Free Republic

A Bellevue Hospital employee has been accused of pulling out “white woman tears” after she allegedly tried to hijack a CitiBike that had already been paid for by a young black man. ...“Help! Help me! Please, help me,” the woman yells, trying to grab the attention of passersby as she tugs at the bike. The young man keeps his grip on the bike’s handlebars and repeatedly tells the woman that he already paid to use that particular bike. Despite being told that the bike was already taken, the woman continues to make a scene, raising her voice while wailing for...

Cars are bad, mmkay…And that's why a new French law will require car commercials to "display messages that encourage walking, cycling, carpooling or public transit."I'm not joking.Very serious stuff right here.Like, we'll let you advertise your carbon-emitting vehicle, but you must display this little message here that encourages people to pursue alternative forms of transportation.Deal?Deal.Such a joke!Much like the "Please enjoy responsibly" disclaimers on ads for alcoholic beverages, or health warnings on cigarette packaging, car commercials will be required to display messages that encourage walking, cycling, carpooling or public transit.These messages include "For short trips, choose to walk or cycle,"...

A truck driver plowed into a group of bicyclists during a race event in eastern Arizona, and police said Saturday that an officer shot the suspected driver, who had fled the scene in their vehicle. The Show Low Police Department said that at approximately 7:25 a.m., a black Super Duty Ford F150 struck multiple bicyclists during a "Bike the Bluff" race event. Six victims were taken to the hospital with with injuries — four of whom were in critical condition, while two were "critical but stable," police said. Police said at least two other "walk-in" victims at Summit Healthcare were...

Welcome to The Bicycle Thread. A monthly PING List for bicycle enthusiasts to share experiences, information and ideas.

Welcome to The Bicycle Thread. A monthly PING List for bicycle enthusiasts to share experiences, information and ideas.

The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority’s ability to build new toll roads may be temporarily stymied by opposition from state leaders, but the agency is keeping busy with major ongoing projects. While the great majority of its spending is on expanding roadway capacity for cars, CTRMA Executive Director Mike Heiligenstein emphasized the millions the agency is investing in bike and pedestrian infrastructure in a Tuesday presentation to the Travis County Commissioners Court. The $108 million construction of State Highway 45 SW, linking MoPac Expressway with FM 1626, will be accompanied by a 4.5-mile shared-use path, along with pedestrian and bicycle...

Extreme Railbiking is about a bunch of fanatic railbikers that have been riding for over 40 years. Abandoned Railroads are scattered around the world. Rail Bikes must be properly designed to be safe. This video takes place on the Camas Prairie Railroad,

After roaming around and studying downtown for a week, the Urban Land Institute’s advisory services panel provided Atlanta leaders with recommendations on how to move forward with the colossal proposed “Stitch” project. On Friday, ULI, which conducts land use research for cities around the globe, suggested the time is now to partner with local elected officials and philanthropic organizations to get the ball rolling on fundraising efforts for the potentially 14-acre project that would install a massive park and new construction above the Downtown Connector. But in order to be competitive for public and private funding—panelists expect the highway-capping project...

Gov. Mike DeWine will propose an 18-cents a gallon increase in the gasoline tax to maintain and upgrade Ohio’s roads and bridges in the transportation budget he submits to lawmakers Thursday. That would amount to a 64 percent increase in the state’s current 28-cent gas tax, which the state transportation director has said is insufficient for the state and local governments to maintain current roads or finish major new construction projects. DeWine revealed the number Wednesday on WTAM in Cleveland. He did not disclose if the amount would be phased in over multiple years. He also did not discuss if...

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is recovering after undergoing surgery to repair a broken bone suffered in a cycling accident. A department spokeswoman says DeVos is resting at home after the Thursday surgery. She is expected to recover fully. The spokeswoman did not immediately answer questions about the accident or the nature of DeVos’ injury. (Snip. Not much more article after this...)

Renowned as the voice of cycling, ex-professional and NBC Sports analyst Paul Sherwen died Sunday. He was 62. The cycling community was reeling Sunday at news of Sherwen’s death. One of the most well-known and familiar personalities in cycling, his career as racer and later as broadcaster stretched decades. Officials from NBC Sports, where he covered five Olympic Games as well as 33 editions of the Tour de France as a commentator, sent a message of condolences. “We are saddened to offer our condolences to the friends and family of Paul Sherwen, who passed away this morning at his home...

By Bruce DePuyt — When Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) announced a major plan to widen three Maryland roadways last year, even transportation insiders were caught off-guard. “I was surprised by it, but I rejoiced at it,” said John B. Townsend II, AAA mid-Atlantic’s manager of public and government affairs. “As much as people are loath to admit it, the congestion in Maryland has limited economic development in the state. And [it has] impacted the quality of life because of the amount of hours — more than 80 hours a year [on average] — we spend being stuck in...

You can sum up the Greensboro area’s biggest transportation news in several generations with two words: Urban Loop. Set for completion by 2022 — when the last of the Greensboro Urban Loop’s remaining two legs are finished — the project’s potential impact is hard to overstate. It will mark the end for a legacy of planning, debate, study and construction that harkens back to the late 1940s. “The Urban Loop is probably a once-in-a-lifetime project,” says Adam Fischer, director of the Greensboro Department of Transportation. “I don’t see any project ahead that’s quite on that scale.” Spanning 44 miles when...

A man was shot dead Sunday morning in the Uptown neighborhood on the North Side. Dennis Thomas Jr., 33, was sitting in a vehicle about 8:10 a.m. in the 4600 block of North Clifton when someone pulled up on a bicycle and shot him several times, according to Chicago police and the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. Thomas was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said. He lived in the same block where he was shot. The shooter then rode off in an unknown direction, police said. Area North detectives were conducting a homicide investigation.

Shortened title. Full tile: Bleeding-Heart Liberals Bike Through Tajikistan to Prove “Evil Is a Make-Believe Concept” — Are Stabbed Dead By ISIS A young American couple quit their jobs to bike across central Asia. he couple, Jay Austin and Lauren Geoghegan, were posting about their adventures online. Jay wrote that “evil is a make-believe concept” in one of his last posts. The couple wanted to share their openheartedness with all of the people they met on their journey. In Tajikistan they were murdered by ISIS. Both cyclists were found with several knife wounds. ISIS posted a photo after killing the...

The American couple murdered in an ISIS-claimed car attack in Tajikistan quit their office jobs last year and were in the midst of pursuing their lifelong dream of cycling around the world when they were killed. Jay Austin and Lauren Geoghegan, both 29 and living in Washington, DC, chronicled their adventures on a blog called “Simply Cycling” where they wrote that they’d decided to take on the globe on two wheels, “because life is short and the world is big and we want to make the most of our youth and good health before they’re gone.”

Mike Pence has great resolve on one thing once he becomes Veep ... exercise. We got Pence on Captiol Hill Tuesday and it seems he's not putting the bike he regularly rides into storage. It creates an interesting problem for the Secret Service if Pence ventures out into the open. President Clinton famously jogged around the Lincoln Memorial and the Potomac ... a big security challenge. We're guessing the subject of stationary bikes will come up soon.

SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES (FRANCE) (AFP) - Robert Marchand is chasing another world record when he jumps on his bike to compete in the senior hour endurance on Wednesday. Make that uber-senior -- for, while still sprightly, the Frenchman is 105 years old and racing in a category all of his own. Three years ago he managed to ride 26.927 kilometres (nearly 17 miles) at the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines velodrome outside Paris, a record for someone aged over 100.

They may not ride in crammed trains or carry angst over potholes but feuding presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton both want to fix America's infrastructure. The focus on improving public transit and highways couldn't come soon enough for local commuters, say two experts. "There is a desperate need to invest more into mass transit in Chicagoland," Regional Transportation Authority Chairman and former state senator Kirk Dillard said. "Most states significantly assist in the mass transit arena, but that is not the case today in Illinois," Dillard added, noting New York City budgets about $196 per capita on mass...