Sorry about that

Twice this week, somebody hacked this blog and posted unauthorized advertisements. I apologize for the waste of your time, and will do all I can to make sure that doesn't happen again.

Causeway alert, corrected

Michael Bauman, superintendent on the Rickenbacker Causeway, reminds me that the course for this Sunday's Huntington's disease triathlon was revised because of construction under the Bear Cut Bridge. Here's his note:



"The event will not be taking place in Crandon Park.  The swimming and running portions will be held near the Miami Marine Stadium and cyclists will exit the stadium area and do three loops between Virginia Key Beach and the first island near the toll plaza.  The event will NOT cross Bear Cut Bridge."


I appreciate Bauman's note. Miami-Dade Public Works did announce the course change, and in my busy week I failed to recognize that they weren't simply repeating earlier information.

Causeway alert: Triathlon

Cyclists on the Rickenbacker Causeway, be aware of the Huntington's Disease Sprint and Olympic Distance Triathlon, happening Sunday, Aug. 2, at Hobie Beach, on the Rickenbacker and in Crandon Park. Hours are 5:30 to 9:30 a.m. Motor traffic to and from Key Biscayne will share the outbound lanes (south side of the causeway) during the event. More information available here.

A look at the M-Path repairs

Douglas Clark stopped on his commute yesterday to capture the repairs underway on the M-Path near Vizcaya. His vantage point for this montage was the U.S. 1 overpass. The repairs are being done first in the areas of the worst pavement damage, and this was certainly one of them. Thanks, Douglas!

Ride a bike; change your life

Would a new set of wheels -- a bicycle, to be specific -- change the way you experience the world? If so, the folks at Bicycling Magazine want to hear from you. They've put Miami back into their annual BikeTown tour, a promotion in which people write about how a new bike would change their lives. The winning essayists from Miami will be presented their new rides on Thursday, Aug. 27, at a place and hour to be announced. Read the rules and more at Bicycling.

Repaving the M-Path

The M-Path repaving reported last week is to continue southward from the Vizcaya Station area, reaching Douglas Road by about Sept. 30. Orlando Capote, the project manager for Miami-Dade Transit, which owns the path, says he expects to be able to repave seven miles of the nine-mile M-Path. This project will not address crosswalk realignment or any part of the greenway that involves shared jurisdiction. It does include correcting the many cases of tree-root damage to the path.

You may recall that Transit is working with $700,000 that the Miami-Dade County Commission transferred from a delayed bridge project. To carry out the entire M-Path Master Plan will take some millions, but I'm happy that the agency didn't wait for the whole sum before starting work.

I'm not able to visit the site right now, but if someone will send me a photo of the work I'd be glad to use it here. Meanwhile, thanks to Eric Tullberg of Green Mobility Network and the Bicycle-Pedestrian Advisory Committee, for updating me on the progress.

M-Path repairs begun

Updated
M-Path user Douglas Clark reports:

Haven’t ridden to work in about 6-7 days and this morning I noticed that they were tearing up the tree-root-damaged parts of the M-Path alongside SW 1st Avenue, from SW 26th Road to about SW 24th Road, and in the process of repaving the path in that section. I also noticed markings denoting the worst of the root damage on the pavement on the path around the Vizcaya station, so it looks like the work will move down the path.

These paving repairs have been needed for a long time. I don't know yet how the work fits into the M-Path Master Plan that was completed two years ago. The path is owned by Miami-Dade Transit, which obviously has bigger fish to fry -- but which has been fairly responsive to requests for path improvements.

Progress on the Overseas Heritage Trail

For years, long-distance bicyclists have been anticipating completion of the Overseas Heritage Trail alongside U.S. 1 through the Florida Keys. A bridge that's nearing completion over the C-111 canal will remove one of the narrow passages that have been harrowing for riders. The bike lanes here are actually wide shoulders on the highway -- six feet on the southbound side and ten feet on the northbound. When the Keys have to be evacuated for a hurricane, the 10-foot lane will be used by motor vehicles. For cyclists' safety, the wide shoulders are marked not only by paint but by rumble strips. Thanks to Tom Burton for the photos.

Causeway alert: Triathlon on the Rickenbacker

On Sunday, July 19, along the Rickenbacker Causeway, the Mack Cycle Triathlon and Duathlon Trilogy #2 will be held. Expect to find competitors, support vehicles and spectators from 5 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. For more information visit www.MultiRace.com.

Green Mobility Network wins a grant

The Alliance for Biking & Walking announced a matching grant today to help Miami-based Green Mobility Network in its education and advocacy work. The money comes from bicycle accessory company Planet Bike, which plans a series of grassroots advocacy grants during 2009.

"We were really impressed with the deep commitment of Green Mobility Network leaders," said Planet Bike President Jeff Frehner, "and we feel they have the organizational strength to see this project through to completion."

The project Frehner referred to is Green Mobility's Complete the M-Path campaign, started earlier this year. The group has publicized the multi-use M-Path's long neglect and declining physical condition, and encouraged local authorities to raise their priority for repairing, improving and, yes, completing the path. The group also has held two rides on the M-Path to introduce riders to its excellent potential for commuting, recreation and general travel between downtown and Kendall.

Want a lift? Bike to work

Research at the University of North Carolina shows that people who walk or bicycle even partway to their daily jobs are fitter and healthier.

"... Only about 17 percent of workers walked or bicycled any portion of their commute. Those active commuters did better on treadmill tests of fitness, even when researchers accounted for their leisure-time physical activity levels, suggesting commuter choices do make a difference."

Read more in the Washington Post. There's a brief and more technical report on the study by Penny Gordon-Larsen at the Annals of Internal Medicine. If you look up the professor, take note of her interesting research into how the built environment affects a population's overall health.

Rickenbacker tollbooths coming down?

Miami Herald transportation reporter Al Chardy is reporting today on the discussion about open-road tolling on the Rickenbacker Causeway. I hadn't known the opposition was as hot as he describes, though. Certainly the commentary here has been mild.

To nobody's surprise, a number of readers piled on in the comment board with a lot of anti-bicycle remarks. Many reflect impatience with rider recklessness, which is something we do need to pay attention to. Meanwhile, it would be worthwhile to add our view of the thing. The story's right here.

Daily Blog likes Spokes 'n' Folks

Thanks much to Rick at South Florida Daily Blog, for picking our latest Rickenbacker Causeway article as Post Of The Week. It does feel good to be appreciated!

Bird Road treatment maturing

There are further developments concerning the Bird Road crossing on the M-Path that I wrote about a couple of weeks ago. At least three individuals reached out to the project manager at the Florida Department of Transportation after bicyclists voiced worry that a planned turn lane off U.S. 1 would make the crossing even more difficult for path users than it is now. As a result, FDOT has undertaken to improve the crossing -- something that path users have been wanting for years. So hurrah, this could be progress. Details here as they become available.

Meanwhile, say thanks to county bicycle-pedestrian coordinator David Henderson, to Miami bike coordinator Collin Worth, and to the staff of County Commissioner Carlos Gimenez, who patiently listened to our concerns.

Shirts spread safety message

Joe Wascura and Elena Camargo spread the word about Florida's 3-foot law, the one requiring motorists to give a cyclist a "margin for life" when meeting or passing. Tom Burton snapped this photo of them in their yellow jerseys as they crossed the Venetian Causeway the other day.

Bike advisors struggle for causeway solution

I promised to fill you in on how the Miami-Dade Bicycle-Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) responded to pending changes in toll collection on the Rickenbacker Causeway. For the many bicylists who train on the Rickenbacker, the change is a big safety issue because it will speed the entry of cars onto the causeway. The photo here illustrates how cyclists on training rides between Key Biscayne and the mainland are exposed to cars just leaving the toll gates.

One of two proposals to the County Commission would remove all toll gates, relying on SunPass and photo-assisted mail billing to collect tolls. This option is called open-road tolling, and the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority (MDX) is moving in that direction for roads such as Florida 836. Any motorist who has sat on I-95 on a Sunday, trying to get onto the Rickenbacker, has probably wished for a way to open up the bottleneck that the causeway toll gates create.

The BPAC, generally unwilling to oppose the open-road option because it's the idea of Commissioner Carlos Gimenez, grilled Causeway Chief Michael Bauman closely on June 24 about how to create a turn-around for the cyclists other than the one they're using in the photo above. There was much interest in the tunnel under the causeway, but the consensus that night was that the tunnel, while OK for a rider or two at a time, is way too narrow and maybe not in the right place for the training groups.

David Henderson, the county's bicycle-pedestrian coordinator, suggested it might be possible to place a rider crossover under the tall Powell Bridge. With that the BPAC rested on its oars until it can see the mayor's report on the question -- which at the time was to have been presented to the county commission's Transit, Infrastructure & Roads Committee on July 15. Now that meeting has been canceled, however. The commission next meets on July 21. BPAC's next meeting is the 22nd.

Louisiana gets a "vulnerable road-user" law

With Gov. Bobby Jindal's signature yesterday, Louisiana became the latest state to require motorists to stay at least three feet away when meeting or passing a bicycle. What sets the Louisiana law apart from Florida's similar one, though, is that it also outlaws menacing or harassing a pedestrian or cyclist.

Fines for violations in Louisiana can be as high as $200 for harassment and $250 for close passing. I'm glad to see the law enacted. Now let's see if it's enforced.

You can read more about it at LSU's Daily Reveille.

City's decline is biking's opportunity

Today's New York Times has an encouraging essay about the flowering of bicycling in the Motor City.

Detroit has the potential to become a new bicycle utopia. It’s a town just waiting to be taken. With well less than half its peak population, and free of anything resembling a hill, the city and its miles and miles of streets lie open and empty, beckoning. And lately, whether it’s because of the economy or the price of gas or just because it’s a nice thing to do, there are a lot more bikers out riding.

If you're a registered Times user, you can read "Bike Among the Ruins" right here.

Freakbike frolic

From up the road in West Palm Beach . . .

Black Point, July 4

Fireworks at Black Point drew a big crowd. The going was slow along Bike Route 5, cluttered as it was with lawn chairs, blankets -- and strolling families six abreast. Good show, though! Vicious mosquitos...

You can help shape the Biscayne Trail

Miami-Dade park planners are holding a workshop Wednesday evening, July 8, concerning two additions to the Biscayne Trail. The proposed Segment C would link Black Point Park to Homestead Bayfront Park, and Segment D would extend from Bayfront Park west to SW 137th Avenue.

The workshop's from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Homestead Branch Library, 700 N. Homestead Blvd., Homestead. If you need information ahead of time, call park planner Mark Heinicke at 305-755-7811.

Administration seeks $20 billion refill for highway fund

Asking Congress to replenish the Highway Trust Fund, the Transportation Department yesterday showed what Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood means by reform. As described in CQ Politics:

"The [request] also proposes helping states and localities develop guidelines for projects that promote livability, which could mean tying transportation to business and housing development or integrating more walking and biking paths.

Some groups, including the American Association of Highway and Transportation Officials, say that keeping the Highway Trust Fund solvent should be the sole focus of a temporary extension."

Causeway alert: Bear Cut Bridge

Bicyclists riding toward Key Biscayne will be routed onto the sidewalk of the Bear Cut Bridge beginning Monday, July 6, while one eastbound lane is closed for emergency repairs. Miami-Dade Public Works says westbound travel (toward the mainland) will not be disrupted. If you have questions or problems, call the MDPW Causeway Division at 305-361-2833.