Please read Clyde Haberman's Friday column in the NY Times. After reading it, and knowing how cyclist are not on the radar to most cars and city officials.
Don't you think its time to push the legislature into criminalizing acts against bicycles similar to what Mother's against Drunk Driving accomplished by stiffening penalties for accidents that occurred while driving intoxicated.
http://select.nytimes.com/2006/11/03/nyregion/03nyc.html?n=Top%2fNews%2f...
Requires subscription to read the column. Posting the body of an article or column is frowned upon here - email me if you want it.
"1) http://www.killacyclist.com/
2) Subscribe to TA's free E-bulletin and participate in advocacy campaigns. Or join TA, Time's Up, FreeWheels, and other groups. They all need money and volunteers.
3) Ask the NYCC leadership how you can help the club be active in the NYC Bicycling Coalition. There's far more work than two people can possibly handle. A committee of NYCC members could help to coordinate the club's participation in coalition programs, and in informing the rest of the membership of events and actions.
You could even adopt one particular issue. Email me if you want a list of what some current issues are. (I am a member of the coalition but do not represent NYCC.)
Cycling advocates (many unpaid) are very busy lobbying city agencies right now and progress is at hand on several fronts. (Though the parade permit law, if enacted, could undermine just about everything.) If the broader cycling community gets organized and starts making demands on the city, we would have even more momentum."
"""Don't you think its time to push the legislature into criminalizing acts against bicycles similar to what Mother's against Drunk Driving accomplished by stiffening penalties for accidents that occurred while driving intoxicated.""
Sure, that would be great, but cyclists are a tiny minority that the public views with disinterest at best. Ironically, the near term challenge for NYC cyclists is to de-criminalize cycling - I'm referring to the NYPD's proposed revision to the parade permit regulations."
"Perhaps it is time to obtain financing from a foundation to mount a campaign, ala MADD, to make the public and the government aware that cyclists need protection from careless and dangerous and negligent motorists. Yes, there are many groups out there doing this - but none has the money to mount a strong campaign of large advertisments and public interest TV and radio messages that will make an impact on the public and government.
Are there enough of us willing to provide ""seed"" money to get this started?
Let the NY Cycling Coalition, along with TA and the other groups get together and start the ball rolling. Yes, individual letter writing to government makes some impoact - but we need a well organized concerted effort to make this problem known to the public and government.
Cyclists and victims of negligent motorists and their immediate families know what I writing about - but the general public is oblivious to this problem."
