News

Green Bike Tours in Eugene

Posted on by RideCoordinator

This weekend was the kick-off of the Green Home Bike Tours hosted by the Neighborhood Leadership Council’s Sustainability Committee. This first tour was in the FarWest Neighborhood (West of Chambers to City View and around 18th Ave) and the next one will be in the River Road neighborhood. Check the GEARs calendar for all the details. This weekend was also the “Prom” down by the river- maybe we’ll get some photos and stories from that up as well.

Here are a couple photos from the Green Homes Bike Tour.

DeFazio Leads the Pack on Transportation

Posted on by RideCoordinator

I-5 Bike/Ped Bridge Opening
DeFazio at I-5 Bike/Ped Bridge Opening

Local Congressman, Peter DeFazio, is breaking away and headed for the yellow jersey in the race for real change in our transportation system, leaving the most popular and famous ‘change maker’, President Obama, back in the peloton. Congressman DeFazio (D-OR) is attempting to work on a “comprehensive overhaul” of the transportation system while the Obama administration is calling for congress to hold off and create a temporary fix. DeFazio is calling for a “transaction tax on crude oil securities” to pay for the deficiency in the Highway Trust Fund (which is nearly bankrupt) and to pay for the Surface Transportation Authorization Act of 2009. On DeFazio’s website a statement about the plan states:

The Surface Transportation Authorization Act of 2009 requires $450 billion in funding over 6 years. Because of existing funding mechanisms through the Highway Trust Fund, there is a $140 billion funding gap. A transaction tax on crude oil securities would raise more than $190 billion over 6 years, more than enough to fill the gap.

It goes on to describe the transaction tax in more detail but what is missing is the vision of the changes that this new transportation system may include. In an interview (Full MP3 version) with Rachael McDonald on KLCC DeFazio discusses many issues and towards the end he talks about transportation. He states that ‘legacy infrastructure’ needs to be maintained but he also talks about overhauling the Department of Transportation, reducing greenhouse gasses, giving people transit options, and increasing safety. He doesn’t specifically mention Active Transportation but he has a history of supporting biking, walking, and transit. Here is the portion of the interview regarding transportation:

DeFazio talking transportation

As DeFazio stated yesterday at a media event for the new bridge to connect the Cal Young neighborhood with the Delta Ponds area and the Willamette River money spent on projects like bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure are “a heck of a lot better spent than one penny going to Wall Street”.
Delta Ponds Bridge Area-2
It will be interesting to see what action the Obama administration takes on his plan. The next few months could see a lot of action for transportation at the congressional level and all of that will eventually have a big impact on what America’s new transportation model may look like.  $450 billion is a lot to swallow in the current economic climate and a lot of this new transportation plan will certainly continue with a lot of the old ‘highway mentality’ and not enough funding for active transportation but it looks like it might be making a positive step in that direction.  Let’s hope.

Did You Miss the Prom?

Posted on by Paul Adkins

Sunday, July 19 from 1 PM to 5 PM will be a slightly different kind of Prom. Its the Riverbank Path Promenade. This exciting Sunday occasion will be a unique event along the River Bike Path and Greenway in River Road and Whiteaker Neighborhoods. The popular bike path will become a three mile long mix and mingle Piazza.

Other than two modest clusters of information and activity at River House and Maurie Jacobs Park, there will be no central venue, rather people will be the players, invited to walk, bike, push strollers, skate, picnic, hang out any way they care to. Imagine along the bike path people showing art work, doing tai chi or yoga, engaged in spontaneous performance with passers by welcome to join in.

Bike Path Attractions – There will also be information tables and displays scattered along the path so people can learn about and appreciate the good works that make this such a great bike path. Check out environmental restoration projects, community gardens, points of historical significance, recreation areas, neighborhood projects and more.

The goal of the Prom is to have a free, local, participatory, low impact, creative, positive occasion at an existing and accessible public location. Times are changing and people can look to each other to have fun, build community and do it closer to home. This is a Prom you won’t want to miss! Please tell your friends. For more info, go to http://www.eugenegears.org/promenade or call 686-6761.

Bike Day wrap-up & Meet in the Street Meeting

Posted on by RideCoordinator

The GEARs table was hopping at Bike Day with the main focus being the Flat Tire Fix-Off. Folks stopped by to see how fast they could change a flat. The top three finishers took the stage at the end of the day and to make it more exciting they competed blind folded!
Paul (GEARs President) stomped the competition by changing the flat in just over 2 minutes. David Roth, from the City of Eugene Transportation Planning department came in second, and Andrew from Paul’s Bicycle Way of Life came in third.
There were a lot more great events and items to wrap-up but for now I’ll pass on some links to some photos and videos from various Bike Day participants and also pass on the word that a Meet in the Street meeting is happening tonight.

Flickr set of Bike Day from Katura
and
YouTube videos of Bike Day from Katura

Here’s the latest from Heidi on MITS:

Meet in the Street is moving along in it’s organization. We have a
date (10/4), a time (8 am -2 pm), a route, and a nearly complete
budget (about $20k), an approved parks permit, dialogue with the
university, outreach to the Whiteaker neighborhood, and more.

We’ll meet on Monday evening to finalize some more details and move
the event organizing along. Hot topic is the deadline to meet
sponsorship application with Point2Point. And discuss the event
theme…how do folks feel about Makin a Splash (in case it’s rainy
that day)? Of course we’d like it to be hugely successful. 🙂

Please come help! Monday evening (6/15) at Keystone Cafe from 7-8
pm…we’d love to see you there.

Thanks!
Heidi

GEARing up for Summer

Posted on by RideCoordinator

Hot days, thunderstorms, and more cyclists out on the roads; sure signs that summer is just around the corner.

Another indicator is that Bike Day is coming right up. The annual event kicks off the summer and this year (the 5th!) promises to kick it up a notch. The theme is Celebrating Eugene’s Bikulturalism and here will be demos and competitions, booths, food, and a beer garden!
So whether you want to bring your kid down to ride in the bike safety rodeo or you want to show off your dirt jump skills there’s something for you and your two-wheeled thing (…or one, three, four, or more wheels) including a track stand competition, tricycle races, bike polo, bike blended smoothies, cyclocross races, a bike fashion show, tire changing competition and entertainment by the Bottom Brackettes, Grey Matter Jugglers, Sideroads, Kutsinhira Youth Marimba, and KRVM DJ’s!!!!

The Eugene Weekly wrote up the event along with a good cover story on why a bike boom would be a great economic stimulus for Eugene.

We need some volunteers to make it happen so if you’re interested drop me a line and you can table the GEARs booth or help out in the Beer Garden! shane (at) eugenegears-dot-org or 541-556-3553

Position on "Idaho Stop" Bill, Change in Meeting Time, & Call to Action!

Posted on by RideCoordinator

The GEARs Board met yesterday afternoon and came to agreement that as an organization GEARs supports HB2690, otherwise known as the “Idaho Stop Bill” that would allow cyclists to treat stop signs as yield signs.

The April 13th GEARs Meeting has also been rescheduled to allow Board and general members to make public comments about the cities position at the April 13 City Council Meeting. The new meeting will be held on April 27th at 7:00 pm at the Keystone.

Background:
A letter was written (download PDF) by the city’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator on behalf of the Inter-Governmental Relations Committee (IGR) without consulting the Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) or the bike community at large. In that letter the City stated it’s position as opposing the bill. Because of the reaction from the bike community to that letter the IGR (made up of three city council members) re-evaluated their position and two members changed from “Oppose” to “Neutral”. Because it was no longer unanimous it automatically goes to the full City Council for a vote to support, oppose, or be neutral on the bill. And that is where GEARs members come in.

A CALL TO ACTION:
GEARs members are encouraged to attend the City Council Meeting and share your opinion on the Bill and/or the city’s process in developing their position. They are reconsidering the City’s position and will likely be voting that night. Time for public comment is at the beginning of the meeting- Monday, April 13th at 7:30 p.m. Get there early to sign in. There will also be a lot of skateboarders there to support the new Washington/Jefferson Park so it will be a great show of Active Transportation modes- we’ll be taking over and letting the Council know that we want to see change in priorities to more healthy, safe, and sustainable transportation options and we want the City to communicate with us!

The BPAC will also be discussing this issue and taking a position at their meeting this evening- 5:30 p.m., Atrium Building, Sloat Room.

And finally, there was a Guest Viewpoint in todays Register Guard from our Vice-President, Jay Klein.