEable Communities, the Long Beach based bike advocacy organization, will be providing coffee, juice and bagels for anyone on a bike across the street from the Metro Blue Line Station at Long Beach Boulevard and Anaheim Street 6:30-8:30 AM.

And – anyone with a bike can ride the Blue Line for free on Thursday.

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Vista Street Bike Boulevard in Long Beach was put in just over 2.5 years ago.  When it was put in most residents were enthused.  Even if they didn’t bike they saw it as an opportunity for traffic calming and reducing cut through traffic.  But of course – as in any neighborhood there were a few residents who said…”why in the world would we want to have more bicyclists on our street?”  ”I like it the way it is…why change?”

What have we seen in 2.5 years

The first bike count after the bike boulevard was installed showed that the number of kids walking to school along the street doubled and the number of kids riding bikes along the street tripled.

The number of traffic accidents along the street dropped by 50%.

The speed through major intersections with roundabouts dropped from over 30 mph to under 20 mph.

Not a bad track record.

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A Long Beach bike-share bike was sighted this morning in downtown Long Beach. The bike was piloted by our mobility coordinator Nate Baird.  The bikes look great…and according to folks who have ridden them, they ride well.  They are not a race bike…but a very good urban bike share bike.

The City has issued ten permits for bike share kiosks in the downtown area.  The ten kiosk can hold up to 100 bikes.  We are now just waiting on the system operator, Bike Nation, to put the kiosks on the ground.

Having a bike share program will be an enormous step forward for Long Beach.  Only one other City in Southern California Currently has a bike-share system, Fullerton, and that system is fairly small.  The Long Beach bike share program will increase bike usage in Long Beach, be a great addition to our transit system and move the city toward its goal of being the most bike friendly city in the US.

 

THANKS & CONGRATULATIONS TO CITY STAFF, OUR CIVIC LEADERSHIP AND OUR ADVOCATES

Want to volunteer for one of the coolest events in Long Beach….Bike Fest 2014… Saturday May 3 in downtown Long Beach.  

Want Free Beer?  A t-shirt…lunch?

Over the course of the day (starting at 9:00 am and going until just after 7:00 pm) we will need about 50 volunteers.  There is a wide variety of opportunities ranging from being a course marshal to helping put together the city cross race course. And no…you don’t need any experience.

To volunteer send an e-mail indicating what you would like to do, the time and your contract info to:

Megan Murphy at .

To volunteer at the event go to the BIKEable Communities tent at the corner of Linden and 1st.

Here is what we need:

Cross Course Construction:

6 people total

9am -12am

Some heavy lifting and walking. Unload supply truck, move course elements from Art Park to course course.  Set up signage and caution tape.

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Would you like to see the  2nd and PCH area of Long Beach be more bike and pedestrian friendly? Would you like to see pedestrian paths that allow you and your family to view the wetlands in SE Long Beach?  You ask…what wetlands…I thought those were just oil fields.

The City is undertaking a review and update of the development plan for SE Long Beach that centers on the 2nd and PCH intersection (see area map below).  The area contains wetlands, marinas and retail.  The city is asking…how would you like the area to look in 20 years.

One of the questions begin asked is about bicycle and pedestrian access.

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Rob Jones, a double-amputee Marine, who lost a portion of both legs while serving in Afghanistan, is about to complete a 4800 mile bike trip across the US. His epic journey will end this weekend in Camp Pendalton .

Please help us welcome Rob to Long Beach on Thursday or escort him on the final leg of his journey on Friday morning.

You have three opportunities to meet and if you like ride with Rob.

1. A reception on Thursday afternoon at the Hotel Maya from 4-5 pm.  This is a free public event.
2. Ride into and though Long Beach with Rob on Thursday Morning…  Rob will be leaving Dockweiler Beach behind LAX on PCH at 8:00 arriving in Long Beach at about 10:30. His route will be across the I-710 and Los Angeles River at W. Wardlow Rd. to N. Maine Ave. to W. 33rd Way to Golden Ave. to San Francisco Ave. to De Forest Ave. to Fairbanks Ave. to Loma Vista Dr. to W. 8th St. to Magnolia Ave to Ocean Ave to 2nd St. to PCH and onward to Seal Beach.
3. Ride South with Rob on Friday morning: Rob will leave Hotel Maya on Friday morning at 8 a.m. by support truck and drive back to Seal Beach. He will get on his bike in Seal Beach and continue to ride to Oceanside.

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The Newport Back Bay conservancy is proposing to restrict bicycling to north bound only along the Newport Back Bay trail.  Don’t let this happen.

The Newport Beach Bike Master plan committee is meeting this evening at 5:00 in room 100 of the Newport Beach Civic Center and will discuss bicycle access to the Newport Back Bay.

The first item of business is discussion of a letter to the committee from the Newport Bay Conservancy limiting bicyclist access to the back bay. This is a critical bicycling corridor connecting PCH to the San Diego Creek Trail, and bidirectional access to the Back Bay needs to be open for cyclists. Their proposal is to allow bicyclists to only go north bound – and to maintain vehicle traffic. Read more »