I received an email from Nate Evans, with the City of Baltimore Bike and Pedestrian Planning Committee, regarding a current list of legislature that are currently in committee with the city council right now. He added a link to a petition site supporting these bills.
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/petition/853575826
I went over to http://www.baltimorecitycouncil.com and looked through list of legislature and found the bills on the petition as well as additional bills. Some of the bills seem to be fluff where as others are extremely important and require as much support as possible from the bicycling community.
Ordinance 09-0431 is extremely important. Seeing that there are still many grates in the city that are NOT bicycle friendly, the chances of an accident when required to bike on the road are more likely. Multiple places on Pratt Street where there are already designated bike lanes these grates exist. S. Hanover St at Pratt St is an example of an unsafe bike grate. If for some reason I need to shift close to the side walk because a car comes in to the bus/bike lane it could end tragically if the grate is hit. I for one would not be excited about flipping over the handle bars of my bike in the middle of downtown during rush our because of an encroaching car (which I’ve experienced many similar situations.)
Ordinance 09-0430 follows along the same lines of importance. If the city is going to embrace a growing biking community, they need to provide space. This ordinance covers the creation of bike lanes as well as grates that are bike safe.
Ordinance 09-0429 is unique in that many people don’t realize, you still need a safe place to put your bicycle once you get to work. I consider myself lucky because I can bring my bicycle inside and store it safely. For the longest time there was very little space for people to store their bicycles where I work. As of recently I’ve pushed management to provide more bike racks and to secure the bike racks. This is all in hopes that the students take advantage of this and bike, instead of drive, to school.
I’ve listed the rest of the ordinances that were brought up in the petition. All I can hope is that Baltimore takes advantage of its unique layout and embrace cycling as a major form of transportation, as opposed to some hobby or fad.
- 09-0176R – The Cyclists’ Bill of Rights FOR the purpose of reaffirming support for efforts to improve conditions for cyclists and encouraging more widespread awareness of the “Cyclists’ Bill of Rights” .
- 09-0175R – Informational Hearing – Baltimore Police Department – Police and Cyclists FOR the purpose of inviting the Baltimore Police Commissioner to report to the City Council on the Police Department’s procedures for responding to incidents involving cyclists and the Department’s general approach to the bicycling community.
- 09-0431 – City Streets – Bike-Safe Grates FOR the purpose of requiring that all City street paving and repaving contracts require that drainage grates be installed in a bike-safe alignment; requiring anyone undertaking a street paving project to install drainage grates in a bike-safe alignment; and generally relating to bike-safe grates on City streets.
- 09-0430 – Transit and Traffic – Bike Lanes FOR the purpose of allowing the creation of bike lanes; defining certain terms; prohibiting parking or standing in bike lanes; requiring bike-safe grates in bike lanes; imposing certain penalties; and generally relating to bike lanes on City streets.
- 09-0429 – Required Parking for Bicycles FOR the purpose of requiring certain new or expanded structures, premises, and uses to provide bicycle parking that meets certain standards; requiring certain employers to provide their employees with bicycle parking that meets certain standards; defining and redefining certain terms; imposing certain penalties; providing for a special effective date; and generally relating to required parking spaces for bicycles.
- 09-0173R – Informational Hearing – Mountain Biking on City Reservoir Watershed Property FOR the purpose of inviting representatives of the City agencies concerned with mountain biking on City reservoir watershed property and the mountain biking community to discuss how to allow mountain biking on City reservoir watershed property without harming water quality.
- 08-0077R – Baltimore City Green Collar Jobs Creation Coalition FOR the purpose of requesting the Director of the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development, the Director of the Department of Housing and Community Development, the Director of the Department of Public Works, the Director of the Department of Transportation, and the CEO of Baltimore City Public Schools to form a coalition to develop a plan to create green collar jobs in Baltimore City.
. The Lobster Potstickers were very good, I would go with a great but I didn’t get much of a taste of lobster in them. The sauce and the mixing were very good, if there was more of a chance for lobster then it would have been perfect. Finally, my wife had finished the appetizers with a shrimp salad.