Gimme Gimme Gimme - Some More Bike Lanes Please!!!

Austin was named a Silver Level Bicycle Friendly Community in May 2007 by the League of American Bicyclists. "The city of Austin was evaluated on engineering, education, enforcement and encouragement of bicycling." Austin is considered a very bike friendly city, although there is still much to be desired for the local cyclist. Chicago was actually much easier to bike, with it's bike lanes leading directly downtown. Neighborhood streets were safe, could be taken most anywhere, and bike theft wasn't quite as regular as it seems to be here. Austin may be a good city to bike in some areas, but Austin is a difficult city to bike due to a lack of bike lanes.

The Austin Police Force have recently been using their power to give out tickets to cyclists. Ticketing started after Critical Mass received some negative attention from the APD. They don't seem to see the function of Critical Mass and are trying to stomp it out. The Austin Police Department started handing out tickets to cyclists for not stopping at stop signs and red lights. "A bicyclist shall comply with the requirements of this title imposed on a driver of a vehicle, to the extent that the requirements may be applied to operation of a bicycle."

Are they doing this as a means of enforcing policies to keep people safe, or are they doing it as a bike lash to Critical Mass and biking in the city of Austin in general? March 27, the Austin Police Department took 2 Critical Mass Cyclists to jail after running red lights. According to the Austin Chronicle article, Critical Mass Arrests Pride or Policy, Officer Jason Mistric was the one who arrested Critical Mass Bikers and said that "From now on, running a red light is not a ticket; it's a trip to jail." Critical Mass can have the potential to be unsafe at times, but Critical Mass is trying to inspire more people to bike. It is amazing to see hundreds of bikes on the road at once. Biking is good for the health and for the environment. Critical Mass riders shout "get on your bike" to people who they pass.

The APD says they want motorists to respect cyclists, and they want cyclists to be safe (which is why they made arrests at the March 27th Critical Mass). Critical Mass just went north instead of South (toward downtown) for their April ride -most likely to avoid the Austin Police.

Both sides have points, but if we really want more saftey in Austin for cyclists can we put in some much needed bike lanes instead of just ticketing folks? A downtown commuter station (where a cyclist can shower before going to work) is really nice... but again shouldn't we be putting in some bike lanes first? You've gotta learn to walk before you can run.