Help Make Biking Safer --> Don't Erect More Barriers, Pave The Streets!

Phil,

  As a bicyclist, I do not feel the grade elevations or physical barriers you mention below are a good use of taxpayer money. I would much rather see the money spent on keeping streets properly paved.

  Cracks, potholes, and uneven pavement don't just affect motorists. Such street conditions are a real safety issue for cyclists like myself. A driver may damage his or her shocks or chassis riding over a pothole, but for someone on a bicycle it can mean a nasty spill. They also increase the costs of bicycle ownership (requiring more money spent to fix flat tires, etc.) and sometimes pose a danger to others as well if we have to weave unpredictably when riding in order to avoid these hazards. Physical barriers like you describe do not lessen but rather *increase* that danger, because they give us less room to maneuver when we need to do so.

  Thank you for reading, and I hope you think about better spending priorities and reconsider this legislation. If you are a staffer reading this (as is likely), please make sure the Assemblyman actually sees it, and feel free to share with others in your office.

Sincerely,
                       ((( starchild )))