A great meeting is followed by an abhorrent hit-and-run
We had a great meeting of the SVBC San Jose Team last night. Thanks to everybody who came out, and thanks to Pho 69 for giving us a quiet, spacious loft to meet in!
colin's blog
Commute alternatives with the San José Green Team
I spent a couple hours at the San José City Hall today, tabling at a commute alternatives fair hosted by the City's Green Team. In addition to the SVBC table, there were representatives from the City of San José Department of Transportation, 511.org, Valley Transit Authority, Clipper, Bay Area Air Quality Management District, and others.
The Deputy's Diary: January 12, 2012
It's been an exciting week here at SVBC Global Headquarters. I started things off with a very positive evening at the Menlo Park Planning Commission as it fielded public input on the Facebook EIR. The next night, I called in to my first meeting as a member of the Board of Directors of the Bay Area Bicycle Coalition.
My small role in a recent win
I attended the Menlo Park Planning Commission meeting on Monday night to deliver some comments regarding the Facebook environmental impact report (EIR) on behalf of SVBC. I mentioned the fact that the bicycle would be a great way to mitigate some of the traffic, noise, and air pollution that the EIR cites as "areas of controversy." It's not unusual for me to visit such meetings and comment on projects, but the efforts that lead up to this meeting were pretty extraordinary.
Bike the halls
If you missed the Annual Winter Party last week, you're probably kicking yourself right about now after hearing how great it was. Allow me to deepen that regret with a quick photo recap of a really fun night!
About 90 people showed up for the getdown at Palo Alto Bicycles. The valet bike parking was well used, and everybody that rode to the party spent a bit of time out in the corral, comparing bikes, lights, and other accessories.
Belmont gets connected
There isn't much that will get me out of bed at 6:30 on a Saturday morning. The (very) short list of motivational morning events includes flights to tropical destinations, medical emergencies, earthquakes (magnitude 6.0 or above), and waffles. I can now add youth-centric bike bridge ribbon cuttings to that list.
Get ready for Valley Rapid
Santa Clara County residents, get ready for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)! This modern form of public transit is coming soon to the Alum Rock/Santa Clara/El Camino Real Corridor, and could change the way the corridor looks and functions.
You can learn all about BRT in Santa Clara County in this beautiful video:
You can learn more about Valley Rapid at www.valleyrapid.org.
An equal opportunity advocacy organization
Okay, let's talk gear. Normally, we at SVBC do not concern ourselves with the type of bike people ride, as it is of little importance to us what you ride, so long as you are able to do so safely. However, I feel the need to delve into gear today - and the riding styles gear influences - as some people have taken up the misguided belief that SVBC is here solely to promote this:
California knows how to (bike) party
Californian bicycle leaders: (l to r) CBC board member Andrew Casteel, Safe Routes to School National Partnership Executive Director Deb Hubsmith, CBC Communications Director Jim Brown and Executive Director Dave Snyder, and our own Corinne Winter enjoy a bonding moment.
Get political at the National Bike Summit
Join SVBC and hundreds of other cycling advocates from all around the country at the National Bike Summit in March! The Summit is a great way to learn more about bike issues, swap strategies with other individuals and organizations, network with other bike advocates, and have fun!
The big world outside the office
Things have been pretty exciting here at SVBC Global Headquarters lately. We're fast approaching the Fourth Annual Dinner, which I'm very glad to not be in charge of. My colleagues are doing a fantastic job and I have the luxury of just working on the communications for the event, editing copy, and helping figure out creative places to store items for the auction. Each year, our big fancy benefit dinner gets bigger and fancier, yet somehow we pull it off without debacle and decide to step it up the following year.
Get the bike advocacy summit you want
Okay, brainstorming session everybody! Some of you might recall the 2011 Silicon Valley Bike Advocacy Summit. It was a pair of community get-togethers where advocates and government agency folks heard some of our area's best transportation and development experts speak about topics like bike planning, transportation-oriented development, corporate cycling support, and more. It was a first for Silicon Valley, and we were proud of the turnout and the valuable conversations started at the Summit. Still, there's always room for improvement.
Governor Brown vetoes Senate Bill 910
Local leaders praise San José trails in magazine feature
A pair of local leaders - Silicon Valley Leadership Group CEO Carl Guardino and Santa Clara County Supervisor Ken Yeager - were featured in a recent article in Eucalyptus Magazine, in which they discussed their great daily bike commutes on Santa Clara County trails. Regarding his car-free commute, Guardino says "It is a great and healthy way to start and end each day—burning carbs rather than carbon, getting some exercise, and enjoying the beauty of the Los Gatos Creek Trail."
A Saturday spent fighting climate change
Last Saturday, I joined a hundred or so other environmentally-minded souls for a relaxing bike tour of central San José. The Moving Planet Day bike ride was organized by local advocate, SVBC member, and KKUP on-air personality Diane Solomon, with help from SVBC, San José Bike Party, TransForm, the Loma Prieta Chapter of the Sierra Club, and others.
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