bicycling

Stolen Bikes Boston is a city site that lets you upload details about your stolen bike - which will then be sent out to local bike shops, hospital and college police departments and "bike vigilantes" who subscribe to the associated Twitter feed.

Mass. High Tech takes a look at BikeNow, which aims to set up 150 solar-powered bike-rental kiosks across Boston for a fleet of 1,500 bicycles - if it can raise $2 million in financial backing.

Georgy is loving Open Bicycle in Somerville, which is not staffed by snooty snobs:

... I told Zack why I'd come to Open: that I'd had all these bike questions I wanted to ask in a non-judgmental environment, and I had heard they were nice guys. He smiled and shook his head, lamenting that there seemed to be a lot of bike snobbery in the area. He said it didn't make sense to judge people for not knowing everything about their bikes. ...

First, Fox in Detox did NOT hit the woman who was just standing with her bicycle at Washington and Beacon in Brookline, blocking an entire line of cars who had the light. But she has a better understanding now of why somebody might have been tempted.

In a city that now officially encourages people to ride bikes to work, there's an entire neighborhood that can't. East Boston residents who work downtown can't use the Tobin or the harbor tunnels and, as Kate Hutchinson discovered, T inspectors are now enforcing a pre-10 a.m. ban on taking bikes on the T:

... I left my house a little later that I usually do, because I know that the trains running to Bowdoin have fewer passengers after 8:30 am, and there would be more room for my bike (which is not that large to begin with). I paid my fare and went through the gates at Maverick, and was stopped by a T inspector, who informed me that I can't bring a bike on to the T until 10 am. I understand that he was enforcing policy, but I have never before had a restriction on my taking a bike on the T during peak hours. To his credit, the Inspector didn't let me get on, but I snuck on while he was distracted, in the last car of a six-car 8:50 train. There was penty of room on it for me and my bicycle. (In fact, there was plenty of room on the four trains that went by prior, while the Inspector was holding me on the platform.) ...

A bicycle enthusiast is seeking volunteers with cargo bikes to help her move, according to Boston Biker:

... I'm intrigued and inspired to attempt a bicycle move from my current place to the one I'm moving to 1/2 mile away in JP. I'm looking for a group of motivated bicyclists to help make this move happen. I'm also looking for the equipment necessary to pull it off, i.e. bike trailers and straps. I'll hire movers to do the lifting up and down the stairs, and will provide pizza and beer on the other end! ...

The Bulletin reports work began last week on construction of bike lanes on a three-mile stretch of Truman Parkway. The work also includes installation of a path along the Neponset River.

The entire street will be shut to cars on Sunday, May 31 for the Brookline Bike Parade, which begins at 12:30 p.m.

It's cool that American Legion Highway is now all decked out with bike-lane markings. But driving from Roslindale to Dorchester yesterday, I spotted four different kinds of bike lanes:

Lauren Hefferon reports she and other bike-backing parents finally got school officials to give the idea a try, several years after the school superintendent banned bikes. Only problem: The school doesn't want to install a bike rack.

Via Green Streets Initiative.

Paul Levy, CEO at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, wishes to address students at Harvard's medical and public-health schools who are riding their bikes to school now that the weather is nice: Put your damn helmet on and stop riding like a moron:

Today's quiz: What do we call a Harvard student who rides a bicycle in the wrong lane without a helmet?

Answer: An organ donor.

Wicked Local Cambridge reports on the arrest of man who allegedly stole bikes, then locked them to street signs and parking meters.

Mike Ball discusses a bill he had filed through his legislators to let bicyclists slow down, rather than stop, at stop signs if the way is clear - and the constitutional provisions that let every Massachusetts resident have legislation introduced.

Adam Pieniazek of Dorchester reports on a year without driving:

... So far, only one thing is certain, I do not miss driving, not even a little. If anything, cutting driving out of my life has actually improved my life! My transportation related stress decreased significantly, my health improved quite a bit, my wallet is fuller than it would have been and my general happiness has skyrocketed. I've carried items on my bicycle that I never imagined possible (a full size cooler for one, strapped across my shoulders), pedaled distances I would have once thought impossible (to Walden pond and back and then some), and carried my bike for miles at a time when it's broken down on the road. Plus, there's many small trips into and through the city that are actually faster than driving, saving me time and money. ...

We’ve received many questions about the new benefit for bicycle commuters that Congress included in the financial industry "bailout" bill. The bottom line is that bicycle commuters nationwide are now eligible to receive up to $20 per month for commuting expenses, either as a cash reimbursement or a pre-tax deduction, and their employers can obtain a tax benefit for participating in the program. The League of American Bicyclists has provided guidance on exactly what this means for you and your employer.

More HERE including; current guidance on the bike commuter benefit, actual text of the new law, the bill's author's - Congressman Blumenauer - explanation of the bill

Boston Metro reports the MBTA is looking at installing a bike cage at Forest Hills, similar to the one at Alewife, which would give bicyclists a secure place to stow their bikes while they're at work.

Dave Atkins runs down the highlights of the new bicycle-safety law just signed by Gov. Patrick. Among them: Opening your car door right in front of a cyclist now carries a $100 fine; motorists must yield to cyclists when making a left turn.

Do you bike a substantial portion of your commute and don't receive any compensation for public transit or parking compensation from your employer?

Or maybe the guy's just a Masshole. The story is set in Cambridge, where all raging-cyclist stories seem to happen these days. Cambridge Police report:

On 12/31/08 at 9:56 AM, a resident of Leominister reported that while operating her vehicle on Hampshire St., an unknown bicyclist became very irate and started yelling at her. While at a stop, the bicyclist then picked up his bike and started ramming it into the victims drive side door causing significant damage. The suspect then fled down Hampshire St.

Gribley watched a bicyclist go by in the Southwest Corridor Park this afternoon.

Alex Taylor tweets:

This dude is riding a bike with one hand and carrying an umbrella with the other in harvard sq. Tweed must stay dry.

Wicked Local Cambridge does nothing to disabuse us of the notion that Cambridge is full of weirdos with an item about a woman almost run down by "a man on a bicycle singing loudly and riding toward her the wrong way on Harvard Street."

Lizkdc starts a post with a photo of some guy sitting in a restaurant, laughing:

This is my uncle, Paul H. A little less then six months ago, he was sent flying by a speeding bicyclist while completing his route as a mailman in downtown Boston. His head collided with a granite curb, causing injuries so severe that despite being rushed to MGH for immediate brain trauma surgery, the doctors held out little hope of him ever regaining consciousness. ...

They haven't built the cage yet that can keep him out. But dude, they've got you on surveillance video.