Ride the Vote

by KevinK on Feb 4, 2008 10:11 AM EST

I like Barack Obama's statements about transportation policy. From: http://obama.3cdn.net/4465b108758abf7a42_a3jmvyfa5.pdf

Build More Livable and Sustainable Communities: Over the longer term, we know that the amount of fuel we will use is directly related to our land use decisions and development patterns, much of which have been organized around the principle of cheap gasoline. Barack Obama believes that we must move beyond our simple fixation of investing so many of our transportation dollars in serving drivers and that we must make more investments that make it easier for us to walk, bicycle and access
other transportation alternatives.

Sounds reasonable to me.

What does your favorite candidate say?

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Comments

Obama

It's always a risk to wade into politics here, for fear of party alliances interrupting a good discussion. But I will say that Obama, as a generational-shift candidate, is probably far more likely to think in terms of the bike. Not trying to be ageist, but people who grew up waxing poetic about "America's love affair with the automobile" aren't likely to help out here.
Seems like for folckx older than me, there's more of a stigma about biking as practical transport than there is with younger generations. Also, parking has sucked for most of the last 30 years.

I'm scrambling to finish Pedal Power so we can talk more about bikes and progressive transportation policy.

by Chris Fontecchio on Feb 4, 2008 11:52 AM EST reply actions

keep it to the bike policy

That's my plan for avoiding partisan rancor.

Here is a link to someone who actually did their homework. Very interesting to the cycling obsessed.

http://www.northbranchcycling.org/modules/news/article.php?storyid=343

-K-

by KevinK on Feb 4, 2008 7:41 PM EST up reply actions

Speaking of transit

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004162453_bikedanger04m.html

Good roundup of ideas in the works in Seattle, which is becoming famous for considering progress, if not actually implementing anything.

by Chris Fontecchio on Feb 4, 2008 1:15 PM EST reply actions

Obama

Well I also like Obama in general but his ideas on transportation are good in their own right- even though I'm all of 50 years old. There's definitely more of a stigma with folks my age and older but as we see here in the northwest things are changing.

by ursula on Feb 4, 2008 2:18 PM EST reply actions

Model legislation

I am about as reliable a Democratic partisan as you get, but at this point, I'd rather spend two hours on the trainer than talk one more minute about Obama v. Clinton. And I know that's a bit appalling, as it's actually about who will be the next President. Huckabee, we hardly knew ye. Heh.

That said, I'd certainly love to talk about model transportation legislation/policy. Who's got the right (specific) ideas in the US, these days? In the EU?

by Sui Juris on Feb 4, 2008 6:11 PM EST reply actions

The bike angle

fwiw supposedly, Mike Huckabee rides to the grocery store.

-K-

by KevinK on Feb 4, 2008 7:35 PM EST up reply actions

Right.

Was this to pick up the oil for frying the squirrels?

Man, I regret that he wasn't the GOP nominee. It would be like a 24/7 Colbert Report.

by Sui Juris on Feb 4, 2008 8:49 PM EST reply actions

He might be the VeeP

on the ticket. There will still be plenty of chances for comedy.

-K-

by KevinK on Feb 4, 2008 11:04 PM EST up reply actions

It strikes me

how much of the problems come from mental attitudes towards bikes. Whenever I read stories about the relationship between cyclists and drivers in the US I get the feeling that bikes are considered like some kind of alien lifeform intruding on the godgiven space of cars. In swedish and danish drivers ed. new drivers are taught that traffic is an environment where motorvehicles, bikes and pedestrians interact. Focus is on the right of all three to share the space. Maybe something like this is worth taking after because I get the feeling the hostile environment is a pretty strong obstacle to overcome when trying to encourage more people to use bikes in their daily lives.

by Jens on Feb 5, 2008 3:11 AM EST reply actions

definitely a hostile environment

Every newspaper article about a cyclist death? At least a half dozen "served him right!" posts in the comments. Nevermind the other hundred "get off the road!" comments.

Re: driver's ed. The US doesn't really have much going on in the way of driver's ed. It's handled state by state, and I suspect it's not required in most state. Even in the best states, it's not much. And the licensing? Ha. Here's how I got my first license:

I get in the car. Tester looks down at my address on the application, says "193 Little Joe Court? You know Alex?" I say, "Yeah. He lives across the street. Good guy." "Cool, he's a friend of mine," replies the tester, "Pull around. You passed."

Seriously.

by Sui Juris on Feb 5, 2008 11:16 AM EST up reply actions

I've heard

My old boss used to tell the story how he got his american licence when he was an exchange student. Something about theoretical questions like: If you have to swerve to avoid an obstacle which do you chose? A- swerve left and drive into the ditch or B- swerve right and hit a little old lady.

by Jens on Feb 5, 2008 11:52 AM EST up reply actions