Everything About Bikes is |expletive| Awesome

[Big E]

Streets, you stay here.

HuskerDave, you stay out.

[HuskerDave]

Streets, you stay here.

HuskerDave, you stay out.

But I think bikes are awesome too.  Everyone in my household owns one.

[StreetsOfOmaha]

E, what are you doing? It doesn't boil down to such a simplistic view, and you know that.

Why are people so afraid to have a serious discussion about this?

I'm surprised that even you have come to see it as "Oh, streets just LOOOOVES bikes." Because that's seriously not what's going on here.

[StreetsOfOmaha]

I'm really not any of the things you just asserted.

Grab a coffee with me sometime when we're both back in Omaha to see for yourself.

You just described the ridiculous and comically absurd caricatures that this forum has contorted all of us into.

[joeglow]

Fewer teens desperate to start driving — is the Internet the reason why?

Waubonsie Valley High School sophomore Manual Quay turns 16 in July, and — surely — all the Aurora teen can think about is getting his driver’s license, sliding behind the steering wheel and driving as far away from his parents as possible.

Right?

Nope.

“Driving is really not that big of a deal,” Quay said, after his mom drove him to school last week. “I’m in no rush.”

And neither, it seems, are plenty of other American 16-year-olds.

In 1983, about 46 percent of Americans that age had a driver’s license, but by 2008, only 31 percent had one, according to a recent study by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute.

Older teens are also driving less: The number of 18-year-olds with licenses fell from 80 percent in 1983 to 65 percent in 2008, while the number of 17-year-olds on the road dropped from 69 percent to 50 percent.

[Bugeater]

Well I'm certainly not in any hurry for my 16 yr...errr...now 17 yr old son to start driving. He did take a course at school and got his license, but he's not driving any of my vehicles and he doesn't have the money to buy his own so it's not like he has a choice.

But he hasn't protested about it much, if at all. Not sure if the internet has anything to do with it or not.

[Big E]

I figured they were all just busy humping it up like Cosmo told them to do.

[StreetsOfOmaha]

The funny thing is that the car-makers are frantically trying to figure out how they can make cars more like smart phones. Yes, more distracted driving, that's what we need!

I swear, if teenagers were opting to eat hot dogs rather than drive a car, the car-makers would try to figure out how to make cars more like hot dogs. They'll fight to survive just like any industry would, I guess. It's just kind of pathetic. I mean, what are they going to do, start manufacturing bicycles and pedestrian amenities? Is McDonald's going to go vegetarian?

[jessep28]

Do you have one of these Streets??

[StreetsOfOmaha]

Hmm, the image isn't showing up.

*edit: Now I see it; it's a gif. And, no, I don't have one. That's insane (not in a good way).

-- ----------------------


Meanwhile, here are a few excellent ads that have appeared in countries with, shall we say, more advanced societies  :;): .

The world has changed. You can, too. |expletive| brilliant.
[youtube][/youtube]

[TitosBuritoBarn]

Is the billboard on the left connected to the billboard on the right?

[StreetsOfOmaha]

I'm not sure what you mean.

[BRoss]

Cyclist laws: Fact vs. fiction

There seems to be a lot of confusion when it comes to cycling on the street. I decided to talk to the experts and try and separate fact from fiction.

[Seth]

While the article was pretty basic, it's good to see straightforward explanations of basic bicycle laws.

The comment about traffic lights is 100% true; bike do not have enough of a magnetic signature to trip the embedded sensors for traffic lights.  Motorcyclists often have this problem too.  When I was attending to community college, my commute crossed several traffic lights that my motorcycle would not trigger.  The bike rack at the building where I work has similar sensors for the roll-up doors, but I've discovered they can be triggered by stopping and laying my bike over, which gets enough metal close enough to the sensor loop to trigger it.  They're a lot more sensitive than a traffic signal, though, especially ones on streets that have been resurfaced.

Riding on the sidewalk is often more dangerous due to crossing streets at the crosswalks, where motorists (and other cyclists, too, for that matter) are not typically watching for anything faster than a pedestrian.

[Linkin5]

I'm definitely am guilty of both going through red lights and not having a light on the front of bicycle.  

On a side note, any one else notice both the trolls this thread was based on are gone and the forum is better for it?

[BRoss]

On a side note, any one else notice both the trolls this thread was based on are gone and the forum is better for it?

I've noticed that Streets has been gone for a long time now and that there's been a lot less arguing on every topic now...

[Linkin5]

On a side note, any one else notice both the trolls this thread was based on are gone and the forum is better for it?

I've noticed that Streets has been gone for a long time now and that there's been a lot less arguing on every topic now...

It's because he's a giant giant d-bag.

[GetUrban]

I just assumed he had been banned. But things do seem more civil around here now.

[BRoss]

On a side note, any one else notice both the trolls this thread was based on are gone and the forum is better for it?

I've noticed that Streets has been gone for a long time now and that there's been a lot less arguing on every topic now...

It's because he's a giant giant d-bag.

His biggest problem was that he never knew when to just shut up and let it go. He doesn't seem to realize that talking |expletive| to everybody who disagrees with you doesn't do anything to help your argument.

[Admin]

I just assumed he had been banned. But things do seem more civil around here now.

He has not been banned.

[MadMartin8]

On a side note, any one else notice both the trolls this thread was based on are gone and the forum is better for it?

I've noticed that Streets has been gone for a long time now and that there's been a lot less arguing on every topic now...

It's because he's a giant giant d-bag.

I lurked for a long time before joining here, and I got the same vibe. Unfortunate that it is like that.

[Omaha_Gabe]

Downtown residents will share shopping bike

http://www.omaha.com/article/20120511/N ... pping-bike

Downtown's Patrick's Market wants to make grocery shopping as easy as riding a bike.

The grocer at 1416 Howard St. is giving away a custom-painted Civia Halsted grocery bike to the downtown apartment or condominium complex that collects the most resident signatures. By signing the petition, the resident agrees to use the bike to shop at Patrick's Market and the complex agrees to keep the bike in a secure area for residents' use. Petitions are available at the store and must be returned by June 30.

“We hope this bike can make grocery shopping a little easier for downtown residents and make downtown living even more enjoyable,” said Patrick's Market Vice President PJ Andersen. “We view this as an opportunity for us to help our neighbors.”

The grocery bike features a front basket to accommodate groceries.

In addition, Patrick's Market will offer a 10 percent discount on purchases for the first month for bike users from the winning complex.

[jessep28]

At least that one guy from other forums who double spaces everything and mainly complains about the lack of West Omaha bus routes, kids playing computer games in the library and rambles on about OTA TV channels isn't on here.

This cyclist in NY apparently was pulled over for running a red light on his bicycle. I love how the unmarked cop guns it to catch up to him.

[youtube][/youtube]

[twiztid1]

While the article was pretty basic, it's good to see straightforward explanations of basic bicycle laws.

The comment about traffic lights is 100% true; bike do not have enough of a magnetic signature to trip the embedded sensors for traffic lights.  Motorcyclists often have this problem too.  When I was attending to community college, my commute crossed several traffic lights that my motorcycle would not trigger.  The bike rack at the building where I work has similar sensors for the roll-up doors, but I've discovered they can be triggered by stopping and laying my bike over, which gets enough metal close enough to the sensor loop to trigger it.  They're a lot more sensitive than a traffic signal, though, especially ones on streets that have been resurfaced.

Riding on the sidewalk is often more dangerous due to crossing streets at the crosswalks, where motorists (and other cyclists, too, for that matter) are not typically watching for anything faster than a pedestrian.

The intersections I have the most censor issues with are east bound at 10th and Mike Fahey and west bound at 10th and Capitol.  I've gotten around it though by pushing the crosswalk button and then jumping back on the street.

[Garrett]

At least that one guy from other forums who double spaces everything and mainly complains about the lack of West Omaha bus routes, kids playing computer games in the library and rambles on about OTA TV channels isn't on here.

Yeah... he's an interesting case. I've been around him long enough to guess that he has some special mental handicap issues.

[S33]

Lmao. What guy is that? A little off topic, but I'm still waiting for this forum to get its token hot chick. Its important that it happens.

[jessep28]

Lmao. What guy is that? A little off topic, but I'm still waiting for this forum to get its token hot chick. Its important that it happens.

Here's an example. http://www.city-data.com/forum/omaha/10 ... e-its.html .

[TitosBuritoBarn]

Navigating Europe's Most Congested City by Bike
Not all of Europe's cities are bicycle friendly and resistant to an auto-centric transportation culture.
http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commut ... bike/2030/

Cities in the United States are becoming more tolerant, even encouraging, of bicyclists through increased bike infrastructure, bikeshare programs, and laws to protect riders. But when you compare it with the world's best biking cities, there's a longing realization that we aren't Copenhagen, we aren't Amsterdam. We don't have cities where 55 percent of residents bike to work or school; where 90 percent of all roads are bicycle friendly. So it's good to be reminded that not all European cities are created equal when it come to love of the bicycle.

Brussels, the capital of Belgium, is one of those cities. Traffic crawls through gridlocked streets and cyclists are considered fools for riding in such dangerous conditions. But, much as in the U.S., there's a growing movement to replace four wheels with two. Over the last few years, bicycle traffic in Brussels has increased from 1 percent to 4 percent, a small, but not insignificant increase.

Over at the The Atlantic's video channel, Kasia Cieplak-Mayr von Baldegg points to a short documentary, Brussels Express, that explores this transformation through the lens of Karl-Heinz Pohl, a bike messenger.

With great shots of the city, along with cringe-worthy clips of Pohl slipping through bumper-to-bumper car traffic, the video looks at how Brussels, and other cities, can build a bike culture more like Copenhagen. It's well worth the 20-minute run-time. Video: http://player.vimeo.com/video/41982043? ... portrait=0