UCLA Bicycle Academy: March 2010

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

The School of Public Affairs Thinks about Traffic, and Forgets the Bicycle

UCLA Public Affairs are putting on a big conference on how to solve L.A.'s Traffic Problems, - but when you look at the program, you would not know that the bicycle was invented a while back.

How did this happen? Another big names event (Villaraigosa etc) about traffic in LA without a bicycle on the program? Could that be a waste of time? and money?

Franklin Gilliam, Are you perhaps missing something?
Brian Taylor, Why do respectable UCLA faculty agree to participate in a traffic related event and fail to protest that the bicycle has, again, not received a slot on the program?
Randall Crane, What is so bold about silencing the bicycle option?
Donald Shoup, If we cannot claim a slot for the bicycle on the program of the Rosenfield forum, why bother to go there at all?
Michael Dukakis, are you not taken for a ride by an program agenda that is blind to the obvious?

Bright minds who still think about traffic and congestion without considering the bicycle alternative are a true liability. How much longer will you consent that your name and your research decorate a program which pretends to be about traffic, and fails to include the obvious remedy on the title page? It should not be so difficult to find someone to speak about bicycles to this audience? Academic negligence anybody?

Sad, poor, disappointing, and worse: The organizers of this program missed a chance to include Janette "Bold Ideas" Sadik-Khan, New York City Transportation Commissioner, who is in Los Angeles the night before, giving a lecture on a LA campus. That was not bold, not good, and not a good beginning. Start Over. The assignment is: "Responsibility and Guilt: How the UCLA School of Public Affairs Research and Teaching Agenda contributes to Traffic Gridlock in LA"

Table 2. Spending on pedestrian and bicycle improvements by metropolitan area, 1992 – 2006 source

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA $0.20 (per capita)
Providence-New Bedford-Fall River, RI-MA $2.30
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro, TN $1.92

Our Board

Phillip Bonacich (President) is emeritus professor of sociology with an interest in the economy of power in groups. He is a long time bicycle commuter and his daughter, Cory Caletti, is a senior transportation planner and bicycle program manager for the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission. Phillip cycles from Mar Vista.
Michael Cahn (Secretary) has "invented" the Bicycle Academy in 2008. He occasionally teaches a class on the history of transportation for the history department. He is a former board member of the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition and previously served as secretary of the Cambridge Cycling Campaign. He runs a secondhand bookshop in Cambridge (UK). He cycles from Santa Monica.
Jack Katz (Director) is professor of sociology with an interest in video documentation of the interactions of cycling in urban traffic. He would like to work with others to evaluate local candidates for political office for their track record on cycling issues. He picked up a 20$ bike at a garage sale on the way back from the car repair place 15 years ago, and would never be without one since. In the morning, he puts the bike on the 20 / 720 bus near Koreatown, and enjoys the ride back from campus.
Michael Manville (Director) is a professor of Urban Planning at the Luskin School of Public Affairs. He rides to campus from West Hollywood. Lucky him, he says he has been able to avoid for car commute for most of the positions he has held in the past. He is an active participant in regional planning issues and contributes to legislative initiatives on housing and transport.
Suzanne Paulson (Director) is a professor of Atmospheric & Oceanic Science and at the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability. She rides to campus from Sunset Park in Santa Monica on a quality steel bike. She has cycling company on her commute because her son Ry attends Geffen Academy on campus. He likes to use her panniers to transport his books to school.
Alex Purves (Director) is an Associate Professor of Classics at UCLA. She bicycles to campus from Santa Monica and also cycles with son to his elementary school. She is currently writing a book on Homer, who knew neither bicycles nor cars, but who did sing of the odd collision between chariots and pedestrians.
David Williams (Director) is a professor of Ophthalmology and Neurobiology at UCLA. He does research and teaches on the retina, and would like to see more motorists using their retina to view the road rather than their smart phones. He cycles in Westwood, but prefers places where there are fewer motor vehicles.

Purpose and Membership

The purpose of the UCLA Bicycle Academy is to improve conditions for bicyclists and pedestrians at UCLA. The Academy will
* Advocate for bicyclists’ and pedestrians’ interest on UCLA facilities
* Work with the campus and agencies and communities surrounding the campus in order to improve bicycle and pedestrian access to campus.
* Host social and educational events with a focus on bicycle/pedestrian issues related to UCLA.
Membership is open to current or former staff or faculty or visiting scholars of UCLA. Partners and family members of the above are also eligible as members. Students are welcome to all our functions.

UCLA Bicycle Academy

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

The School of Public Affairs Thinks about Traffic, and Forgets the Bicycle

Calendar

Contact Us

Mailing List

Our Board

Purpose and Membership

Documents

Blog Archive