2011 - Page 2 of 13 - Stop and Move

Categories : UncategorizedTags : bike rack parkingLeave a comment

Why is it so hard to install bikes racks properly?

On December 9, 2011February 19, 2018 By jamesinclair

Anyone who has ever pulled up to a store or office on a bike, and has looked for a rack to lock up to, has encountered a rack installed incorrectly. In Fresno, it’s remarkably common. In fact, I think I see more racks installed incorrectly than correctly, and I just don’t get it.

It doesn’t make sense.

Not everyone rides bikes. But almost everyone has, at one point in their life, ridden a bike. And those who have never tried one, even as a child, know what a bike is, knows what it looks like, and understands the general geometry.

Bikes aren’t that complicated.

So how is it that so many developers and contractors continue to install racks incorrectly? How does it happen that during the process of drilling into the concrete, nobody says “hey guys, I think if we put it this way, it will be useless”? Click to read more!

Categories : UncategorizedTags : bike lanes fox muppets war on cars1 Comment

Transportation, Muppets, and the war on anything

On December 7, 2011February 19, 2018 By jamesinclair

When it comes to development projects and crafting changes in planning and transportation policy, opposition will always emerge. A common form of opposition is “NIMBYism” which stands for “Not In My Backyard”. The term refers to folks who generally oppose any form of development in their surrounding area. Not all form of opposition is irrational. If someone was to propose a new freeway, airport or nuclear plant 50 yards from your backdoor, there is cause for concern, and opposition is expected. These proposals do come with real externalities that will negatively affect the area around it, and there is good reason to either relocate the proposal, alter it, or mitigate the negative aspects. At its core, the opposition is selfish, but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong. Click to read more!

Categories : UncategorizedTags : city council Clovis farmland sprawl1 Comment

Come sprawl with Clovis

On December 5, 2011February 19, 2018 By jamesinclair

Last week, there was lots of chat about “the end of sprawl” after the New York Times ran two pieces harkening the decline of suburban expansion. One, “The Death of the Fringe Suburb” was relayed around the blogosphere with many putting in their own examples of how suburban expansion was coming to a close.

Clovis, like many other cities built on sprawl, would like to have a word with them.

The Clovis City Council has introduced another reduction in development fees to attract developers who have been sitting on the fringes.

The council approved a two-year fee reduction, that began Thursday, that would provide developers with an average savings of $4,500 per lot for residential development and about $35,000 an acre for commercial, industrial and office projects. Click to read more!

Categories : UncategorizedTags : christmas tree lane walk nightLeave a comment

Christmas Tree Lane walk night is tomorrow

On December 3, 2011February 19, 2018 By jamesinclair

Just a reminder that Fresno’s Christmas Tree Lane opens for business tomorrow night, and it’s one of two walk nights. A bike night is being planned, but no details have been released.

On Christmas Tree Lane, lights are on from 6pm until 10pm on weekdays, until 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays.

Saturday, December 3 and Tuesday, December 13 are the walk nights, when cars are banned from entering Van Ness.

On car nights, traffic operates northbound, starting at Shields and ending at Shaw.

Official Website

Categories : UncategorizedTags : cable car litigation safety san francisco2 Comments

The safety magic of cable cars

On December 2, 2011February 19, 2018 By jamesinclair

Jarrett Walker of Human Transit today posted about an aspect of the San Francisco cable car system that troubled him.

The gist of his post was about the way in which the cable cars do not have stations, but they stop in the middle of the road, and passengers cross an active lane of traffic to board. What’s even more interesting is that because of the hills, many of the “stops” are smack in the middle of an intersection.

Jarrett was concerned that during said stop, traffic on the road the cable car is using is given a green light, even though passengers are alighting in the middle of the lane. While state law makes it clear that passing a cable car when stopped is illegal, he is concerned about the mixed message the giant green signal gives. Click to read more!

Categories : UncategorizedTags : bike lanes city council fresno road diet3 Comments

Road diets becoming political in Fresno

On December 1, 2011February 19, 2018 By jamesinclair

Starting a decade ago, the cities of Fresno and Clovis have transformed some streets with a “road diet” as they were repaved. These streets were taken down from a 2×2 configuration (+ parking) to a 1x1x1 configuration, with the center lane being used for left turns in both directions. Parking was maintained, and bike lanes were added with the leftover space.

These changes were usually crafted by the roads department (or public works) and simply striped in when the new asphalt was laid down and it was time to paint lines.

But something happened this past year. For reasons I don’t quite understand, road diets became a political thing, with citizens claiming that “city hall mandates” were being sent down to ruin life as we know it. Click to read more!

Categories : UncategorizedTags : 99 fog fresno HSR los angeles safetyLeave a comment

Rail fares are worth it for the safety benefits alone

On November 29, 2011February 19, 2018 By jamesinclair

This past weekend, I attended a college football game at the LA Coliseum with family to watch USC beat UCLA by an enormous margin. With a kickoff at 7:15pm, the game didn’t end until around 10:30pm. That means we did not hit the highway to leave LA until 11:30pm, for the 4 hour drive back to Fresno.

During that drive, a realization hit me like a wall. A wall of fog. Bad fog. Those who think it gets foggy in San Francisco or London have no idea what it’s like to experience the Central Valley’s Tule fog, which can decrease visibility to zero.

The visibility in Tule fog is often less than 1/8th of a mile, about 600 feet, but can be less than 10 feet. Visibility can vary rapidly in any area, with sudden decreases to near zero in only a few feet. It is situations like these that often lead to multi-car accidents where one car follows another into a fog bank. Click to read more!

Categories : UncategorizedTags : expo line los angeles metro usc1 Comment

Expo line to miss 2011 opening

On November 26, 2011February 19, 2018 By jamesinclair

I’ve been following construction progress on the Exposition Light Rail line in Los Angeles for a couple of reasons. One, is because it’s one of the most exciting transit extension projects happening in this country, hitting a very dense, under-served, and populated area that deserves fast rail access. Two, is because my sister goes to USC, and the line will serve the campus at multiple points, offering students a quick and cheap ride to downtown This will allow students to comfortably live further from campus…never mind the enormous benefits to faculty and staff who will see better commuting options. Click to read more!

Categories : UncategorizedTags : retail thanksgivingLeave a comment

Retail on Thanksgiving

On November 24, 2011February 19, 2018 By jamesinclair

When I was in Boston last week, I read a Globe article on how various national retailers scheduled their Black Friday opening this year at midnight…and then quickly had to change plans when someone told them doing so in Massachusetts would be illegal.

You see, in Massachusetts, working on Thanksgiving (and I believe Christmas) is generally not allowed (there are exceptions for restaurants and such). So opening at midnight would require workers to clock in on Thanksgiving to set up, and that is illegal. They’ve all moved their opening times forward to around 1am, store depending.

While many scoffed at these blue laws interfering with the private market place, I applaud this particular regulation. Quite frankly, the US has a horrible work culture when it comes to giving people time off, and a huge portion of this is how retail workers and all their support staff (cleaners etc) are generally invisible to huge portions of the population. Click to read more!