Off Topic...Peduto to speak at commencement

[Swervin27]

my question is, why do people feel the need to ride their bikes on the busiest of roads? Why are we pushing these two together when we don't have to. people in this city are not getting up, getting dressed for work and getting on their bike to ride to the office. it's not happening, that doesn't exist in this city. This isn't some northern England town in the 1960's. this guy below, he doesn't exist.

It's an exercise, its not a necessity. so with that said, why are we asking weekend warriors to ride their bikes on main roads, heavily congested areas when there are countless trails, paths, side roads

 

[HailtoPitt]

my question is, why do people feel the need to ride their bikes on the busiest of roads? Why are we pushing these two together when we don't have to. people in this city are not getting up, getting dressed for work and getting on their bike to ride to the office. it's not happening, that doesn't exist in this city. This isn't some northern England town in the 1960's. this guy below, he doesn't exist.

It's an exercise, its not a necessity. so with that said, why are we asking weekend warriors to ride their bikes on main roads, heavily congested areas when there are countless trails, paths, side roads

First, those people do exist. Second, most people will ride their bike on the designated bike routes. Sometimes that puts them on main roads for lack of a better alternative. Like it or not, Pittsburgh and many other cities are moving to a more biker friendly infrastructure. If you don't like it... then GET AUGHT. Or if you are in Toronto... GET OOT.

 

[NTOP]

We managed for a long time w

First, those people do exist. Second, most people will ride their bike on the designated bike routes. Sometimes that puts them on main roads for lack of a better alternative. Like it or not, Pittsburgh and many other cities are moving to a more biker friendly infrastructure. If you don't like it... then GET AUGHT. Or if you are in Toronto... GET OOT.

We managed a long time w/o those asshats having space that is absolutely vacant 98% of the time. Tyranny of the minority, once again. Mayor 6 Chins is a typical Dem....happy to ruin things in a city.

 

[pittchagg]

First, those people do exist. Second, most people will ride their bike on the designated bike routes. Sometimes that puts them on main roads for lack of a better alternative.

Absolutely. Swervin should talk to the half dozen people at my office here downtown who bike in from the East End every day, or my neighbor in Squirrel Hill who bikes into downtown daily.

The problem with the trails and paths is that they don’t take people to where they need to go because most people don’t work or live directly along one of the rivers, so you’re going to end up mixed in with traffic one way or another. But I can guarantee that 100% of bike commuters would much rather use a separated bike lane than use a main road mixed with traffic - sometimes that’s just the only option available to get you to where you need to go.

 

[NTOP]

Absolutely. Swervin should talk to the half dozen people at my office here downtown who bike in from the East End every day, or my neighbor in Squirrel Hill who bikes into downtown daily.

The problem with the trails and paths is that they don’t take people to where they need to go because most people don’t work or live directly along one of the rivers, so you’re going to end up mixed in with traffic one way or another. But I can guarantee that 100% of bike commuters would much rather use a separated bike lane than use a main road mixed with traffic - sometimes that’s just the only option available to get you to where you need to go.

Car pools. HOV lane is a joke. The dems controlling Pgh for 100 years couldn't figure it out.

 

[paulbl99]

Creating Bike Lanes Isn’t Easy. Just Ask Baltimore. Or Boulder. Or Seattle. - The Wall Street Journal https://apple.news/AD78UIsJIQp-hmHl7u5jbWg

 

[pittchagg]

Car pools. HOV lane is a joke. The dems controlling Pgh for 100 years couldn't figure it out.

I think they just have answers that you don’t agree with. The fact that this city wasn’t and isn’t built with personal vehicles in mind is something that a lot of people don’t seem to want to accept.

You want to improve traffic? Support mass transit initiatives, pedestrian access, and biking. That’s the safest, easiest, and most proven way.

 

[HailtoPitt]

Car pools. HOV lane is a joke. The dems controlling Pgh for 100 years couldn't figure it out.

Well, Dems will run the city for the next 100 years as well, and the population isn't getting older, so they have to figure it out and that solution will be more bike lanes.

 

[Swervin27]

First, those people do exist. Second, most people will ride their bike on the designated bike routes. Sometimes that puts them on main roads for lack of a better alternative. Like it or not, Pittsburgh and many other cities are moving to a more biker friendly infrastructure. If you don't like it... then GET AUGHT. Or if you are in Toronto... GET OOT.

I work downtown, been in this city for decades, not once have I seen anyone ride their bike to a M-F office type job. it doesnt' happen, stop with this mythical reality. some Greg Lemond want to be wearing a tight skin suit riding his bike across clemente bridge on a Saturday morning doesn't count.

Not one person has ever dressed up in business casual gear, got on their bike and peddled to work, not in Pittsburgh. a kid living in shadyside riding his bike to pitt at noon, yes, a guy waking up at 6:30am, putting on khakis and a button down shirt, kissing his wife and putting on his helmet and getting on his bike to go to the office, no.

you want to promote exercise, biking as a weekend activity and making it more "biker friendly" on Saturdays in the summer, im all for it. do not try to tell us this will help replace or alleviate rush hour traffic though cause it isn't happening.

 

[HailtoPitt]

I work downtown, been in this city for decades, not once have I seen anyone ride their bike to a M-F office type job. it doesnt' happen, stop with this mythical reality. some Greg Lemond want to be wearing a tight skin suit riding his bike across clemente bridge on a Saturday morning doesn't count.

Not one person has ever dressed up in business casual gear, got on their bike and peddled to work, not in Pittsburgh. a kid living in shadyside riding his bike to pitt at noon, yes, a guy waking up at 6:30am, putting on khakis and a button down shirt, kissing his wife and putting on his helmet and getting on his bike to go to the office, no.

you want to promote exercise, biking as a weekend activity and making it more "biker friendly" on Saturdays in the summer, im all for it. do not try to tell us this will help replace or alleviate rush hour traffic though cause it isn't happening.

 

[paulbl99]

I work downtown, been in this city for decades, not once have I seen anyone ride their bike to a M-F office type job. it doesnt' happen, stop with this mythical reality. some Greg Lemond want to be wearing a tight skin suit riding his bike across clemente bridge on a Saturday morning doesn't count.

Not one person has ever dressed up in business casual gear, got on their bike and peddled to work, not in Pittsburgh. a kid living in shadyside riding his bike to pitt at noon, yes, a guy waking up at 6:30am, putting on khakis and a button down shirt, kissing his wife and putting on his helmet and getting on his bike to go to the office, no.

Bike paths all over the central business districts to think it is going to alleviate traffic is ridiculous....
This is just typical Snowflake backward thinking...we left the bikes behind 120 yrs ago.
But let’s go back to that stupid S because it makes them feeeeeeeeeeellllll good.

 

[upj87]

This is cute .
Been to Europe . Stayed in a number of places for an extended period .
If you think the these people are accommodating to anyone but themselves ? You've never been there .

In 2013, more than 2,000 cyclists were killed in road traffic accidents in 27 EU countries, constituting almost 8% of all road accident fatalities for that year. ...according to science direct.com article. Sounds very accommodating Considering our rates in the US we could expect 3,000 or so bikers to get whacked every year should we have bikers at their levels. ...I've never been to Venus either but others have told me its hot and I'll accept their word on it.

 

[RaleighPittFan]

Sure they do. We just don't do that well here. I know I know. There goes that use of data again. Those damn commies.

Proof that one would have to be an idiot to ride a bicycle on streets / roads in the U.S.

I ride a bike frequently, often putting more than 100 miles a week on mine, but I would never do it on a road with cars and trucks.

I put my bike on my car and drive a few miles to a Raleigh Greenway entrance, and ride my bike until my heart's content.

 

[Parkview57]

why do people feel the need to ride their bikes on the busiest of roads?

Is this a serious question?
The answer is : TO SAVE THE PLANET!
The same reason we don't drill in national parks in Alaska
although 99.99999% of us will never be there, if for example, Al Gore wants to fly in on his private jet he just may like to see Alaska in its natural setting.

 

[WiseAndGlorious]

they are hindering my ability (and their safety) to make a right turn...where else on the roadway do you make a right turn crossing over another lane (and in this case a lane containing difficult to see bikes) of traffic?

Hindering your ability? Well the motor vehicle code says you are in the wrong when turning right across the path of a cyclist on the right ride of the road, bike lane or not. So take it up with the state.

As for visibility, if you pass a bike you should know to be careful making a right turn. What do you do if a pedestrian is crossing that street you’re turning right onto? Are they hindering your ability? Aren’t they even less visible? But that is another benefit of bike lanes - they make drivers more aware of the cyclist. Thanks, great point.

 

[HailtoPitt]

This thread shows that information doesn't matter for many people. All that matters is the view they hold in their heads, which is never going to change.

 

[upj87]

Sure they do. We just don't do that well here. I know I know. There goes that use of data again. Those damn commies.

why, why, it is almost as if the United States is different than Europe

The report by the Governors Highway Safety Association, with funding from State Farm insurance, also determined that the increase in bike deaths of 12.2 percent in 2015 outpaced the rise in overall traffic fatalities.

https://www.denverpost.com/2017/08/24/cycling-fatalities-2015/

 

[WiseAndGlorious]

my question is, why do people feel the need to ride their bikes on the busiest of roads? Why are we pushing these two together when we don't have to. people in this city are not getting up, getting dressed for work and getting on their bike to ride to the office. it's not happening, that doesn't exist in this city. This isn't some northern England town in the 1960's. this guy below, he doesn't exist.

It's an exercise, its not a necessity. so with that said, why are we asking weekend warriors to ride their bikes on main roads, heavily congested areas when there are countless trails, paths, side roads

Plenty of modern offices have locker room or changing facilities. Not everyone rides to work in a suit. Trust me most cyclists would prefer riding bike lanes to “the busiest of roads”.

 

[paulbl99]

Is this a serious question?
The answer is : TO SAVE THE PLANET!
The same reason we don't drill in national parks in Alaska
although 99.99999% of us will never be there, if for example, Al Gore wants to fly in on his private jet he just may like to see Alaska in its natural setting.

Lmao


Bring back AGW!!!

it’s below freezing in April so if the clowns think biking to work in these conditions is saving the planet.....who’s going to stop them.

Bring back the glorious 1890s!!!

Maybe we should think about the outdoor Shithouse again.

 

[Swervin27]

hey, I want to ride by bike to work too. a few mile long commute, in sunny 68 degree weather year round, on flat surfaces with nicely paved paths for me. maybe stop at a park on the way home and throw a blanket down next to a pond with ducks, that's what I want. I want that life, I just know it doesn't exist, not in western pa.

 

[paulbl99]

This thread shows that information doesn't matter for many people. All that matters is the view they hold in their heads, which is never going to change.

No just the BS you try to pass off as definitive
Which it wasn’t if you get inside the numbers rather than trying to pass it off as another one of your typical worthless

GOTHCHA

 

[WiseAndGlorious]

Bike paths all over the central business districts to think it is going to alleviate traffic is ridiculous....
This is just typical Snowflake backward thinking...we left the bikes behind 120 yrs ago.
But let’s go back to that stupid S because it makes them feeeeeeeeeeellllll good.

You want cars going as fast as possible in both directions? Sounds great for a highway. Not so much for a business district. But I know the extra 2 minutes on Penn Ave is just too much on top of that 35 minute crawl across whatever bridge or tunnel you take back to the burbs. Snowflake? Lol.

 

[HailtoPitt]

No just the BS you try to pass off as definitive
Which it wasn’t if you get inside the numbers rather than trying to pass it off as another one of your typical worthless

GOTHCHA

You: Bikes, bike lanes and bikers = BAD. GRRRR. Me Get Mad When See Them. It Dangerous for Them. Lots of Deaths.

Me: Improving bikes lanes will improve the safety of bikers. Here is some proof.

You: Grrr. Fake News. Bikes Bad. Bikers are Queer Liberal Commies. Me Eat Hot Dog Now. RAHR!

 

[WiseAndGlorious]

hey, I want to ride by bike to work too. a few mile long commute, in sunny 68 degree weather year round, on flat surfaces with nicely paved paths for me. maybe stop at a park on the way home and throw a blanket down next to a pond with ducks, that's what I want. I want that life, I just know it doesn't exist, not in western pa.

There was a time when Pittsburgh skies were dark at noon and black people couldnt vote. No sense trying to change. *shrugs*

 

[MarshallGoldberg]

The cost is negligible in the scheme of city budget....there is no such thing as a negiblie cost in a budget unless you have large surpluses and no tax increases...

if increased safety is the issue, taking the bus makes commuting safer also...

It's 0.5% of the budget fwiw. And maintaining those bike lanes are cheaper than maintaining the infrastructure for other types of transportation.

The city's budget has had a surplus the last few years and projects to a much larger one in years ahead, which is one reason some items like the paving budget are going to be dramatically increased (long overdue.) There hasn't been a city millage or wage tax increase in many years. The only tax increase I can think of in the city under Peduto is the 1% real estate transfer tax increase, which only applies when you buy/sell a house -- and that is going to offset the fact the city is becoming a victim of its own success, to fund affordable housing before we become too expensive like other more tech-heavy cities have become.

As for your second paragraph, most bikers I know are also pro public transit. It gets cars off the road among other benefits.

Anyway, I wouldn't be excited about Peduto as a commencement speaker. But bike lanes, even if occasionally annoying, will make Pittsburgh a better city. Our streets were built for horses; the adjustment to buses, cars, and bikes is always going to be difficult.

 

[Swervin27]

There was a time when Pittsburgh skies were dark at noon and black people couldnt vote. No sense trying to change. *shrugs*

 

[upj87]

It's 0.5% of the budget fwiw. And maintaining those bike lanes are cheaper than maintaining the infrastructure for other types of transportation.

The city's budget has had a surplus the last few years and projects to a much larger one in years ahead, which is one reason some items like the paving budget are going to be dramatically increased (long overdue.) There hasn't been a city millage or wage tax increase in many years. The only tax increase I can think of in the city under Peduto is the 1% real estate transfer tax increase, which only applies when you buy/sell a house -- and that is going to offset the fact the city is becoming a victim of its own success, to fund affordable housing before we become too expensive like other more tech-heavy cities have become.

As for your second paragraph, most bikers I know are also pro public transit. It gets cars off the road among other benefits.

Anyway, I wouldn't be excited about Peduto as a commencement speaker. But bike lanes, even if occasionally annoying, will make Pittsburgh a better city. Our streets were built for horses; the adjustment to buses, cars, and bikes is always going to be difficult.

more bikes = more deaths

 

[SoufOaklin4Life]

I have to wonder how many of the people bellyaching actually live in the city?

 

[RaleighPittFan]

No amount of wishing will make riding a bike alongside cars / trucks, safe. None.

Just because one wants something to be doesn't mean it ever will be.

There are lots of places I wish I could safely ride my bike, but I don't because it's not very smart to do so.

It's safer to ride a motorcycle on the street than a bicycle, but I don't do that either, anymore. Safer doesn't mean riding a motorcycle is safe, though.

 

[MarshallGoldberg]

more bikes = more deaths

Actually the opposite. The lower percentage of cars on the roads, the lower the deaths, whether they're replaced by buses, trains, or bikes. Even car pooling reducing automobile deaths because it means less total cars on the road. Do you have a source for your argument?

No amount of wishing will make riding a bike alongside cars / trucks, safe. None.

That's part of the idea of having dedicated bike lanes...

 

[RaleighPittFan]

Actually the opposite. The lower percentage of cars on the roads, the lower the deaths, whether they're replaced by buses, trains, or bikes. Even car pooling reducing automobile deaths because it means less total cars on the road. Do you have a source for your argument?



That's part of the idea of having dedicated bike lanes...

Wishing....

Dedicated bike lanes still cross car lanes. It's still unsafe.

People in cars just don't see motorcycles or bicycles. No amount of wishing will change that. It's unsafe.

 

[MarshallGoldberg]

Also, the more people that bike or take buses (especially buses on dedicated lines like the busway) and trains, the less .PEDESTRIAN deaths there are. As someone who primarily walks to the grocery store and who's kids walk to school, that's another benefit. This isn't suburbia, a large portion of our city walks to their schools and less drivers would be a good thing.

 

[MarshallGoldberg]

Wishing....

Dedicated bike lanes still cross car lanes. It's still unsafe.

People in cars just don't see motorcycles or bicycles. No amount of wishing will change that. It's unsafe.

Bike lanes reduce deaths regardless of the fact they don't eliminate them. You have to make policy based on statistics, not just generalized concepts.

Walking has a death rate of 54.2 per billion compared to 44.6 for bikes. Should we ban walking from cities because it's worse?

As for motorcycles, much worse. 213 deaths per billion miles of road. Not even close to the others. Maybe partially because we got rid of the helmet law but I'm not sure on that. Motorcycles are simply just too fast to be anything except a risk.

 

[WiseAndGlorious]

I have to wonder how many of the people bellyaching actually live in the city?

Or how many that get wadded up over bike lanes wasting money and space and slowing traffic also bitch that the city doesn’t use money and space for an on campus stadium and gleefully dismiss any effect it would have on Oakland traffic.

If Peduto came out in favor of an on campus stadium they would be ready to appoint him mayor for life.

 

[paulbl99]

I have to wonder how many of the people bellyaching actually live in the city?

Lmao

Haven’t we had enough of th I live in the city you don’t bunk...ALREADY

You never commented about Pgh when living in the bedroom community in RTP???
Doesn’t matter.....
This is a discussion board open to anybody.....regardless of residence.

 

[MarshallGoldberg]

Lmao

Haven’t we had enough of th I live in the city you don’t bunk...ALREADY

You never commented about Pgh when living in the bedroom community in RTP???
Doesn’t matter.....
This is a discussion board open to anybody.....regardless of residence.

Yeah you can discuss whatever you want. But if you can't vote for the Mayor of Pittsburgh, don't be surprised when he doesn't care what your opinion of bike lanes are. He has no reason to.

 

[NTOP]

I think they just have answers that you don’t agree with. The fact that this city wasn’t and isn’t built with personal vehicles in mind is something that a lot of people don’t seem to want to accept.

You want to improve traffic? Support mass transit initiatives, pedestrian access, and biking. That’s the safest, easiest, and most proven way.

Just don't surrender to the whims of sweaty workers. How does taking 1/3 of Penn Avenue out of play for a few people during rush hour improve ANYTHING for the majority. Do you approve separate bathrooms for the 52 gender identities

Well, Dems will run the city for the next 100 years as well, and the population isn't getting older, so they have to figure it out and that solution will be more bike lanes.

No, it'll be minibuses with Elon Musk gadgets doing the navi, driving and serving coffee inbound, scones and Earl Grey outbound. They'll need room, since EVERYONE with a brain will be living outside Allegheny County.

 

[Slick Manager of Champs]

if this will help sway bike lane Bill into closing Bieglow, I'm all for it. But I still don't think die hard nitters like Peduto, Fitzgerald (and all 20 of his kids), plus total idiots like Jim Ferlo will ever do anything to help Pitt.

 

[MarshallGoldberg]

No, it'll be minibuses with Elon Musk gadgets doing the navi, driving and serving coffee inbound, scones and Earl Grey outbound.

Wow sounds horrible. Oh wait, no it doesn't.

 

[SoufOaklin4Life]

Lmao

Haven’t we had enough of th I live in the city you don’t bunk...ALREADY

You never commented about Pgh when living in the bedroom community in RTP???
Doesn’t matter.....
This is a discussion board open to anybody.....regardless of residence.

No-
I never commented on the city, it’s governance, not live ability-
Since I had no vote in the matter.

Because it would be stupid and childish to do so.