Tom Vanderbilt’s book Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do is like the Freakonomics of cars. Vanderbilt draws material from his book on this Wilson Quarterly essay about “The Traffic Guru,” Dutch traffic engineer Hans Monderman. He gained fame especially among traffic calming enthusiasts for his “shared space” approach to urban street design. Monderman […]
Bikes Belong is celebrating the joy of cycling and trailbuilding this spring by awarding six recreation-focused grants to grassroots groups across the country. The projects—all made possible by dedicated volunteers—include a riverfront path, a freeride trail, a BMX freestyle park, and some really sweet backcountry singletrack. From all of us at Bikes Belong, enjoy the […]
Happy Friday! I’ve been too cranky lately so I was planning to post something happy and non-controversial this morning, but then I saw this: a mother in New York City lets her 9 year old child ride the subway. Alone! I met a guy at a party last week who makes his daughter phone home […]
State Supreme Court Justice Edward Lehner ruled for the New York City Pedicab Owners Association by killing a New York City rule allowing anybody to apply for a limited number of pedicab registration plates. The pedicab owners group sought to limit registration only to pedicab owners. More at Newsday. More Bicycle News Sweet story: Boy […]
I’ve written a couple of times on the consequences our transportation choices have on people far away from us. In this Streetfilms interview, ethicist Randy Cohen brings it home to the local level. Cohen tells us that ethics concerns itself with the effects of our actions on other people. Very few people think of the […]
As a teen growing up in the early 80s, I was a huge fan of the Canadian “math rock” band RUSH. Among my favorite songs: Red Barchetta , which takes place in a future world where the “motor law” prohibits driving older “unsafe” cars on public roads. In the song, the protagonist visits his uncle […]