“We get a lot of complaints that sometimes when there are accidents, the police may not be familiar with what the laws are, and assume that the bicyclist is at fault,” says MassBike executive director Dorie Clark. (Clark is leaving her position in May to start her own political-consulting firm. Her replacement should be announced by the end of April).
Plus, passage of the federal transportation bill last summer secured more than $40 million for bike projects in the state (including more than $4 million for bike-path improvements in Arlington, Brookline, Cambridge, and Somerville), and another $5 million was slated for the Safe Routes to School program (aimed at making walks and bike rides easier and safer for schoolchildren). Meanwhile, the organization continues to push for a Bicyclist’s Bill of Rights and Responsibilities, which would — among other things — require drivers to look behind them before opening their car doors (anyone who’s been “doored,” or knocked off his or her bike by a flung-open driver’s-side door, would appreciate this part of the bill).
For a city in which there are, according to MassBike, 38,000 daily bike trips (20 percent of which are work commutes), these changes could lead to a better biking culture. But on that count, Clark thinks Boston has gotten a bit of a bum rap, anyway.
“The perception lags reality,” says Clark. “Boston is flat, it’s compact, and the traffic generally moves at fairly reasonable speeds. If you know what you’re doing, Boston is actually a really good city for biking.”
Hub on Wheels’s first community ride of the season, “Enlarging the Emerald Necklace,” on March 26, will trace a proposed extension of Frederick Law Olmsted’s Boston park system from Jamaica Plain to South Boston. Visit www.hubonwheels.org for more information.
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On the Web:
Hub on Wheels: http://www.hubonwheels.org/
Mass Bike: http://www.massbike.org/
Bike Nerd: http://www.bikenerd.blogspot.com/
Urban AdvenTours: http://www.urbanadventours.com/
Email the author:
Deirdre Fulton: dfulton@phx.com
