Villaraigosa: L.A. Needs More for Bikes
Thread started by
Joe Borfo at 12.17.09 - 10:33 am
FINALLY!!!! Onlly took a trip to Denmark to realize this?
Villaraigosa in Copenhagen: L.A. Needs to Do More for Bikes
by Damien Newton on December 17, 2009
12_17_09_bicycle.jpgPhoto: Nicomachus/Flickr
Yesterday Mayor Villaraigosa gave an interview to KPCC, Southern California Public Radio, where he talked about what Los Angeles can do to be a more green city. CicLAvia has the mayor's comments about bicycles:
In the area of bicycling I’ve got to do a better job and the city’s got to do a better job… we’re planning to… close down some streets in the city. We’re going to give people, probably on a Sunday, an opportunity to just take over streets. Much as we took over the freeways you remember on the 110.
CicLAvia makes two quick observations: the Mayor sounds an awful lot like Professor Robert Gottlieb and second, it sounds an awful lot like the Mayor is committing to a "closed street" festival similar to Bogota's Ciclovia or New York's Summer Streets.
Now I know there's going to be a lot of skeptics that this means that the Mayor is suddenly going to become Mr. Bicycle. However, let's remember two things in this Season of Hope: exposure to a real bike town can have an impact on the previously uninitiated such as when then-Councilwoman Greuel witnessed Denver's temporary bike share program during the DNC in 2008 and came home a believer. Second, New York's Mayor Bloomberg, and then NYCDOT Commissioner Iris Weinshal, were Livable Streets villains until he made green transportation a priority and hired Janette Sadik-Khan.
http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/12/17/villaraigosa-in-copenhagen-l-a-needs-to-do-more-for-bikes/
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It will be interesting to see if he actually makes anything happen or if he'll lose his motivation once he gets comfortable with L.A.'s car culture...I hope to be surprised.
kryxtanicole12.17.09 - 10:34 am
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Let's take him for his word. Hold him up to it.
SHARROWS, BIKE LANES, & BICYCLE RIGHTS AWARENESS!
Joe Borfo12.17.09 - 10:35 am
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the city needs a 24 / 7 program for people to use there bikes.
Dedicated81812.17.09 - 10:42 am
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The mayor of Chicago is a bicycle person so therefore their bicycle infrastructure and . All we have to do is show him that we are riding daily in numbers. LACBC is doing that. We need to have him acknowledge this growing trend of hit & runs and the need for more bike lanes and driver education of cyclists rights. Get the Mayor on board and the less work it will be for change.
Joe Borfo responding to a
comment by Dedicated818
12.17.09 - 10:47 am
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Wow that sounds like a dream come true! I wonder if he did any psilocybins while in europe to come to this conclusion.
et12.17.09 - 11:02 am
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Let's not get too hysterically happy, but this is good news!
After the mayor pioneered sharrows in NELA, he solicited a general response from the public on his COP15 web page, his YouTube channel, Twitter and via a contact me form on his site.
Social media works to get through to the mayor's staff, and they communicate with hizzoner. Cycling advocates, take note!
http://twitter.com/villaraigosa
http://www.youtube.com/user/antoniovillaraigosa
http://www.mayor.lacity.org/MeettheMayor/AsktheMayor/index.htm
Keep your response on-point, short, and digestable. This is one small way we can let him know that he's not doing his duty by ignoring the benefits of planning for bicycles in the roadway.
Apparently, it works (a little bit). Hopefully this is our foot in the door - he can't be green while pissing on bikes and handing out thousands to car owners!
ubrayj0212.17.09 - 12:30 pm
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Lets keep the TWITTER bombs steady and ready. Lets hold Antonio V. to his words!! LA CAN DO THIS.
Roadblock responding to a
comment by ubrayj02
12.17.09 - 12:33 pm
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Or maybe he is just RACIST like MOWERY?
Joe Borfo responding to a
comment by ubrayj02
12.17.09 - 12:35 pm
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wish I could drop fart bombs through twitter
spiraldemon responding to a
comment by Roadblock
12.17.09 - 12:38 pm
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Suggestion - We should also direct message him too. I do.
Joe Borfo responding to a
comment by Roadblock
12.17.09 - 12:41 pm
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I don't.... wait if I could that means I could fart bomb you?
Roadblock responding to a
comment by spiraldemon
12.17.09 - 12:41 pm
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If you arent TWITTER BOMBING @villaraigosa ABOUT CYCLING YOU ARE PART OF THE PROBLEM.
Roadblock responding to a
comment by Joe Borfo
12.17.09 - 12:42 pm
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@villaraigosa Electric vehicles may be cleaner than gas powered cars, but they are still cars and do nothing to alleviate traffic in LA.
spiraldemon responding to a
comment by Roadblock
12.17.09 - 12:48 pm
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how do i twitterbomb? i dont want to be a part of the problem. can i just email?
oodlesofpoodles12.17.09 - 10:37 pm
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A user can only receive DMs if they follow you as well.
But I'm sure if anything he checks the @villalalalalahatever its spelled to gather suggestions from the public. Just include his twitter name in a post and it will show up for him. Thanks for posting, I'm gonna follow him now.
SKIDMARCUS responding to a
comment by Roadblock
12.18.09 - 12:53 am
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Either twitter.com, or off your phone if you don't have an old one like I do.
bentstrider responding to a
comment by oodlesofpoodles
12.18.09 - 1:11 am
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how about a Day Ride maybe ones a month to his office just to remind him about Needing more bikes?
eh eh
anyone?
LouisAve12.18.09 - 7:30 am
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Thats a great idea. Not too many folks show up to day rides, but maybe this might inspire some. I dunno.
Possible Names:
"THE MAYORS WORD"
"MAYOR, MAY I?"
"VELORRAIGOSA!"
SKIDMARCUS responding to a
comment by LouisAve
12.18.09 - 2:14 pm
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'Shop the mayor face into pictures of rides and events. Make a fake press release with yourself as the contact person, and email it out to as many press outlets as you can get a hold of.
Media list of every news outlet in LA County:
http://ceo.lacounty.gov/pio.htm
Scroll down, on the right hand column, there is a black heading with white type, "Media (English Only)" - downloadable .pdf's of every outlet in LA.
Send you pix and press release to them to put Fake-araigosa in your latest news and report.
ubrayj0201.3.10 - 5:04 am
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Ridazz Roulette!