LACBC – Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition
October 29, 2020
The News Cycle
Stay in the Know
Voting Info
A reminder that Tuesday, November 3rd is Election Day! Are you in need of transportation to your polling place?
Lime is giving free rides to and from polling places on November 3rd! Use code LIMETOPOLLS2020 for two e-scooter or e-bike rides up to 30 minutes and make your voice heard!
Or consider Spin To Vote! SPIN is offering $10 in credits to all riders on election day. In order to access the credit, download the Spin app and enter the promo code SPINTOVOTE (promo code can only be entered on Election Day).
Support KPFK’s Bike Talk
Bike Talk is in the midst of their fall fundraising campaign for KPFK. Donate here.
Air quality throughout LA is good to moderate in most areas, with some notable exceptions – the areas of Pico Rivera/Santa Fe Springs, Long Beach and Central LA are forecasted to have unhealthy levels of fine particle pollutants.
This might be due to ash blowing in from the Bobcat Fire, which as of 4 days ago was reported to be 95% contained. It may also be from the El Dorado Fire that is still burning in the San Gorgonio Wilderness. Stay up to date on pollutant levels in your area by entering your zip code in the Air Quality Index.
Stop by Ride On! Bike Shop/Co-Op next month – Owner & Co-Op Leader Adé Neff will be offering a complimentary Ride On! water bottle with your bike tune up through the month of November. Stop by and pick up some cool new bicycle gear and accessories, and let him know #BikesMeanBusiness!
Read about the impact #LACountyBikeMatch had on LACBC’s Fall Intern, Anna, by reading her post on our blog.
Upcoming Events & Activities
LACBC Rememberance Ride
We are launching a series of monthly self-guided rides that focus on a different theme every month. For October, we are proud to present to you the Remembrance Ride.
This 22.6 mile ride visits four historic LA cemeteries and two landmarks that pay homage to those that have called this land home throughout the centuries. With this ride, we’d like to invite you to take some time to reflect on Life & Death, as we welcome the slowness of winter and approach a season when many cultures remember those who have passed on.
If you’re looking for a long bike ride with some LA history sprinkled in, or an opportunity to do something special for someone you want to honor this season, this ride may be for you.
You can follow our Ride With GPS route, check out the write-up that includes the cue-sheet, photos and info on each stop, or follow along through the izi.Travel app.
Operation Firefirefly
This year, LACBC is partnering up with local organizations to distribute lights. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we will be providing lights to support the efforts of organizations that provide life saving direct services to those most affected by the health and economic crisis.
Stay tuned for more updates in our next newsletter! To support Operation Firefly, our safety awareness and bike light distribution program, donate here.
Save the Date: LACBC Holiday Party
Games, raffle prizes and fun times! Set aside Thursday, December 10 from 6:30pm to 8:00pm for our online holiday party via Zoom. Make sure your membership is up to date then register for the event here. We’ll be announcing more details in our next newsletter.
Want to increase your chances to win a raffle prize? Go on our self-guided Rememberance Ride, share a Ride With GPS ride card on Instagram and tag @lacbc to get 5 extra raffle entries for the Holiday Party!
Equitable Recovery in LA: Homes, Land & Justice – Not really bike-related, but LACBC’s partnerships often delve into issues that affect housing and community. It’s all interconnected anyway. This event is set to be “a virtual convening where we will mobilize our region around principles and emerging strategies to address racial equity, housing security and community resilience.” Wed, 11/4, 12:30pm-3pm PST. Register here.
Las Fotos Project tackles mobility justice
Las Fotos Project has a new online exhibit. Our Streets: Healing and Protecting Our Communities Through Mobility Justice, follows the work of seven Las Fotos Projects students as they capture mobility issues facing their East Los Angeles communities. Las Fotos Project offers year-round programs to girls from ages of 13 to 18 in photography; providing professional equipment, instruction and workshops. Their mission is to advance and celebrate the visions of teenage girls from communities of color.
Infrastructure Alerts & Updates
Heart to Hearts
Community stakeholders have been meeting up at recurring bi-weekly meetings to discuss Councilmember Mitch O’Farrell’s Heart of Hollywood initiative. To learn more about how to get involved in the discussions of economic and social development affecting those who live and work in Hollywood (including the Hollywood Walk of Fame Master Plan) visit heartofhollywood.la/engage.
Santa Monica City Council Approved Plan for More Bike Lanes. 19 miles to be exact! To learn more, click here. Construction is set to begin in November for a protected bike lane along the Western side of Ocean Ave.
Manchester Avenue got some improvements. Bike lanes that run east/westbound on Manchester Avenue from Truxton Avenue and Osage Avenue were upgraded to protected bike lanes. Thanks BikinginLA for keeping us all up-to-date.
Service Interruption: The Little Tokyo/Arts District station as we know it is closed. L Line (aka Gold Line) service between Union Station and Pico Aliso will be serviced by a shuttle until 2022 in order to complete the final phase of the Regional Connector. There is a new bikeshare docking station at Pico Aliso now though.
Metro Board Unanimously Approves Motion to Delay 605/5 Freeway Widening and Instead Study Alternatives We’ll get more updates in 2021.
Comment period for the East San Fernando Valley (ESFV) Light Rail Project has been extended through November 17. This project is set to connect the G Line (formerly the Orange Line) with the Van Nuys Metrolink Station, heading North all the way to Sylmar.
Help shape the beautificaiton of Downtown Mar Vista & Venice Great Street. There’s a community input workshop tonight, Oct 29 at 5:30pm and a Review Findings and Implementation Workshop on Nov 22.
Policy & Advocacy Updates
Join Metro’s Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC). Do you have a lot of lived experience using Metro? Are you interested in working with community leaders to provide recommendations to the Metro Board on re-envisioning transit safety and community-based approaches to policing? Email us at info@la-bike.org or call us at 213-629-2142 and let us know! Applications to join the PSAC are open October 19-November 13, 2020.
News From our Chapters
Santa Clarita Valley Bicycle Coalition reports that Santa Clarita’s new public Bike Park, which opened last month, broke ground this week on a planned BMX track. The track is meant for the entertainment of all, but especially to serve BMX enthusiasts, and competitors. The planned track will meet specs for USABMX competition. The BMX track joins two other tracks already in use since September, 2020. Check out some cool photos and more info here!
Did we miss something? Send us your LA County bike-related updates and events, and we’ll include them in the next newsletter (two weeks from now). Email info@la-bike.org.
Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition
PO Box 17733
Long Beach, CA 90807