Damien Newton
Recent Posts
Assembly Joins Senate and Says: Give Me 3
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The California State Assembly joined the Senate in passing S.B. 910 yesterday by an overwhelming 41-20 vote. S.B. 910 would require motorists to give bicyclists a three foot cushion when passing at miles in excess of fifteen miles an hour. The legislation needs re-approval by the Senate, something that occurs 99 percent of the time, […]
Give Me Three Rides to the Assembly Floor, Republican Opposition Expected
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This Friday, S.B. 910, the Three Feet Passing Law authored by Senator Alan Lowenthal (D-LB) heads to the Assembly Floor. S.B. 910 has been passing committees and the full Assembly by mostly party-line votes, but that doesn’t mean that passage is assured in two days. The California Bicycle Coalition has a sample letter to email […]
New Legislation Seeks to Lower Voter Threshold for Transit Tax Approval
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A series of amendments proposed by Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) to SB 791 would lower the threshold of voter approval for new taxes to fund transportation improvements from 67 percent to 50 percent. “SB 791 empowers local communities to meet their local transportation needs, improve regional mobility, and invest in high-priority, job-creating […]
Majority Leader Eric Cantor Eyes Bike Share Funding for Federal Cuts
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Conservative congressional leaders have had bicycle and pedestrian projects in their cross hairs for years. This has led to some serious policy concerns, such as a Republican bill to reauthorize the transportation trust fund that has no bicycle or pedestrian funds. And less serious ones, such as online polls designed to create populist anger against […]
Interview With Donald Shoup: Los Angeles Making Strides With ExpressPark
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Last week Streetsblog LA talked with UCLA Professor and parking guru Donald Shoup about ExpressPark, the new parking pricing system coming to downtown Los Angeles. Damien Newton: Los Angeles is changing the way it does parking in its downtown. They’re calling it the ExpressPark system. Let’s start with the basics — what is the program […]
L.A.’s CicLAvia Announces Expanded Route for October
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By the early afternoon of April 10, it was clear that CicLAvia had outgrown its original seven-and-a-half mile route. In the urban core of Downtown Los Angeles, bikes were packed so thick on the road that entire groups wouldn’t make it through traffic signals and other road users were intimidated from using the street. Something […]
Gov. Brown Vetoes Commuter Benefits Act, Cites Cost Argument
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Sounding like a spokesperson for the Republican opposition to the bill, Governor Jerry Brown announced a veto last week of SB 582, citing the cost to small businesses. From his veto statement: While I support the goal of reducing vehicle trips, this bill would impose a new mandate on small business at a time of […]
Move to Give Cities Power Over Speed Limits Gains Ground in Sacramento
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It’s hardly a state secret that California’s speed limit laws are designed to increase traffic speed at the expense of communities and urban design. AB 529, a hot piece of state legislation by Assemblymember Mike Gatto that already quietly cleared the lower house, seeks to give communities a little more leeway in setting local speed […]
“Give Me 3” Campaign Goes Statewide as Bill Moves Through Senate
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Last summer, a coalition of bicycle groups and the City of Los Angeles joined forces to create the “Give Me 3” public service announcement campaign to encourage drivers to give cyclists a larger berth when passing. Less than a year later, the California Bike Coalition (CBC) has launched its own “Give Me 3” website and […]
State Considers Restricting Parking in Transit Oriented Districts
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A.B. 710, the Infill Development and Sustainable Community Act of 2011 introduced by Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) would mandate that automobile parking in Transit Oriented Developments be limited to one car per residential unit or per 1,000 square feet of retail space. The Assembly Housing & Community Development Committee is scheduled to hear this legislation […]
CicLAvia 2011: Los Angelenos Take Back the Streets
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In a city that has defined itself by both cars and status symbols, CicLAvia is more than a seven and a half mile street party with a funny name, it’s one of the many signs that Los Angeles is changing and one’s status is not represented by the car that one owns. But for the […]
Antonio Villaraigosa Rebrands L.A.’s Transit Plan as a National Option
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Goodbye “30/10” and hello “Fast Forward America.” Congressman John Mica (R-FL) and Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) brought their road show to Los Angeles earlier this week to get feedback and elicit testimony on how to improve the federal transportation bill. While Boxer was on her “home turf,” it was Mica who sounded like a local, […]